Building brand loyalty through community engagement in sports

In today’s world where the consumer is being bombarded with thousands of brands advertisements at every second on digital media platforms, the marketplace is starting to become fiercely cluttered and competitive. It has now become imperative for brands to stand out from the crowd and build a long-lasting identity and brand loyalty by developing a deeper connection with the masses, with the community. While there are many ways to achieve this, one proven effective way is via sports. Several brands in the past and even today have driven their community engagement activities via sports and there’s a significant reason behind it.

Sports as a concept is universal in nature and it has a unique ability to bring people together, irrespective of the social backgrounds. Sports fans who support and cheer for their favourite sports team, athletes or those who participate in active sports are all bound together by their collective passion for sports. The loyalty and passion within the sports fans present a valuable opportunity for brands to connect with their customers on a deeper, more personal level.

While brands have various different ways to reach out to sports fans such as digital and social media advertising, signing sports personalities as the brand ambassadors, etc, to achieve community engagement in sports in true sense, brands have to go beyond these traditional marketing tactics and actively participate in being a part of the sports fans live and make an effort towards adding value to their experience with sports.

For brands to develop authentic connections with the community, brands can host their sports events or support a local sport team or athlete or even host community watch parties, fan meet-up events or the most effective way, support grassroots sports initiatives consistently. By doing so, brands show their investment in the community beyond just profits. They demonstrate to the people that they genuinely care about the interests of their consumers. Additionally, being associated with sports in any form also helps brands to establish their image as someone who supports a healthy, active lifestyle and fitness in general, thus, also appealing to those who probably aren’t hardcore sports fans.

One of the best examples of how brands have built loyalty and forged deeper connections with the community is of the Tata Mumbai Marathon. The Tata Group organises and sponsors one of Asia’s largest and most prestigious marathons every year, the Tata Mumbai Marathon. With over 59,000 people participating in the marathon this year itself, the Tata Mumbai Marathon has become a must-do annual event for the locals. Several brands and companies under Tata Group, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Motors, etc. invest in this event.

Similarly, PNBMetLife Insurance organises a Junior Badminton Championship every year across the country to promote badminton talent in the country and drive community engagement. In the latest edition, more than 10,000 young badminton athletes participated in the tournament. This has helped PNBMetLife to connect with their customers and their future generations on a deeper level and add value to their lives by opening up opportunities for them. Many brands such as Hero Motocorp or Himalaya Drug Company invest in local sports tournaments in cricket and football.

Another example of successful community engagement activities can be the fan parks created during the IPL and ISL season. These fan parks give the fans an avenue to come together and engage with and enjoy their favourite sports and sports teams and thus add value to the sports league itself.

At a more grassroots level, many brands such as Decathlon, Storiaa, Muscleblaze, and Probo partner with agencies and companies working in the domestic sports ecosystem and invest in small scale local sports tournaments. These initiatives help the brand build a trust within the customer’s mind also generate great recall value.

Investing in these community engagement activities benefit brands on a large scale as the consumers now not only regularly engage with the brand themselves but also advocate and promote the brand to others. As these community engagement activities create memorable experiences for the customers, thus making them appreciate the brand to a great extent. Thus, community engagement in sports is a powerful tool for building brand loyalty. By actively participating in and supporting sports communities, brands can create meaningful connections with consumers, build trust and credibility, and drive customer advocacy. By investing in community engagement initiatives, brands can strengthen their relationships with customers and position themselves for long-term success in the competitive market.

Shubhangi Gupta is the CMO and Co-founder, SportVot, a sports-tech platform in India. Views expressed are personal.