MMS308 - Strategic Marketing Plan
Transcript of MMS308 - Strategic Marketing Plan
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Deakin University MMS308 – Sport
Marketing Faculty of Business and Law
Trimester 2, 2014
Melbourne Stars Strategic Marketing
Plan
By Sam Ryan (student ID: 211338161)
Unit Chair: Adam Karg
Tutor: Damien Whitburn Campus: Burwood (on-campus)
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Contents:
Sections Page 1 INTRODUCTION AND CURRENT SITUATION 3
2 ANALYSIS AND SWOT 6
2.1 MACRO ENVIRONMENT 6
2.2 MICRO ENVIRONMENT 8 9
2.4 PRODUCT/SERVICE OVERVIEW 9
2.5 COMPETITOR ANALYSIS 10
2.6 STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, THREATS 11
3.0 KEY OBJECTIVES 13
4.0 MARKETING STRATEGY 14
4.1 MARKET SEGMENTATION 14
4.2 MARKET TARGETING 15
4.3 MARKET POSITIONING 15
4.4 MARKETING MIX 16
4.4.1 PRODUCT 16
4.4.2 PLACEMENT 16
4.4.3 PROMOTIONAL 18
4.4.4 PEOPLE 19
4.4.5 RESEARCH 20 24
5.0 ACTION PROGRAMS 21
5.1 ACTION PLANS (WHAT, AIM, TIMELINE, STAGES, EXPENSE,
EXPECTED OUTCOME, MONITORING) 21
5.2 BUDGET SUMMARY 24
5.2 EVALUATION AND MEASUREMENT 25
REFERENCES 27
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1.0 Introduction and Current Situation:
This strategic marketing plan for the Melbourne Stars (MS) has a
three-fold aim; to increase MS membership, increase participation in
the national grassroots cricket program Milo In2 Cricket, and increase
exposure of elite cricket in regional areas of Victoria.
This plan outlines the staging of six Big Bash League (BBL) matches
between the Melbourne Stars and other BBL teams at the Queen
Elizabeth Oval (QEO) in Bendigo, Victoria across the 2014/15,
2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons.
Other secondary benefits are anticipated to emerge as a result of the
matches. These include increased interest in cricket at a local club
level, increased economic activity in Greater Bendigo, in addition to
increased standard of the QEO as it undergoes any necessary
upgrades for the hosting of these matches.
Melbourne Stars
The Melbourne Stars were established in 2011 as part of the
commencement of the BBL, a replacement of the Twenty20 Big Bash
competition that preceded it (BBL 2014). BBL01 saw an increase from
six teams (all state-based) to eight teams (two teams in Melbourne
and Sydney, and one in Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane and Hobart) in a
city-based competition. Led by former Test cricket great Shane
Warne, MS played their first match on 17 December 2011 at the
Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), and went on to reach the semi
finals where they lost to the Perth Scorchers. They continue to be an
on-field success despite not winning a BBL title over the past three
seasons, most recently finishing on top of the ladder after the
qualification rounds in BBL03.
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Off the field, MS have been a league leader in terms of club
membership, having a tally of 4,972 members at the end of the
2013/14 season, 1,345 ahead of their nearest rival, the Melbourne
Renegades. MS have been directed by Cricket Australia to increase
their membership tally from 4,972 last season to 7,500 by the end of
BBL04 – a ‘challenging target’ according to MS Chief Executive Officer
(CEO), Clint Cooper (telephone conversation, 11 September 2014).
MS have been involved in both the highest game attendance for a
cricket match at Etihad Stadium (42,837 in 2013/14), and also the
highest attendance for a domestic cricket match in Australia (46,581
at the MCG in 2012/13). Both these matches were against the
Melbourne Renegades, cross-town rivals of MS (BBL, 2014).
Regarding viewership specifically, CEO Clint Cooper has stated
(telephone conversation, 10 September 2014) that MS wish to
increase the number of television viewers of their matches from
961,000 per game in BBL03 (better than many other codes) to 1.2
million per match for BBL04.
