When talking with several executives this week about the launch of new leagues this month in volleyball, basketball, and golf, as well as all the niche sports vying for coverage and the mainstays we keep defaulting back to, one question kept coming up…who is the audience, and more importantly what’s the reason you are giving people not to watch once but to keep coming back time and again.
If I’m a consumer, why do I care about you?
It didn’t matter whether it was in the social space, watching on a platform, or showing up in person…even spending dollars on merchandise or creating conversation…it always came back to the why.
I spent a good amount of time wandering around some places last weekend that firmly understand their sense of why people come back. All three were in Wisconsin within 24 hours…Marquette University, the Green Bay Packers, and the Milwaukee Bucks. Sitting and listening to fans, to people in the organization and even in casual conversations with leadership, it became obvious of their why, and it provided a greater framework for why people come back and support. It has much less to do with buzz an hype, although all three are well aware of the need to stay relevant and engaged and also look ahead to what the marketplace is going to be not where it is today, and it has much more to do with taking a second to best understand why these people are giving their discretionary income, and more importantly their time, to these organizations.
The value is in the sense of community and caring each instills, and the pride that is delivered that is authentic and felt by their supporters. Sure, winning and performing well helps and is vital to complete the circle, but each of these three organizations goes out of their way to do the little things that make everyone feel involved…dance troops, ushers, church groups, die hard fans, first time visitors, brand partners, long time supporters…and everyone in the organizations make YOU feel wanted when you show up. It is not part of a Disney-esque training program that checks a box, it is very genuine, and in each organization, it starts at the top and is carried through all the way to the bottom.
The people give you the reason to come back again and again. You feel like you are a part of something more important than just a game. Now some in our industry may say…well it’s Wisconsin they are a show unto themselves and that’s easy to do…or we all try and do that…but the reality is that’s not true. The business of sport has become so big that in an effort to deliver on the transaction we can sometimes forget to deliver on the why…why people are here, why they come back, why they watch. We lose that relevance. That is in the people.
In the midst of 80k at Lambeau Field I saw ushers go out of their way to answer questions or make sure that someone could find their seat, first asking who they were and where they came from…at Fiserv Forum I had a security guard tell me that if I got lost in a stairwell to come back up and knock on the door and she would get me to where I would want to go. At the McGuire Center for a Marquette Women’s game, I saw a volunteer go out of her way to make sure that two young girls had a pen to get some players autographs. None of that was programmed in on a whiteboard, it was part of the sense of who and the pride of being there.
Back to the leagues launching or trying to find their place. It’s not easy for any startup, and its even harder once someone comes by to kick the tires to sustain that relevance while trying to build that business. However, what can’t be lost, even with the rush of good news or nice viewership numbers or downloads at launch, is that question of why people will come back time and again. How immediate is your response to all those who came and why they would come back. What did they like, but more importantly, what can we improve upon? How authentic is my ask, and how much do I ingest and fix, and also ANSWER.
Can I answer the question of why people would care beyond the buzz, and can I keep coming back for the steak as much as the sizzle, because the sizzle can ebb and flow, but the caring should not.
Look, we all love the hype and the shiny new toy. I wouldn’t say that the Packers, the Bucks, or Maquette basketball are the brightest in the hype machine business. They aren’t Power Slap or TGL or Unrivaled Basketball or Pro Volleyball, but they are businesses and organizations that understand who they are, what they want to be, and how they are relevant and valuable to those who walk in the door.
They all gave me a reason to care, to watch, and to root for them…and that’s more valuable for the long term than lifting a trophy year after year.
Make me care and I come back. Show me you don’t really care, and maybe I won’t. People and places, not things.
