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Sports Communica-tion

Are you fully aware of the difference between sports communication and sports marketing? These terms are used incorrectly all the time. 

Here’s the short summary: communication is the exciting part of marketing and innovation: it’s getting your message or efforts out to the outside world whereas marketing defines your strategy. 

Discover the process and different building blocks of a good sports communication & advertising strategy, an overview of channels you should keep in mind, and the services we offer. 

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What we'll cover:
Marketing vs sports marketing

Sports marketing vs sports communication

You can't have communication without content and you can't have marketing without communication. But unfortunately you have a lot of content without a clear marketing or communication strategy behind it.

- Julie Vandenhouweele Tweet
  • ico-yellow-16px Marketing

Marketing is all about your strategy and WHAT you’re going to do. You create a product or service for a specific target audience, define your positioning, USPs and a pricing that matches what your offer is worth to your ideal customer. You define the best channels to reach and/or retarget your persona or ideal customer. 

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  • ico-yellow-16px Communication

Communication digs deeper. You will define HOW to reach your persona by defining campaigns, or an ongoing presence on communication channels with a clear goal. A campaign could be the launch of a new product line, where we will create a video an promote it through 3 social media posts, 1 mailing, 2 Facebook ads and a launch event. 

  • ico-yellow-16px Content

Content refers to the video itself, the social media post or mailing incl. message, copy & visuals. 

 

Our definition of sports communication?

“Any type of interaction you have with a business can be labelled as communication. Including packaging of products, customer service, digital information on a website or social media, or simply direct contact with a sales person. Sports communication is the exact same thing but in a sports environment.”

Importance of a good marketing strategy

Inbound (or content) marketing is a type of marketing that attracts people through your marketing funnel until they become loyal ambassadors.
  • ico-yellow-16px Marketing defines your communication

Communication is the translation of your internal business and values to the outside world – or internally to your employees and stakeholders. So if you want to guide your customers through each step of the inbound marketing funnel these will have to be defined first.  

This is why doing a quick audit of the marketing strategy is the first step of any communication project. If everything is in place to close your ideal customer, the work can start to attract hem. 

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  • ico-yellow-16px Inbound (content) marketing

As mentioned before, outbound marketing where you just shout as loud as possible to get your product ad out doesn’t work anymore. We’ve evolved from a sales model to an inbound marketing model, where you need high quality content and tools that provide added value to your customers in order to pull them into your sales funnel. No matter the goal, you should segment your communication efforts and channels into the different stages of the sales funnel, so that you clearly know where to prioritize.

ico-white Inbound Marketing
Guide your customers through each step of the inbound marketing funnel by fine-tuning your marketing strategy.

Website: the core of your sports communication

  • ico-yellow-16px Inbound (content) marketing

Often organizations spend a lot of time and money to attract users to their website (cfr. Communication strategy). But once the users reach your website and there is no clear information, doesn’t have the right Call To Actions, or your offering isn’t clear,  communication becomes just a waste of money.

When users reach your website and can't find what they're looking for, your sport communication efforts become useless.

Sports communication lifecycle

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Ready to launch a new campaign,  or increase your ongoing presence on a channel as part of the “Attract”-phase of your inbound marketing? These are the 5 steps you should define to get the results you’re after. 

We start every communication strategy by defining goals & KPI's.

Goals & KPI's

ico-grey-16px Who & what do you want to reach?
Not every communication channels works for each goal, start by creating a mix.

Overall strategy

ico-purple-16px What's your communication mix?
We've spent a lot of time learning the specifics of each channel in order to have your communication strategy work.

Channel Strategy

ico-blue-16px How to get results on this channel
How and when will you execute your sport marketing strategy? That's one of our specialties at MySueno.

Execution

ico-yellow-16px Planning, tools & people
By analysing what you do you can quickly adjust and optimize your communication strategy.

Analytics

ico-grey-16px Measure & optimize results

Goals & KPI's

  • ico-blue-16px Strategic communication

Goals

“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll never get there.” Dustin-Peltier Robson

Knowing if you’re successful starts with knowing what the expectations are. Same accounts for communication. So create a clear goal before you start and map it towards the inbound marketing stage, as each stage has different KPI’s. 

Goals per stage of the inbound marketing funnel when doing sports communication.
Sports Communication KPI's will differ based on the funnel stage of your goal.

