Women's Marketing Benchmark Study Final PPT

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Women’s Sports Marketing Benchmark Study

{ December 9, 2015 }

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BSBA 2016 BSBA 2017 Faculty Advisor

Women’s Sports Marketing Benchmark Study Team

Abigail CurryPaige Nielsen Randy Myer

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Agenda

• Key Question

• Current State

• Fan Survey Analysis

• University Participation Analysis

• Key Takeaways and Implementation

Key Question Current State Survey AnalysisUniversity

Participation Analysis

Key Takeaways/Imple

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Key Question

How can UNC produce larger attendance numbers for female sporting events?



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5Key Question Current State Survey AnalysisUniversity


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The percent of facility filled varies among sports

Source: UNC Staff

Basketball

Field Hocke

y

Lacrosse

Socce

r

Softball

Volleyb

all0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

43%40%

8%

28%

60%

29%

Perc

ent o

f Fac

ility

Fill

ed (%

)

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34.7%Of our facilities are filled on average for female sporting

events

Average percent capacity is roughly 35% with Softball being the highest and Lacrosse being the lowest

1 • Softball

2 • Basketball

3• Field

Hockey4 • Volleyball

5• Soccer

6 • Lacrosse

v



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Source: UNC Staff

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Attendance number and percent utilization are not aligned because of a variation in facility size



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Source: UNC Staff

Basketball

Field Hocke

y

Lacrosse

Socce

r

Softball

Volleyb

all0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

2922

435 472

1663

300

2000

3900

651

5528 4337

200

4822

Column1Series 2

Num

ber o

f Peo

ple

Remaining Seats

Avg. # of Fans

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1 • Basketball

2 • Volleyball

3 • Soccer4 • Lacrosse

5• Field

Hockey

6 • Softball

v

2,922People is the highest average

attendance value for UNC female sports

Basketball has the highest average attendance and Softball has the lowest



Key Takeaways/Imple

mentation

Source: UNC Staff

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Objectives

DemographicsIncentivesFacilitiesParking

EntertainmentSocial MediaScheduling

Objectives

Staff BackgroundProgram Attendance

Program PerformanceMarket and Marketing Programs

BudgetIn-game Experience

Tickets/Loyalty Programs

UNC Fan Survey Program Survey

To identify opportunities to improve attendance at UNC’s female sporting events we created two surveys: (1) UNC Fan Survey and (2) Program Survey—other programs



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Procedure

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Fan Survey Analysis



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SEX

RACE

Survey Analysis - Demographics

150 # of Survey Respondents



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AGE

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Survey Analysis - Demographics

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3 4

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Interesting Trends – UNC Fan Survey

Of people would attend more games if parking was more

convenient 70%

Of people prefer game time M-Fr at 7pm 70%

Of people use Twitter and UNC Athletic Website for Info78%

Of people say that free apparel

is a huge incentive 81%

Of people say that professional entertainment is best for half-

time shows60%

Of people say that quality of view is the most important factor

for in-game experience 91%

Pre-game Issues In-game Issues



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Pre-Game Survey Analysis – Parking

• If parking improved, 71.7% of surveyed students said they would attend more games.

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• If parking improved 69.4% of surveyed adults said they would attend more games.

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• Overall Satisfaction with Parking (1-10)3



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3.96

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Pre-Game Survey Analysis – Scheduled Time

Weekday Overall – Top 2

7 pm 69%

6:30 pm 56%

Saturday Overall – Top 2

3 pm 51%

5 pm 51%

Sunday Overall – Top 2

2 pm 47%

3 pm 49%



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Pre-Game Survey Analysis – Social Media

Students – Top 2

Twitter 81%

UNC Athletics Website 69%

Adults – Top 2



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Twitter 78%

UNC Athletics Website 77%

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Adults – Top 3Students – Top 3

Pre-Game Survey Analysis – Facility

Quality of ViewScreens & ReplaysEase of Access to Facility

Quality of ViewComfortable Seating Easy of Access to Facility



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Students – Top 3

• If alcohol would be served • Post game autograph sessions• In-game competitive contest• Athlete interaction post game

Pre-Game Analysis – What would incentivize fans to come?

