“You’ve got no fans” is something no supporter wants to hear about their football club and Everton FC are working hard to make sure this does not happen. Streaming U23 games on EvertonTV and inviting season ticket holders to play at the training ground, uploading footage of this to their website. This is just two of many ways they use social media in order to engage fans further into the club.
Nicholson et al (2015) states media has transformed sport from an amateur pursuit into a hyper-commercialised industry and this is clear at Everton as this picture above shows how EvertonTV causes users to go onto their website, with the club shop, their sponsor, tickets and hospitality being advertised nearby. This will increase sales in these areas, increasing commercialisation at the club through the use of social media as the new engaging fans become customers.
Everton use online media schemes such as #Onthisday or #OTD, relating to games played on the day the post is made, however from past years. It involves uploading a video to Twitter or Facebook of what occurred in the match, showing goals, who scored them and the score outcome. Not a bad idea to help those who are forgetful! This technique lets older fans remember great memories the club have had over the years and gives the younger generation insight into old players, old kits and famous victories (maybe even a derby win). Lee (2016) states social media provides marketers with an expensive set of tools that enable them to reach consumers directly and this is what Everton do by posting such things on these sites, taking advantage of the platforms social media provide, in order to interact with their fans. Dittmore et al (2012) talks about new sports media, stating it is the merging of traditional media forms with interactive digital technology, with a focus on interactivity and technology. This is what Everton have used, mixing television footage, a form of traditional media, with Twitter and Facebook which are new media platforms, in order to keep fans of all ages interested in the club, reliving old memories and receiving greater insight into the clubs history.
Some may argue Everton’s media team work harder than their players, posting on multiple social media sites, not letting any of their fans miss out on the action. This may be as social media is seen as a vital tool to use in the modern day, with Stavros et al (2014) stating social media provides fans with an additional means to engage with their team. Youtube is one site they use differently to other clubs, giving fans behind the scene footage in order to give them a greater relationship and passion for the club. These videos are labelled ‘Everton unseen’ and footage is posted almost every week to keep fans undated and to give them a special behind the scenes feeling as you can find here … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hP8KB1NU2s
Communication for professional teams to create relationships with fans is vital and Eagleman (2016) demonstrates how advertisement is a form of communication which is what often occur during these videos, looking ahead to matches, getting fans excited and interested. Everton use such new media technologies to interact and have jumped at this opportunity quicker than other clubs as according to Grantz and Lewis (2014) newer media allow fans to expand their fan-ship in different and meaningful ways which is what Everton try to do through these posts.
Although the techniques used and Everton’s use of social media is too a high standard for interacting with their audience, there is room for improvement as Herrmann (2018) states Manchester United are top in a list of posts on Facebook with 2005 posts within a season. Huddersfield Town dominate Twitter with 6659 tweets and Manchester United are also top on Instagram with 1117 posts in the time period. This shows that Everton have goals they can reach in order to interact further with fans and try to get from in the top ten for posts on these sites to top five. Stavros et al (2014) demonstrates how social media is a vital forum for sport organizations to better understand fan motivations and strengthen fan relationships, showing the importance and why Everton should focus on reaching these goals of increasing the amount of posts and interaction on these social media sites.
Everton aim to increase their league position and break into the higher tier of the Premier League, joining the ‘Top 6’. Whilst this is occurring it is vital their social media team continue to interact socially with their fans through the numerous sites and apps they already use, whilst reaching new goals of increased social media posts. This will help to improve the club off the pitch, increasing the number of fans worldwide, giving them a close relationship with the club whilst the team improves on the pitch. This plan will help to develop Everton into a future global power house in the football and media industry.
Reference List
Nicholson, M. (2015) Managing the Nexus. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Elsevier
Dittmore, S.W,. And McCarthy, S.T. (2014) Sports marketing and mew media. In: Billings, A., and Hardin, M. (eds.) Routledge Handbook of Sport and New Media. Oxon: Routledge. Pp. 165-176.
Lee, J.E
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Everton (2019) DERBY WEEK + BACKSTAGE AT CARDIFF | EVERTON UNSEEN #43 [Online
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Sporting World Insight 
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