KPI's

KPI’s (key performance indicators) make your goals measurable and allow you to track whether you’re well on your way towards reaching your goal and where you need to adjust.

Your main KPI will reflect the end goal you determined above. It’s important to have subgoals as well. 

  • Attract: Reach, followers and clicks (website visits).
  • Convert: Comments, shares, e-mail subscriptions, e-book downloads.
  • Close: number of sales
  • Delight: Number of reviews, shares, referrals

Your sports communication strategy

The following aspects will have to be created. In order to create a good strategy you have to be perfectly aware about what the needs of your ideal customer are, on which channels they’re active online, what they’re willing to pay and which information they need to receive to perform your desired action. This will obviously depend strongly on the type of sports they’re in as they all have their own subculture and values.

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Communication Strategy

Defining channels & campaigns

Communication Strategy

Map your campaigns on a horizontal axis, all your channels on a vertical axis and indicate for each campaign on which of these channels you'll be present.
Download template
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Media strategy

Selection of communication channels relevant for your business.

Media Strategy

As part of your marketing strategy, you'll select all communication channels per target group that are relevant for your business.
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Campaign strategy

Define the strategy within your campaign(s).

Campaign strategy

This is the detailed version of the campaign where you will select the target audience, message, communication channels, KPI’s and budget.

Communication vs content

When you defined the above, you can start making it actionable. We use the following steps to define details: 

  • Content strategy:  you will define with type of content item (eg a video, infographic, Facebook live video, article) you will use per campaign, going into the design. 
  • Communication planning: Transfer your strategy into an actionable timeline, so that it’s clear what needs to be posted when.
  • Content & action plan: by combing the 2 above, you’ll have a clear view on which content needs to be created or which actions you should take (eg. schedule a fotoshoot). 
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Your marketing strategy

Not every channel is the same, each one needs a different tone of voice, type of images (&sizes) & content. 

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Owned

How will you offer value to your customer?

Product

How are you going to provide value for your customer. Have you thought about flexible intro-offers to lower the barrier for new customers? Which product launches are scheduled and which promotions throughout the year.
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Earned

What is your offering worth to your customer?

Pricing

What is the pricing you're going to implement towards different offerings and different customers. Have you thought about packages, upselling offers and loyalty pricing? Will your pricing be the same across all channels?
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Paid

Where will you sell your product or service?

Place

Where are you going to sell your products? Through your own webshop? Through affiliates? Amazon, bol.com or Coolblue? Or brick & mortar stores. Will this approach be equal across countries?
  • ico-blue-16px Make it actionable

Planning & implementation

Execution is everything. It’s all about having the right team, tools and processes will be crucial to execute your strategy successfully. 

How and when will you execute your sport marketing strategy? That's one of our specialties at MySueno.
By analysing what you do you can quickly adjust and optimize your communication strategy.
  • ico-blue-16px Measure, understand, optimize

Analytics & tracking tools

Without data and analytics you’re exploring the world of communication completely blinded. Each channel has their own reporting tools. For SEO you’ll want to install Google Search Console, whereas Facebook business manager will give you all the details about Instagram and Facebook. 
 Here are the basic tools we implement in any communication project which give you the power to guide your users through the funnel and ensure reporting. 

  • ico-yellow-16px Google Analytics

The standard reporting tool that tracks your website. 

  • ico-yellow-16px Hotjar

Gives you an heatmap of where your website visitors are clicking. 

  • ico-yellow-16px Facebook Retargeting pixel

Allows you to retarget website visitors.

  • ico-yellow-16px Lead Generation Forms

Add forms where users can subscribe to your newsletter. (Plug-ins or e-mail provder)

  • ico-yellow-16px CRM & mailing system

Store your generated leads in your CRM system to keep track of their progress through the sales funnel. 