The first three BBL seasons have seen profits generated each year,
apart from a small overall loss in BBL02, due to a poor fixture
according to CEO, Clint Cooper. Nonetheless, Cooper believes that the
first three seasons of existence for the MS have largely been a
success, however given the competition is still in its relative infancy,
there is plenty of room for improvement, both at a league and team
level.
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Greater Bendigo
Bendigo is a regional centre located in central Victoria, 150km North
of Melbourne. At the 2011 census, the city of Bendigo had a
population of 82,794 (Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2011),
making it the fourth largest urban centre in Victoria based on
population. Bendigo’s population has risen by 9% since the 2006
census, thus appears to be a thriving community and economy that
this marketing plan can target.
A strong interest in cricket already exists in Bendigo, with the local
cricket association governing a competition involving 10 teams from
around the area (Bendigo Cricket 2014). Furthermore, the Bendigo
Cricket District Association (BCDA) has indicated its interest in hosting
a domestic fixture in their hometown. BDCA President Wayne Walsh
was quoted as saying in 2012 that ‘…it would be wonderful for cricket
in Bendigo for the junior cricketers of our region to get the chance to
be up close and personal with some of Australia’s best cricketers
(Bendigo Advertiser 2012, p. 1). Due to its thriving population, central
location, participation at local grassroots level and strong interest
from the head of the BDCA itself, Bendigo presents a viable placement
for this marketing plan.
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2.0 Analysis and SWOT:
2.1 Macro environment (Shilbury, et al. 2009)
Technological environment
The emergence of social media as a marketing tool over recent times
has been significant. Regular updates on platforms such as Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram, in addition to the MS website will provide
valuable information to current and prospective fans regarding
upcoming matches, player profiles, statistics, ticketing information
and promotional activities.
Economic environment
Current general admission tickets to MS home matches at the MCG
are $20 for an adult, $12 for a concession and $5 for a child (MCG
2014). Prices for the staged matches in Bendigo will be 10% less than
this, to promote the affordability of watching elite cricket. This means
it will cost an adult $18 for an adult, $10.80 for a concession and
$4.50 for a child. According to the most recent census conducted by
the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2011, the average weekly wage
of families with children in Greater Bendigo is $1,944 (ABS 2011).
Thus, the aforementioned ticket prices are well within the range of
affordability for the residents of these areas, particularly families with
children; a key target group of this marketing plan.
In addition, this proposal aims to introduce a new two game
membership package (a specific innovation set to be implemented
during this upcoming season according to CEO Clint Cooper via
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telephone call, 10 September 2014), whereby a fan (or fan family)
may purchase a membership that provides them with discounted
entry to both matches staged in Bendigo. The reasoning behind this is
the possibility that many fans cannot afford to attend matches played
in Melbourne due to travel and accommodation costs, as well as
getting days off work and school. Furthermore, it will encourage
consumers to return and attend the second Bendigo match after
attending the first one. These memberships will include price-reduced
tickets to the two matches, along with merchandise vouchers, and a
signed photo of a Melbourne Stars player for every family
membership purchases. These will be charged as follows;
• Family Fan Membership (allows admission to both Bendigo
matches for the season based on a family of two adults and two
children): $70 (a saving of more than 20% on normal
ticket prices)
• Individual Two Game Memberships (allows admission to both
Bendigo matches for the season): $30 for adults, $20 for
concession, and $5 for children (roughly a saving of
around 20% for each category based on normal ticket
prices)
Sociocultural environment
In 2011, the population of Greater Bendigo was 82,794, and of this,
21,600 were from families. Of this total, 40.3% (8,704) were part of
families with children, with the average number of children per family
being 1.9 (ABS 2011). As mentioned earlier, this is a key target group
for this marketing plan.
