Calgary Foothills Soccer Club (foothills Fc)

Introduction

The Calgary Foothills Soccer Club (Foothills FC) is the industry leading youth soccer club in Calgary, and will be expanding their programs in 2015 to include an under 23 (U23) Professional Development League (PDL). This initiative will provide a stepping-stone towards the Major League Soccer division (MLS) for Calgarian soccer players (FC Calgary Foothills 2014). The development of a PDL places an increased importance for Foothills FC to develop a strong external following, therefore market segments need to be identified describing the defining characteristics of individuals who are likely to support the development of the PDL in Calgary. Market segmentation is a key concept in sport marketers’ effort to understand the needs of specific groups of consumers and develop targeted marketing mixes. The identification of target markets will be based on socio-economic variables, such as gender, income, occupation, and age, psychographic variables, such as motivation, attitudes, and needs, as well as behavioral variables associated with Calgarians.

Young, Energetic Families

Figure 1 below depicts what members of this consumer segment might look like.

[pic 1]Figure 1: Young, Energetic Families              Geographic: Urban and Suburban, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Demographic: Married or unmarried with children ages four to ten years, between 30 to 40 years old, moderate to high discretionary income, university educated, homeowners.[pic 2]

Psychographic: These social and outgoing Calgarian families most closely resembles the lifestyle of the “God’s Country” segment identified by Environics Analytics PRIZM (2013). Families in this segment have high incomes (upwards of $120,000), which allows them to have an active, child-centered lifestyle. These consumer live in urban and suburban areas, which are close enough to the city for their work but far enough away to raise their children with the comforts of large yards, good schools and a variety of recreational activities available. Parents are constantly scheduling and shuttling kids between activities. They value healthy living and enjoy partaking in physical activities with their kids. These parents live a balance a busy lifestyle and keep their kids busy by enrolling them in numerous sports and extracurricular activities year round (Environics Analytics 2013). These families make time for each other by venturing to kid-friendly destinations such as zoos, theme parks and sports games on the weekends.

Behavioral:  The young energetic family has a high usage rate of attending sports games. They attend sports games on a regular basis, either weekly or bi-weekly. They benefit from attending sporting events, as it is an opportunity for them to spend time together as a family, while supporting activities in their community.

Generation Y Social Butterflies

Figure 2 below depicts what generation Y social butterflies might look like.

Figure 2: Generation Y Social Butterflies[pic 3]

Geographic: Urban and Suburban, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

[pic 4]Demographic: Single or married without kids, ages 20-30, men and women, various levels of post-secondary education, renters, moderate discretionary income.

Psychographic: This segment consists of young, lower-middle class urban and suburban singles and couples. This segment has a new sense financial freedom and enjoys spending their paychecks on themselves through social activities and material goods.  They enjoy winding down from the work week by attending sports games, concerts, and bars on the weekend with friends and colleagues (Environics Analytics 2013). These individuals place a lot of value on unique experiences, from travelling the globe to trying out the newest foods and restaurants. This segment resembles the Environics PRIZM (2013) segment  “Grads and Pads”. They are very social and want to have a new exciting story to tell friends and family every time they see them.  They are heavily dependent on the Internet and use social media to connect with friends, read the news, watch sports, etc. They live an active lifestyle, and have a strong sense of community and attachment to the city they live in.  They will go out of their way to volunteer and support local teams and charity events.

Behavioral: This segment of generation Y social butterflies would be moderate to higher attendees of sports events. They buy tickets bi-weekly or monthly as an event to go to with friends. Attending sports events gives the target segment the opportunity to socialize with friends and unwind from the workweek.

Mid-size Oil & Gas Companies

Figure 3 illustrates what mid-size oil and gas companies might look like.

Figure 3: Mid-size oil and gas companies in Calgary

Geographic: Calgary, Alberta, Canada [pic 5]

Demographic: Mid-size companies, oil and gas industries, and 100 to 500 employees

Psychographics: The target business customer for sports tickets in Calgary is mid-size oil and gas companies. These companies value their employees’ hard work and dedication to the company and wish to reward them with products they can enjoy with their friends, and loved ones (Stanger 2013). These companies are born and raised in Calgary and see the value of giving back and supporting organizations within the city. These companies encourage community involvement and aim to create a positive working environment for employees, which distinguishes themselves from competitors (Lavine 2013). Businesses in this segment are not only looking to make a profit, but also reward their employees and support organizations in the community through indirect and direct involvement. [pic 6]