There are few kinds of loyalty as fierce or as unwavering as that of a football fan to their favorite team. Diehard fans are easy to spot from September through January. They can be seen out and about wearing their favorite team’s jersey and they can be spotted at the local watering hole on Saturdays and Sundays watching the games with their friends.
It’s easy to back a winning team, but true sports fans are unwavering in their support through every bad season, media scandal, and constant revolving door of players throughout the years. This is the type of brand loyalty that all businesses strive for — and for good reason. A recent consumer study: “Loyalty Deciphered – How Emotions Drive Genuine Engagement,” revealed that 8 in ten emotionally engaged consumers say they promote brands they are loyal to among their family and friends.
Every successful team has a solid game plan that they follow; here are a few plays your business can run that will have your customers standing and cheering.
Create a Community – Sports fans might go to a game initially to see their team win, but what brings them back time and time again is the camaraderie that comes with being part of a fan base. If you can build a sense of community within your customer base, get people believing in your players (staff), and seeing your business as a trusted resource that consistently meets their needs, the loyalty will follow.
Start Local – Whether high school, college or pro, fan loyalty runs deepest in the teams from their hometown. In both sports and in business, people love to “root, root, root for the home team,” so building loyalty with local customers (whether in your town or virtual neighborhood) and other small businesses is a great place to start growing a following that sticks long-term.
Show Your Appreciation – If a football team has a losing season, do their loyal fans jump ship? Simply put, no; they may complain about missed catches and bad calls, but there’s always next year, and those fans will be right back in their seats. One thing that keeps people coming through the gates, is when teams show that they appreciate their fans through giveaways, special events, and interaction on social media. Your best customers are the ones who will stick by your business through the best of times and the worst of times, and a great way to keep them loyal is by showing them that you appreciate their business.
