MMS702 AT2 Case Study Option 3: Streaming as a Social Media Tool.

Queensland Rugby League’s (QRL) social media manager, Michael Battersby (you for this case study),
sat on the edge of his seat with worry. He was under pressure from the QRL Board to prepare,
organize, and deliver engaging social media content and justify his use of livestreaming within the
Queensland Maroons’ Facebook page. With the team not being successful on the field in 2018, there
were less opportunities for live video and this type of content appeared to be no longer engaging
fans. He was hoping the Maroons would bring home the series in 2019 and allow him access into the
changing rooms to share the moment in ‘real-time’ with the fans via Facebook Live. Battersby had a
privileged view as the social media manager and arguably the best seat in the house at ANZ Stadium
in Sydney, Australia. With the 2019 State of Origin series level at 1–1, the match level at 20–20, and
with just 32 seconds on the clock, he was certain they were heading into overtime. In that moment,
New South Wales (NSW) Blues fullback James Tedesco shrugged off two Queensland Maroon players
and charged ahead to cross the try-line and secure a series win. The sound of the dominant NSW
crowd was deafening; 80,000 individuals dressed in blue wigs, jerseys, and scarves were going
ballistic chanting, “NEW SOUTH WALES. NEW SOUTH WALES.” Batterbsy wished he could somehow
utilize social media to allow fans to share this privileged viewpoint and recreate the same
atmosphere as the stadium to Maroons fans across the world. However, with the results not going
the teams way, Battersby sighed and used a photo post to upload the final score on the Maroons’
Facebook page alongside the caption, “Not the result we wanted. We’ll be back.”

Little did Michael know that while the Maroons would return to the winner’s circle the Covid 19
pandemic would hit the world’s sport and change how sport was delivered on and off-field for over
two years. This included his pet Facebook Live which was shelved for 2020-2022. Now with the 2023
State of Origin around the corner Michael thinks it is time to bring it back. Can he convince QRL
though.

In 2006, after graduating with a Bachelor of Communications degree, Battersby landed his dream job
working for the governing body of Rugby League in Queensland: QRL. The QRL is responsible for the
development of athletes, providing participation pathways from the grassroots to elite performance,
and the management of the Maroons’ State of Origin team. Reporting to a nine-member board,
Battersby was appointed to the digital content team, being responsible for the Maroons’ social
media, with the strategic direction to “create new and exciting content available on existing and new
platforms year-round”. The level of hype around selection and the State of Origin competition was
incomparable to other competitions, as it commanded the attention of rugby fans across the world,
whether they are die-hard rugby league supporters or casual fans who tune into a couple games a
year. Battersby knew the on-field results impacted the content schedule for the entire sport
organization and after a decade of dominance, the team had just subsequently lost their second
back-to-back series in 13 years. When the team last had a series victory in 2017, 4.1 million fans
tuned into the television broadcast to watch the Maroons win the series. Fans were able to see the
team lift the shield above their heads and then the broadcast ended. QRL had used Facebook Live to
extend the traditional access to fans and provide an opportunity for Maroons fans to enter the
changing rooms and celebrate alongside the team. Fans were able to feel immersed in the series
victory by hearing their favorite athletes happily singing “Yi yippee yippee yi”, seeing the coaches
throwing back beers and dancing alongside the athletes; they could also send their congratulations
to the team in real-time. This content was often mentioned among the digital team as an example of
optimal fan engagement, and the team worked hard to duplicate this level of reach and engagement
across their social media platforms following the success of this live video post.

As Battersby boarded his flight back to Brisbane, he noticed there was an option to log on to the
flight Wi-Fi. Tempted to spend the flight watching Netflix, he logged onto Facebook and downloaded
the insight reports for the Maroons’ page for the 2017–2019 State of Origin seasons (see Appendix
A). Battersby was under pressure from the QRL board as, following the success of the Facebook Live
post in 2017, the organization had invested heavily into live-streaming technology (i.e., resources
and training) with the aim to provide fans with a “high-quality” broadcast which they believed was
the key to boost fan engagement. Battersby noticed that, for the second year in a row, overall reach
and engagement metrics were down and, in particular, live video posts were performing at lower
levels than other post types.

