chelsea fc and their use of social media (individual finished)

312SEM CASE STUDY ON CHELSEA FC AND

THEIR USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

“The term social media encompasses all of the

interactions between people online-all the ways

they participate in and share information,

knowledge, and opinions while using web-based

applications to communicate.” (Safko and

Brake. 2009)

312SEM – Assignment 2 Joshua Lucy - 3776252

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Table of Contents Introduction ............................................................ 2

Section A: Background .......................................... 2

Section B: Rationale to why Chelsea FC are using

Social Media to a Great Extent ............................... 3

Section C: Recommendations ................................ 5

References .............................................................. 7

Appendices ............................................................. 8


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Introduction In this assignment I will be discussing how Chelsea FC uses social media to achieve

business objectives. The assignment will be split into 3 core areas; Section A will

provide a brief background of the company, Section B will give a clear rational to

why the writer has chosen this particular company to discuss the topic and discuss

how Chelsea FC use social media to their advantage. Finally section C will provide

recommendations based upon the research done on the club throughout the report.

The assignment will finish with a conclusion where the writer will offer an

assumption as to whether or not he believes Chelsea FC are using social media

efficiently.

Over the past 10 years social media has made a huge impact on the average person's

everyday life. ComScore (2012) reports that “almost one out of every five minutes

spent online is currently being spent on social networking sites.” Nielson (2011)

reports that “four out of five active internet users visit social networks and blogs.” A

key finding from the Pew Research Centre’s report is that “the average age of the

social media user is getting older.” (See Appendix 9) According to Newman, T.

Peck, J. Harris, C. Wilhide, B (2013) there are 5 key uses to social media; Keeping up

with friends, assisting with and talking about purchase decisions, Access news and

entertainment, sharing information and accessing reviews, and interacting with

companies. All of which have to be taken into consideration by companies wanting to

be successful in today’s highly competitive marketing industry. As a company it's

important that by using social media they are achieving the following; Generating

additional awareness and exposure, enhancing customer service, driving website

traffic and subscribers, improving research and monitoring, and finally generating

leads and improving sales. Section B and C of this report will demonstrate how

effective Chelsea FC are at using social media reflecting on what the previous writers

in this report have discussed.

Section A: Background Chelsea FC is a Premier League football club situated in Fulham, London. The club

was founded in 1905 by brothers Gus and Joseph Mears, two English businessmen

notable for the establishment of the club.

The club has enjoyed top tier English

football for the majority of its history.

Their home ground is a 41,837 seated

stadium, Stamford Bridge, where they

have been playing since 1905.

The club had their first major success in

1955, when they won the league

championship, and also won other various

cup competitions during the 60’s, 70’s, 90’s and naughty's. However, in recent years

Chelsea FC has been very successful at home, winning 15 major trophies. Since the

arrival of their new owner Roman Abramovich, (a Russian businessman and owner of

the private investment company Millhouse LLC) Chelsea have become a major power

house in European football. Abramovich has brought great fortune to the club which

has enabled them to sign top players from all over the world, which is why Chelsea

FC are such a threat in today’s game. Chelsea FC are also the only London club to


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have won the UEFA Champions League, a competition seen as the ultimate prize in

club football.

Section B: Rationale to why Chelsea FC are using Social Media to a Great Extent

I decided to use Chelsea FC to discuss this topic because as a Chelsea supporter I

know how much the club uses social media on a day-to-day basis. I have also found

research from Sport Social MediaIndex (2013) that shows the club are currently the

second best team in the Premier League to use social media continuously (See

Appendix 1). Therefore, Chelsea FC are a good example of a company using social

media to a large extent. The site was highlighted from a tweet done by Prof Simon

Chadwick on January 8th 2014 (See Appendix 2). The site uses three elements to

determine the ranking of each of the clubs, these elements are: a full analysis of each

team’s official club social media channels. “Scores given at this stage took into

account the breadth of official club social media channels (including Facebook,

Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, Vine and YouTube) as well as blog activity.”

