Social Media Monitoring Project Part 1: The NFL Dominates the Sports League Social Presence

Introduction:

With the season of Fall upon us, our activities have shifted from being based around the warm vacation days of Summer to our various cooler weather traditions. If you're like me, you might enjoy the classic Fall hobbies of apple picking and eating cider donuts, but the season also brings along a new NFL season for fans to enjoy each week. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic forcing sports leagues to interrupt their seasons for several months, both the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) were holding playoff games during the start of the traditional National Football League (NFL) season in September. Despite this, the NFL continues to assert its dominance by managing the most popular sport in the United States, American football. The NFL was founded in 1920 in Canton, Ohio. The league grew from having only five teams at its start to having thirty-two in its present-day format. Since the dawn of the internet, the NFL has been able to take advantage of several different platforms to further strengthen its presence around the United States. Between all of the sports betting and fantasy football platforms, fans of the league are more engaged than they ever have been with the sport before. However, it is the league's strong social media presence that allows it to engage a large audience throughout each year.

Photo: Wikipedia

Social Media Presence:

The NFL has a presence across many social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and even Reddit. Its most followed platform is its Twitter account with 25.4 million followers. This is followed by its Instagram account with 18.7 million followers and its Facebook page with 17.6 million followers. 

When you look at the NFL’s Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts, you will notice that many posts are the exact same across all platforms. The league engages in cross-posting as it realizes that it possesses different audiences based on demographics across all of its channels. While its older fans might be solely following the brand on Facebook, the younger audience is likely checking out the NFL’s Twitter and Instagram pages more often for any status updates. 

The league uses social media in many different ways, whether it’s to preview team matchups or showcase player highlights. However, the NFL has also been engaging in the Black Lives Matter movement as well as encouraging the public to vote through messages on its platforms. Specifically, #NFLVotes has become a popular hashtag being used by not only the league but the individual teams as well. 

Analytics:

As we can see through Google Trends, the NFL reached its highest interest of 2020 back in January. However, that interest dropped drastically throughout the next several months until finally spiking again in September. These rates coincide with the league’s playoff games and the start of its current season. 

When comparing these trends to its competitors, the three other major sports leagues in the United States, you will see that despite having less interest than the NBA, MLB, and NHL at certain times of the year, the NFL’s peak interest is up to double the amount of its closest competitor (the NBA) at its peak.   

Moving on to Social Mention, when you compare the statistics of the NFL to its strongest competitor, the NBA, both brands could use some help strengthening their social media presence. However, the NFL is showing a 7% higher strength along with a 4% higher reach than the NBA on social media. 

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                Social Mention: NFL                                                                      Social Mention: NBA

Target Audience:

According to Laurie Sullivan, fans between the ages of 18 to 24 years show the “lowest interest” among all who show an interest in football and use the internet. Those with the highest interest in the NFL are individuals between the age of 45 to 54 years. That being said, the league has a decision to make. Should it try to further grasp the appeal to its most popular audience, or should it try to attract the younger generations who have a lower interest in the league? Generation Z and Millennials are the consumers who are using social media the most, so the NFL has an opportunity to target them through its several different platforms in creative ways. 

Photo: Carnegie Dartlet

SWOT Analysis:

Strengths: The NFL has a large fanbase on each of its social media platforms. It posts several times a day on Twitter and Facebook, especially during the football season when there are constant league and team updates to be shared. The brand is also in the midst of carrying out several different campaigns to spread awareness to its fans. As mentioned previously, the #NFLVotes campaign is used to energize fans to go out and vote for the people and causes they believe in. Meanwhile, the brand’s #CrutialCatch campaign is used to spread awareness about the effects that cancer has on people as well as to support the American Cancer Society through the sales of specially NFL-licensed equipment during October. These campaigns, along with the NFL season being underway allow it to thrive in the groundswell at this time. 

Weaknesses: So many people are talking about the NFL in the groundswell, but there is little evidence that the NFL is actually interacting with its fans. Some of the individual teams have shown strengths in this area. For example, the New England Patriots had a Twitter campaign where they utilized the hashtag #HardCorePatsFan to encourage fans to tweet pictures of their Patriot loyalty and the team would award the winner with tickets to an upcoming home game. Therefore, the NFL’s ability to interact and connect with its fans is a weakness, especially when compared to various teams around the league.

Opportunities: The NFL has tens of millions of fans across its social media platforms. During the football season, fans are particularly engaged with the brand and the sport as a whole. That gives the league a tremendous opportunity to spread brand awareness between the months of September and February. The company could use its platform to continue to promote social justice initiatives such as the Black Lives Matter movement. Additionally, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the NBA and NHL seasons are starting later this year, giving the NFL more time as being the only league in season in the United States. Ultimately, this is the NFL’s peak time of year for popularity and awareness, so it has several opportunities to build its brand and promote the initiatives it supports. 

Threats: The brand is always posed with the threat of being overtaken by the other major sports leagues. While the MLB and NHL don’t seem to be coming close to the popularity of the NFL, the NBA has proven to be a highly favored league in the United States. The NFL simply can’t compete with the NBA once its season ends, so the popularity of the NBA and its social media presence is the brand’s primary threat. 

Photo: Popular Struggle