Battersby remembered reading that in the past year Facebook had changed their algorithm to focus
on showing more content from friends and family on a user’s newsfeed, and less from brands and
public pages. It was more important than ever for the Maroons to focus on creating unique, valuable
content that resonates with fans to ensure they were able to obtain high engagement, but also
organic reach. Organic reach was a metric considered by the QRL as important as it implied the
number of views content had received that were not part of promoted or paid posts. Battersby knew
these platform changes were out of his control, and it was difficult to compare year-to-year data;
however, when he had presented findings to the QRL board in the past, they did not understand any
technical terminologies, and were confused as to why fan engagement was declining.

As Battersby starred into his laptop screen, he was approached by a flight attendant. “Excuse me sir,
we are about to descend into Brisbane, could you please power off your device?” “No worries,” he
responded. Upon closing the lid of his laptop, he noticed the date— July 11, 2019. On the 15th of
each month, Battersby had a scheduled meeting with the QRL board, who were already questioning
strategic decisions and insight data being produced by the digital media team. He knew they would
be questioning the use of live streaming within the overall Maroons’ social media strategy and
wanting a review of their social media analytics. After being away in Perth, a quick visit back to
Brisbane, and then a gruelling week away from his family in Sydney, Battersby had hoped to catch a
taxi straight home and spend the afternoon with the kids in the backyard. However, with only four
days until the board meeting, he knew he had to go into the office and work on his social media
report for the board.

On arrival back to the office, Battersby powered up his computer and was greeted with his chosen
wallpaper of his favourite player (on and off the field), Jonathan Thurston, slotting a goal across the
posts to win the series in 2017. It reminded him of how much the fans had loved it when the QRL
used Facebook Live to show behind the scenes footage of the player widely considered to be the
GOAT (greatest of all time) at kicking practice in the lead up to Game 2, 2017. Battersby knew live
streaming had the power to be engaging, but he was confused as to why the insight reports showed
that overall reach and engagement was declining when the organization had invested heavily into
live streaming resources over the past two years.

Growing up in Ipswich, Queensland, Battersby played a range of sports at regional level, particularly
Rugby League. With Queensland rugby legends such as Allan (Alfie) Langer hailing from Ipswich, the
rivalry of “State against State, mate against mate” of the State of Origin was not lost on him. He
understood the passion of Queensland fans and was familiar with the famous “Queenslander” chant
that would echo around Suncorp stadium on game day. When creating social media content,
Battersby had focused on extending the fan experience and opening the door for fans. Rather than a
focus on driving ticket transactions to upcoming State of Origin matches, Battersby instead focused
on building deeper connections with fans through a relationship marketing– focused approach. He
believed that a strong relationship with fans was important, as if performance on the field was sub-
par, fans who felt strongly committed to the team would not CORF (cut off from reflected failure)
but rather continue to identify strongly as a Maroons fan. This approach could help the team to
minimize the impact of poor on-field results.

Battersby was passionate about State of Origin and wanted to use social media as a platform for fans
to feel connected to the Maroons by generating a sense of community through the creation of a
virtual game day atmosphere at Suncorp Stadium. Battersby believed that virtual engagement could
lead to stronger attachment to the Maroons brand, strengthening fan loyalty and achieving key
performance indicators for the team (i.e., increasing engagement figures for Maroons’ social media
platforms).

The QRL board had emphasized that they wanted Battersby to develop social media strategies that
provided evidence of the Queensland Maroon’s understanding their fans, increased fan satisfaction,
and enhanced the value of relationships with fans. When the team had first implemented Facebook
Live, it had been focused on developing fan’s passion for the Maroons; however, it no longer
seemed to be meeting these goals.

Facebook Live: The 2017 Story

Facebook Live was made available to all users in 2016, and in early 2017 an intern named Jack Smith
had suggested the QRL “have a play with the new toy” on the Maroons’ Facebook page to find out
how it could be used to extend the Maroons fan experience throughout the 2017 State of Origin
series. Smith was a student from a local university and had recently completed an assignment about
the future of social media live streaming. He had approached Battersby with some facts he had
found online:

• Facebook Live videos get 10 times more comments than regular videos.

• Users watch Facebook Live videos 3 times longer than native videos.

• Facebook Live ranks higher in user’s newsfeeds than other types of posts.

