4. Poised For Growth
NASCAR has evolved into
an integrated approach
and is setting the agenda
for the industry’s approach
to key growth segments
5. • Economic conditions
hitting NASCAR
exceptionally hard
• Rapidly shifting
media landscape
• Revenue pressures
deeply impacting
sponsor activation …
and how fans consume
• Industry collectively looking
for NASCAR to lead rapid
evolution
6. Hard and Honest Assessment
NASCAR commissioned a
comprehensive industry
review that became a
catalyst for critical change
7. Industry Action Plan (IAP)
Research validated rationale for new way to do business;
Allowed NASCAR to set strategy against specific business challenges.
11. FMEC … By the Numbers in 2013
• More than 500,000 social posts during the
Daytona 500 race, with a peak of 6,000 posts
per minute at checkered flag
• Captured more than 11 million mentions
season-to-date
• Averaging 106,000 conversations on Sprint
Cup race days
• Monitor over 50,000 tweets in real-time
during races
• Analyzed, captured data for long-term
analysis, for over 85 races
12. FMEC In Action
• Primary Research
– Coca-Cola Family of Drivers
– Fontana race
• Sponsor Renewals
– Front Row Motorsports
and CSX
• Crisis Management
– NRA 500
– 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup
• Building social fan base
through active engagement
13. Anatomy of a “Crisis”
Broadcast partner shows
incorrect finish order
1
Media portrays as “firestorm”
2
Despite correction and
engagement, fans react, think
NASCAR is wrong
3
4
Analysis shows issue was only small
part of overall conversation
14. Poised For Growth
NASCAR has evolved into
an integrated approach
and is setting the agenda
for the industry’s approach
to key growth segments
Notas do Editor
Otherexamples of how the FMEC has been used this year: -New OEM product unveil (Chevy SS)Our partner Chevy unveiled a new production model at a press event during the weekend of the Daytona 500. Within an hour after the event was over, our President Mike Helton was able to hand deliver a dashboard to our partner showing how fans and potential customers felt about the new car. -Launch of new digital experience and providing product support (NASCAR Digital Media)A brand new web experience and app platform can bring with it increased needs for customer support. We were able to use the Engagement Center to monitor customer feedback about the new site in real-time, and take actions to provide the best possible experience for our fans. -Evaluating the brand image of an up and coming driver (Darrell Wallace Jr)A new young driver coming up through our developmental series has the potential to be a star in our sport. Using our system, NASCAR was able to analyze both fan sentiment as well as media coverage around the driver, including things like share of voice and influencer status in social media, package that information into a dashboard that his race team could use when in discussions with possible sponsors.-Analysis of how a driver’s brand is tightly linked to a sponsor’s brand, with insights on how to grow the two (M&Ms/Kyle Busch)For a more well established driver, we were able to provide value to a corporate partner and analyze how closely tied the brand is to that driver, including fan response about both, capturing themes about the driver’s own brand. We were able to provide suggestions on how the driver might continue to engage and grow his follower base along with the brands, as well as report performance around their at-track activations.
FMEC in Action – 2013 Primary ResearchCoca-Cola Family of Drivers – FMEC team produced a brand analysis on each of the drivers in the Coca-Cola family, showing their social media footprint, positive/negative themes from fans, and how fan engagement evolved over the year for each driver, with suggestions on which drivers engaged the best in social media. Coke used the information to better determine where they should activate in social media around their drivers. Fontana race – The race at Fontana was an early test for the new Gen-6 car, and immediate reaction from fans showed positive sentiment around the race and car was enormous. This information, which was relayed to senior executives within a couple hours after the race, allowed the competition team to set a “baseline” for tonality around the new car and racing. Fan sentiment around competition is a significant input for the NASCAR Competition and R&D teams. Sponsor RenewalsFMEC provided a sentiment and engagement analysis to a race team (Front Row Motorsports) around sponsor CSX’s “Play It Safe” railroad safety campaign during the May Richmond race. The information provided to Front Row, which was shared with CSX, helped convince CSX to renew their campaign and car sponsorship for another race in 2013 (Indianapolis). Crisis ManagementNRA 500 – FMEC was used to measure volume, tone, and trending of fan and public sentiment around the NRA’s sponsorship of the Sprint Cup Series race in Texas in April. This information gave NASCAR senior executives key input into the public perception towards both NASCAR and Texas Motor Speedway, which was used to assist in planning PR efforts and issue mitigation. 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup – Following Richmond’s September race, the competition-related penalties, change to the Chase format, and the public reaction that ensued dominated conversation around the sport and was a very polarizing issue. The FMEC was able to compare and contrast mainstream media coverage with public sentiment to provide both a holistic view of the situation as well as a detailed look into specific topics – NASCAR, MWR, and individual drivers. Building social fan baseUsing social media to better engage fans and build NASCAR’s social footprint is another key goal and a major plank of NASCAR’s Industry Action Plan. NASCAR has historically done a great job of using social media content to provide behind-the-scenes, “insider’s” view from the track, the garage, pit road, etc., but has not focused on true two-way engagement – answering questions, seeding public discussion, etc. The FMEC staff helps fill that void and improve the interactivity of NASCAR’s social media channels on a daily basis, which fans appreciate. We see a hugely positive reaction from fans who are surprised and delighted that NASCAR is listening to them and answering back.