Hearts & Minds_v2

HEARTS & MINDS
SYNDICATED RESEARCH
Greater understanding
of attitudes to sport
and physical activity

The opportunity
The focus of the sports industry is changing, with the
Government and Sport England emphasising the
importance of putting the customer at the heart of
everything they do. The goal is a lofty one, as explained by
Tracey Crouch MP in the foreword of Sport England’s new
strategy:
“to put the customer first, focus on those least active
and transform how sport is delivered across the
country”.
2017 sees the first publication of Sport England’s Active
Lives profile of physical activity in England. This will be
hugely helpful in showing us:
• participation levels across all sports
• the profile of participants in each
• the interrelationship between the sports in which
people participate
• the sport by sport profile of participants
• some of the other leisure and lifestyle choices of
sports participants
We welcome Active Lives for the greater understanding
that it will bring and the opportunity arising for NGB’s to
work together to mutual benefit rather than in
competition. But Active Lives is not intended to provide
all the answers required for a customer-centric
transformation. We are offering Hearts & Minds to meet
that need.
Hearts & Minds | Syndicated Research

What is Hearts & Minds?
Hearts & Minds is a syndicated research tracking study
offering participating businesses and NGB’s the
opportunity to fill the knowledge gaps from Active Lives,
digging deeper into the ‘how’s’, the ‘why’s’ and the ‘why
not’s’. Our aim is to inform and empower our clients to
take the right decisions to improve the position of the
sports with which they are involved.
As a syndicated study, co-funded by several organisations,
it will facilitate the sharing of knowledge and possible
joint initiatives, and will do so without breaking the bank.
Hearts & Minds is a nationally representative study to be
published twice yearly in May and November and will
address the gaps in knowledge identified by participating
partners including:
• why people think and behave as they do in relation to
sports participation
• the key influences on participation decisions
• how to overcome barriers to engagement with sport
and physical activity
• the impact of particular initiatives and campaigns
• how people engage with sport and how and why they
move between sports
Greater understanding of attitudes to sport and physical activity

What Hearts & Minds will deliver
Partner organisations will gain an in-depth
understanding of the attitudes and behaviours of
their key target markets. The study will answer key
questions such as:
• who, in profile terms, is participating in one
core sport and also taking part in other
complementary sports and why are they doing
this
• who are the inactive people who may be
persuadable to try your sport, where and how
can they be reached and what messages will
resonate
• where are key groups of people on the
behaviour change journey
• how people combine and move between sports
over time
• how to engage with hard to reach groups where
sporting activity levels are low - minorities, the
economically deprived, people with disabilities
etc.
In short, subscribing to Hearts & Minds will help
you understand existing and potential participants
in your sport and how to engage with them.
This insight will enable you to create targeted
campaigns that address and change behaviours
and evaluate their effectiveness over time.
Hearts & Minds | Syndicated Research

Key Milestones
In order to deliver the Hearts and Minds study we
need to consult with our subscribers and potential
subscribers on the size and shape of our study.
While we are hearing about common insight
needs, we will also tailor the study to meet the
specific needs/priorities of our partners. With that
in mind we are working to the following time plan:
January / February
• Initial consultation with subscribers/potential
subscribers
February
• Review of the information gaps which the study
needs to address
Early March
• Informal agreement in principle to participate
Mid March
• Formal proposals and costs confirmed
Early to mid April
• Fieldwork
Early May
• Results
Greater understanding of attitudes to sport and physical activity

FAQs
Q What is a syndicated research programme?
A. A study which several partners co-fund.
Q. Why are you taking a syndicated approach? What are the
benefits?
A. A syndicated approach offers:
• common questions and metrics to enable objective
comparison between sports
• far lower costs to each partner compared with doing their
own bespoke study
• opportunities to expand the reach of the study
• a common understanding of current/potential participants
who may crossover between sports.
Q. Who is it aimed at?
A. Organisations which have a responsibility to grow levels of
sporting activity such as NGBs, Leisure Companies, Clubs, Gyms,
Community Sports Partnerships, Commercial Sports Brands etc.
Q. Can we input into the design of the survey?
A. Yes. Each partner will be a key contributor to decisions on
what the survey addresses.
Q. Will the survey pick up my target groups?
A. Our survey is designed to be nationally representative and
we will be able to report on all key population demographics:
by age, gender, social class, region, ethnicity & life stage. We
will pick up participation levels for each sport by these key
demographics. If you have a niche target e.g. a specific
subgroup or geographic area, we can provide you with a
targeted boost to ensure we have robust coverage of your
target market.
Q. Can we survey our own members?
A. Yes. We can work with you to share a version of the survey
with some or all of your databases. We will be able to compare
the findings from your members and those of the main study.
Hearts & Minds | Syndicated Research

Next steps
We will call to discuss and get your feedback on
what we are proposing. If in the meantime, you
would like more details please get in touch with us
paul@roberts-sports.com
michael@sportmr.co.uk
jack@sportmr.co.uk
Greater understanding of attitudes to sport and physical activity