“Thank you, Smith, this sounds great. What do we need to do to get this started?” asked Battersby.
“Just a mobile phone and a Facebook account,” Smith responded. “The tagline of Facebook Live is to
go live with the camera in your pocket—let’s try it out.” Battersby had been excited to implement
live video straight away. If the facts Smith had provided proved true, they would be experiencing
high levels of engagement—all with the camera in their pocket (i.e., smartphone). Following some
further thought, Battersby had called Smith into the office. “I would like you to take control of
Facebook Live. Here is a phone for you to use to live stream any opportunity you think may be
beneficial for fans to see throughout the series.”

Battersby remembered a conversation with Smith prior to the commencement of the State of Origin
season regarding starting a live show within training camp. He had seen other National Rugby
League teams such as the Cronulla Sharks offering this type of content through Facebook Live, and it
had provided fans an opportunity to ask their favourite players and coaching personnel questions
and have them answered in real-time. However, when Battersby had approached the QRL board
with this idea they advised against using this type of content as Maroons players already had
demanding media commitments and they did not want to add anything extra to their load. Smith
had to be clever with live video content, and focused on the use of Facebook Live for the purpose of
behind the scenes content from his privileged position, which provided fans with an exciting view
point that was traditionally not accessible by the media in real-time. Examples of this content
included the team bus arriving to the stadium, the team walk prior to game day, and the team
having down time in the park. Smith believed that this type of content may encourage fans to feel
part of the team and enhance their relationship with the Maroons.

At the end of the 2017 season, Battersby had prepared his regular report for the QRL Board (see
Appendix B) which showed a summary of the live streams over the season. The board were
impressed with the work Smith had done with Facebook Live and the engagement that live
streaming had provided. The posts had more comments than any other type of post (i.e., text,
photo, and native video) and users were watching these videos for longer periods of time, possibly
due to the unpredictability element of not knowing what would happen next. The board wanted to
invest further into live streaming, yet it did not think the “raw” look of the camera phone fit within
the high-quality brand image and advised the digital team to invest in external cameras and software
to provide a high-quality experience for fans in the 2018 season.

Before Smith had left, Battersby had asked Smith to investigate and gather quotes for live streaming
equipment and software as instructed by the QRL board to “lift their streams and provide high
definition audio and visuals for fans”. Smith began an internet search for live streaming equipment
and software and the results listed thousands of options. Smith was weary about the purchase of
this equipment as he recalled an article he had read for a strategic marketing assignment. The article
stated that for live streaming to be engaging it should satisfy four dimensions: immersion,
immediacy, interaction, and sociality (Haimson & Tang, 2017). It also stated that fans preferred the
raw aspect of this type of content as it provided an authentic look into an organization and was an
immersive way to experience an event. These four dimensions as stated by Haimson and Tang
(2017) were important to the concept of relationship marketing that the QRL had emphasized within
their SM strategy. It may be suggested that these dimensions of live streaming could provide fans
the opportunity to authentically view and engage in real-time, which might make them feel like they
are included in the conversation and that their voices are being heard. This was important to the
Maroons who had fans all around the world, and may create a sense of the team feeling reachable
and human. However, as Smith was ‘just the intern’, he didn’t want to question the QRL board’s
decision and felt obliged to assist in the purchasing of equipment.

Smith was overwhelmed with the number of websites that were offering “live streaming solutions”
for businesses and was confused on what would be an essential purchase. As he scrolled down, his
eyes focused on one result which claimed, “we’re Australian live streaming experts, and we’re
obsessed with crystal-clear broadcasts” (The Streaming Guys, 2019). “This is exactly what I am
looking for,” Smith thought, and he proceeded to view the website. After browsing the website,
Smith still felt overwhelmed with the number of resources available for purchase ranging from
$1,000 to $500,000. “Wow,” thought Smith, “how do I know what we need?” Smith noticed that the
company listed numerous other organizations in Australia that they had helped. Smith browsed the
list and noted there were several financial, sport, and health organizations listed including the
Brisbane Lions, an Australian-rules Football club. “Jackpot!” exclaimed Smith. One of his classmates
was also involved in the university internship program and had secured a marketing role with the
Brisbane Lions.

He sent an email to Clara:

From: Jack Smith

To: Clara Jones Subject: Live Streaming – Brisbane Lions

Date: 04/02/2017, 0844am

Hi Clara, How are you?