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2.2 Micro Environment (Shilbury, et al. 2009)
Customers/Clients
Despite our overall aims of increasing MS membership, increasing
participation in the Milo In2 Cricket program in addition to increasing
regional Victoria’s exposure to elite cricket, the main consumers this
plan intends to target are families with children. Given the fact that
children wishing to participate in Milo In2 Cricket must be aged
between 5 and 10 years of age (Milo In2 Cricket 2014), a burden falls
on the parents of these children to pay for the program, take them to
the required locations and provide supervision and assistance in the
delivery of the program where necessary. Because of this, it is
important that interest in cricket is generated at a family level, not
just at the aforementioned age group.
Suppliers
MS are fortunate enough to have a plethora of major sponsors
associated with them. Businesses such as Dick Smith Electronics,
Mitsubishi Motors, Chemist Warehouse, Antler Luggage and Victoria
Bitter among others will be of significant assistance in the staging of
these matches in Bendigo (Melbourne Stars 2014). MS will also be
open to local Bendigo businesses sponsoring the team as a means of
leveraging their product or service in the local community. This is an
example of a secondary benefit of staging these matches in a regional
area as mentioned previously in this plan.
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Competitors
Given the nature of these matches, there are no direct competitors to
MS in Bendigo. An indirect competitor will be the local cricket
association (BDCA), in terms of whether people choose to play or
attend their local match in favour of the MS match. In order to
combat this, the Big Bash League matches will be scheduled away
from local cricket matches to allow for the greatest possible crowds
and ground availability. The potential also exists for a bye weekend in
local cricket to gain maximum exposure of the match.
2.4 Product/Service Overview
The service being offered by this marketing plan is the staging of six
Big Bash League matches involving the Melbourne Stars and other
BBL teams in Bendigo, Victoria across three seasons, with the plan
being implemented at the start of the 2014/15 season.
The aim of these matches is three-fold; to increase MS membership,
to increase participation in the Milo In2 Cricket program, and increase
regional Victoria’s exposure to elite level cricket. Secondary benefits
to the venture will be increased economic activity in Bendigo and
surrounding areas before, during and after the matches through local
product and service consumption and sponsorship, in addition to the
upgrade of the Queen Elizabeth Oval to an elite standard to enable
the staging of the matches.
The marketing plan is targeting families with children within the
Greater Bendigo area, specifically.
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2.5 Competitor Analysis
MS are without any direct competitors (Shilbury et al. 2009) in the
greater Bendigo area. Given the novel nature of staging Big Bash
League matches in Bendigo, this has not been done before (see
Bendigo Advertiser 2012).
The local Bendigo District Cricket Association (BDCA) is considered an
indirect competitor, as the MS match will require use of the premier
ground managed by the BDCA, in addition to potential match clashes,
as the BBL matches would be staged on a weekend. However,
through consultation with the BDCA, a bye weekend could be
manufactured to eliminate this class with grounds and local cricket
fixturing to allow as many people to attend the match as possible.
Ultimately the MS possess a competitive advantage over the BDCA,
particularly in relation to spectator value – the product delivered in
the form of the BBL matches will totally eclipse anything the BDCA
could offer, in terms of star players, quality of cricket, fan
engagement and excitement.
Another indirect competitor is the Melbourne Renegades, however
given the fact the Renegades will not be staging matches in the
Greater Bendigo area while the Melbourne Stars are, and as such are
not a significant competitor to the market segment that this
marketing plan targets. Further, the Renegades will work
collaboratively with the Melbourne Stars within some aspects of the
plan, thus eliminating them as a competitor as such.
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2.6 Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (SWOT)
Analysis (Shilbury, et al. 2009)
Strengths:
• Membership base of nearly 5,000
following the 2013/14 season (more
than 1,000 more than its nearest
rival (Clint Cooper, telephone call,
10 September 2014).
• On-field success – finished clear on
top of the ladder after preliminary
rounds of 2013/14 season.
