In less than a decade the way people watch TV programs has evolved more rapidly than during the fifty previous years. Between catch up TV and providers of streaming movies and TV series such as Netflix, the rise in time-shift viewing has altered viewing trends for most program genres.
There is one noticeable exception to that : Live sports where live viewing remain the norm. A few numbers to illustrate that, extracted from the Nielsen report “The Year in Sports Media Report : 2015” : In 2015 live sports account for 93% of programs watched live. It was only 14% in 2005. In Q4 2015, 95% of total sports program viewing happened live. In comparison, only 66% of “General Drama” viewers watched live.
Looking at social media, and according to Navigate Research, sports fans are 67% more likely to use Twitter to enhance their viewing experience compared to non-sports fans. Back to Nielsen report : while Live sports only accounts for 1.4% of total TV programming in the US, it gathers 50% of Twitter conversations linked to TV programs. Twitter has become the virtual sports bar where fans rally before, during and after the games. So the behavior of a team or an athlete on Social Media can directly influence a fan's perception of that team or athlete.
Social Media is a powerful vehicle that drives sports talk today and the way fans interact with teams, players, personalities and fellow fans. It's a powerful source for getting news, engaging in topical discussions and empowering brands. It has become essential for sports organisations to engage fans and consumers on social media before, during and after the games, to own that moment. The reach on social media is in many cases so far exceeding the TV viewership figures that right holders can vastly improve fan engagement and audiences by correctly addressing their social network. Social media is about engagement and engagement comes from publications that have three characteristics:
- To be published live, i.e. within seconds of a game fact
- To offer high value content, i.e. stats, quotes, photos, videos, etc…;
- Publications must separate themselves from other posts, i.e. have nice designs and visuals and be in the local language of the fan
A solution than allow to generate and publish automatically branded visuals, pictures or videos related to matchday key facts within seconds of the real time game fact and in multiple languages, allow to reach millions of fans around the world with high-value content.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are using such solution, developped by Solive, and have seen their engagement rates booming, +30% for instance for Paris Saint-Germain.
Social media open new communication channels with their audience that can be measured and valued as a new commercial opportunity with sponsors. Brands involved through sponsorships and social media promotions benefit from increased brand affinity and loyalty. Social media also open opportunities to push targeted marketing offers, always pushed at the right moment to the right audience, whether it is ticketing, merchandising, WebTV, etc..
When correctly addressed, the strenght and direct revenue opportunities coming from social media is limitless for the sports world. Solutions such as Solive allow sports organisations to generate new revenue streams through social media. And that's just the beginning.
Florent Marty is the managing director of sales and marketing at social media publishing tool company SOLIVE.
Florent MartyIn less than a decade the way people watch TV programs has evolved more rapidly than during the fifty previous years. Between catch up TV and providers of streaming movies and TV series such as Netflix, the rise in time-shift viewing has altered viewing trends for most program genres.
There is one noticeable exception to that : Live sports where live viewing remain the norm. A few numbers to illustrate that, extracted from the Nielsen report “The Year in Sports Media Report : 2015” : In 2015 live sports account for 93% of programs watched live. It was only 14% in 2005. In Q4 2015, 95% of total sports program viewing happened live. In comparison, only 66% of “General Drama” viewers watched live.
Looking at social media, and according to Navigate Research, sports fans are 67% more likely to use Twitter to enhance their viewing experience compared to non-sports fans. Back to Nielsen report : while Live sports only accounts for 1.4% of total TV programming in the US, it gathers 50% of Twitter conversations linked to TV programs. Twitter has become the virtual sports bar where fans rally before, during and after the games. So the behavior of a team or an athlete on Social Media can directly influence a fan's perception of that team or athlete.
Social Media is a powerful vehicle that drives sports talk today and the way fans interact with teams, players, personalities and fellow fans. It's a powerful source for getting news, engaging in topical discussions and empowering brands. It has become essential for sports organisations to engage fans and consumers on social media before, during and after the games, to own that moment. The reach on social media is in many cases so far exceeding the TV viewership figures that right holders can vastly improve fan engagement and audiences by correctly addressing their social network. Social media is about engagement and engagement comes from publications that have three characteristics:
* To be published live, i.e. within seconds of a game fact;
* To offer high value content, i.e. stats, quotes, photos, videos, etc…;
* Publications must separate themselves from other posts, i.e. have nice designs and visuals and be in the local language of the fan
A solution than allow to generate and publish automatically branded visuals, pictures or videos related to matchday key facts within seconds of the real time game fact and in multiple languages, allow to reach millions of fans around the world with high-value content.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are using such solution, developped by Solive, and have seen their engagement rates booming, +30% for instance for Paris Saint-Germain.
Social media open new communication channels with their audience that can be measured and valued as a new commercial opportunity with sponsors. Brands involved through sponsorships and social media promotions benefit from increased brand affinity and loyalty. Social media also open opportunities to push targeted marketing offers, always pushed at the right moment to the right audience, whether it is ticketing, merchandising, WebTV, etc..
When correctly addressed, the strenght and direct revenue opportunities coming from social media is limitless for the sports world. Solutions such as Solive allow sports organisations to generate new revenue streams through social media. And that's just the beginning.
Florent Marty is the managing director of sales and marketing at social media publishing tool company SOLIVE.
