Research Synopsis
Human Powered Sports Survey
February 17 , 2006
In a continuing effort to better understand customer behavior in the “human-powered sports” arena, Ovation Marketing recently conducted a nationwide online survey to its own database of survey participants to assess:
- Purchase behavior
- Preferred information sources
- Preferred advertising mediums
- Growing customer segments
Overall Findings
By human-powered sports, we mean those sports enjoyed in the outdoors, individually or with others, without the aid of engines, motors, similar machinery or firearms. We also looked at sports that typically would require the purchase of sporting goods or specific apparel in order to effectively participate in them. So, what are these 3500-plus respondents saying about their participation in human-powered sports? Do their attitudes about their human-powered sports of choice lend a positive or negative outlook?From the survey results, we conclude that the marketplace is relatively healthy and we see several key opportunities for marketers of sporting goods to fine tune and improve their efforts in this highly competitive arena.
The four highest preferred human-powered outdoor activities were fishing, camping, hiking and bicycling.
33% said that they are involved in participating in their sport(s) of choice regularly. Seven percent reported activity seven or more times per week. We call these the “die-hards.” 26% said they participate three to six times per week. We call these the serious enthusiasts.
30% of men and 23% of women said they will travel an hour or more to participate in their sport of choice.
We asked the participants what really motivates them to participate. The top four reasons were a feeling of relaxation, a way to relieve stress, a way to stay physically fit and a connection with nature. This information is critically valuable to marketers of equipment for these sports as they craft their advertising messages. Remember, on the surface you may be selling accurate-casting graphite fishing rods, high performance bikes and lightweight, waterproof tents, but what you’re really helping your customer achieve is a feeling of relaxation and/or a stress-relieving experience in the outdoors.
A very large percentage (86%) of the respondents said their purchases of sporting goods equipment are either planned purchases or a planned purchase more than an impulse purchase. It follows then that it’s important to understand how they research their purchases and what the key influencers are. While flip-flopped for men and women, word-of-mouth and a store visit were number one and two. From a marketing perspective, this points out just how critical and important both packaging and point-of-purchase messaging is. It also should be a challenge to sporting goods manufacturers to produce advertising that creates word-of-mouth “buzz.”
When asked what is the one advertising medium mostly likely to influence their purchase of equipment for human-powered activities, point-of-purchase and television were in a virtual dead heat at the top. Once again, the power of the in-store experience is emphasized with these results. Perhaps as important, is the third most influential advertising medium and that is the Internet. We already know that these outdoor enthusiasts plan and research their purchases. In every study we conduct, we see the Internet consistently ranked as the fastest-growing or the most-preferred “research” medium. Every sporting goods marketer’s goal should be that of a fully functional, content-rich and easy-to-navigate web site for their customers.
We asked the 3500-plus respondents if they had increased or decreased their level of participation in human-powered sports over the past two years. 40% of the women and 33% of the men said that their participation had increased significantly or somewhat significantly. This question was followed up with an open-ended question as to why they feel their activity had increased. The largest response was from young families who are now enjoying their children being old enough to participate in the family’s outdoor activities of choice. Certainly, these young families are a logical target for marketers, since so many human-powered sports can be enjoyed by children.
But, we also heard from the 45-year-old-plus “boomers” speaking with answers such as:
“Children have graduated from college. Time and money are now more available.”
“The older I get the more exercise I feel I need, and I enjoy the relaxation.”
“The older I get the more I feel the need to be outdoors. I appreciate it more.”
There is a clear opportunity here. The 45-plus “boomers” sit with the largest “bucket”
of discretionary spending money of any consumer group. These outdoor enthusiasts are telling us they have more time on their hands as they become empty-nesters. Plus, we know from other studies that they see themselves as still very active in life with strong desires to explore new passions. Sporting goods equipment companies are in a position
of strength if they can avoid the mistake of thinking their core market is the 18- to
35-year-old male when in fact the “boomers,” both male and female, are a huge target for most companies. (Naturally, there will be exceptions to this based on the sport and the specific product or line being sold.)
