Introduction
With the advanced technological society we live in today and the sports industry's rapid growth, it can be refreshing to see one thing that has maintained stability - the number of people who are still sports fans. In America alone, 60% of people consider themselves sport fans, which has not significantly changed from studies conducted in the past (Jones, 2015). Sports have been, and remain an essential part of many people's lives, so much that they even consider them to be part of who they are. However, it is not the love of the game that is impacting TV ratings, specifically regarding the NFL, but rather social media that is triggering a decline in views. It is no surprise that social media is impacting many industries, yet the NFL has yet to take advantage of all the benefits that social media can bring to an organization. The NFL should utilize social media more to engage with fans and create a football culture online.
Background of the Study
With the NFL being the United States' most popular sports league, there is ample opportunity to capitalize on the growth rate of social media users: currently, there are over 300 million active users on social media ( Suk-Kyu et al., 2013 ). Yet with the rise of social platforms, there is a decline in viewing sports via traditional media. Austin Karp from Sports Business Daily discovered a consistent decline in football viewing from 2015--2017. ESPN’s Monday Night Football has dropped about 2 million in views, NBC’s Sunday Night Football has dropped about 3 million, and Thursday Night Football on networks like NBC, CBS, and NFL have shown a drop in viewers of about 2.5 million ( Clark & Melancon, 2013). These results revealed the lowest viewership of Thursday Night Football since broadcast networks became partners in the PACKAGE in 2014 as well as NBC’s lowest figure since 2008. With a noticeable decline in viewers, the NFL needs to use social media more to increase engagement and build an online community centered on football culture.
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The NFL is deeply rooted in American culture and needs to use social sites to promote that concept. Football has been a sport that is central to the lives of many Americans and even the players uphold a sense of family on and off the field. The players, coaches, and fans alike all come together and work as a cohesive unit. In addition, the community centered on the game is a part of the experience as a whole. Fans share the same attitudes as those around them and can connect on deeper levels through the love of the game. The concept of community and culture is imperative to attract participants on social media, particularly millennial users.
It is high time for the NFL to take advantage of the growth in social media users and use online sports marketing as a foundation for fan communities for their professional sports league and teams. The overall access to the internet has increased in America and people, including fans, are embracing the social media as a new form of communication while shunning away from traditional methods such as the use of TVs. The inclusion of various forms of media such as audio, podcasts, live broadcasts of league games and video files in social media websites has become a better tool that the NFL can use to enable more user interaction and user empowerment. For the NFL to be in a position to harness the overall importance of social media in promoting a culture of fan engagement, it should make use multimedia and user interaction systems to develop social connections that will enable them to create value for fans.
There is a need for the NFL to create media-based content and opportunities for fans to interact online with teams and with each other using various social media platforms. Teams should create interactive web spaces in social media to take advantage of fans attachment in extending team experience and build fan loyalty. The World Wide Web (www) has arguably become a sophisticated media of global communication in these modern times, thus offering opportunities for teams to connect with fans and spend less on advertising. NFL teams could, therefore, use the over 234 million websites in the web with over 1.8 billion users to increase revenue, enhance fan loyalty, and to build the brand of individual organizations through online marketing(Smith & Smith, 2012).
The use of social media through the evolving web will ensure that team website of the NFL is generally accessible to fans from any geographical locations who use either their personal computers or modem to access the internet. The web thus serves as a global means of connecting fans to their desirable NFL teams and provides team-fan interactions which were not possible through the use of telephones which provided information entirely on static texts and images. Most teams in the NFL are still ignoring and shunning away from using the sports marketing from the web. The only content that the NFL used to upload in the web was the presentation of team news to fans. What the NFL does not know is that the web has numerous advantages to teams as they can use the available extended audience in the web to market its products and activities, which will, in turn, result in more revenues. Research studies have shown that revenues from other professional sports organizations in the United States have increased to an estimated $416 billion annually (Kaplanidou et al., 2012). The global rise of fans enthusiasm in sports interest has been witnessed thus creating a larger web-based audience for the NFL to serve. It is therefore important for the professional sports organizations such as the NFL to use the web as a comprehensive business tool to reach fans by building a web presence as an integral part of their sports marketing strategy.
