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Ideas For the Next 40 Years
Some key themes in our knowledge about women and sports

09/26/2012

@EMMACNYC

Outsider perspective. Not an athlete/expert - but spend my days obsessed with 2 questions typically: how to
get attention for something people tend to ignore, how to get people to care about it more. Both seem v relevant
for women and sport

Monday, October 22, 12

the title ix effect

some amazing achievements post title ix .....

source: “As Title IX turns 40, legacy goes beyond numbers”, Nancy Armour, Associated Press. 2012.

2


“Were U.S. women their own nation, they would
have ﬁnished ahead of every other country's
total gold medal count except China and tied
Great Britain.”

source: USA Today

4


world’s highest paid athletes, 2011

But a very long way to go

source: Forbes

5


most searched athletes, 2011

1. Manny Pacquiao

2. Tiger Woods

3. LeBron James

4. Michael Jordan

5. Kobe Bryant

6. Tim Tebow

7. Kris Humphries

8. Aaron Rodgers

9. Derrick Rose

10. Peyton Manning

source: Google Zeitgeist

6


los angeles sports news coverage by sex,
1999-2009

A vicious circle of less interest less coverage less investment less interest less coverage etc...

source: USC Center for Feminist Research

7


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The virtuous circle we’d
More fans of
like to see instead
women’s sports
My approach: some ideas/
themes that might help..

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More fans of
Start with female fandom
women’s sports
what do we know about how we can get more women exited about sport - all sport, that played by men AND by women.
ie how to spur more passionate female sports fans

9


The power of stories

the theme that immediately comes to the fore..

10


“They might be big time athletes, but
they are still women and deal with the
same problems we do. We want to know
how they deal with their problems and
how their stories can inspire us…”
- Jean, mom, espnW qualitative research

“We like to feel like we “know” the
athletes… we like the backstory”
- Joanne, mom, espnW qualitative research

“I look for interesting stories in
addition to sports. I like to know
what’s going on behind the scenes in
athletes’ lives…”
- Melanie, non-mom, espnW qualitative research

11


in what way do women “fan” differently?

•Topline stats •Nitty-gritty stats
•Wants to know athletes as •Likes to know the athletes as
people numbers, fantasy, brackets

•Cares about “her” teams and •Cares about the sport, the
“her” favorite players league, and the team

•Cares about the “what”, “why” •Focused on the “what”
and “how”

12


“Think about the story of the
sport for women. Where is the
reality TV show for women’s sport?
Where is the ‘rise above the odds’
TV series or movie story?”
- Kate Muhl, Iconoculture

13


A parallel example from a very different world...The life story of a major band or singer each week, and even if
you didn’t like the musical genre of that singer/band, their story could be riveting, deeply engaging...

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Provocation of course...
but doesn’t the approach have potential??

15


Room in market for a
sports mag/site that
is speciﬁcally and
exclusively about the
LIFE of athletes?
their background,
family, training,
values, hopes, daily
struggles etc. Sort
of mid-way point
between ESPN mag and
People mag?

Power to appeal to
many, but esp women??

16


The principle in action.... part of a great campaign with storytelling about athletes at the core

17


Star power

18


81.5 million readers 71.6 million readers

No prizes for spotting America-s - esp American women’s - seemingly insatiable appetite for content about celebs
and stars. Maybe not always a palatable phenomenon - but a powerful one. Exploitable for women’s sport?

source: US Media Pack, People Media Pack, InTouch Media Pack, OK Magazine Media Pack, Star Magazine Media Pack, National Enquirer Media Pack,
TMZ.com, E Online, Gawker, PerezHilton.com

19


From my childhood - the phenomenon in action. Two great athletes, roughly equally matched - beat each other an
even number of times. But only one star - McEnroe of course....often annoying but always compelling, stimulated
talk and attention

20


“Personalities matter, popularity is not just
about talent. When Shaun White is competing,
more people watch, they just do. Same with
Lindsey Vonn.”
- Ron Semiao, founder/creator, The X-Games

Parallel learning from the world of action/extreme sports - a sector of the sports landscape that grew
exponentially in recent years.