Sports communication reviews

It was a pleasure to work with Julie! She is a fast deliverer and has an attitude of great professionalism: she is proactive, focused on detail, interested and hardworking. Does all the tasks quickly and well. A great asset to any team. Julie was in charge of the strategy and detailed workflow creation of the NN Running Club community. As a community manager she defined the structure of ads, posts, mailings, and partly frontend platform features. Julie is also a very nice and attentive person to work with, a real asset to any team! 
Energy labRobin Decottignies - Account Manager
Energy lab
Julie has worked with us as an external advisor and consultant on various sports related projects. She's always very proactive and asks the right questions from the start in order to get the job done! She's able to bring focus and define the best possible actions for a particular project while still having the broader picture and the end goal in mind. I'd truly recommend working with Julie if you're looking for support regarding your sports marketing strategy.
SportUP - STRN - VictorisKristof De Mey - Sports Technology, Innovation & business Development
SportUP - STRN - Victoris
“Julie gave us a fresh look on the (sports)market of today and tomorrow. She posesses a contageous portion of energy and provides tools which make the world of marketing instantly accessible and implementable. It felt like we got sucked into the head of our consumers.”
Fros multisport VlaanderenMartine Verheyen
Fros multisport Vlaanderen
I had a great experience working with MySueño. As a start-up it was super convenient that I had a marketing strategist & branding specialist by my side but only when I needed it. Julie developed the full marketing launch strategy but also gave me acces to her wide network in the sports/marketing industry. Thank you for the great work so far & looking forward to the next steps!
Cyclo StudioEnzo Maenhaut - Owner
Cyclo Studio
Julie combines a very profound digital expertise with pragmatic solutions. She is a very valuable link between our Brand Managers and the digital agencies for all our digital plans. Moreover, Julie is a very nice person to work with. Therefore, I would really recommend Julie for anyone who wants to optimise their digital ecosystem. Looking forward to continue working with Julie for our future plans and for further optimisation!
EGLieve Pattyn - Marketing Director
EG
I had the pleasure to work with Julie in her first role at Etixx & more recently at Polar. Julie is a very dynamic, hungry & positive marketing professional. Julie is only happy when the job is done and the results are there. She quickly identifies opportunities and knows how to structure various tasks. She works fast-paced and communicates very open and honest. I would work with her again when the opportunity arises.
Polar ElectroKoen Demyttenaere - Marketing Director
Polar Electro
“Julie is a top consultant in communication strategy and implementation. She brings structure, works very hands-on and to-the-point. I can highly recommend Julie when you need help with your communication challenges.”
SportkompasBruno D'Hulster - Social Entrepreneur
Sportkompas
I had the pleasure of working with Julie when we were both consultants at EG. She came in as a whirlwind - with an incredible capacity to cope with masses of work. She not only masters the aspects of digital technology but also combines a clear strategic vision with a very strong 'let's do it' attitude and appropriate focus on cost-effectiveness. This unique skill set allows her to really make a difference to the business in a short period of time with sometimes limited budgets.
EG - Business Consultant Katty De Bruyne
EG - Business Consultant
Julie worked for Moov-IT as a Corporate Wellness consultant and gave a guest lecture to one of our clients on the "Psychology of Motivation" related to the gamification of apps. Julie is a dream to work with. She studied and used all input from our current presentations and knowledge center and transformed them into something even better! Julie is super independent, highly skilled, autodidact and takes on a project van A to Z, even to Z+++! To our delight she added her personal touch & branding insights helping our company taking it to the next step. We'll definitely keep working with Julie and MySueño!
Moov-ITGriet Johanna Vandenhouweele - CEO
Moov-IT
Julie is a driven & passionate marketeer with a large knowledge of website development, e-commerce, contentmarketing, social media … with implementation on an international level. Her presentation skills are excellent! She has a very ‘natural’ flair in doing ‘business’ with external partners and is always open for input and eager to improve.
Etixx Sports NutritionMietje Kestelyn - Brand Manager Belgium
Etixx Sports Nutrition
Julie's understanding of technology and the relationship between business needs and digital enablement was insightful and the reason for online success of the Etixx brand. Julie was able to implement solutions supporting business objectives with limited budget and resources. She handled business relationships while also interacting with technical teams. Julie's work is detailed and she has excellent communication skills. I look forward to crossing paths again with future initiatives.
PerrigoAnthony Hogan - Senior Director Commercial Solutions
Perrigo
I've had the pleasure to work with Julie, by the time she was at the International Etixx Team. As a distributor she ofered us great and efective tools to activate the brand in our country. As a professional i think she is so talented, with a so remakable vision and understanding on digital world and it's opportunities. As a professional I would always like to have Julie playing for my team.
Etixx Sports NutritionJordi Clapés Oleart
Etixx Sports Nutrition
Julie gave a workshop about the go-to-market strategy as a mentor for Sport-UP boost. The workshop overflowed in its quality and I noticed the start-ups really got it. She was able to respond quickly to individual cases and gave very down to earth advice. The balance between examples and personalised advice was very good. I would give the session a 9 out of 10.
Sport-UP Nico Delleman
Sport-UP
The cooperation with MySueño for the Cycling World Cup was professional and dynamic from the very beginning. The creative input in terms of contemporary marketing techniques was a real added value. The courage and willingness to leave well-trodden paths when promoting major sports events was inspiring. The informal contacts - an important lubricant in any cooperation - were also spontaneous and infectious. That their patience was sometimes tested on this project thriving within a government context will have been a good learning experience for later, similar marketing assignments....
Sport VlaanderenFrank Bulcaen - Coordinator Policy and Projects
Sport Vlaanderen
Julie's team at MySueno provides communication and marketing solutions tailored to your organization in a smooth, professional and proactive manner and gives an extra push to your communication operation after a thorough analysis of your communication actions.
Sportdienst Stad GentElvira Verleyen - Onthaal & Sportpromotie
Sportdienst Stad Gent
We, Korok and Dita -hockey brand of Decathlon-, enjoy working with MySueño and Julie. I came to them with a very specific question and they offered me a personalised offer to work on the brand identity of both brand AND other things we needed help with. They offer us everything we need: they work quick; great quality; co-creation; great follow-up; flexibility;... I really recommend them and if you have any questions, please contact me!
DecathlonLeentje Van Meirhaeghe
Decathlon
With Decathlon, we called on Julie from MySueño to facilitate the writing of our sports marketing plans. Throughout the process, Julie assisted us with theoretical frameworks as well as practical tips and together we looked for solutions tailored to our business. The collaboration completely met our expectations and we may work together again in the future!
Decathlon BelgiumBram Candries - Marketeer
Decathlon Belgium
How can we help?