I am currently in the final few weeks with my internship at the QRL and they have asked me to
investigate purchasing live streaming equipment for their Facebook Live content. I am a little
overwhelmed with the number of options out there! I noticed that the Brisbane Lions used a live
streaming solution resource last year and I was hoping you could provide some advice on what you
purchased or point me in the right direction for someone to speak to about the purchase of
equipment?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Talk soon, Jack.

Within a few minutes of sending the email, Smith had received a reply from Clara;

From: Clara Jones

To: Jack Smith Subject:

RE: Live Streaming – Brisbane Lions Date: 04/02/2017, 0852am

Hi Jack, Great to hear from you!

I have just spoken to my manager, who was involved with the purchase of our live streaming
equipment. We use live streaming for the delivery of a live show on Facebook called “The Lion’s
Den” and our insight reports demonstrate huge levels of reach and engagement with this type of
content. We go “live” on Facebook every Thursday night at 7 PM as that is when we find our fans are
typically online. These posts generate a high level of comments as fans talk to athletes and coaching
staff in real time and have the opportunity to be acknowledged and answered. We also found fans
are more likely to comment when they see other fans commenting and in return, we notice that this
engagement increases our organic reach and we are able to generate network growth from these
types of posts.

We purchased a “Single Camera Pro Live Streaming Kit” via this link
(https://shop.thestreamingguys.com.au/collections/ live-stream-kits/products/single-camera-pro-
live-streamingkit) and it includes all the gear you need to set up a ‘pro’ live stream.

Hope this helps—feel free to call me if you need any further help!

Clara

Smith forwarded the email to Battersby to approve the purchase. Battersby quickly popped into the
office and handed him his company credit card with the authorization to purchase the following
video-related products:

• HD Video Camera
• Teradek Vidiu Pro

• Digital Wireless Handheld and Lavalier Combo Kit

• Tripod

• 4G USB Modem

• Rolling Organizer.

On Jack’s final day in the office, the team had organized an early finish and a farewell at the local
pub. As the team congregated in the foyer awaiting the team to arrive so they could walk to the pub,
a courier arrived with a large package. As Battersby signed for the package, he recognized the sender
as the company from which Smith had purchased the live-streaming equipment. Battersby was
worried as the package looked large and complex and without Smith in the office, he was unsure
how the team would be able to put together the equipment ahead of the upcoming State of Origin
season.

Facebook Live: The 2018 Story

In the lead up to the 2018 State of Origin series, the Queensland Maroons had lost key players
Jonathan Thurston, Cameron Smith, and Cooper Cronk to retirement, and Billy Slater to injury, and
the media suggested the series was the best chance for NSW to end “over a decade of State of
Origin misery” (The Roar, 2018). The QRL had also lost their passionate intern, Jack Smith, who had
recently graduated and secured a role with another Queensland sport team, the Gold Coast Titans.

As Battersby was working on the strategic content plan for the upcoming 2018 State of Origin
season, he glanced up from his computer and noticed the large package that was still unopened
containing all of the live streaming equipment that Smith had ordered. Following Smith’s departure
from the QRL team, Battersby had investigated Facebook Live further to try and understand how
other organizations were using the platform. He had come across an article regarding Pittsburgh
Steelers athlete Antonio Brown using Facebook Live in the changing rooms following a win against
the New England Patriots (https://www.sbnation.com/ 2017/1/16/14283680/antonio-brown-
facebook-live-video-miketomlin-assholes-patriots-vs-steelers)—just as the Maroons had done in the
2017 season. However, the video had captured the coach degrading the opposition, using “strong
language”. The unpredictability of Facebook Live raised concern for Battersby. While the element of
unpredictability appeared to increase engagement, it also meant a lack of control for the
organization on what is being shown in real time. There is no downtime for editing or curating video
to fit a specific brand image or message—it is raw, authentic and in the moment.

