eMonitor Is the Leading Search Tool to Monitor and Analyze Fan Generated Media™ and Other Online Sports Content
The voice of the fan is getting louder every day with burgeoning online participation. Whether sponsor or sports property, listening to and measuring the fan buzz is critical to leverage the passion inherent in sports. Sports Media Challenge announces a new tool geared especially to the sports marketplace to mine, monitor, and analyze online "Fan Generated Media.™"
Charlotte, NC (PRWEB) June 20, 2006 -- eMonitor, founded by Kathleen Hessert, president of Charlotte, NC based Sports Media Challenge a reputation management firm that protects and enriches sports brands, has set out to become the new leader in mining, monitoring and analyzing online content for the sports market.
After nearly a year of beta testing, SMC has launched its eMonitor service to help sports organizations, high profile individuals and sponsors that spend billions of dollars annually on sports marketing, to better read and appeal to its notably passionate fans. In fact, they’re so passionate that Hessert has coined the term, Fan-Generated Media™ (FGM). “FGM” encompasses all sports-related online word-of-mouth content on message boards, chat rooms, blogs, social networking sites and other unaided online conversations.
Fans can be found everywhere and while the “displaced fan” is often the norm, no matter where fans are geographically, they can participate as vibrant members of tight knit Internet communities regularly chugging a virtual beer and arguing about they’re favorite team. When they do, the eMonitor proprietary search engine picks up those virtual conversations then turns the content over to a team of sports PR and marketing analysts to decipher the relevant information from millions of sports blogs and other Internet sites. The results are subsequently collated in a proprietary Executive Dashboard Report, to provide clients cogent, timely insights and valuable business intelligence.
According to Hessert, “Sports has a rabid fan base and prolific online presence. Online-word-of mouth just like sports is built on passion, engagement and community. As great as sports are on their own, they’re severely limited as businesses without the fans. Fans are sports’ customers and they’re demanding to be heard.” Hessert went on to say that the distinctive language, culture, passion and nuance of sports makes industry knowledge vital to determine the significance of what’s being said. After nearly 20 years of serving some of its finest brands, Hessert and her team believe they can deliver the best results for sports and sports-related organizations in search of a measurable assessment of their reputation and brand value.
According to Peyton Manning, quarterback and two time MVP of the National Football League, “I make it my business to know what’s happening on and off the field. Sports fans go online to share their most passionate feelings. eMonitor helps me listen to our fans- our customers- when and wherever they have something to say. eMonitor keeps me in the know. That’s real business intelligence.”
“The NASCAR community is everywhere these days” says standout Nextel Cup driver Kasey Kahne. “Fans are talking on the web before, during and after every race. We need to know what they're saying about the #9 UAW Dodge Dealers /Dodge Charger and eMonitor helps us do that. Fans don't hold anything back about our success on or off the track. Whether they're chatting about my wins this season or my commitment to volunteering, with eMonitor we know what's important to them."
The results from specific client studies include content from both “Fan Generated Media” and “Traditional Media” (TM) sources and are collated to deliver real-time updates. The updates separate FGM from TM results enabling clients to better understand the differences and prompt appropriate targeted actions.
In a recent eMonitor case study of the alleged rape by members of the Duke University men’s Lacrosse team SMC followed the online “buzz”, from sports specific sites and forums to ethnic, political, feminist, academic and even Internet gambling outlets around the globe. The study captured large and vocal sentiment over what many determine to be the elitist, racist and allegedly criminal behavior of team members and the Athletic Department and the University’s handling of the crisis. Thousands of people expressed their outrage via “Fan Generated Media”. The public quickly jumped to the support of one side or another.
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For weeks, Internet buzz continued to escalate and FGM often grew despite no new news in traditional media. One political blog, which averaged 18,191 unique daily visits, closed comments to new posts because of high volume.
“Understanding the ongoing reaction from these fans and special interests can provide invaluable insight that could have been part of the university’s crisis management and communication,” said Hessert. “Listening to online discussions helps to understand the scope and intensity of feelings of various interest groups. Once different viewpoints are understood, clients can tailor the appropriate communication strategies in response.”
Online word-of-mouth has significant staying power. While newspapers are thrown in the recycle bin, Internet chronicles are archived for retrieval years later. Hessert explains, “eMonitor’s real-time results can be invaluable in crisis decision-making, messaging and preparing spokespeople to respond appropriately. The Internet is providing a rich source of emotional reaction to the sports issues and events which undoubtedly affect renowned institutional brands.”
Clients have found eMonitor to be useful for a range of needs including measuring a sponsor promotion or product value, and brand reputations of all ilks. Even general reaction and insight from influential fans, consumers and bloggers make eMonitor an invaluable tool for short term or year round initiatives. Forty-eight hours after Kobe Bryant scored a record 81 points in a single game, eMonitor analyzed 1440 different posts that led to over 41,000 views. That kind of timely information can provide unprecedented value to an organization able to leverage targeted interest into commercial appeal. To successfully compete in today’s competitive arena and make the most intelligent and progressive decisions about the brand, it’s vital to know where you stand with established and potential fans.
“The combination of emotion, opinion, and expression has tremendous power to affect the reputation of any sports organization,” said Hessert. “Online word-of-mouth can build excitement around sports brands, but can also cripple them. Collegiate Athletic Departments and corporate sponsors need to understand what fans, critics and competitors are saying online and to manage that discussion effectively.”
“As the official search engine of the NACDA Daily, eMonitor has enabled us to find relevant Internet content about collegiate athletics in dramatically less time and improved results,” said Sr. Associate Director, National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Bob Vecchione. “eMonitor is a vital, leading-edge tool that should be a staple for every athletic department.”
Recognizing the growing power of fans and shrinking value of traditional advertising budgets, one collegiate athletic conference is even turning to online word-of-mouth as an innovative way to curb incessant griping and engage fans to become part of the solution. But first, they have to listen to their online ravings, identify those who are true “influentials” and turn them if not into brand evangelists, at least into part of the solution. Says Hessert, “Counting ticket sales and donations isn’t enough anymore. New tools are needed to effectively mine, monitor and analyze the fans’ true sentiment, then enlist them to spread the word to millions via the Internet.”
About Sports Media Challenge
Since 1988, Sports Media Challenge has helped more than 100 leading university athletic departments, professional leagues, teams and world-class sports personalities protect and enhance their brands through strategic communications, consulting and training. Some of the more prominent clients to use SMC PR and marketing tools both proactively and reactively include, The Universities of Notre Dame, Tennessee, Texas, THE PGA TOUR, The NFL, MLB and NBA teams as well as NFL MVP Peyton Manning, Yankees Captain Derek Jeter, NASCAR standout Kasey Kahne and NBA great Shaquille O’Neal. An acclaimed speaker at national and international sports conferences, SMC President Kathleen Hessert will soon start a series of webinars sponsored by NACDA on Internet Buzz and the Power of Word of Mouth.
Media Contact:
Harold Kaufman
Senior Analyst and Consultant
Sports Media Challenge
504-952-2036
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