Free Giveaways 79% Significant Prizes 58% Entertainment 52%

Adults – Top 3

More Comfort 49%Better Facility 45%Coach Interaction 41%



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Other Categories with Less Popularity:

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In-Game Survey Analysis – Prizes

Student – Top 2

Apparel 89%

Future Game Tickets 68%

Adults – Top 2

Apparel 65%

Post Season Tickets 41%



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In-Game Survey Analysis – Halftime Entertainment

Student – Top 2

Prof. Entertainment 71%

Open Competition 71%

Adults – Top 2

Prof. Entertainment 43%

Mascot Events 41%



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University Participation Analysis



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Factors and process used to survey selected universities

Identified top 6 female collegiate programs ranked by attendance provided by Michael Beale and his team from online database

Chose the top 3 schools from each sport; if no ACC team present chose highest ACC program as the 3rd position

Identified Marketing Directors/Assistant Directors for each university department or sport specific representative

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2

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4Leveraged the UNC Athletic Marketing department to introduce the project to the identified programs and sent survey to them—corresponded through email



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Marketing Directors from these 9 programs—11 sports—completed the survey



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Softball Volleyball & Ice Hockey Tennis

Swimming & Diving Track & Field Volleyball

Tennis & Soccer Track & Field Baseball

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Survey questions were designed to assess correlation between these factors and attendance

STAFF BACKGROUND• Program Management Experience

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE

• Attendance Trends• Crowd Demographics• Attendance Trends Intra-season• Scheduling Tendencies (Day of week, time, conflicts, etc.)

PROGRAM PERFORMACE

• End of Season Records• End of Season Rankings• Program History

MARKET AND MARKETING PROGRAMS

• Target Audience• Effective Marketing and Advertising Channels• Promotional Opportunities



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BUDGET

• Allotment • Successful Spending

IN-GAME EXPERIENCE

• Fan Programs and Clubs • Spectator Engagement (Replays, statistics, videos, etc.)• Raffles and Prize Giveaways • Amenities or Services• Half-time Activities

TICKETS

• Pricing• Purchasing • Seat Selection

Survey questions were designed to assess correlation between these factors and attendance (continued)



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• Majority of Marketing Directors manage more than 1 sport with varying attendance performance

• There may be inherent advantages in managing more than one sport

• 7 of the 9 participating programs have staff with 1 – 5 years of experience

General Findings: Staff Background

There is no correlation between school attendance rankings with the experience of the Marketing Directors /Assistant Marketing Directors or sport specific representatives

Dedicated Marketing Directors/Assistant Marketing Director or sports specific representatives can benefit from managing more than one sport

1

2



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• Multiple programs indicated that the minority of attendees were students—less than 25% in most cases and some as low as 10%

• Rivalry games and games against ranked opponents bring larger attendance numbers

• Games late in conference play bring larger attendance numbers

General Findings: Program Attendance

• Early time-slot, weekend games can be targeted for larger attendance • There is a difference of opinion about whether holidays should be avoided • Most programs are scheduled around their conference television networks

Opponent and conference games are a significant driver of attendance

In general, attendees are youth teams, families with children, and middle-aged people

Scheduling is an important factor, but is mostly dependent on outside forces.

1

2

3



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• Generally have a historical ranking within the top 25• Many universities have competed for a national title in the last 5 years

General Findings: Program Performance

• Nebraska volleyball, Wisconsin hockey, Florida softball sold out for 5+ years• Typically they sell season tickets and charge for their games• Each of them have fan clubs with special benefits

Majority of programs have strong performance records in conference play and achieve repeat appearances in the NCAA tournament

It is clear that performance is a driver of attendance however many programs have established a loyal fan base, which lifts their numbers

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General Findings: Market and Marketing Programs

• Print is beneficial as well—magazines, flyers, pocket schedules, banners

Market generally consists of young families, students, and middle-aged adults

Social media—Twitter, Intagram, Facebook, Snapchat—and other technology—email, website, radio, and TV—are very effective marketing tools

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• Ticket Scavenger Hunt• Classroom Cardinal• Season Ticket Holders Meet and Greets• Theme Nights• Food Truck Nights • Champions of Character • Athlete Alumni Signing—famous or well known • Student Rewards App

Most programs have creative marketing promotions that have drawn a large crowd3



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General Findings: Budget

• Generally marketing departments spend more on promotions—up to 90% of marketing spend—than adverting and other miscellaneous resources

Each program has a different budget that they allot to different marketing categories– Marketing and Promotions, Advertising, and other programs

Of marketing spend, marketing and promotions yielded the best results

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Average Budget Allocation (%)

Advertising

Marketing and Promotions

Other Programs

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

20%

64%

20%



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Source: Participating Program Staff

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General Findings: In-game Experience

• Elements such as replays, statistics, promotional videos, etc.• Games like trivia contests are more frequently used than our standard 3 hats

• T-shirts were the most effective of all giveaway promotions• Food is a bigger seller with students

Interactive video board elements are a significant driver for in-game experience satisfaction

T-shirts, old jerseys, sport specific apparel and food are significant incentives for attendance

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• Pre-game clinics and on-court opportunities with introductions• Athlete or coach pre or post game interaction events

Post-game interactions such as meet and greets and autograph sessions are significant incentives for attendance3



