Research Strategy
Embedded Files
Questions:
How is team performance a factor for fans?
What is a good ratio of fans buying stadium seats and actually showing up?
What common ways would attract target audience popularity?
The questions I am asking entail finding out how FC Cincinnati 's team performance factors into fans' attendance, ratings, consumer rate, etc. Additionally, the questions target if attendance is the same as tickets bought, and the ways to increase popularity. There could be tickets purchased online, but many of the fans may not show up to the games. What could the organization improve in order to ensure more seats are filled during games and overall popularity increases.
I will be mainly using immersive and conversational research to answer these questions. The immersive research will be conducted in an online FC Cincinnati page on reddit or discord. I can ask the second and third questions to these fans. I am also in the works of attaining an interview with a professional coach. Even though he is not coaching FC Cincinnati, he can still have valuable input on the first question.
W9 & 10 Assignment: Research for the Client Challenge
W9 & 10 Assignment: Research for the Client Challenge
While attending the Miami football game on October 22, I was able to observe the surrounding fans. During these observations I was able to see how the fans reacted in a positive and negative way. The game was more crowded than usual since it was parents’ weekend, and the close game caused a mixture of emotions.
The most noticeable observation I made was seeing the different Miami fans cheering. Even though Miami lost the game 16-10, there were plenty of times when the crowd roared in celebration. There was a huge change in energy after a third down catch or run to advance the drive, after making a game changing sack, after kicking a field goal, and after scoring a touchdown. These special plays in the game gave smiles to those around me, and everyone seemed happier to be there as a whole.
There were a surplus of events that took place which led to Miami’s loss, and those events caused many of the fans to become upset. Western Michigan scored 16 points from the cause of a touchdown and three field goals. Each time Western Michigan scored, Miami fans fell quieter as the hope for a win continued to fall. Miami had plenty of opportunities to capitalize such as not getting a defensive stop or being forced to punt on fourth down. Even though the energy swayed to lower points during the game, not all fans were super upset. I found this super surprising because most people go to sports events to see their team win. After reflecting, I concluded this is because the fans enjoy different aspects of the game. Some fans enjoy spending time with their friends and family, and some fans enjoy talking smack towards the other team. There are many other circumstances why fans might enjoy sporting events, and I continue to research to find these answers.
Empathy Maps
Problem/Innovation Ideas
The main problem I saw from the game was the fans not enjoying themselves after the team played poorly, and many fans could not connect to the game. Since there is a variety of fans in the crowd, there needs to be different factors in the environment that entertains everyone as a whole. I will pursue this problem by interviewing an MLS fan, a Cincinnati Bengals fan, and a former professional sand volleyball player.
Interview 1: Liam Hand (Fan of MLS)
Liam enjoys watching MLS and is an avid fan of the Chicago Fire.
Team performance is a key for most fans. The Chicago Fire finished 13th in the Eastern conference for the year because of the team’s poor performance; consequently, Liam never felt the need to attend a game in person.
The only game Liam attended was against the Philadelphia Union because they were one of the best teams in the league.
Liam will always buy less expensive seats and then sit in empty seats that would cost more. He states there are plenty of open seats that might have been purchased.
Interview 2: Max Wilson
(Cincinnati Bengals Fan)
Team performance is a necessity to maintain a strong and supportive fanbase; however, NFL fans are more loyal to the team they grew up watching.
The Cincinnati Bengals won their conference and had a relatively good season in 2021. They have struggled so far in 2022 as they try and clench first in their conference once again.
Even though Cincinnati has not played as well as last year, Max and other fans still have high hopes for the rest of the year.
Attending NFL games is generally about going to watch your team win; however, Max states the environment of an NFL game still causes a great time no matter the outcome.
Variety of different foods and drinks
Games and entertainment
Half Time shows and events
Mascots and cheerleaders
Celebrations and tension between players
Watching two rival teams is always a fun experience. Being able to watch hard driven hits or fantastic plays will always give different emotions. The ups and downs of the game gives an anxiety inducing but thrilling experience.
The celebrations and interactions between players always makes the game more enjoyable, and watching fights between players connects the audience to a deeper level.
Interview 3: Jordan Vidovic (Former Professional Sand Volleyball player)
Jordan Vidovic is a hall of fame athlete for boys indoor volleyball at Brother Rice high school. He also played at Lewis University as one of the best setters in the nation. Vidovic then played sand volleyball at the professional level and will continue to play for fun. He continues his success as a coach for Marist High School where he has won 3 state championships in the past 5 years.
Vidovic states a team's performance is where fan attraction begins because very few people want to watch a team that performs poorly. A team’s performance depends on the structure of the team, skill, coaching, and team chemistry.
Natural skill and athletic ability is always a huge factor in a player's performance, but the coaching and drive of the player makes the performance more effective.
Soccer is a team sport similar to volleyball, which means team chemistry is a huge factor in the team’s success. There needs to be a team leader to be the glue for the rest of the players, and their performance will be more fluent and appealing to watch.
