Smartocto is pleased to announce the launch of its User Needs for Sports model.

For nearly a decade, User Needs have been reshaping how digital journalism thinks about audiences.

Now it’s going to do the same for sports.

While we know that User Needs for News has been transformative for newsrooms, that model was designed expressly for that sector. Given that sports has its own set of challenges and rhythms, it was imperative that any user needs approach was tailored to the needs, workflows and expectations of this very different industry.

The sports model looks slightly different to the news model

The four drivers remain the same - do - understand - feel - and know - but in consultation with Labs and those working in sports, we refined the universal needs to reflect this industry. The user needs for sports model therefore features 11 universal needs - rather than the 8 those familiar with user needs for news model will have come to expect.

Rutger Verhoeven, CMO and the expert at the forefront of this project has described the results for this research and development phase as “smashingly accurate”.

That a story can be analysed accurately for user needs is one thing, but it’s the implications of this which are really exciting. With accurate analysis comes the ability to tag content properly, and we know from our work with user needs for news that when newsrooms have an understanding of what’s happening, it’s possible to identify what’s needed and where the opportunities for better engagement lie.

Rutger Verhoeven, CMO @ smartocto

Rutger Verhoeven CMO, smartocto

First findings already proving game-changing

Just like in general news coverage, we see a significant misalignment between:

  • what sports audiences desire, and
  • what publishers most frequently produce

But one insight stood out above all others, and reveals a significant opportunity:

The highest engagement is driven by content types that are published the least

The model opens up a wealth of opportunities for creators, brands, sport associations and unions, clubs and athletes alike. Each facet of the sport universe will have its own version of the sports user needs model, but one thing remains constant: the comprehensive nature of our creation. By measuring storytelling angles and addressing user needs, fans’ engagement with your content will flourish.

Dmitry Shishkin Digital innovation expert & user needs evangelist

As part of our new website design, you can now find a section dedicated to user needs for sports in the user needs menu. Check back here for research and resources.

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