Challenge
Esports tournaments often struggle to engage audiences beyond the core fanbase. For the ESPN audience, this meant creating compelling narratives that introduced key schools and players, making esports relatable and engaging for viewers unfamiliar with the ecosystem. Additionally, there was a need to develop content that could attract new sponsorship opportunities.
Objective
To craft a series of narrative-driven shoulder content that showcased the players, coaches, schools, and organizations involved in esports tournaments. The goal was to deepen audience engagement, bridge the gap between esports enthusiasts and general sports fans, and drive incremental sponsorship revenue.
Execution
- Strategic Storytelling: Developed a content strategy focused on humanizing esports by highlighting compelling stories from schools, players, and coaches.
- Content Pod Creation: Built and managed dedicated pods of content creators, including editors, cinematographers, and writers, to streamline production workflows.
- Collaborative Scouting and Production:
- Worked with the writer weekly to scout schools and identify compelling storylines.
- Coordinated with the cinematographer to set up and film on-site interviews with players and coaches.
- Partnered with the editor to craft polished, engaging stories for both the ESPN audience and broader esports viewers.
- Multi-Stream Management: Oversaw a second pod of creators responsible for the linear show, ensuring narrative alignment and production efficiency across all formats.
- Cross-Audience Appeal: Focused on crafting narratives that were engaging for both esports enthusiasts and those new to the ecosystem, expanding viewership and interest.
Results
- Delivered a series of engaging weekly narrative features that resonated with both esports fans and general sports audiences, increasing viewership by 15% over the course of the series.
- Attracted incremental sponsorship dollars by showcasing the value of human-centered storytelling in esports.
- Enhanced ESPN’s reputation as a platform capable of elevating esports storytelling to mainstream audiences.
- Fostered stronger connections between esports organizations and broader sports communities, building interest and participation in esports at key schools.