Everton Football Club have recently become the first club in the English Premier League to utilize their own branded browser for fans to use. The browser will act as a rewards platform across mobile and desktop devices for fans to use when shopping with partnered brands.
When users shop with companies such as Amazon, John Lewis or Argos, credits for Everton’s online store can be built up and a percentage of each purchase is also donated to the club’s charity, Everton in the Community.
“We have found Premier Browser to be a perfect fit for Everton in terms of their approach, their integrity and their level of innovation,” says Scott McLeod, Everton’s head of content, according to Prolific North.
“The affiliate cashback Everton Browser and toolbar solution they have developed is not only incredibly user-friendly, it also integrates snugly into our digital portfolio and – most importantly – delivers a new fundraising stream for Everton in the Community. It is the perfect combination of an innovative product that benefits and enhances the digital experience of our fans whilst also supporting a charity we are enormously proud of.”
Premier Browser is part of the Data Gains group and is hosted on Microsoft’s Azure. The app basically encourages users to increase their involvement with the club through enhanced digital interaction via donations and links brand awareness with online retail companies.
This innovation is brand new to the Premier League and is an excellent way of increasing fan engagement. While marketers are constantly looking for ways to broaden fan engagement, not only within the club’s local domain, but globally, Premier Browser offers an opportunity to do just that.
Although Everton are the first, they will certainly not be the last club to cash in on the system. A number of clubs have now implemented relationship-marketing strategies in the form of rewards systems, but it hasn’t been until now that the extent of the impact it can have is being noticed.
Not only does the system strengthen brand awareness, but fan retention also gains a boost. The rewards system encourages users on a global level to return and build up their credits to eventually have a balance that will equal the value of club merchandise or tickets.
The browser and its features will undoubtedly attract attention from rival clubs and other sports. And the partnership with global online retailers like Amazon is something that will cause this new innovation to grasp a huge level of exposure. It would be best to keep an eye on both Everton and Premier Browser to observe the impact it will have on the club itself and other sports.