George Crabb: How to create the perfect sports app

Sports Content Strategy with MrRichardClarke: Exploring sports content, journalism, digital and social media

Given its increasingly strategic importance within sports business, it is surprising how many rights-holders produce sub-standard apps.

To try and solve this issue, I spoke to George Crabb, Managing Director at The Other Media. This well-established digital agency have a rich history in working with rights-holders to create mobile applications of the highest quality. We collaborated to refashion the Arsenal app a decade ago but usage, connectivity, monetisation and the art-of-the-possible have moved forward rapidly since then.

In this extensive podcast, we delve into the most basic questions in the field, explore how rights-holder should approach the development of their offering and what could be coming in the future

Why do you need a specific app? "The answer lies with the growth of mobile use and functionality." For the clubs, it is about fan engagement and revenue

The benefit of keeping fans in your ecosystem and the data play

Why the app is the centre of the ecosystem now

"Yes clients still come demanding a replication of the website"

The key tool of push notifications

Has ticketing via an app made a big leap made in lockdown and will it persist?

What strategic issues does an organisation need to have in mind when starting the app process

The problem of connectivity in stadia

Bugbears - linking social media with your app, apps as a set of webpages - and ways around them

Free, data and sign-up models

Personalisation and segmentation of content - what is the state of the art?

Integration with CRM systems

The importance of content

Price

George's examples of best practice

Creating community