Though the use of social media has through online marketing has proved to be beneficial to professional sports organizations, it will be more prudent for the NFL to understand the limitations and consumer needs presented by online sports marketing. Improper use of social media by NFL members can bring detrimental effects which include lowering of the amount of revenue and a decrease in a fan base. Maintaining the privacy of its online users should always be given the first priority. Sports managers need to reassure fans making online purchases of NFL merchandise that their personal and financial information provided during online purchases will remain confidential and secure. There is a need for the professional organization body of the NFL to educate individual members the role and use of different social media platforms to interact with fans and to generate revenue. The increased use of social media and communication technologies not only creates interaction between teams and fans, but it also acts as a source of empowerment to fans. Social media websites such as YouTube allows fans to upload and share videos of games and matches of games they record of thereby providing a means for fans to interact with one another. Providing an avenue for fans to interact provides the NFL with increased understanding of fans which will enable them to personalize their market strategies in accordance to the needs of their fan base. Furthermore, having a personal connection with fans and customers by responding to them using interactive websites could enable teams in the NFL to create a ‘sticky website that engages users so that they return regularly for services.
Literature Review
Social media use as a tool of communication is concerned in establishing relationship marketing with its fans and potential customers. Relationship marketing involves organizations creating relationships through communication and interaction with its customers (Abeza, O'Reilly &Reid, 2013). The success of NFL relies on how effectively and efficiently it associates and interacts with its fans. Using social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to communicate with fans increases understanding of customers' needs thus enabling teams in the NFL to provide additional value to its fans. Through relationship marketing, NFL will be in a position to strengthen its brand awareness and increase loyalty among its fans.
Research studies’ concentrating on the loyalty of sports fans has established that there is a strong association between customer loyalty and effective communication through relationship marketing. Witkemper, Choong and Waldburger (2012), define consumer loyalty as the ability of a customer to show commitment to purchasing and supporting a specific product or service while disregarding existing situational influences. It is therefore important for professional sports organizations such as the NFL to frequently engage their fans and build mutually interactive relationships with them to maintain their loyalty.
According to Clark and Melancon (2013), the primary purpose of establishing relationship marketing is for both parties involved to gain mutual benefit. The benefits that an organization will acquire include customer retention, greater profits, increased stability of the organization, reduced marketing costs, and increased loyalty (Abeza, O'Reilly, & Reid, 2013). On the other hand, customers will be in a position to receive the personalized attention which ensures that are satisfied with the services offered to them (Clark &Melancon, 2013).
Forms social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube have developed into forms of social networking which links consumers directly to other consumers through interaction specific tools. Network theory suggests that an organization that properly engages its consumers through personal interaction behaviors in the social media will see a positive increased usage of its product and services. Social media sites allow users to upload post and share user-generated content.
Sports Marketing through Social Media
Professional sports organizations have been able to market activities and events of their leagues easily as a result of the development of new technology in communication, such as social media (Abeza, O'Reilly, & Reid, 2013). Through the use of social media, sports organizations have been able to create valuable content that is capable of attracting and encourages fans to interact with their favorite leagues in the most personalized way (Suk-Kyu et al., 2013). However,it is important for sports clubs to understand the interrelatedness of each social media platform because they all have a different effect on marketing performance. For sports organizations such as the NFL to have successful social media campaigns in marketing and advertising its products successfully, it should ensure that all the participants of its fans are included.
Communication through social media is direct and interactive and information content is delivered in a unique format in comparison to other forms such as televisions and radio. Social media ensures that sports brands deliver favorable events without interference from the third party. Research studies have linked social media interactions with building fan-bases as it enables sports brands to effectively identify the consumption behavior of fans. The interactivity brought by the use of social media reinforces athlete-fan relationship which is beneficial in creating an attachment and loyalty in sports consumption (Suk-Kyu et al., 2013). Besides helping sports entities in brand-building and maintenance of fan perceptions, social media serves as an important supplementing tool for event promotion activities. The promotional activities which are usually aired before the main event of a sport begins usually reveal valuable information about fan experiences that enable sports entities to easily monitor and evaluate fans perceptions.
NFL and Social Media
It is a fact that the existence of social media has positively contributed to the growth of sports industry and to the globalization of sports consumption. It is therefore important for the NFL to adapt to the new communication technologies to meet the increased consumption demand of sports-related activities. The existence of social media thus offers an opportunity for NFL teams to learn more about what their fans actually like in terms of the consumer products they offer. Use of social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter will also enable the NFL to effectively communicate, listen, address the desires of their fans and in return maintain and enhance their fan base. The NFL will be able to maintain their fan base through brand management by cultivating a more favorable online experience, promoting ticket sales of events, and by encouraging social interactions among fans.
