A Uses and Gratifications-Based Market Segmentation Approach to Football Fans’ Online Media Usage Motivation

Abstract

With the rise of online media, the Uses and Gratifications approach has experienced a revival in general as well as in sports media research. However, most studies have not considered the variability in online media usage behavior, which indicates a heterogenity in fans’ gratification sought in online media consumption. To account for this heterogenity, this study conducts a cluster analysis based on the Uses and Gratifications approach to segment Swiss football fans according to their motivations for using online media. Further, it analyses how the emerging motivational profiles differ in online media usage and fan identification. The findings suggest that even though information, positive emotions, and entertainment remain the most sought gratifications across all participants, fans can be segmented into four motivational profiles: Football Afficionados, Casual Users, Joy-Seeking Spenders, and Online Media Enthusiasts. These profiles exhibit significant differences in their online media usage behaviour as well as in their fan identification. They, therefore, indicate a need for market segmentation when analysing online media usage motivation in football fans and demonstrate that clubs can achieve greater customer satisfaction by tailoring their online media content to the needs and online media consumption behaviour of their fans.

Keywords

cluster analysis motivational profiles new media sport communication fan identification

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anderson

Auxier

(2021). Social media use in 2021. Pew Research Center, 4(1), 1–6.

Ateş

Kaymaz

Ö.

Kale

H. E.

Tekindal

M. A.

(2019). Comparison of test Statistics of nonnormal and unbalanced samples for multivariate analysis of variance in terms of type-I error rates. Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine, 2019(1), 2173638. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/2173638

Bae

(2018). Understanding the effect of the discrepancy between sought and obtained gratification on social networking site users’ satisfaction and continuance intention. Computers in Human Behavior, 79(3), 137–153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.10.026

Balliauw

Onghena

Mulkens

(2021). Identifying factors affecting the value of advertisements on football clubs’ and players’ social media: A discrete choice analysis. International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship, 22(4), 652–676. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijsms-12-2019-0138

Billings

A. C.

Broussard

R. M.

(2019). Untangling international sport social media use: Contrasting U.S. and Chinese uses and gratifications across four platforms. Communication & Sport, 7(5), 630–652. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167479518790014

Billings

A. C.

Qiao

Conlin

Nie

(2017). Permanently desiring the temporary? Snapchat, social media, and the shifting motivations of sports fans. Communication & Sport, 5(1), 10–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167479515588760

Blumler

J. G.

Katz

(1974). The uses of mass communications: Current perspectives on gratifications research. Sage Publications.

Brislin

R. W.

(1990). Applied cross-cultural psychology. Sage Publications.

Clavio

Kian

T. M.

(2010). Uses and gratifications of a retired female athlete’s twitter followers. International Journal of Sport Communication, 3(4), 485–500. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsc.3.4.485

10.

Clavio

Walsh

(2014). Dimensions of social media utilization among college sport fans. Communication & Sport, 2(3), 261–281. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167479513480355

11.

Dart

(2014). New media, professional sport and political economy. Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 38(6), 528–547. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723512467356

12.

FC Barcelona . (2021). Official FC Barcelona website. https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/

13.

Field

(2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS Statistics (5th ed.). Sage Publications.

14.

Filo

Lock

Karg

(2015). Sport and social media research: A review. Sport Management Review, 18(2), 166–181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smr.2014.11.001

15.

Fischer

K. D.

(2019). Give the fans what they want: A market segmentation approach to sport fans’ social media usage. (Doctoral dissertation). University of Nothern Colorado, St. Greeley, USA.

16.

Garcia

Llopis-Goig

(2020). Club-militants, institutionalists, critics, moderns and globalists: A quantitative governance-based typology of football supporters. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 55(8), 1116–1135. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690219868661

17.

Giulianotti

(2002). Supporters, followers, fans, and flaneurs: A taxonomy of spectator identities in football. Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 26(1), 25–46. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723502261003

18.

Gwinner

Swanson

S. R.

(2003). A model of fan identification: Antecedents and sponsorship outcomes. Journal of Services Marketing, 17(3), 275–294. https://doi.org/10.1108/08876040310474828

19.

