They wanted to know how sport could get closer to helping the environment, and what would make fans listen
New Season is a creative PR and communications studio where sport, climate and culture collide. They had a view: sport is already doing real work on the things its fans care about, but the telling lets it down. The action is real. The communication isn't landing.
A view isn't evidence. They wanted to know how fans actually respond when their sport speaks up on sustainability. What they notice, what they believe and what they quietly switch off from. And they wanted the commercial case for doing more.
The risk wasn't a lack of data. A survey of more than 500 fans had produced a rich set of it. The risk was a report that told the industry what it already assumed, that fans care, without showing what to do about it.
1. Find the story. Fans care about sustainability. That's the easy headline, and the least useful one. We went through the data looking for what a sports club, athlete or brand could act on: what makes fans listen, what makes them switch off and what makes them take action.
2. Challenge it. Every finding got pushed. We tested New Season's starting assumptions against what fans said, flagged what had been missed and kept asking the questions that made the work better. A report that has only been agreed with won't survive an industry audience.
3. Build something to stand behind. The findings became Make It Feel Real, a report built for the people who commission and use this kind of work. Practical enough for the sports industry to use. Strong enough for New Season to take on stage at London Climate Action Week.
An idea became work they could stand behind. Make It Feel Real moved from a concept to a report grounded in what more than 500 fans told them.
Insight the sports industry can use. Not only that fans care, but what makes them listen, what makes them switch off and what makes them act.
A stage at London Climate Action Week. The findings gave New Season the confidence to build a live event around the report and present it in person.
Doors opened. The report has since become a talking point across the industry, and shown New Season the value of original research that gives people evidence they can act on.
Our first project with TRD helped turn Make It Feel Real from an idea into a piece of work we could really stand behind. They helped us find the story inside a very rich set of data, showing that fans care deeply about sustainability, but also what makes them listen, switch off and take action.
No methodology, brief or perfectly formed problem required. Tell us what you're trying to understand or the decision you're facing.
Start a conversation