As he unpacked the equipment, Battersby started thinking of how they could utilize live streaming
within their strategy while maintaining control over the message. Earlier in the week, Billy Slater had
let coaching staff know of his intentions to retire from Queensland rugby league representative
duties. The team knew it had been coming for a while, and he would leave a huge hole within the
organization. The QRL digital team had been planning ideas around an announcement and it had
been suggested they do a media release with an official article on the QRL website with the
applicable link posted to their social media accounts. However, Battersby had a new idea—they
could test their new equipment by live streaming Slater’s announcement which would mean the
announcement would be exclusive content from the Maroons and it would provide an opportunity
for fans to send messages of support in real-time. Battersby flagged the idea with the QRL board as
they had been against using athletes for Facebook Live in the past due to the already demanding
media commitments, but they were willing to support this idea as it was prior to the
commencement of the “State of Origin” window. The QRL board contacted Slater to arrange for him
to come into the office the following day for an announcement to be made via Facebook Live at 10
AM.

On that morning, Battersby had tried to set up the live streaming equipment. The setup of the
equipment itself was tedious, as it required setting up a tripod, installing an external microphone,
and a large video camera. Once all the equipment was set up, Battersby logged onto Facebook to try
and connect the external equipment to the Maroons’ account. It required a stream-key and other
software to set up. Slater had just arrived in the QRL office and was ready for the announcement.
Battersby knew that Slater only had a short window of time and he couldn’t delay the
announcement. After a phone call to Smith, Battersby had finally gotten the live video equipment
working and connected to the Facebook account. Slater proceeded to announce his retirement
(https://www.qrl.com.au/ news/20182/05/29/billy-slater-announces-rep-retirement/): “I want to
say a huge ‘thank you’ to the fans for fueling us with the passion” Slater said. As Battersby watched
the announcement take place, he was also monitoring the engagement on his laptop on the
Facebook page. The fans were loving it; with the comment from Slater personally thanking the fans
for their support, thousands of fans were using the comments function on the live post to send their
best wishes on the retirement directly to Slater. Even though Slater was not responding to the
comments, it did not deter the fans and the comments continued to appear across the screen. “Hi
Billy!! Thanks for everything—we will miss you”; “Billy, Pam from Cairns here. Just letting you know
that I have enjoyed watching you represent Queensland and I can’t believe this is it!”; “You are the
best Bill, there will be no one like you . . . GOAT”.

Once the announcement had finished and the live video post ended, Battersby posted the video to
the Maroons’ Facebook account to ensure those who missed the live stream could still watch the
video after-the-fact. The new equipment had provided a high-quality audio/visual experience that
enticed fans to engage with the video, and the QRL board saw it a success. However, Battersby was
still concerned. The amount of time that the equipment and software took to set up would be an
issue for future events. While in the 2017 season live video content was focused on being in the
moment and providing an immersive experience for fans in an authentic and raw manner, the set-up
process for the equipment detracted from these aspects and would no longer offer the opportunity
for the QRL to go live spontaneously. Rather, it appeared that live video would need to be planned
within the social media strategy and allowances would need to be made for set-up time.

As Battersby worked on the content plan for the 2018 State of Origin series, he focused on the
inclusion of live video, with a specific focus on press conferences. Press conferences were always
held in the QRL offices and while all media had access to the content, Battersby believed by using a
live video post they could provide Maroons fans with information before other media outlets had
the time to package up the content and post it on their own networks.

At 9 AM on Monday June 6, 2018, the Maroons were ready to live stream. The equipment had been
set up in the corner of the room, the media had arrived, and there was a buzz in the room as the
QRL were ready to announce the Maroons’ team selection ahead of Game 1. There would be a
number of debutants within the team and there had been quite a lot of media attention regarding
who would replace Dane Gagai who had injured his finger in the final training run the previous week.
As head coach Kevin Walters entered the room, Battersby pushed “Go Live”. As Kevin sat in the chair
at the front of the room, Battersby watched as the view count of the video slowly creeped up.
Several fans had already commented, “Where’s the team line up?”, “Hurry up, I am waiting”, “This is
boring”. Walters announced the team and Battersby continued to watch the comments appear on
the screen “WTF, you are joking!?”, “THESE SELECTORS ARE A JOKE!”, “MORGAN – NO WAY . . .” It
appeared that the fans were not happy with the selection and the live aspect meant they were
reacting to the content as soon as it appeared. Comments were coming in fast and Battersby was
unable to respond to anyone, but that did not stop fans from sending their off-the-cuff reactions to
the team’s announcement. Once the team had been named, Battersby noticed the view count
dramatically decreased and there were now only 20 people viewing the video. Comments began to
come-in from this group who seemingly came late to the live stream. “Where’s the team list”; “Can
anyone tell me who is in the team?”. With the team already announced, viewers were unable to
rewind the video and were now watching Walters answer questions from the media. Fans were not
engaged and were quickly tuning out of the video. As the press conference ended, Battersby pushed
“end stream” and posted the video to the Maroons’ page. For the remainder of the 2018 season,
press conferences were the only type of content that were utilized in live video posts. Behind-the-
scenes content that was previously the focus of live streaming was now recorded, packaged up
through video editing software, and provided for fans in digestible snippets later on, and not live.