Haridakis

Hanson

(2009). Social interaction and co-viewing with YouTube: Blending mass communication reception and social connection. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 53(2), 317–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/08838150902908270

20.

Haugh

B. R.

Watkins

(2016). Tag me, tweet me if you want to reach me: An investigation into how sports fans use social media. International Journal of Sport Communication, 9(3), 278–293. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsc.2016-0044

21.

Haught

M. J.

Willis

Furrow

Morris

D. L.

Freberg

(2017). From tweets to seats: How does social networking sites use affect commuter university students’ football fandom? Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics, 9(2), 17–38.

22.

Interessengemeinschaft Elektronische Medien Schweiz . (2022). Summary study IGEM-Digimonitor 2022. https://www.igem.ch/digimonitor-studie-mediennutzung/

23.

Katz

Blumler

J. G.

Gurevitch

(1973). Uses and gratifications research. Public Opinion Quarterly, 37(4), 509–523. https://doi.org/10.1086/268109

24.

Kwon

Pyun

D. Y.

Lim

S. H.

(2022). Relationship between team identification and consumption behaviors: Using a meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 13(1), 869275–869310. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.869275

25.

Lewis

Brown

K. A.

Billings

A. C.

(2017). Social media becomes traditional: Sport media consumption and the blending of modern information pathways. Journal of Global Sport Management, 2(2), 111–127. https://doi.org/10.1080/24704067.2017.1314764

26.

Lin

C. A.

(2002). Perceived gratifications of online media service use among potential users. Telematics and Informatics, 19(1), 3–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0736-5853(01)00014-4

27.

Lometti

G. E.

Reeves

Bybee

C. R.

(1977). Investigating the assumptions of uses and gratifications research. Communication Research, 4(3), 321–338. https://doi.org/10.1177/009365027700400305

28.

J. E.

Lin

J. E.

(2022). Exploring uses and gratifications and psychological outcomes of engagement with Instagram stories. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 6(6), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2022.100198

29.

Mazzarolo

A. H.

Mainardes

E. W.

Innocencio

F. A.

(2021). Antecedents and consequents of user satisfaction on Instagram. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 39(5), 687–701. https://doi.org/10.1108/mip-08-2020-0370

30.

McLaughlin

Haverila

(2022). Gratifications sought versus gratifications achieved in online brand communities: Satisfaction and motives of lurkers and posters. Journal of Brand Management, 29(2), 190–207. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41262-021-00262-6

31.

McQuail

Blumler

J. G.

Brown

J. R.

(1972). The television audience; a revised perspective. In McQuail

(Ed.), Sociology of mass communications (pp. 135–165). Penguin.

32.

Nagel

Schlesinger

(2013). Marktsegmentierung im sport [Market segmentation in sport]. In Nufer

Bühler

(Eds.), Marketing im sport: Grundlagen und trends des modernen sportmarketing (pp. 93–114). Erich Schmidt.

33.

Omar

Dequan

(2020). Watch, share or create: The influence of personality traits and user motivation on TikTok mobile video usage. International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 14(4), 121–137. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v14i04.12429

34.

Palmgreen

Rayburn

J. D.

(1985). A comparison of gratification models of media satisfaction. Communication Monographs, 52(4), 334–346. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637758509376116

35.

Papacharissi

Rubin

(2000). Predictors of internet use. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 44(2), 175–196. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15506878jobem4402_2

36.

Park

J.-A.

Dittmore

S. W.

(2014). The relationship among social media consumption, team identification, and behavioral intentions. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 14(3), 331–336. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2504608

37.

Pelletier

M. J.

Krallman

Adams

F. G.

Hancock

(2020). One size doesn’t fit all: A uses and gratifications analysis of social media platforms. The Journal of Research in Indian Medicine, 14(2), 269–284. https://doi.org/10.1108/jrim-10-2019-0159

38.

Phua

Jin

S. V.

Kim

J. J.

(2017). Uses and gratifications of social networking sites for bridging and bonding social capital: A comparison of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and snapchat. Computers in Human Behavior, 72(5), 115–122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.02.041

39.

Phua

J. J.

(2010). Sports fans and media use: Influence on sports fan identification and collective self-esteem. International Journal of Sport Communication, 3(2), 190–206. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsc.3.2.190

40.