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General Findings: Tickets

• Within these programs, students accumulate points to be used at a later date for prizes, giveaways or tickets at future events

• A few programs charge for single ticket admission• offer group discounts and season pass discounts

In general, each university has a rewards program for students similar to what we have with Fever

Majority of the programs offer free admission for female sports

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• Although, people are seeing a rise in online ticketing

Day of competition sales and walk up crowds are the most common 3



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Key Takeaways and Implementation



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PROGRAM HISTORY AND TRADITION• Most successful programs

o Wisconsin hockeyo Nebraska volleyballo Florida softball

• Reasons why are varied but knowno Region has very strong high school and club sport history in these sportso Really no professional teams compete in these marketso All are college towns with limited entertainment beyond sports

• These programs tend to attract primarily families and middle aged fanso Have many outreach and communications programs for this audienceo Students are only 10-20% of the crowd o Parking, facility quality (seats, views) and services are less of an issue

PROGRAM PERFORMACE

• Majority of programs have conference championships and NCAA appearances under their belt; performance is a driver of fan support o Wisconsin hockey – 4 national championships*; 4 final four appearances*o Nebraska volleyball - 3 national championships*; 4 final four appearances*o Florida softball – 2 national championships*; 16 NCAA appearances*

* Last 20 years

Long-term Program Success = Higher Attendance



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MARKET AND MARKETING PROGRAMS

• Social media functions as a significant force to channel information to fanso Twitter is best vehicle but some are experimenting with Instagram and Facebook

• T-shirt giveaways and free food were more effective than any other giveawayo Prize raffles is something others do but we do not

• Fan clubs with special benefits• Special seating sections for them to be together and common t-shirts help

• Creative marketing strategies have provided increases in numbers at select gameso i.e. ticket scavenger hunt, theme nights, food trucks, etc.

Key Takeaways: Fan Survey and Program Survey

TICKETS

• Ticket pricing was not a huge factor in driving attendance• In general, there was not priority seating allotted for ticket holders

o Nebraska—all reserved tickets for public, student first come first serve o Florida—first come first serve for all public o Wisconsin Ice Hockey—no preferred seating / reserved seating and general

admission • Season ticket programs with special communications and separate benefits are common



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BUDGET

• Most success comes from giveawayso Due to the fact that this is one of the most successful promotional strategies

• Most of their budgets are allocated towards promotions

IN-GAME EXPERIENCE• Interactive video board elements are one of the most successful tools

o Replays, stats, promotional videos, interviews, minute to win it videos, other athlete inspired entertainment

o Kids in the crowd shots also very popular – i.e. new rams horn shots o Trivia contests are very popular with the students – but need prizeso Name that tune are also fun and engaging

• People were most likely to attend with the hopes of free food or apparelo Sport related apparel, old jerseys, autographed paraphernalia

• Any chance to create athlete or coach interaction is a driver for attendanceo Kids on the court for national anthem, raffle opportunities to sit on the bench, pre

or post game clinics

Key Takeaways: Fan Survey and Program Survey



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Implementation Suggestions

High Priority:• Pre-game promotions on Twitter and Instagram• Devote specific job positions for social media management and

promotional activities – not part-timersSecond-Tier Priority:• Increased diligence about live stats/scores on Twitter (non-TV)• Enhanced social media presence – player and coach interaction

Marketing and Exposure

High Priority:• Develop all inclusive app—ticketing, fever points, club

management, giveaways • Fund specific sport fan club with own shirts and food (i.e. Block

Party VS Fever) • Use and promote free catered food as an incentive• T-shirts as giveaways—as frequent as possible Second-Tier Priority:• Try promoting a free game to sports that charge• Invited events between athletes and fan clubs/groups• Invite different youth/loyalty programs/clubs to pre-game and

post-game events

Promotional Strategies



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High Priority:• Premium seat locations for loyal fans--i.e. Courtside club for

volleyball and women’s basketball for season ticket holders • Cushioned backed seats for outdoor stadium seating (i.e.

football) Second-Tier Priority:• Have small van shuttle service from other parking locations—like

basketball and football on a smaller scale – for best games • Revamp facilities that have become outdated with an emphasis

on comfort, quality of view from all angles, accessibility, and parking

• Create an extension of the school of government parking with a deck to increase parking opportunities in the middle of campus

High Priority:• More use of interactive video board – trivia, fan shots, live music

shot of crowd, videos related to sports • Professional level entertainment (i.e Bouncing Bulldogs) • Organized half-time shows—dance teams, UNC choir, Frisbee

dog, live music karaoke, etc.

Implementation Suggestions

In-game Experience

Facilities / Transportation

and Parking



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THANK YOU!

Women's Marketing Benchmark Study Final PPT

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