Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Aaron JohnsonNMDL Presentation

Whitecaps FC and MLS

Vancouver Whitecaps FC is in its second season with the MLS and newly reinvented stadium they look to make a strong push for the playoffs after acquiring sensational forward Darren Mattocks from Akron University and the second overall pick in the MLS Superdraft. The ‘Caps look to stay in the hunt while fans from around Vancouver and Canada look to support them on and off the pitch by staying up to date with live feed from the games and updates containing information about the team via the internet and social media.

Major League Soccer (MLS) was founded in 1993 and began competition in 1996 with only 10 teams in the league. With 19 teams now in the league the MLS Cup is one of the greatest trophies a soccer team can hold up in the U.S. Previous winners of the cup include LA Galaxy who won last season making that their 3rd win, and D.C. United who won in 2010 making that their 4th MLS Cup.

Challenges and Goals• Competition includes NHL teams such as the Vancouver Canucks, developmental

soccer organizations in the area, the BC Lions a CFL team established in 1954 and the Vancouver Canadians a Minor League baseball team. With these other teams in the area competing for fan support the ‘Caps must pursue their fan support in a very creative manor to get their attention and to show them they are not only one of the supreme teams in Vancouver but in the MLS as well.

Goals of this campaign will be to increase fan support during the season but also during the offseason when the team is preparing or at pre-season games. The main goal of this strategy is to increase not only single game ticket sales but season ticket sales as well which are the loyal supporters every team needs.

The Big IdeaTwitter & Facebook- Our main focus for the campaign will be reaching our target market of 18-35 year old males and females involved with sports but more importantly those who support soccer giving them opportunities to win free tickets, jerseys, and scarfs. Other things our fans will be able to participate in on these social media sites are things like live chat with players or coaches at certain times, they will be able to get live feed from there phone via twitter if they are not able to make it to the game. Promotions such as free give-a-ways for the first 5,000 or so at the gates will also be able to be register via mobile devices saving paper and time.

Short term Accomplishments

During this campaign we look to increase our fan base around the area and hopefully to those around the US and Canada. We also look to increase our ticket sales which will in turn increase our revenue at the games selling more merchandise and food during the games. With attendance the highest its ever been at the start of this season this campaign will help continue those growing numbers in our favor.

Long Term Accomplishments

Our long term goals for this campaign will be to increase our numbers of season ticket holders both in the Southsiders area which are the fans that do the chants and signing as well as those seats made available to loyal fans who may just want to come to a great atmosphere and watch great soccer.

SuccessTo measure our success for this campaign our team set marks for how many fans will view the social media and internet market places within a season. As of now Whitecaps FC has over 22,000 followers on Twitter and nearly 30,000 likes on Facebook. With the efforts of this campaign we hope to see the Twitter page reach over 30,000 followers and the Facebook page reach over 40,000 likes by the end of the season.

BudgetTo gain support from our fans for this season and those to come our budget to carry out this internet campaign will be a significant one, however, with the results of the promotions and raffles the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, BC Place Stadium and the city of Vancouver will benefit far more than the expense of putting together this campaign.

Our budget for the campaign will be $500,000.00 which includes employees on payroll, start up money for the Twitter and Facebook pages to buy spots in crucial television and internet markets, merchandise to give away at promotions and raffles, and another expense that we may come across in the process.

TimelineThis campaign will run starting at the half way point of this 2012 season after the All-Star break through the summer and hopefully will continue to be used continually for years to come. This will give fans something to look forward to after the all-star break to get them back into the stadium and cheering for their team first hand and also staying up to date with their favorite players.

The End