There are many different sports media outlets one can go to in order to obtain their news. One of the biggest outlets, of course, is ESPN. However, Bleacher Report is another big name trying to compete with the company based in Bristol, Connecticut.
Bleacher Report doesn’t just try to compete with ESPN by doing the same thing as them. Instead it uses its outlet to be different. It is best said by Bleacher Report’s Executive Editor Jermaine Spradley when he said “ESPN is about the news of sports; we’re about the spirit of sports.” (Weissman, 2017).
What makes Bleacher Report different is its impact to reach out to the younger generation of sport-lovers. It does a great job at using its social platform to expand its audience. Through the company’s socials, and its website, Bleacher Report is creating a great amount of trust and engagement from the younger audience. According to Siteworthtraffic, Bleacher Report is ranked second, following ESPN, as the most popular sports websites based on website worth. (Siteworthtraffic, 2020).
The website does a great job at capturing the audience’s attention through the use of mixing both graphics with photos. These really help the site stand out and separate different articles from another. It also adds in different colored banners for different segments. For instance, the main visuals of the website uses solid frames of white space which is easy to look at. However, as you continue to scroll, you will notice there are different colored banners that help separate news topics such as what is trending now from older news.
Visuals are highly important to keep your audience engaged and Bleacher Report does a great job at this. In a study done by the Social Science Research Network, it was shown that 65 percent of the population are visual learners. (Brown, 2017). The use of photos is needed to help draw in attention but the use of graphics can be just as important. Graphics mix both the use of words and imagery into one, this helps pass through a message one can read in seconds.
Bleacher Report is not one to shy away from its innovative ideas. It has separated all of its segments into multiple different tabs at the top of the page, like many other sites. However, it also includes a page for its own shows. They have created multiple different shows, including the well-known, Gridiron Heights. This just creates a whole new different entertainment element of the news.
Bleacher Report’s website also does a great job at knowing the importance of the audience’s attention span. Many readers may not want to read a 700 word article that may be seen on ESPN. Instead, it accounts for the fact that many people don’t have time to read this and they also may be reading off their smartphones. Bleacher Report gives you a mix of short and long-form news. It even implements tweets and highlights throughout the home pages.
Bleacher Report continues to grow its fan-base through new, creative ideas through both its socials and websites. It uses the younger generations interests to help garner more attention; while acknowledging that most people read their news through their smartphones. The website has great graphics and photos that help separate each story, and its use of video highly stands out. I am excited to see what more ideas the website will bring in the future.
References
Weissman, C. G. (2017, October 26). Bleacher Report’s Secret Weapon For Fighting ESPN. Retrieved from https://www.fastcompany.com/40483907/bleacher-report-secret-weapon-for-fighting-espn
Brown, H. (2017, July 6). Why Graphics, Not Just Photos, Matter For Your Website. Retrieved from https://www.pagecloud.com/blog/why-you-need-to-care-about-graphics-not-just-photos
Top 15 Most Popular Sports Websites February 2020. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.siteworthtraffic.com/top-popular-sports-websites