Rayburn

J. D.

Palmgreen

(1984). Merging uses and gratifications and expectancy-value theory. Communication Research, 11(4), 537–562. https://doi.org/10.1177/009365084011004005

41.

Ruggiero

T. E.

(2000). Uses and gratifications theory in the 21st century. Mass Communication & Society, 3(1), 3–37. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327825mcs0301_02

42.

Schaedel

Clement

(2010). Managing the online crowd: Motivations for engagement in user-generated content. Journal of Media Business Studies, 7(3), 17–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/16522354.2010.11073509

43.

Schendera

(2010). Clusteranalyse mit SPSS. [Cluster analysis with SPSS]. Oldenbourg Verlag.

44.

Seo

W. J.

Green

B. C.

(2008). Development of the motivation scale for sport online consumption. Journal of Sport Management, 22(1), 82–109. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.22.1.82

45.

Serrano-Puche

(2016). Emotions and digital technologies: Mapping the field of research in media studies. Media@LSE Working Paper Series.

46.

Sheldon

(2008). Student favorite: Facebook and motives for its use. Southwestern Mass Communication Journal, 23(2), 39–54.

47.

Sheldon

Antony

M. G.

Ware

L. J.

(2021). Baby boomers’ use of Facebook and Instagram: Uses and gratifications theory and contextual age indicators. Heliyon, 7(4), e6700–e6754. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06670

48.

Sheldon

Bryant

(2016). Instagram: Motives for its use and relationship to narcissism and contextual age. Computers in Human Behavior, 58(8), 89–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.059

49.

Sheldon

Rauschnabel

P. A.

Antony

M. G.

Car

(2017). A cross-cultural comparison of Croatian and American social network sites: Exploring cultural differences in motives for Instagram use. Computers in Human Behavior, 75(5), 643–651. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.06.009

50.

Silaban

P. H.

Chen

W. K.

Nababan

T. S.

Eunike

I. J.

Silalahi

A. D. K.

(2022). How travel vlogs on YouTube influence consumer behavior: A use and gratification perspective and customer engagement. Human Behavior and Emerging Technologies, 22(1), 4432977.

51.

Smith

W. R.

(1956). Product differentiation and market segmentation as alternative marketing strategies. Journal of Marketing, 21(1), 3–8. https://doi.org/10.2307/1247695

52.

Stafford

T. F.

Stafford

M. R.

Schkade

L. L.

(2004). Determining uses and gratifications for the internet. Decision Sciences, 35(2), 259–288. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.00117315.2004.02524.x

53.

Stegmann

Nagel

Ströbel

(2023). The digital transformation of value co-creation: A scoping review towards an agenda for sport marketing research. European Sport Management Quarterly, 23(4), 1221–1248. https://doi.org/10.1080/16184742.2021.1976241

54.

Steiner

Pittman

Boatwright

(2023). When sports fans buy: Contextualizing social media engagement behavior to predict purchase intention. International Journal of Sport Communication, 16(2), 136–146. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsc.2022-0158

55.

Sutton

W. A.

McDonald

M. A.

Milne

G. R.

Cimperman

(1997). Creating and fostering fan identification in professional sports. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 6(1), 15–22.

56.

Tabachnick

B. G.

Fidell

L. S.

(2013). Using multivariate Statistics. Pearson.

57.

Wann

D. L.

(1995). Preliminary validation of the sport fan motivation scale. Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 19(4), 377–396. https://doi.org/10.1177/019372395019004004

58.

Wann

D. L.

Branscombe

N. R.

(1993). Sports fans: Measuring degree of identification with their team. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 24(1), 1–17.

59.

Whiting

Williams

(2013). Why people use social media: A uses and gratifications approach. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 16(4), 362–369. https://doi.org/10.1108/qmr-06-2013-0041

60.

Witkemper

Lim

Waldburger

(2012). Social media and sports marketing: Examining the motivations and constraints of twitter users. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 21(3), 170.

61.

Xie

Wang

Cheng

(2024). Does artificial intelligence satisfy you? A meta-analysis of user gratification and user satisfaction with AI-powered chatbots. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 40(3), 613–623. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2022.2121458

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.15 MB