(Sport Social Media Index. 2013)

These social media websites would then be monitored to see the percentage increase

in engagement levels, to notice if the channels are progressing or regressing. The

second element is a team of eleven people from Umpf, William Hill and Opta formed

together as judges of these teams and their channels to give a score. Scores would

then be averaged out which would form 35% of the final score. The final element

would take into account: duplicate content, failure to use hashtags, idle content

periods of four or more days and repeated spelling mistakes or grammatical errors.

After all these elements are considered, a final score is given. Chelsea FC where given

2nd place 2.3% behind club rivals Tottenham Hotspur, who could therefore be used as

a benchmark.

According to the social star awards (2013) website (award offered to the organisation

with the most social media activity), Chelsea FC are currently 12th in the whole world

with up to 70,000 new fans a day following them on Facebook. Overall the club is

48th on the global social media chart, “with a total of 4,069,351 Twitter followers,

26,803,612 Facebook fans and 72,453,280 YouTube views. Today Chelsea FC gained

4,760 Twitter followers, gained 16,551 YouTube views and gained 69,964 Facebook

fans. Their social media ranking has moved up 7 places in the daily Europe Chart to

no.8 and has risen to no.33 in the all-time Europe Chart.” (Star Count. 2014) See

Appendix 3. According to Star Count (2014) Chelsea FC is more popular than the

President of the United States and Google, that’s how impressive Chelsea FC are

when it comes to Social Media. With the club being highly ranked on a well-

established website like Star Count, this alone gives Chelsea FC a potential increase

in their fan base, as it gives them that competitive edge over their competitors like

Arsenal FC. With Chelsea FC being more recognised over social media channels then

Arsenal FC for example, gives them a greater chance to attract new customers or

followers.


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Newman, T. Peck, J. Harris, C. Wilhide, B (2013) identify three main categories of

social media which Chelsea FC have used efficiently for many years:

1. Publishing Services – publishing services includes publishing information

and ideas online, such as blogs and forums. See Appendix 4. Chelsea offers a

website ‘The Shed’ which allows all types of Chelsea supporters to come

together and discuss anything to do with the club. The site allows fans to post

their blogs and chat on the forum 24/7. Chelsea also have an ex-Chelsea player

called ‘Pat Nevin’ (See Appendix 5) who writes a weekly blog on the Chelsea

FC official website on his verdict of the games and other news, and also a

credited club journalist ‘Giles Smith’ (See Appendix 5) who also writes a

weekly blog on the Chelsea FC website on anything to do with the club.

2. Media Sharing Services – sharing services enables people and organisations

to share original content in a variety of formats online. The technology has

made it easier for people to save and share links to others, some examples

include: Youtube, Spotify, and Flickr. See Appendix 6 for latest Youtube

statistics. The statistics taken from starcount.com updates on a day to day

basis. After just a single day views on the Chelsea Youtube channel have

increased to over 120,000 more than the previous day (Due to the success in

the Champions League Quarter Final against PSG). The Chelsea Youtube

channel offers (See Appendix 7) post and pre game interviews with players

and managers, previous tours, behind the scene footage, popular uploads and

more.

3. Networking Services – Finally networking services helps to connect like-

minded people, making it easier to share their thoughts and/or ideas,

contribute to a cause, collaborate on projects, and learn more on topics one is

interested in. Examples of networking services which Chelsea FC are

currently using, includes the likes of Facebook and Twitter (See Appendix 8).

Chelsea’s Facebook page currently has 70,000 new views/followers per day

and the Twitter page nearly 5,000, the two social networks combined together

makes up 74.7% of Chelsea’s daily views/followers from the 8 social

networks which are recorded by starcount.com. Meaning these two social

networks are very important for Chelsea FC and their efforts to increase their

fan base.