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Supremacy Symbolism

Charisma

Beauty

23


Lifestyle

one ﬁnal theme in area of potentially increasing female fandom...

24


“It was more than just a sport, it was a
lifestyle, it was culture.....There clearly was a
look to it, not everyone wanted to be a pro
skateboarder or snowboarder but everyone wanted
to look like one. It was a badge you wore.”

- Ron Semiao, Founder/Creator, X-Games

“This category didn’t really take hold till the
late 80s/early 90s when someone called it all
‘extreme sports’. They introduced the concept
that it was all about athletes and sports
‘taking it to the next level, taking it to an
extreme’.... When it becomes a lifestyle, that’s
when it becomes big growth.”

- Scott Bowers, Oakley
Learning from the action sports experts again....For women, sport is and can be not just something they do or
something they watch - but something that represents who they are, what they believe in. ie Lifestyle branding -
cultivating a brand that makes a statement about the kind of life you lead.

25


women’s sports participation
top 10 sports currently participating in (%’s 1

likely
definite

Gym workouts! 56%$ 75%

Running! 46%$ 64%

Yoga! 40%$ 51%

Swimming! 35%$ 53%

Hiking! 35%$ 47%

Weight lifting! 31%$ 45%

!  Basketball - 21%! !  Tennis ! - 21%! !  Volleyba
Sport as lifestyle more than competitive arena for most women....

Q4: which best describes each of the following sports activities for you? !
source: espnW

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women’s top reasons for participating
in sports

To stay healthy 85%
To stay in shape 84%
To relieve stress 81%
To maintain/lose weight 77%
Because it’s fun, even though it’s not my top priority 68%
Love of the game 66%
To stay centered/balanced 66%
Because it will help me later in life 59%
To bond with other people 57%

source: espnW quantitative research, August 2010

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A great example of a brand taking advantage of this theme: powerful lifestyle identity with no dilution of
authenticity/integrity...

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Themes that may help boost More fans of
women’s sports
interest in women’s sport -
whether this is men or women
becoming more interested in
women’s sport....

29


Dads and daughters

Fathers - and grandfathers - as a ‘soft target’ for boosting general population interest in, and support for,
women’s sport..

30


“A 2011 study found that if a
CEO’s first born happened to be a
daughter, the company’s wage gap
between men and women lowered by
nearly 3 percentage points.”

indication of the powerful the inﬂuence of paternal love and paternal involvement with their daughters can be..

source: Wall Street Journal, March 9 2011

31


Only 28% of girls credit
their fathers with teaching
them “the most” about sports
(vs.46% for boys).

A way to go...

source: Women’s Sports Foundation

32


Indicator and optimizer of this opportunity (my daughter’s shirt - my husband is a diehard Man City soccer
fan)...

33


“In a general sense, people are living a
much less gendered existence…..it begins
with how households function: more than
60% of married women today are
breadwinners or co-breadwinners.”

“What’s new is the more co-operative
approach to household tasks. There’s been
a huge increase in men’s participation in
child-rearing. Dads change diapers, give
baths etc….It used to be that a guy could
live through his son’s achievements but
not his daughters, but now that’s not
true, it’s daughters too.”

- Traci Croft, Iconoculture

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A dramatic shift in a relatively short period of time, need to harness this trend. It’s a powerful lever to pull

source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2008

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The power of story-telling (redux)

Power of story-telling as a force to change even a whole society’s attitudes and values? Relevant in a society
still tending to think of sport as inherently male and ‘masculine’?...