Social media and sports are intertwined and social media gives fans 24/7 medium of discussion to share common interests. It has become a common phenomenon nowadays to see social media platforms such as Facebook filled with numerous sports videos or see fans posting pictures about while attending matches of their favorite sports. This growing trend shows how popular social media has become in promoting sports events. It is therefore important for the NFL to tap the seemingly limitless potential available in social media to live to stream the digital marketing content of its activities in attract a wider fan base.
The NFL should explore and exploit the advantages they come with social media to promote its activities and promptly announce all their important information. The benefits that come with social media are numerous and benefit both the NFL leagues and athletes of these teams. Through the use of social media, athletes of NFL league become well-followed celebrities and will use platforms such as Facebook and Twitter as remote press conferences to praise winning and apologize for loses to their fans after every game. Updating fans on important events create a sense of attachment and make fans feel a sense belonging and appreciated as being part of the team.
The NFL should follow in the footsteps of soccer and football to cement its presence in social media to exploit its potentially available benefits. Over the years the League has been very cautious about its digital distribution rights which have inhibited its social media presence. Though the social media world still remains unfiltered in today's digital landscape, the NFL should stop being uneasy in entering the world of social media and follow in the footsteps of major sports leagues. Embracing the use of social media will be beneficial to the NFL in the following ways:
Reaching a distracted audience
Since the emergence of cellphones there have been a declining number of living room audiences who view commercial run on televisions. Mobile phones have become the new norm of viewing commercials as living room audiences continue to deflate as years go by. Fans have channeled their undivided attention in the handheld devices such as Smartphone’s, tablets, and laptops to follow news on their favorite sports. The NFL should stop fighting the wave of portable technology and start exploring the ways to use their availability of such devices to promote its events and activities through social media. Live programming and streaming of events have become possible because of the presence and availability of handheld devices. The availability of a large fan base accessing and engaging with the portable medium concurrently provides a marketing opportunity for the NFL to build interactive communication with its fans more effectively.
Integrating Cross-Device Experiences
The NFL should make use of the Twitter Amplify program to tap the values of using social media via the second screen. Research studies estimate that as many as 50 to 80 percent NFL fans watch games with a second screen and it will thus prove beneficial for NFL to re-up their deal with Twitter to better serve the growing number of their fan base using the second screen in following NFL games(Smith & Smith 2012). The NFL league will not only increase user engagement but it will also continue exploring new revenue streams with brand partners. If the NFL is able to amplify the Twitter Amplify Program, studies show that it will be able to promote over 284 million short video advertisements consisting of up-to-the-second highlights from select games. Through the Twitter Amplify program, it is estimated that NFL will be in a position to command more than 4.5 times the rate of user engagement in comparison to other sports using the program. Having the highest rate of fan engagement will ensure that all highlights of NFL games are immediately made available in social media thus enabling it to dominate "What's Trending" list and in the process earn millions in extra revenue.
Maintaining Continuing Fan Conversations
It is only through adopting the use of social media that the NFL will be in a position to proper utilize communication strategy to increase its audience engagement. The NFL will be able to do a better job of communicating with their fans online. NFL fans will be able to easily share their sentiments before, during, and after their teams take the field using a provided hash tag. Fans will feel that they are involved in the in every happening of their teams and they will, therefore, be in a position to keep easy access and centralized conversations. In the process, the fans will continue talking about the NFL brand thereby promoting the sports brand in the market. The NFL can also make use of brand utilizing social UX to create fan engagement that is impactful and creative as it stresses the importance of not only being heard but also being virtually seen by its fans. Through the use of social UX, the NFL brand will be in a position to understand the culture of its fans that is being targeted on a particular social media channel.
Conceptual Framework
Research studies show that in order for sports marketers and brands to effectively serve their consumers and fans, they should be in a position to better understand the overall behaviors online sports fans. They should use social media platforms that fulfill the emotional, cognitive, and behavioral motivations that push the consumption of their products by fans (Smith&Smith, 2012). Smith and Smith (2012) argue that a social media platform that ensures fan-ship motivation, entertainment motivation, pass-time motivation, and information motivation influences the loyalty behavior of fans towards a particular sports brand. They further believe that online consumption of products of any sports brand is influenced by socialization - a desire by a fan to maintain a human relationship through the internet. The social media platform should also be in a position to offer convenience to sports fans for them to be able to obtain desired sport related information regardless of place or time. The convenience of information also ensures that sport-related information will be easily and readily available to consumers to influence their behavior.