At the end of the 2018 season, Battersby once again prepared his regular report for the QRL board
which showed the live streams and content types that had been pushed out over the season (see
Appendix C). The board were impressed with the audio/visual components of Facebook Live and
noted there were more comments on these type of posts in comparison to traditional posts.
However, overall reach and engagement was lower on these videos in comparison to 2017.
Battersby reported that the digital team had struggled to use behind-the-scenes content due to the
complex set up of the equipment, and an issue of accessibility to athletes due to the unsuccessful
results of their State of Origin campaign. Furthermore, the decision to use press conferences did not
appear to be engaging fans. Fans were able to get this content from other sources in a more
‘digestible’ format of the important information (i.e., reading the news with team selections) and
information was not exclusive to the organization. While the fans were commenting on these posts,
it did not appear to influence the organic reach of a post and fans were only viewing posts for 25% of
their full duration.

Facebook Live: The 2019 Story

As Battersby leaned back on his chair, reflecting on the 2017–2018 seasons and the use of Facebook
Live within their digital content strategy, he realized he was still undecided about how to approach
his 2019 board report. The 2019 season had once again seen the use of Facebook Live for press
conferences. Battersby had hoped to show fans insights into the team in the lead up to State of
Origin, but the complexity of setting up equipment had once again been a barrier. Without Smith
involved in the QRL, there was no one involved to focus on live streaming specifically, and the team
had been unable to provide any behind-the-scenes content throughout the season. Furthermore,
the board believed press conferences were what fans wanted to see and gave Battersby the
directive to continue to lead the strategy focused on this type of content. However, Battersby noted
that fans had never been surveyed or contacted and he was unsure how the board came to this
conclusion.

As Battersby opened Microsoft Word to prepare his board report, he concluded that the QRL would
need to rethink their live streaming strategy moving forward. Although he would love to continue
the use of live streaming, he was unclear how it currently fit within the organization’s goals of fan
engagement and creating an immersive experience for fans globally. The QRL board and Battersby
shared a belief that live streaming should be focused on engagement. However, management were
unwilling to allow athletes to participate in live video content due to high media loads and the board
wanted content to be of high audio/visual quality, while Battersby had concerns regarding the
unpredictability of live streaming which had the potential power for either virality or brand damage.
Ultimately, Battersby came to the conclusion that he had to determine whether developing and
implementing a digital content strategy for 2023 and beyond should include Facebook Live, and if so,
how it would address both concerns facing both the QRL board and the digital team.

The Challenge
Despite his excitement around Facebook Live Streaming, the task ahead for you (Michael Battersby) to
convince QRL to implement live streaming as a part of the digital media strategy of State of Origin 2023 to
drive engagement with fans. Your task will be to develop a strategic proposal that discusses, in detail, how
live streaming could be leveraged to develop high levels of fan engagement including what content should
be produced and how you will measure the success (lack of success) of the platform.

Discussion Questions - these specific questions need to be addressed in the course of your report
and should form the basis of any findings, insights and recommendations when addressing the
challenge above.

1. With the use of examples from the case and supporting theory, prepare a board report for the
QRL board that considers pro’s and con’s towards implementing live streaming in 2023.

2. What makes live streaming engaging? Using Haimson and Tang’s (2017) framework for engaging
characteristics of live streaming, how could Michael Battersby use these concepts to create engaging
live streaming content within a/the future social media manager?

3. Identify different types of content that can be used on social media live streaming. a. Imagine you
are in Michael Battersby’s role. Develop a content idea based on high fan engagement for the 2023
State of Origin season. b. How would you measure fan engagement and sell this idea to the QRL
Board?

4. How would you suggest they use analytics and metrics to track how successful their social media
initiatives are?

5. Do you think the QRL should continue to use live streaming? Provide justification for your
decision.