• Sponsors – upon researching each
BBL team’s websites, MS appear to
have the most major sponsors by
far, with 13, as opposed to the next
best number of 9 for the Brisbane
Heat (BBL 2014).
• Fan engagement – MS won the
inaugural Fan Engagement and
Community Engagement award in
2013/14 for their community work
(Cricket Victoria 2014).
• Social media engagement – MS
have the third most Facebook ‘likes’
of the eight BBL teams (203,000),
with nearly double the number of
their cross-town rivals the
Melbourne Renegades (103,000).
Weaknesses:
• Relative lack of on-field success (no BBL
premierships)
• Decreased capacity to generate crowds
at a smaller venue in Bendigo compared
to the Melbourne Cricket Ground (Clint
Cooper, CEO).
• Potentially less revenue and profits from
matches in Bendigo compared to their
closest rival (Melbourne Renegades),
possibly giving them a competitive
advantage (Clint Cooper, CEO).
• The loss of marquee player Brad Hodge
to rivals the Adelaide Strikers.
• Fixturing difficulties relating to the time
of year and weekends/weekdays, in
addition to ground availability in
Melbourne (Clint Cooper, CEO).
Opportunities:
• Entering a new market and
generating a new wave of
supporters in regional Victoria
• Boosting membership and
Threats:
• The venture to Bendigo may be an
unsuccessful one in terms of
participation and achieving overall
objectives
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participation levels across Victoria
• Attracting a relatively new target
market of families with young
children to elite cricket in regional
areas, in addition to females and
ethnic groups specifically (Clint
Cooper, 2014)
• Increasing viewership of matches
from 961,000 to 1.2million this
season (Clint Cooper 2014)
• Become a BBL leader in fan
engagement and participation (Clint
Cooper, CEO)
• Potential for poor profitability, largely
due to small capacity of regional host
grounds (Clint Cooper 2014)
• Giving up a ‘home ground advantage’ to
some extent by playing home games at
a foreign ground despite being in
Victoria
• Melbourne Renegades have a potentially
more lucrative area of Victoria to work
with (Western Vic, which includes
Geelong and Skilled Stadium) compared
to MS who have the East of the state
with a lack of large regional centres
• Detracting from efforts over the past
three seasons by taking matches away
from Melbourne and its supporters to
other markets (Clint Cooper, CEO)
Based on the above analysis of the current situation the Melbourne
Stars find themselves in with regard to this new venture, the
strengths appear to comfortably outweigh the weakness, and as such
it is expected this strategic marketing plan will produce a positive
outcome.
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3.0 Objectives:
Based on the previous analysis, the implementation of this strategic
marketing plan will achieve three main objectives:
1. To increase Melbourne Stars membership tally from 4,972 (current)
to 7,500 after year one (specific aim of Melbourne Stars according to
CEO Clint Cooper, telephone call, 10 September 2014), 9,000 after
year two and 10,000 after year three.
2. Achieve sell-out crowds (18,000 tickets) to each BBL match staged
in Bendigo across the three years of this plan. This is required to
ensure the plan is financially feasible if implemented (Clint Cooper).
3. Increase Victorian participation in Milo In2 Cricket from 68,144 to
71,550 by year 1, 75,125 by year 2 and 78,880 by year 3 (5%
increase each year (relating to one of five strategic pillars outlined by
Cricket Australia in 2015 for the next four years (CricInfo 2011)).
In a general sense, this marketing plan aims to increase MS
membership, increase participation in junior grassroots level cricket,
and increase the overall exposure of the Greater Bendigo area to elite
cricket.
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4.0 Marketing Strategy:
4.1 Market Segmentation
Segmentation of the market is based on geographical location, this
being the Greater Bendigo area. In 2011, the population of Greater
Bendigo was 86,079, and of this, 22,535 were from families. Of this
total, 40.7% (9,169) were part of families with children, with the
average number of children per family being 1.9 (ABS 2011). As seen
below, the 40.7% of the Bendigo population (shown in green) that are
couples with children is only just below the national average (shown
in grey), thus this is a plausible segment to target.