Sports Communication - how we can help

SEO is one of the communication channels that’s been least taken advantage of. One because it’s ever changing and quite challenging to set-up. Two because you need experts in the field in order to compete with the ever growing content online. SEA is often a black box, that’s being used but has much more to offer. I’ll help you to align both and take over Google together. 

Influencer marketing is the biggest growing communication channel. I’ll help you set-up a complete influencer strategy, ranging from the value your offer, returns you’re expecting, how to select matching influencers, organizing a content & activation calendar plus the analytics of it all. 

Sponsorships will always play a big role in any sports marketing strategy. Though many companies invest hugely in events, teams or athletes, very few reap the benefits to the fullest. Creating a good portfolio strategy, an in-depth content & activation plan and analytics to give you insights in what’s happening,  will help increase your ROI of your sponsorship.  

Social media channels and their respective audiences are constantly changing. Have you heard about Twitch? Do you know WhatsApp is becoming a sales channel? Did you know that Facebook is not  dead even though it seems like Instagram is taking over? Let’s decide the most relevant channels for your target audience, and create an actionable and channel specific content & ad planning to ensure success. 

PR is basically free media space, so it should be part of any communication strategy. But it takes more than a simple e-mail or launch event to actually get that coverage. Let’s work on building long-lasting relationships and a yearly PR planning to build your brand in the PR space. 

Whether you’re organizing an  event, have a booth present or sponsoring one, a good communication strategy before during after is what will get you the ROI you want. Fun activations focused on data capturing will  ensure you can connect with users long after the event is finished.  

Content is king is not one of the most used marketing quotes with no reason. In a world that’s full of cluttered messages screaming for our attention, high quality content is what you need to reach good results in your communication strategy. 

You might’ve heard people say ‘e-mail is dead’. The numbers tell a different story though. With social media being under fire and taking more control, together with stricter GDPR regulations which might endanger retargeting options, it’s crucial to build your own audience and to nurture your leads. 

Looking for the best online blogs, magazines or billboards to increase your brand awareness? We’ve got your back. 

We all know video is becoming more important, so why are so many brands and organizations not using it yet? Both YouTube and Display advertising are a good way to increase brand awareness. 

ico-white How we can help
Discover all about Sport Communication and how we can help you at MySueno.
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