‘Disloyalty’ Programs That Reward Hate Will Widen Fan Funnel, Grow Revenues

‘Disloyalty’ Programs That Reward Hate Will Widen Fan Funnel, Grow Revenues

Rights owners across the industry have deployed loyalty programs designed to cultivate deeper bonds with their supporters.

And with good reason. According to a Motista study, fans with an emotional connection to a brand have a 306% higher lifetime value (LTV) than those merely satisfied by it.

But loyalty programs inherently require fans to alter their actions.

“Go do something, like attend a game or purchase a jersey, and be rewarded,” Vincent Sarafa (CEO, Collectors Card) said.

A ‘disloyalty’ program, on the other hand, compensates supporters for a behavior they’re already exhibiting—rooting against other teams.

“You’re tapping into the most pervasive thought in sports: everything sucks,” Sarafa said. “The other team, their fanbase, and everything in between.”

Organizations looking to do a better job engaging existing fans, widen their fan funnel, and/or drive revenue growth would be wise to consider adding a disloyalty strategy to their existing loyalty platform (it could also be a standalone campaign).

Disloyalty “allows for a proper distribution of content and reach out-of-market in a way that aligns and is compliant with league rules,” Sarafa said. “But more importantly, it's creating a community of potential new fans that would rarely otherwise decide to engage with the team or brand because there was no reward or reason for them to.”

Disloyalty is not a new concept—at least, in terms of the underlying premise designed to pull consumers from one brand to another. Auto manufacturers used the approach as far back as the first half of the 20^th century.

“GM, Ford, and Chrysler were all in Detroit, and everybody wanted to own hometown cars. So, marketing plans would heavily incentivize people to switch over from a local competitor,” Sarafa said. “Ford would say ‘bring in a Chrysler to get additional credits toward your new purchase’.”

But the phrase is new, and the approach has seemingly been dormant for decades. That may be because disloyalty requires a brand to publicly call out its competitors and companies and executives in the modern business world typically try to avoid ruffling feathers or having a target placed on their backs.

Sports operate differently, though. Teams within leagues are inherently competitive and their fans actively root against one another (even when they’re not playing head-to-head).

“We’re not changing behavior. Fans are already doing this,” Sarafa said. 

Having a disloyalty program in place simply provides clubs a new way to incentivize and reward the hating.

For example, the Commanders are playing the Dolphins on Sunday morning. Washington could reward existing fans for trolling on Miami’s social pages.

“Most loyalty programs never reach their potential because members simply don’t engage,” Shripal Shah (Author, Unlocking Fan Loyalty: From Frequent Flyers to Fanatics in the Age of AI) said. “Disloyalty flips that dynamic. It monetizes what already happens every week in sports and turns that existing emotion into measurable attention and data.”

But disloyalty tends to work best when non-rival organizations align against common enemies. The Commanders could also align with the Jets and Bills this week and reward their backers for supporting the club’s efforts against Miami.

In addition to “rooting for his or her own team weekly, a fan will [also] root [for a secondary team] every few games because of the model,” Sarafa said. Washington would “essentially incentivize New York and Buffalo fans to wear maroon and gold [this week] across social channels,” Sarafa said.

By doing so, the Commanders would have the opportunity to engage new audiences and perhaps begin to develop some future supporters. Remember, fandom is no longer defined by geography.

Choosing a favorite team is undoubtedly different than purchasing a new car. A long-time fan of one organization is not going to switch allegiances overnight for a nominal financial reward.

However, with disloyalty a team can engage “a customer base it wouldn't have otherwise been able to have a conversation with,” Sarafa said.

And gather new data assets and customer demographics on fans outside of the team’s defined territory.

To get rival supporters to buy into a disloyalty program, sports organizations need to make sure three key elements are in place.

“First is the individual benefit,” Sarafa said. 

The rewards offered must be worth the effort. 

The second is a group or network effect. 

“For disloyalty to work, other people must also post [showing that they too are disloyal],” Sarafa said. “And that creates the most fundamental piece, which is shared value” (i.e. a mutual dislike or hatred for the same team or city).

Rights owners have a budget for customer acquisition and moving fans down the funnel over time. Brands could certainly underwrite disloyalty programs as new sponsorship assets too. 

In fact, they would seem to be a cost-efficient means of a company associated with one club to market to prospective customers in other cities without having to spend on additional team partnerships.

“It provides an expansion of the brand's ability to market outside of [their partner’s] own territory,” Sarafa said.

How much could new assets created around the disloyalty concept bring in?

A team “can generate a few hundred thousand dollars with a single activation pretty easily,” Sarafa said.

And that’s before it accounts for any increases in engagement-related OKRs and KPIs that spur growth amongst the organization’s existing partners.

It’s logical to wonder why a fan of one club would value points in another’s disloyalty program. Keep in mind though that the entity funding these point systems is, in many cases, the same and thus the rewards are interchangeable (think: Fanatics Fan Cash).

“There will also be a time when Jets or Bills fans want to come to a Commanders game in Washington,” Sarafa said. “So, [the Commanders] could give participating individuals rewards points and incentivize away travel too.”

Of course, there’s no cost to the team if those fans never make the trip.

Expect to see disloyalty programs pop up across sports in the months ahead. The upside is too compelling to ignore.