MMS702 Fan & Participant Engagement - Assessment Task 1

Description

Purpose

Fan and Participant Engagement (FPE) explores the use of relationship marketing and communication strategies to create meaningful dialog with consumers. This dialog (engagement) leads to a number of consumer attitudes and behaviours which can be leveraged by organisations to provide positive outcomes. Central to this is a number of principles, theories and concepts. Knowledge of these is essential to form a deep understanding of this sphere and to develop and operationalise industry strategies.

AT1 asks students to develop and demonstrate their understanding of the theoretical basis of fan and participant behaviour, how the theories, concepts and principles work together, and how this analysis can lead to strategies for enhancing engagement through an essay style exploration.

Context/Scenario

You are the FPE decision maker for a sporting club. Your new CEO has heard a little bit about engagement for fans and participants but does not fully understand what it is, the differences between the two and how the theories and frameworks involved in FPE help the sport put bums on seats, get eyeballs on T.V broadcasts or people playing the sport at a grassroot level.

This essay is to provide your CEO with an understanding of FPE and it’s importance and utility in helping the sport grow. You are to use unit content and real-world examples to build up a document which demonstrates your knowledge and how it applies to industry.

Specific Requirements

• Your task is to develop and communicate (in essay form) an understanding of Fan and Participant Engagement (FPE) of 2500 words.
• Your essay should demonstrate an understanding of the evolution of FPE, the frameworks that underpin FPE, and develop a comprehensive overview of the marketing, broadcast and consumer behaviour principles and theories which influence FPE. This knowledge needs to be applied to relevant sport organisations showing an ability to transfer theory into actionable strategies, and to highlight the possible implications of correct and incorrect application of FPE strategies. An understanding of the importance of correct use of FPE must be communicated in the essay.
• Relevant concepts need to be explored in the context of a modern-day sporting environment, and from a sport organisation perspective, as ideas from this task will provide background for AT2 and be transferrable to industry issues.

This report requires essay style format for a target audience of academic peers and industry executives. As such, a recommended format and key themes to address are:

Introduction. Consider the modern sport landscape, drivers of changes to consumer behaviour and how FPE has evolved.

Main Body. A) Introduce and discuss relevant FPE theories covered in the unit and related consumer behaviour and marketing concepts curated from external research.

1. B) Consider the following diagram. Presented is a typology of modern sporting organisations and the focus of their engagement activities. This can be a Fan focus, a Participant focus, and a Combined (Hybrid) focus. What is meant by Fan, Participant and Combined Focus in this context? What organisations should have a Fan, Participant or Combined focus? What FPE theories are relevant for organisations in each of these segments?
2. C) Provide an example of a sport organisation for these segments (3 organisations) and an FPE strategy implemented by each – eg what sport do you think is a Combined Sport, a Fan Sport and a Participant Sport and describe an FPE activity implemented by each. Present a brief summary of whether you believe these strategies were successful/appropriate using unit concepts to support.
3. D) Choose one of the organisations discussed in part C) and thinking about your critical analysis above briefly describe an FPE strategy you could use to help the sport grow (active or passive participation). Who will you target, what do you want to achieve, how will you make this happen and how will you measure it?

Conclusion. Bring findings, opinions, and recommendations together and summarise. Reflect on these highlighting your opinions on the importance of FPE in contemporary sport.

Learning Outcomes

This task allows you to demonstrate your achievement towards the Unit Learning Outcomes (ULOs) which have been aligned to the Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes (GLOs). Deakin GLOs describe the knowledge and capabilities graduates acquire and can demonstrate on completion of their course. This assessment task is an important tool in determining your achievement of the ULOs. If you do not demonstrate achievement of the ULOs you will not be successful in this unit. You are advised to familiarise yourself with these ULOs and GLOs as they will inform you on what you are expected to demonstrate for successful completion of this unit.