BRING THE NOISEUnderstanding the Impact of Fan Noise on Sponsors and Advertisers

With reduced or no fans in the stands likely to continue into the new year and seasons, Westwood One and Horizon Media teamed up to evaluate fan responses to play-by-play sports video and audio clips – with artificial fan-noise inserted and without – to assess how broadcast and pro-duction impacts advertising partners.

…and were less likely to find the subsequent ad…

INFORMATIVE(video clip)

NOSTALGIC(video clip)

RELEVANT(video ad)

HELPFUL(audio ad)

Without artificial fan noise, fans found the sports clip to be more…

BORING(video clip)

BLEAK(video clip)

Statistically significant at 95% CL Statistically significant at 90% CL

Fan Noise Boosts Perceptions of Broadcasts and Corresponding AdsThose who watched/listened to the “fanless” clip were significantly less likely to enjoy the following ad (vs. those who watched and/or listened to the clips with piped in fan noise)

MOVING THE CHAINS

Quality of sports experience has a direct impact on advertiser receptivity and engagement

Fans who liked the sports clip were…

Check out their social media

Talk to peers Buy from the brandVisit Their Website

1.5xAfter seeing video

MORELIKELY

After listening to audio

~1.6xMORELIKELY

AND THE CROWD GOES… SILENT???Though excited about sports return, uncertainty around the “fanless” experience raises some concern

Sponsors may have a chance to bring fans together via new platforms and channels that could help cultivate engage-ment and good will.

PUTTING THE FAN BACK INTO THE FANFARE

Artificial noise may scratch the itch but research shows fans want to experience the cheering and celebrating with their fellow fans, both in sight and sound.

52%supportamong fans

39%wouldparticipate

SOUND OFFAn app enabling fans to influence the sounds during the game (e.g., boos, cheers, compete vs. rival fan bases)

53%supportamong fans

42%wouldparticipate

VIRTUAL FANSFans join as a virtual crowd member and actions of that virtual crowd would be heard/seen in the broadcast

say that it’s importantfor sponsors to continue supporting leagues through COVID-19

66%of fans

believe fans bring excitement to games, without them it wont

be as exciting.

~ 42%say a big part of the game experience is the fans – the chants, songs, and reactions.

~ 40%

Fans were asked to evaluate two potential ideas for an augmented/virtual sports viewing experience

Study Shows Leagues and Broadcasters Can Only Hurt Themselves By Not Including Fan Noise in Fanless GamesFan-noise creates a more enjoyable viewing experience for fans, even if the artificial noise doesn’t quite match up to the real thing. This elevated viewing experience leads to added value and higher likelihood of engagement for sponsors and advertisers.

Those exposed to fan noise show lower levels of negativity towards sports clip, which subsequently results in lower negativity towards ads that follow

Fan-noise helps sponsors and advertisers maximize the value of their partnerships by maintaining positive sentiment and keeping key brand perceptions elevated

Broadcasters should continue to pursue alternative viewing options to maintain fan engagement while COVID keeps live attendance on hold. Artificial fan noise keeps interest in these alternative viewing options high, opening up new channels and avenues of engagement for broadcasters that could be facilitated by sponsoring brands

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Each participant was randomly exposed to a sports video clip and a sports audio clip. To assess if fans would react di�erently to ads in varied production environments, an ad was included within each of the sports clips. MARU/Matchbox was retained to execute this study of sports fans and was conducted between July 27, 2020 and August 10, 2020. A nationally representative sample of n=1060 sports fans were provided by MARU/Matchbox’s Springboard America panel and Horizon Media’s Finger on the Pulse panel.

Supplemental data fielded via Horizon Media’s proprietary Finger On The Pulse panel. Fieldwork con-ducted between October 13 – 19, 2020 among a nationally representative sample of n=578 sports fans.

Notes & Methodology