The brand experience of a football club through live videos on social media : developing a tactical marketing and communications framework
Abstract
The omnipresence of social media and the dominance of brands offer professional
football clubs significant opportunities to establish brand experiences intended to
strengthen their relationships with fans and supporters. Moreover, the rising popularity
of online video has enabled the use of live video to be increasingly incorporated within
the digital media mix. However, little academic attention has been afforded towards its
applicability and strategic implementation. This research addresses the gap in the
literature by establishing a tactical marketing and communications framework that
creates a holistic brand experience through social media live video for fans of the case
study football club with the intention of enhancing viewer loyalty.
A pragmatic research approach was adopted, culminating in a mix of qualitative and
quantitative data collection methods. The study assessed the characteristics of live video
on social media that influence viewer loyalty. Furthermore, it established significant
relationships between brand experience, fan typology, and viewer loyalty. These
findings ultimately informed the development of an Experiential Grid for tactical
implementation of live video on social media of the case study football club.
This research contributes to the brand experience literature by adding the novel
perspective of social media live video and the online video perspective to the brand
loyalty literature. The development of a dedicated Experiential Grid, with adaptation of
its tactical implementation components to a social media environment, constitutes the
main contribution for marketing and social media practitioners in the football industry.