36


transformation of popular opinion by sitcom

“TV [especially popular Indian soap
operas] brought new ideas into isolated
villages that tended to be very
conservative and traditional….The effect
was huge: ‘introducing cable television is
equivalent to roughly ﬁve years of female
education”

Can’t recommend this book highly enough. This example
about how the advent of TV in remote rural communities
- via sitcoms - had power to unsettle ingrained
prejudice against women’s rights to education, right to
marry late/voluntarily, right to operate independent of
husband/father etc

37


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More fans of
women’s sports

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Time Saving

39


Women historically have reported
higher level of stress than men.
On a 1 - 10 scale of little-to-no
stress to a great deal of stress,
women report stress at a level of 5.4
and men at 4.8.

Busyness a constant issue for most adults today in developed world, but women esp report feeling overloaded and
overwhelmed on a regular basis. There never seem to be enough hours....

source: The American Psychological Association, 2012

40


85% of women who have an equal
socioeconomic position to their partner
have more than half the responsibility
for domestic work.

source: PLoS ONE Journal, 2012 as cited by MSN

41


“With so much going on in my life now,
it’s sometimes hard to ﬁt everything
in. Exercise is still important to me
and I have to make time. Sometimes I
don’t have the luxury to enjoy it, but
just need to get it done.”

- Karen, mom, espnW qualitative research

42


Some businesses that have ﬂourished as a result. To maximize further female sport participation (esp post
school/college), can we also come up with ideas that make it quick and easy for women to participate?

43


21st Century C.S.R.

44


“Socially responsible ﬁrms receive
more favorable recommendations in
recent years relative to earlier
ones, documenting a changing
perception of the value of such
strategies by the analysts.”

source: Loannis Loannoy, London Business School & George Serafeim, Harvard Business School, August 2010

45


“Over two-thirds of consumers say
that responsibility is important. 55%
of consumers are more likely to
choose a product that supports a
certain cause when choosing between
otherwise similar products.”

source: Landor's CSR Branding Survey, 2010

46


“In a 2006 survey of executives
and investors, 85% said CSR
(corporate social responsibility)
was a “central” or “important”
consideration in investment
decisions. That ﬁgure was almost
double the 44% who responded
similarly ﬁve years before.”

All has potential relevance for women’s sport marketplace because of the incredible facts about the positive
social impact that sports participation has for girls and young women.

source: The Economist survey, 2006

47


Female athletes in grades 9 through
12 are less than half as likely to
get pregnant as their non-athlete
peers.

Female high school athletes of all
races and ethnicities tend to have
higher grades and signiﬁcantly higher
graduation rates than non-athletes.

source: The Women’s Sports Foundation Report, 1998. The Journal of Research on Adolescence, 1998.

48


erall have Her Emotional Contentedness is Evide
self-image
ves, have
erall
in How Positively She Describes Herse
sports effect on girls’ Non-Athlete
(A)
Athlete
(B)
Hardcore At
(C)
he hardcore
nkssuccess and self-esteem
self-image
ves,even Caring
Non-Athlete
88%
Athlete
92% A
Hardcore At
94% AB
y of herself.
he hardcore (A) (B) (C)
ositive,
erall have
nks even
d words to
self-image
y of herself. Fun
Caring 87%
88% 90% A
92% 93% AB
94%
emselves.
ves, Non-Athlete Athlete Hardcore At
ositive,
he hardcore
d words to
thletes do
nks even
emselves.
A Multi-Dimensional View of Herself: A
Hardworking
Fun
(A)
70%
87%
(B)
85% A
90%
(C)
89% AB
93%
mselves as
y of herself.
mpetitive, or
ositive, do
thletes
Tough Leader and Girly Trendsetter
Caring
Funny
Hardworking
88%
78%
70%
92% A
79%
85% A
94% AB
82% B
89% AB
dmselves as
words to
emselves.
mpetitive, or A Multi-Dimensional View of Herself: A
Fun
Active
Funny
87%
44%
78%
90% A
82% A
79%
93% AB
93% AB
82% B

