Football Federation Australia (FFA) is putting together a data sweetener for potential sponsors, hoping data on grassroots members will help get more major partners on board.
The central body is currently in the maketplace looking for major partners as it continues to try and commercialise the sport, stemming from a review done in 2014 on what could be done better to bring in cash for the code.
In the midst of this review, current head of commercial Luke Bould was brought in to give the FFA's efforts a kick-start. Having experience with Cricket Australia, he and the FFA set about trying to understand its partners better.
“What we found is that we really needed to understand our partners better,” Bould told AdNews. “We've effectively doubled the number of staff dedicated to looking after clients and understanding their business objectives.”
Spending the year talking to partners and potential parters “on a weekly basis”, one of the key themes was a brand desire to connect with grassroots members.
“The fact that this sport hasn't created the right links and commercialised community side as well as it can means that there's significant upside.”
To take advantage of that upside, the FFA is developing a data platform brands can leverage to push offers to grassroots members of the sport.
“We've engaged Microsoft Dynamics to develop a CRM (customer relationship manager) for us, so that will launch over the next three to six months, and that will give us an opportunity to have a 360 degree view of the consumer,” FFA's general manager of marketing Robert Squillacioti said.
“So if I've purchased a Hyundai, I have life insurance with AIA Vitality, I'm a Perth Glory member, I play for Perth Soccer Club, I'm a referee, coach, volunteer; we will know all of that in one view.
“That gives us unbelievable information, and in turn value, which we can deliver to a partner.”
The FFA estimates it has a 1.96 million grassroots base, with about 580,000 of those part of the “football family”, which have signed up with the FFA to receive newsletters and special offers.
However, while the grassroots has been targeted as a growing pool of revenue by the FFA, it said it wanted to be careful to protect the relationship between the sport and its grassroots.
“One of the things we go out and sell is that sponsors of football are liked by football fans more so than in any other sport. That's something we're very protective of,” Bould said.
“We want to make sure we don't make stupid decisions that take that away, because that's a key selling point.
“It's not in any sponsor's interest to actually degrade that. No sponsor wants to come on board and do something that turns people off.”
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