Figure 1: Family Composition Percentages in Greater Bendigo,
Victoria and Australia, 2011.
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4.2 Targeting
Generally speaking, the entire Greater Bendigo population will be
targeted by this marketing plan, however couples with children will be
the specific target of the plan, due to the following characteristics;
• To achieve the objective relating to increased participation in
the Milo In2 Cricket program, it is necessary for children aged
between 5 and 10 years to attend the MS matches and become
interested in the game of cricket, thus justifying the targeting of
couples with children.
• These children are generally too young to a) transport
themselves to and from matches, clinics or training days, and b)
to pay entry fees, merchandise costs and registration fees, thus
the need for parents to be present.
• To a lesser extent, it is important to generate interest in the
parents of these children, as this will boost their enthusiasm to
attend cricket matches, clinics and programs to support their
children, which will ultimately result in the purchase of
memberships and merchandise, attendance at games and
viewership on television.
4.3 Positioning
Considering the lack of competitors to MS as detailed in the SWOT
analysis, it seems more practical to join forces with the Melbourne
Renegades in the positioning of their product to generate interest in
the competition in general. In terms of this marketing plan, this
collaboration will see one of the two matches staged in Bendigo each
season for the next three years be contested between the Melbourne
Stars and Melbourne Renegades. Further to this, both Melbourne
Stars and Melbourne Renegades players will attend the MS junior
cricket clinic in Bendigo.
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This relationship is expected to be mutually beneficial for both the
Stars and the Renegades, and whilst the staging of one of the much
publicised ‘derbies’ between the two teams away from Melbourne may
potentially result in lost revenue in these three years, it is hoped this
will act as a short-term loss for long-term gain, as ultimately this
partnership will attract more children, adults and people in general to
the game of cricket, and more specifically to the Big Bash League and
its two Melbourne franchises.
Specifically relating to the target market of this plan (couples with
children), the product (matches) will be positioned in the following
ways;
• To parents of children; as a fun and interesting family activity
that only occupies three to four hours of their day
• To young children; as a fun day out with other children their
age, watching exciting cricket and getting to see their favourite
players from television up close in the flesh
4.4 Marketing Mix
4.4.1 Product:
As previously outlined, the product being presented to consumers is
two Big Bash League matches in Bendigo each season for the next
three years, one of which will be between the Melbourne Stars and
the Melbourne Renegades, and another between the Melbourne Stars
and another team to be confirmed.
4.4.2 Placement:
Delivery of the product is potentially the most vital part of the
marketing mix. Visible and invisible elements (Shilbury et al. 2009)
will need to be managed to delivery the best possible product to the
consumer. The main point of distribution of the product in this case
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will be the Queen Elizabeth Oval (QEO) in Bendigo. Austadiums
(2014) indicate the QEO has a capacity of 18,000 people, which
includes seating and standing areas. On one side of the ground sits a
large grandstand, which will be the base for most of the promotional
work occurring before, during and after matches, ie; where
merchandise and membership stalls will be located, sponsor tents, as
well as food and beverage stands.
The ground itself is located on View Street, 1.2km from the Bendigo
CBD (Google Maps 2014). Whilst there are limited parking bays
surrounding the ground, the close proximity to the CBD of Bendigo
means fans can walk to the ground, or catch public transport to close
to the ground, as there is a bus stop directly out the front of the QEO
(Public Transport Victoria 2014). Other visible elements of service
delivery in this case will be the staff working at food and beverage
stands, Melbourne Stars staff working at merchandise and
membership stalls, sponsor representatives running promotions, in
addition to the players and coaches of the two participating teams.
Further to this, the matches will be broadcast live on ABC Grandstand
Radio, thus delivering a partial product to the rest of Australia and the
world. The invisible elements in this situation will be the planning of
marketing and operations personnel prior to, during and after the
match.