hletes use
thletes do
ugh to
Tough Leader and Girly Trendsetter
Hardworking
Outgoing
Active
70%
60%
44%
85% A
72% A
82%
89% AB
78% AB
93%
mselves as Non-Athlete Athlete Hardcore Ath
mselves, or
mpetitive, Funny 78% 79% 82% B
Pretty
Outgoing 59%
(A)
60% 70%A
(B)
72% A 77% AB
78%(C)
ey are
than non-
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use the Confident
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48%
59% 71% A
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79%
ugh to
s well.
mselves, Outgoing Non-Athlete
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78% AB
ey are Competitive
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45%
51%
53% (B) A
74% A
59%
71% (C)
86% AB
79% AB
67%
s are more
than non-
and the less Pretty 59% 70%A 77% AB
use Leader
Tough
Laid-back
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44%
68% B
45% 69% A
53% A
61%
74% 79% AB
63%63%
86% AB
m’. well.
s Words
et,’ and Confident
An influencer 53%
51% 71% A
59% A 79% AB
67% AB
Popular
Laid-back
Base: 37%
68% B
(501) 55%
61%
(1001) 66%63%
(500)
r are more
s
andless
and Companies spend a Tough on csr programsimpact.know this is more important than 74% And encouraging/enabling AB
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fortune - and 45% ever. A 86% AB
44% being done to channel that csr spending our way?
53% A 63% A
more likely Girly positive social
women’s sport has proven So is enough 49% 52%
m’. Words Base: (501) (1001) (500)
a non- espnW
et,’ source:
and Laid-back 68% B 61% 63%
Popular
Intense level
ollowing words describe you? 37%
38% 55% A
46% 66% AB
56%
r significance at the 95% confidence
tical
and 49
Girly
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ollowing words describe you?
more likely22, 12 the 95% confidence level 44%
35%
(501) 49%
43% A
(1001) 52% A
49% AB
(500)
tical significance at
Monday, October

Important, in doing so, to recognize the shift to a more progressive form of philanthropy: more personal, more
transparent, more innovative, more creative. Perhaps useful for women’s sport organizations to pattern these
newer arrivals

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One last over-arching More fans of
point...
women’s sports

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Leadership

Most people at this event are proven, impressive leaders. And leaders united in pursuit of a change agenda.
Therefore maybe important also to consider the most powerful leadership qualities we may all need to deploy -
qualities which may not all be intuitive to us as women.....

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“When I came up with The X-Games, it was a
polarizing idea: half the most senior
execs loved it, but half hated it. I had
to sell it really hard, I had to stick my
neck out....There was lots of push-back
from sport commentators, from experts....
There was ‘It’s not proper sports, it’s
not what ESPN should be doing; we are
like the New York Times of sport, this is
The National Inquirer’.”
- Ron Semiao, X-Games Founder/Creator

53


Men: Success = Popularity

Women: Success ≠ Popularity

I think we all have to be ready to deal with this equation; conscious and up for it if we are to step up as
female leaders in a world hard-set to the male agenda

source: Sheryl Sandberg TED talk, 2010

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“They (women) aren’t just bad at behaving
like arrogant self-aggrandizing jerks.
They are bad at behaving like self-promoting
narcissists, anti-social obsessives, or
pompous blowhards, even a little bit, even
temporarily, even when it would be in their
best interests to do so.
Whatever bad things you can say about
these behaviors, you can’t say they are
under-represented among people who have
changed the world.”
- Clay Shirky

Promoting the success and growth of the women’s sports marketplace is undoubtedly a tough, demanding challenge.
We face lots of ingrained obstacles. It is a challenge that is about ‘changing the world’ - change, not just
success. And I wonder if overcoming those obstacles therefore might sometimes require us to lead in ways that
don’t come naturally to us - as collaborative, mutually supportive, consensus-building women...

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In conclusion...

• Tell stories
• Build stars
• Promote a lifestyle
• Harness dads
• Save time
• Emphasize social beneﬁts
• Be brave. A brave jerk, if necessary.

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title of slide.

source: here

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