SMP Q&A with Chris Thomson cofounder and director of rugby focused platform Eyes On Athletes

Profiled interview with Chris Thomson cofounder and director of Eyes On Athletes, a new social network centred around sport and rugby

Social Media Portal (SMP): What is your name and what do you do there at Eyes On Athletes?

Chris Thomson (CT): My name is Chris Thomson and I am the cofounder and director of Eyes On Athletes http://www.EyesOnAthletes.com.  The main aim of my role is to make sure the company meets the targets we have set and that we keep spreading the word of Eyes On Athletes. We are a newly launched company, so it is important that we make constant improvements and updates to our site and we always welcome user feedback and often make adjustments from this. It is my role to deal with our customers
and make sure they are having an easy and enjoyable user experience on the site.

SMP: Briefly, tell us about Eyes On Athletes (for those that don?t know), what is it and what does it do?

CT: Eyes On Athletes is a platform that helps showcase rugby talent and connect the rugby community. It allows for players, clubs, back room staff (coaches, video analysts, management etc.,) and fans the chance to upload a profile and connect. It has been great to see the enthusiasm from our users about how easy it is to post a profile and connect with each other.



SMP: Why have you decided to focus on a site for rugby?

CT: Mungo (the other cofounder) and my background is largely rugby. We both played Scotland Age Group rugby and have both played semi-professionally so we understand a lot about the game. We felt there was a real gap in the market for clubs trying to find players more easily and for players trying to find clubs. Post university, many players struggle to find a club to play for and with the job market so difficult these days, people often find it hard to secure employment. Our site not only helps connect players, clubs, back room staff and fans, but it also allows for employers to advertise working opportunities in our vacancies section.

SMP: Who are your target audience and why?

CT: The rugby world has all types of people in it; all ages, sizes and abilities. We want to involve everyone who has a thirst for the sport. The way we have segmented our market is by players, clubs, fans and back room staff. The players market is a lot younger than the back room staff market. Right now on the site we have a player as young as 15 (anyone 13+ can register), a coach at 50 years old and a fan at 53 years old - so our market is very varied.

SMP: Why is Eyes On Athletes different to anything out there?

CT: Our site looks to integrate all aspects of rugby in one site. From news, blogs and forums to player recruitment, club vacancies, job vacancies and more. We are not looking to target one aspect of the rugby world, but connect the whole of it. Our site aims to make getting involved in rugby much easier. It is a simple and straightforward idea and we take this into our company objectives. It takes a matter of minutes to sign up and start using all of the Eyes On Athletes services.   

SMP: When did Eyes On Athletes launch, how many people work there and how is it funded?

CT: We launched on the 15th of March 2013 so we are relatively new. We have a lot of our work externally contracted, but they often get involved in decisions on marketing strategy and other major decisions. We feel its good to get advice from different areas of the industry. If we include these external parties we have around 10 people working on the project at the moment. The company is funded by seed capital from an angel investor and we are already discussing our next round of funding to expand the company.  

SMP: How did you initially attract stakeholders and users to Eyes On Athletes and how do you do it now?

CT: The lucky thing for Mungo and myself is that we have been involved in rugby since the age of around four, which means we have a huge amount of contacts. We have both gone to university and played a really good level of rugby, which again has brought its advantages. From the outset we targeted people that we knew would want to post a profile. We looked at university leavers and guys playing the sport right now. We then contacted clubs that we had either played for in the past or had links with. The best way to attract stakeholders for us now is to speak to them either on the phone or get in front of them and present the fantastic opportunity that our site can bring to them. Be it promoting your talent, promoting your business and/or club.

SMP: What are the low moments of what you have been doing so far (and in regards to Eyes On Athletes)?

CT: There have been very few low points as what might seem a low point to others felt like a challenge to us. We are really enthusiastic about our company and we have a motto that all problems can be positive problems. The only small issue that arose for us was that we initially started with the name Be Seen Athletes and had to change it.

SMP: What are the high moments of what you have been doing so far (and in regards to Eyes On Athletes)?

CT: The highest moment has got to be the launch date. We started planning the company back in May 2012 and we only launched last month. However, that said whenever we receive a notification email of someone joining the site or we get another club on board over the phone or after a meeting, those are really great feelings too.

SMP: What do you see as your biggest challenges and opportunities?

CT: Like any new start up our biggest challenge is getting our name out there and showing people the fantastic services that we offer. We want people to realise that we are here to help all members of the rugby world, from players and clubs to press, media and agents. We aim to help everyone involved in rugby benefit by making it easier to promote rugby talent and connect.