Theoretical Framework
Theory of Reasoned Action
The theory expands on the Attitude model and suggests that behavioral intention of individuals is as a result of one’s attitude towards a particular behavior and the overall perception of the intended behavior (Abeza, O'Reilly, & Reid, 2013). The theory consists of cognitive, affective and conative components. The Theory excludes individual behaviors that are habitual or impulsive to show that individuals have a choice in making decisions about what they want or wish to purchase.
The cognitive components of an individual behavior emphasize on the availability of prior consumer knowledge about a given product or service. The knowledge can be obtained from different sources which include considering the opinion of social leaders such as parents and teachers or by considering the opinions of peers and doing whatever their friends are doing. Therefore, the pleasure to please other can influence individuals to frequently use social media and consume sport related products. Affective component of the theory suggests that emotions and feelings of an individual towards a particular product can influence the decision to purchase or not to purchase. It is therefore important for professional sports organizations such as the NFL to share relevant information on social media platforms that cater to the feelings and emotions of its fan base. Taking care of emotions and feelings of fans creates interpersonal bonds that result in the formation of a strong attachment between fans and a sports brand of their choice. Emotional attachment created will thereby ensure that fans interact more often with their favorite NFL teams on Facebook or Twitter thus maintaining fan loyalty (Clark, & Melancon, 2013).
Conative component of the theory is concerned with the possibility whether a consumer will continue using a particular product after initial consumption (Kaplanidou et al, 2012). The only possible reason that will make a consumer become engaged to a particular product is whether he or she received satisfaction from initial consumption. Kaplnanidou et al. (2012) further suggest that individual past behavior and experiences can also be a predictor of one's future behavior intentions. The NFL should therefore to offer online products that satisfy the needs of the fans to ensure that fans remain engaged in their online activities and products.Furthermore, the NFL should be aware that the more fans use available services through social media, the more engaged and loyal they become.
The theory of Reasoned Action will, therefore, be of great help to the NFL as it well it to better understand their fans in terms of their cognitive, affective, and conative components and know their behavior intentions (Witkemper, Choong, & Waldburger, 2012). The NFL could use the principle of this theory to effectively conduct their promotional campaigns and in advertising their events to fans through the use of social media. Therefore, understanding the behavior intentions of fans will be important for professional sports organizations such as the NFL as they will be able to identify the best way to communicate and interact with their customer.
Conclusion
Research studies have shown that fans react differently to different posts on social media platforms through different forms of motivation such as fan-ship motivation or information motivation. For the NFL to effectively cement its presence in the social media, it should be in a position to better understand the motivations facts that drive its fan base and be in a position to upload information that meets their demands. The information uploaded on social media platforms should also be clear, easy to read, and visually appealing to attract their fans to continuously view their posted events and sports products.
References
Abeza, G., O'Reilly, N., & Reid, I. (2013). Relationship marketing and social media in sport. International Journal of Sports Communication, 6(2), 120-142.
Clark, M., &Melancon, J. (2013). The influence of social media investment on relational outcomes: A relationship marketing perspective. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 5(4), 132-142. doi:10.5539/ijms.v5n4p132
Kaplanidou, K., Jordan, J. S., Funk, D., & Rindinger, L. L. (2012). Recurring Sports Events and Destination Image Perceptions: Impact on Active Sports Tourist Behavioral Intentions and Place Attachment. Journal of Sports Management, 26 (3), 237-248.
Smith, L., & Smith, K. D. (2012). Identity in Twitter's hashtag culture: A sport-media-consumption case study. International Journal Of Sports Communication, 5(4), 539-557.
Suk-Kyu, K., Byon, K. K., Jae-Gu, y., Zhang, j. J., & Chong, K. (2013). Social motivations and consumption behavior of spectators attending a formula one motor-racing event. Social Behavior & Personality: an International Journal, 41(8), 1359-1377.
Witkemper, C., Choong Hoon, L., & Waldburger, A. (2012). Social media and sports marketing: Examining the motivations and constraints of Twitter users. Sports Marketing Quarterly , 21(3), 170-183.