Ultimately, the service provided here will determine whether or not a)
a person who attended the first match will attend the second match
and so on, and b) whether or not the person who attended a match
will go out and encourage others to attend the next match. Thus,
delivery of the service is vital in the plan’s success.
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Figure 2: The Queen Elizabeth Oval in Bendigo, where six BBL
matches will be hosted across three years beginning in
November 2014.
4.4.3 Promotional:
Advertising:
Advertising of the matches will be conducted through television, radio,
electronic media and social media. The advertisements will detail the
date, time, location and cost of the matches to potential consumers,
as well as a link to the Ticketek website to allow easy access for
consumers to purchase tickets. Aside from the raw logistical details of
the match, the advertisements will feature promotions from star MS
players such as Kevin Pietersen and Cameron White detailing the
benefits of attending a match to grant credibility to the promotion
(Shilbury et al. 2009), in addition to still and moving images of
highlights from previous BBL seasons. Specifically, these
advertisements will feature during Australian cricket matches prior to
the commencement of the BBL season, capitalising on a viewership
and listenership who are obviously already interested in cricket. This
will be accompanied by regular social media updates on the
Melbourne Stars’ Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2011, 70% of
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households had a broadband internet connection, making our social
media campaign appropriate.
Sponsorship:
This is a key area of promotion for this marketing plan. Financial
resources from a number of sponsors will be required to engineer the
staging of two matches in Bendigo per season. It is hoped that major
sponsors of MS including Chemist Warehouse, Mitsubishi and Dick
Smith (Clint Cooper, telephone conversation, 10 September 2014) will
assist in generating these resources through sponsorship. Specifically,
it is planned that Mitsubishi will donate one car per match staged in
Bendigo that will be raffled off in the change of innings interval (each
person will receive a ticket in the draw upon entering the ground).
This will leverage Mitsubishi’s name and its products in the Greater
Bendigo area (conveniently, there is a Mitsubishi dealership located in
Bendigo), and also add value to each attendee’s ticket – they will see
elite-class cricket with also the chance to win a car at no cost to
them. Furthermore, Dick Smith will get involved in the promotion of
the product, having product stalls situated around the ground
providing small radios and headphones for free to allow attendees to
listen to commentary of the match while they watch it. Like
Mitsubishi’s involvement, this will be beneficial for both Dick Smith
who get to promote their products and services in the Greater
Bendigo area (there are two Dick Smith locations in the Bendigo
central business district), and also MS, who are adding more value to
their product.
4.4.4 People
The people involved in the delivery of the matches and associated
tasks will be vital. These include, but are not limited to volunteers and
paid staff of the Melbourne Stars working in marketing, operations,
memberships and merchandising, as well as the players themselves,
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who will be required to be well trained with media commitments and
fan interaction as part of the plan. Consumer interaction with an
organisation’s staff dictates whether or not expectations are met,
which ultimately determines the level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction
from the consumer’s point of view (Shilbury et al. 2009).
4.4.5 Marketing research
Currently, MS predominantly use survey sampling of their fans to
determine consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction, market trends,
along with strengths and weaknesses of the product being delivered
(Clint Cooper, telephone conversation, 10 September 2014). This
method of research will be used prior to and following each of the two
BBL matches staged in Bendigo; firstly, to ascertain consumer
expectations about what they will receive and experience at the
match, and secondly after the match, to determine whether or not
these expectations were met, in addition to any particular strengths
and weaknesses of the event. This survey will be distributed by email
using the database of emails collected following ticket purchases
online. In conjunction with this form of research, a survey of social
media activity will also be conducted. This is known as netnography,
which O’Reilly et al. (2012) define as the process where a researcher
joins an online forum and/or surveys social media outlets such as
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get an idea of current discussion
trends and common opinions of the online public. Given the MS have
a prominent presence on social media, this will be a simple form of
market research to be implemented both before and after each match
staged.