There are a huge amount of opportunities out there in the rugby world and the sporting world. But we need to make sure we walk before we run, and ensure that we focus wholly on rugby before thinking about expansion.

SMP: What?s the next big step for social media / networks and what impact may this have upon Eyes On Athletes?

CT: Social media is everywhere now. People use it everyday to find out all sorts of information. For us it is about understanding the needs and wants of the rugby world, tailoring our site to ensure that people want to visit our site everyday and interact with each other. Although our site is smartphone friendly we are looking to improve the functionality of our site on mobile; we need to make sure that we are constantly changing and updating the site to keep the user happy and interested.

SMP: What is the most challenging part of building upon the Eyes On Athletes brand presence in digital environments (including social media)?

CT: There are so many different sites out there offering small parts of what we offer. Our challenge is to make the rugby community understand what we offer and how this product offering is better than these other sites.

SMP: What?s going to be the most interesting aspect regarding social media / technology for the next 12 to 18-months?

CT: Social media and technology are always changing and are always improving. What is going to be interesting is trying to keep up-to-date with these changes, but also ahead of game. It is clear that if you get it right, social networks can be a success. The industry is very simple in some ways, but some people just aren?t getting it right and it will be interesting to see who rises to the top because of this.

SMP: What are your top five predictions for social media for the next 12 to 18-months and what sort of impact could this have for Eyes On Athletes?

CT replies with:

1. Social media will become a lot more tailored to what the customer wants. People will be able to pick and choose what they want from a site. Our site offers this as you can sign up as many different member types.

2. Advertising on these sites will become a lot more interactive. Social networks are about interacting with each other and I believe advertisers are now changing the way they advertise because of this.

3. There will be a rise in the amount of niche and targeted social networks. People want more specific interaction and want to be able to interact with others with similar interests. This will benefit Eyes On Athletes as we are a very focused social network.
 
4. A rise in similar networks to the already existing big players. We already have Facebook and Twitter so people that are looking to launch these again are only setting themselves up for failure. Eyes On Athletes is new and innovative and has taken on board what has worked and what hasn?t with other social networks.
 
5. A rise in customer use. Although social networks are already enormous it won?t be long before the first place people look for news is on a social network not a news site. It is already beginning to happen. This would again fit into our strategy as we look to offer up-to-date news and information as well as many other features.

SMP: What are your top five social media tips for people using Eyes On Athletes?

1. Make sure you sign up to the site to be enabled to use all the features. Signing up allows you to connect with each other and discuss hot topics.

2. Keep your profile up-to-date so that other users for example clubs can see a players recent profile.

3. Get interacting. There is already a huge amount of people on the site so whether you are a player looking for a club or a club looking for a player - get talking to each other. You may just want to tell a player how good he is.

4. Promote your profile on other social networks to make sure that you are the most viewed and are the member of the week. This gets you on the front page of the site. Simply post a link of your profile on Facebook and Twitter and watch the viewers come in!

5. Enjoy it. Whether it?s a funny video, interesting forum topic, job vacancy or player talent get involved and have fun.

SMP: Is there anything else we should know, or is there anything that you?d like to share?

CT: Our site is completely free to use for all members. If a club finds a player they can contact them for free. Clubs and employers can post working and playing vacancies for free as well. There are no finder?s fees, no fees at all. Make sure you sign up today at www.EyesOnAthletes.com



SMP: Best way to contact you and Eyes On Athletes?

Facebook
Twitter @eyesonathletes
LinkedIn
Youtube


SMP: What did you have for breakfast / lunch?

CT: As a rugby player it is important to eat a hearty breakfast. This morning was scrambled eggs on toast and a coffee.

SMP: What?s the last good thing that you did for someone?

CT: Gave my friend a lift to the train station

SMP: If you weren?t running or working on Eyes On Athletes what would you be doing?

CT: Working as a buyer at Lidl UK

SMP: What?s your favourite rugby team and why?

CT: Hurricanes. My family are from Wellington, New Zealand and I just love the flair of Super Rugby

SMP: What?s your favourite rugby event and why?

CT: It has to be either Bournemouth 7s or Rugby Rocks 7s, they are just great fun to play in and we have such a good party afterwards.

SMP: When and where did you go on your last holiday?

CT: Went skiing in Morzine in January with my family. It was brilliant!

SMP: What?s the first thing you do when you get into the office of a morning?

CT: Turn my computer and the kettle on.

SMP: If you had a superpower what would it be and why?

CT: Invisibility. I could sneak into the England changing room find out all there line out calls and tell the Scotland coach and we might actually win.

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