Sports fan experience: Electronic word-of-mouth in ephemeral social media

Fans consuming sporting events commonly use social media to spread electronic-word-of-mouth (eWOM) related to their experiences. Ephemeral social media, an emerging form of social media that auto-deletes content after a prescribed time, allows fans to have greater control over their messages than ever before. The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate factors leading fans to lengthen or shorten the lifespan of their social media content. A nationwide panel (N = 242) created social media content in a controlled setting in which the fan experience and audience size were manipulated. Results suggest fans having a positive experience or who were broadcasting to a large audience were likely to share their content for a longer period of time. In contrast, fans having other than positive experiences, sharing with a small audience, or displaying greater team identification wished to limit the availability of their content. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.