Another key asset which Chelsea FC utilises is ‘Chelsea TV’ (See Appendix 10),

unlike most clubs Chelsea have a well-recognised television channel which is

available to customers on the internet and Sky. The channel gives Chelsea FC the

freedom to film whatever they like and have the ability to put it on air whenever they

like. The channel also gives Chelsea the ability to give back to the fans, with players

answering questions from Facebook live on television, a term in marketing known as

‘Return of Investment’. This is a recent thing Chelsea FC has being doing due to the

fact that the club reached over 20million fans on Facebook. (See Appendix 11)

I believe Chelsea FC have done extremely well in utilising all the social media

channels at a high level, especially Facebook and Twitter. Chelsea FC like to use their

Twitter account is a method for delivering a live running commentary of the game for


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those fans without access to the match. With the commentary being updated by the

second, there is no other social network/website/application which can update this

quick, allowing fans/followers to understand what's going on during the games. (See

Appendix 12)

Section C: Recommendations

Recommendation A My first recommendation for Chelsea FC is to build on what they have already

started. Chelsea FC recently played PSG in the Champions League quarter final.

Before the game both Chelsea and PSG were seen using Twitter to communicate to

one another, with each of them posting statistics and photographs of their club to

scare the opposition (See Appendix 13). The Twitter debate gave the build up a bit of

friendly humour and increased the tension leading up to the game. So my

recommendation is for Chelsea to do more of this, or even for every game. As a

Chelsea supporter, watching the two clubs discuss the game over Twitter, made me

even more excited about wanting to watch the game, it also got me involved in the

discussion with one or two ‘tweets’ of my own, which is exactly what the two clubs

would have wanted, people talking about the game. The benefit of the two clubs doing

this, is that it increased awareness of the game with people ‘re-tweeting’ about what

the two clubs had said, which therefore increases the number of people that see the

‘tweet’, and the more people that ‘re-tweet’ and ‘tweet’ about the game the more

likely the topic becomes a ‘trend’.

Recommendation B Referring back to Appendix 11, the writer talked about how the use of players

answering questions was beneficial for the club. My second recommendation is for

Chelsea FC to offer a ‘Questions and Answers’ service between the fans and players.

This is a service which gives back to the fans, with fans being able to ask the players

whatever they like, which is beneficial for the club as it builds a better relationship

with the fans, which refers back to the term ‘Return of Investment’. With the club

already having a television channel ‘Chelsea TV’ (See Appendix 10) and the

understanding that the ‘Questions and Answers’ was successful in the past, I can’t see

why the club wouldn’t want to introduce such an idea. The fans can post their

questions on both social media channels ‘Facebook’ and ‘Twitter’. Each month the

club can select two or three players to take 30mins out of their schedule to give back

to the supporters on ‘Chelsea TV’. The idea could also increase subscribers to the

channel, therefore increasing the clubs revenue.

Recommendation C My Final recommendation involves using an idea which is currently being used in the

NBA, and has been very successful as it motivates the players to get more involved in

social media, and again increases awareness of the club. The idea is called ‘the social

media awards’, the awards include the following:

Snap Shot Award – Given to the player/team that has the best picture of the

season. Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

The Epic Award – Given to the player/team/match that involved a moment

that fans/players/coaches etc. couldn’t believe happened. Chelsea potential

example: (See Appendix 14)


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The LOL Award – Given to the funniest moment of the season. Chelsea

potential example: (See Appendix 14)

Social Slam Award – Given to the player that performed the best slam dunk

during the season. The idea can be altered to ‘the best goal’ for Chelsea FC.

Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

FTW Award (For the Win) – Given to the best incident during the season

that won the team the game. Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

The OMG Award – Given to the team/player/coach etc. that had the most

people talking about a single incident. Chelsea potential example: (See

Appendix 14)

Trendsetter Award – Given to the player that presents himself best on the

pitch. Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

The 140 Award – Given to the player/coach who gives the best quote of the


The Social MVP Award – Most liked player on Social Media (most

followers). Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

Social Rookie Award – Given to the best rookie of the season by the fans.

Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

Social Difference Award – Given to the player that makes a difference (e.g.

Charity) off the pitch. Chelsea potential example: (See Appendix 14)

Fan Nation Award – Given to the team that had the best fans throughout the


The concept can be beneficial to the club as they can use the ‘Social Media Awards’

idea, and use it as another method of getting the supporters more involved with the

club, using a voting system at the end of every season. The final results can then be

aired on the ‘Chelsea TV’ for supporters to watch and see each of the awards handed

out to the players, with highlights of what happened. With regards to Appendix 14

and the examples given, you can see how simply the ‘Social Media Awards’ can be

altered to suit the Premier League or even just Premier League clubs.


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References Chelsea FC Staff. (2014). CHELSEA NOMINATED FOR SOCIAL MEDIA STAR .

Available: http://www.chelseafc.com/chelsea-article/article/3140412. Last accessed

14th Apr 2014.

Chelsea FC Staff. (2014). Chelsea FC Twitter Page. Available:

https://twitter.com/chelseafc. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.

Chelsea FC Staff. (2014). Chelsea FC Youtube Page. Available:

http://www.youtube.com/user/chelseafc. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.

SportSocialMediaIndex Staff. (2014). Tables. Available:

http://www.sport.socialmediaindex.co.uk/. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.

Chelsea FC Staff. (2014). Facebook Page. Available:

https://www.facebook.com/ChelseaFC?fref=ts. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.

Menezes, J. (2014). PSG v Chelsea: Champions League opponents go to war... on

Twitter. Available: http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/psg-v-

chelsea-champions-league-opponents-go-to-warover-twitter-9228595.html. Last

accessed 14th Apr 2014.

NBA News Staff. (2013). 2013 Social Media Awards Results. Available:

http://www.nba.com/news/2013-social-media-awards-results/. Last accessed 14th Apr

2014.

Newman, T. Peck, J. Harris, C. Wilhide, B (2013). Social Media in Sport Marketing.

Arizona: Holcomb Hathaway. p1-41.

SportSocialMediaIndex Staff. (2014). League Tables. Available:

http://www.sport.socialmediaindex.co.uk/files/vantage/ssmi13-overall-league-table-

2013-nu.pdf. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.

Star Count Staff. (2014). Social Star Awards 2013 Shortlist Chart. Available:

http://www.starcount.com/chart/social-star-awards-2013-shortlist/2443dfbc-9c7b-

11e2-8b70-12314104b16c/today. Last accessed 14th Apr 2014.


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Appendices

Appendix 1

Appendix 2


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Appendix 3

Screen shot taken on 08/04/2014

Appendix 4


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Appendix 5

Appendix 6

Screen shot taken on 09/04/2014


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Appendix 7


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Appendix 8


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Appendix 9


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Appendix 10

Appendix 11


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Appendix 12


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Appendix 13

Translate: “Congratulations to

The English team that didn’t

Want to leave Europe”.


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Appendix 14

‘Social Media Awards’ Chelsea Potential Examples:

Snap Shot Award

Drogba’s Penalty to

Win Champions

League.

The Epic Award Chelsea winning the

Champions League.

The LOL Award Joso Mourinho

Interview about the

Eggs.

Social Slam Award Oscar’s Goal against

Juventus.

FTW Award Torres Goal against

Barcelona to seal the

Win.


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Trendsetter Award Raul Meireles full

Body tattoos.

The OMG Award 50million Chelsea

Signing Fernando

Torres.

The 140 Award Jose Mourinho

“Chelsea on of

the Best and fear

no one”.

The Social MVP Award Juan Mata two time player

Of the year for Chelsea,

Voted Chelsea Fans.

Social Rookie Award Eden Hazard.


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Social Difference Award Didier Drogba Foundation.

Fan Nation Award Chelsea FC Fans.

chelsea fc and their use of social media (individual finished)

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