There are a number of ways of defining sports consumers; these include identifying the different kinds of sports products or services they consume (Smith, 2008:34). Since the focus of this study is on the sponsorship of the Springboks, their fans are regarded as sports consumers and can be considered to be part of the sponsors’ targeted audience. A fan can be defined as an individual who has a great fondness for or interest in a specific sport or team (Dhurup, 2011:38). Sports consumers can be categorised into six segments and play various roles within the sports environment as they are driven by different factors.
These segments are illustrated in Figure 4.2 and will be discussed below.
Figure 4.2: Segments of sports consumers
4.2.2.1 Players
The first segment of sports consumers, as indicated in Figure 4.2, is referred to as the players. Players are individuals who consume a sport by participating in that particular sport. The primary motivation behind this segmentation is that those who play a particular sport will be more likely to enjoy watching sports in general (Fullerton, 2007:286). Although they are sports participants, they also become sports consumers by consuming the sport as a fan or a spectator. Players are individuals who understand and appreciate the skills needed from the athletes and therefore become highly involved in the sport (Fullerton, 2007:286). According to Bee and Havitz (2010:144), involvement within the context of leisure is defined as a person’s involvement in recreation and sports activities, products
are those individuals who may passionately attend sports matches, purchase sports-related products and openly disclose their approval of a particular sport or team with conviction.
The understanding and passion players demonstrate towards the sport may lead them to seek information about their chosen sport and ultimately invest a considerable amount of time and money in sport in general and their favourite sport in particular (Fullerton, 2007:286). As players consume the sport, they are exposed to various sponsorship initiatives and therefore are, in turn, a market which can be profitable for sponsors.
4.2.2.2 Patriots
The second segment of sports consumers, as illustrated in Figure 4.2, is referred to as patriots. Patriots consider sports or a particular sport as a vehicle to establish a sense of pride for their country and also a sense of community (Fullerton, 2007:286). These are individuals who are highly involved in the sport as well as the team or club. Patriots consider the performance of the team to be important. These individuals value and cherish the team’s victorious moments and are saddened by a loss the team may experience.
Patriots may express their devotion to the team by exhibiting high attendance levels and following their team on television, the internet and in print media (Fullerton, 2007:286).
Ngan et al. (2011:553) investigated whether the performance of a team will influence the fans’ intention to purchase the sponsor’s product. They found that the intention to purchase a sponsor’s product will be greater when the team sponsored is perceived to be a winning team than when it is perceived as a losing team (Ngan et al., 2009:559). Based on the findings from that study, patriots can be a very lucrative market for sponsors of sporting organisations as the dedication fans express towards the team may be transferred to the sponsors, who may be seen as part of the team in the eyes of the fans.
They may be more willing to purchase the sponsor’s products and more accepting of any new offerings made by the sponsor.
4.2.2.3 Appreciators
Unlike the segments of sports consumers described above, appreciators admire the skills, hard work, teamwork and the achievement of the participants (Fullerton, 2007:286). They are motivated to attend the sporting event by the opportunity to witness excellence instead of the adrenaline as a result of a win or a loss (Fullerton, 2007:286). This market segment
may understand the technical aspects of the sport as well as the equipment needed to enhance the athlete’s performance. Sponsors may be interested in targeting appreciators as these individuals can understand the technicalities of the products used in the sport and how these products can enhance performance. As a result, an understanding of the sponsor’s product can be achieved with little effort from the sponsor to educate the fans about its product offering.
4.2.2.4 Socialites
As can be seen from Figure 4.2, the next segment of sports consumers can be identified as socialites. Socialites are individuals for whom sport is a means of interacting with friends (Fullerton, 2007:286). The decision made by socialites to attend a sporting event is motivated by the desire to simply have a pleasurable experience with specific individuals.
These individuals can therefore also be referred to as reference groups. Reference groups are defined as “... an actual or imaginary individual or group conceived of having significant relevance upon an individual’s evaluations, aspirations or behaviour” (Solomon, 2011:408). The influence of reference groups will be discussed in detail later in the chapter.
Socialites are not necessarily knowledgeable of the rules and regulations of the particular sport and because their motivation for attending the sporting event was to interact with friends, they may not remember the sporting event itself (Fullerton, 2007:287). However, socialites represent an important source of revenue for sponsors who may be selling their product at the sporting event such as a rugby match; these individuals can at that point consume the sponsor’s product. Although the interaction between socialites and the sponsor may be brief and irregular, it is a point of contact which may be the start of a relationship through creation of awareness of the sponsor brand.
4.2.2.5 Friends
As can be seen from Figure 4.2, the next segment of sports consumers is friends. The motivation for attending sporting events may be to provide support for friends and family members who are participating in the sport (Fullerton, 2007:287). These fans have a basic understanding of the sport but have no involvement beyond their effort to support their friends and family members (Fullerton, 2007:287). The importance of this segment cannot
be ignored because each time they attend a sporting event is an opportunity for the sponsor to present its brand to the consumer.
4.2.2.6 Voyeurs
The last segment identified in Figure 4.2 as a group of interest to sponsors is voyeurs. For this segment, the most important aspect is sex appeal (Fullerton, 2007:287). It is not the sport per se that attracts the voyeur or that the voyeur finds exciting, but rather the physical attractiveness of the participants (Fullerton, 2007:287).
Since endorsements may focus on one individual athlete, the sponsors may use these attractive athletes to reach voyeurs and encourage them to purchase their products. The endorsement part of sponsorship will be discussed later in this chapter.
When sponsors utilise sponsorship as a marketing communication tool, they should have a well-defined profile of the consumers they are targeting with the sponsorship initiative. The identified types of sports consumers discussed above each play a role in the marketplace;
therefore marketers should understand the role of these consumers. This will ensure that marketing efforts are successfully channelled to reach the consumer who will ultimately purchase the sponsor’s products.