Volleyball and Soccer are similar in not being the most popular sports in America, and they need to be able to connect to fans in different ways.
Contact other sports industries to make connections with fans.
Have other games and events to attract a variety of fans.
Half time shows, games, prizes, etc
Games specific to age groups or different themes
Themes allow the audience to connect with the game to another level as they dress to uniform. This increases team spirit and engagement, and the crowd often becomes louder as a result.
Surprising insights
Through the experiences and thoughts I learned from the interviews, I came up with several insights that will help with the client challenge problem.
Team performance is key to increase the strength and support of a fanbase, but there needs to be other aspects of the game environment to attract different fans.
Team performance can only be gained through correct structure in coaching and the players. Everyone needs to perform their best and put full effort into their work.
Themes, games, halftime shows, cheerleaders, mascots, food, and other aspects of the environment make the game more enjoyable for all people.
A connection between certain players and the audience makes the crowd feel more engaged.
Reflection
Overall, the research and interviews I experienced allowed me to gain insights from different perspectives of a team and their fanbase. It was interesting to see the different ways people reacted to their environment at the Miami game I attended. I found it surprising that not everyone cared about watching their team win as I personally watch games to see success in my team. However, I learned fans may also attend games to enjoy time with others and player interactions, games, shows, events, food, cheerleaders, mascots are just a few of the ways teams will make fans’ experiences more enjoyable. I will factor in these solutions to boost the fanbase of FC Cincinnati in the client challenge, and that entails connecting to the diverse fanbase.
W11 - MIdweek Assignment: Insights, Personas, Challenge Questions
W11 - MIdweek Assignment: Insights, Personas, Challenge Questions
Insights
I’d like to attend FCC games so that I can watch my team win, but I don’t because the players do not perform well.
I’d like to attend FCC games so that I can spend time with my family, but I don’t because it is not enjoyable for my family.
I’d like to attend FCC games so that I can interact with the players, but I don’t because they don’t like to connect with their fans.
I’d like to attend FCC games so that I can watch the interactions and tension between players, but I don’t because players constantly flop.
I’d like to attend FCC games so that I can take my shirt off and wave it around, but I don’t because there are families that judge me.
The Factors that might Drive Attendance
Goals
Big Plays
Minimize errors
Player on player interactions
Player and fan interactions
Halftime shows
Variety of good food and drinks
Merchandise
A loud but family friendly atmosphere
A good stadium location
W11 Assignment: Ideating & Converging for the Client Challenge
W11 Assignment: Ideating & Converging for the Client Challenge
Audience:
The target audience would be male fans under the ages of 18 ranging to 44 years old. This young group could start a new culture of American soccer compared to the older generations who prioritize their liking to sports such as football, basketball, and baseball. The younger audience targeted would most likely participate in video game content at the stadium.
Audience Motivations:
Having a younger audience like this group to attend FC Cincinnati games would allow for future growth in soccer. Current culture for American sports revolves around football, basketball, and baseball, and the older generations would not be open to switching their favorite sport. Influencing the audience from a younger age would have a higher chance to grow a larger fanbase.
Factors:
Video Game motivation (Rocket League)
Player Performance and Fan connections
Video Game Motivation (Rocket League)
The target audience are the younger generation up until the age of 44.
56% of FCC fans are between the ages of 21 and 44
49% of video game players are between the ages of 18 and 44
24% of video game players are under the age of 18
Rocket League has been extremely popular in the streaming industry in the past year
Players in Rocket league seek out different cars
Make FC Cincinnati designed cars
Rocket League players need to attend games in order to receive the FC Cincinnati car
This will bring more awareness to FC Cincinnati and increase attendance
Player Performance and Fan connections:
Attending games will allow rocket league players to gain online credit to the rocket league store
They can use this credit to purchase FC Cincinnati cosmetics in the game
The amount of credit the fan/rocket league player gets depends on how FC Cincinnati performs
Performance will be determined by metric given in Bus 104
Fans attending the game for rocket league will have an incentive to watch the performance of the players
This makes the environment more enjoyable as the fans are engaged
FC Cincinnati games could then be streamed on twitch under Rocket League to gain more views and support for FC Cincinnati
Twitch streams for Rocket League have been the highest in 2022
Potential Impact:
More gamers would attend FC Cincinnati games
More online views for FC Cincinnati games
Stronger audience connection at FC Cincinnati games
Growing culture for soccer in Cincinnati and America compared to other sports
Reflection:
Over the course of my research, I believed the target audience would be middle aged individuals. However, FC Cincinnati and the current gaming world attracts a younger audience. This surprised me as most sports teams in America have a diverse fanbase, and I assumed older individuals would make a larger portion of the audience. I believe connecting the younger audience to soccer is necessary to change the culture in America and make the sport more popular. I did find a connection between the demographics of gaming and FC Cincinnati, but I still need more data to make my solution more effective.
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