Our recent presentation at the Quirk’s Event in New York City focused on data from our Sports Poll Product, the first sports fan intelligence product in the US. We explained the five fan dynamics we use to drive lifetime engagement. Many of you wanted to know how our approach can be applied to your audience.
In our new series, “Using Sports Poll Fan Dynamics to Drive Lifetime Engagement,” we explore each dynamic in more detail and provide case studies that show them in action.
The five dynamics include: Priority, Community, Facilitators, Resources, and Generational DNA. Maximizing the value of each dynamic will naturally increase engagement. This model can apply to any type of free time activity, not just sports. The first release of the series focuses on “Priority.” Read on to see how the NFL’s standing as the top sports priority for Americans drives fan engagement.
Priority is Highly Correlated with Fan Engagement for Sports & Entertainment
Priority may be the most valuable dynamic because of its direct connection to engagement. The relationship is straightforward – the higher the priority, the more likely someone is to engage in an activity. This works for activities at both broad and specific levels. For example, the more someone prioritizes sports in general, the more they engage in sports activities. Fan engagement increases at each higher level of priority. Note how fantasy sports participation grows as sports fan activity rises as a priority for Americans below.
This relationship holds for activities beyond sports. Outdoor participation (in the past month) also rises as priority increases. The same pattern works for other free time areas.
Fans Engage with Sports, Teams, Athletes and Brands they Prioritize the Most
Priority also applies at a more granular level within sports. Given the sheer amount of competition for free time, a fan’s time is limited and typically goes toward the sports, teams, and athletes they prioritize the most. We assess the strength of a sport with five different priority measures:
- Total fan base size
- AVID fan base size
- Status as favorite sport
- The number of teams named as overall favorite
- The number of players named as overall favorite
Priority in Action: The NFL Dominates as the Top Sports Priority for Americans
With the football season kicking off this week, the NFL provides an ideal case study to demonstrate the power of priority. The NFL has the most fans and AVID fans of any sport in the US. It also ranks as the favorite sport. Americans are more likely to name an NFL team as their favorite overall team and an NFL player as their favorite overall athlete. While other individual teams (like the Lakers and Yankees) or athletes (like Lionel Messi and LeBron James) are on par with the most popular NFL teams and players, the NFL excels in the depth of its favorites across the league.
The NFL’s strength extends beyond the total population. The NFL maintains the largest fan base across all major demos – gender, age, and race/ethnicity. The league’s status as the top sports priority drives fan engagement across the US and with these demos. This helps explain why 93 of the top 100 TV broadcasts were NFL games in 2023.
How to Boost Priority Among Your Audience
There is tremendous upside when priority increases. It doesn’t matter if this is the priority of a sport, team, outdoor activity, live music event, video game, movie, or other free time activity. Incremental gains in priority can lead to substantial gains in fan engagement.
Here are a few ways to maximize it.
- Focus on the best of the best fans: “Super” fans may only represent 5-10% of a fan base, but they engage the most and they engage throughout the year. Keep them active but also learn about their pathway to fandom.
- Build a pipeline to secure the next generation of fans: The best fans typically start at an early age (70% of all AVID sports fans became fans by age 10). The best way to build a stronger AVID fan base is to strengthen the pipeline activities that can secure the next generation.
- Piggyback on higher-order priorities: To engage casual fans, it’s necessary to link to higher-order priorities. Attending a sporting event may not be a priority, but casual fans may see it in a different light when it’s positioned as time outdoors with family and friends.
- Re-engage “lapsed” AVID fans: Some fans become AVID fans and never look back. Other fans waver in their interest. It’s easier to win back a lapsed AVID fan than to convert someone who’s never been part of the community in the first place.
- Create opportunities for “disengaged” fans: Priority is correlated with engagement, but it isn’t the same thing. Disengaged fans are interested. They just aren’t actively participating in an activity. There are creative ways to activate this group though.
