For sports teams, more fans is rarely bad news. It usually means more energy at stadiums, more eyeballs on streams and broadcasts, and more revenue. And it also means more data.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not always easy for marketers to collect highly coveted first-party data about consumers, no matter how beloved brands may be. For their favorite sports teams, however, fans will hand over just about anything (even, in some cases, their DNA<\/a>). Sports marketers haven\u2019t always<\/a> taken full advantage, but in recent years, execs across major sports organizations have been getting more data-savvy<\/a>.<\/p>\n Soccer, in particular, is poised for a fan data boom. With the World Cup coming to US soil for the first time in more than three decades, soccer fandom stateside has arguably never been higher. At the same time, Major League Soccer (MLS) and the National Women\u2019s Soccer League (NWSL) have relatively new, data-minded<\/a> top marketers, and execs at teams across the leagues are increasingly thinking about how they can better collect and use fan data to improve the audience experience.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what people are looking for,\u201d Scott Lewis, VP of business intelligence for New York City FC<\/a>, who\u2019s also worked in analytics for other soccer and baseball teams, told Marketing Brew. \u201cThat\u2019s what is more likely to get them to come back. We can\u2019t control what happens on the field, but the experiences…to me, that shows appreciation of the fan.\u201d<\/p>\n Tickets, please<\/p>\n While clubs technically have access to a wealth of first-party data ranging from email addresses to transaction information, it\u2019s not necessarily simple for sports marketers to use it. Fans may use different email addresses to purchase tickets or merch at different times, which can make it challenging to set up unique identifiers, Lewis said.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also some fragmentation in the sports data landscape, as teams don\u2019t necessarily use the same backend tech for ticketing platforms, retail sites, apps, and other fan touchpoints. That\u2019s a roadblock that the Seattle teams\u2014Sounders FC in MLS and Reign FC in the NWSL\u2014are working to overcome using the fan experience platform Jump.<\/p>\n The partnership, which officially goes into effect next year, will unify the teams\u2019 backend- and fan-facing platforms, gathering all their fan data in one place, Kaitlin Bailey, VP of business strategy and analytics for Sounders FC, said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to own our fan relationship,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n In addition to Reign FC, the North Carolina Courage and Denver Summit in the NWSL use Jump. Sounders FC is the first MLS team on the platform, Jump Chief Product Officer Joel Resnicow said. The league itself has been building out its own internal fan intelligence platform called Fan Genome, which is meant to help MLS and its clubs get a more \u201ccomprehensive understanding\u201d of fans, Abhijit Shome, the league\u2019s VP of marketing technology, told us.<\/p>\n Get marketing news you’ll actually want to read<\/p>\n Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.<\/p>\n The Fan Genome project is made up of more than 1,000 data points\u2014including demographic, behavioral, and transaction data\u2014that teams can use to create fan segments for targeting, Lewis said. His team at NYCFC is fairly limited in terms of how they collect and use fan data at the moment, since they\u2019re currently playing out of Yankee Stadium while their new Etihad Park is being built. But they\u2019ve been \u201coutlining some fan journeys\u201d in recent months and are preparing to better customize fan experiences at the new stadium next season, he said.<\/p>\n Get personal<\/p>\n Segmentation and personalization have also become increasingly important for the NWSL, which recently hired<\/a> a new CMO, Rachel Epstein, and chief commercial officer, Brian Kelly.<\/p>\n Epstein, who joined after eight years as VP of sports marketing at ESPN, said demographic segmentation is already guiding the league\u2019s new marketing efforts<\/a> but added that \u201cthere\u2019s more to be done,\u201d especially when it comes to creating social and digital content meant to engage different types of fans.<\/p>\n The Seattle clubs will use Jump to personalize experiences and messaging for their season ticket members, Bailey said. For now, the teams\u2019 member platforms are separate from their general apps, but they\u2019ll soon be streamlined into one, she said. That means easier access to event info, product drops, and other notifications and opportunities for fans\u2014and more centralized fan data profiles for the teams.<\/p>\n \u201cThat fan experience doesn\u2019t just start when they scan their ticket,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cIt starts days, weeks, years before for members. They deserve simple, transparent, seamless experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n With personalization extending beyond game days, Resnicow works with Jump clients on targeting and attribution for their ad campaigns. If they don\u2019t have first-party data in one place, team execs don\u2019t always know what exactly drives ticket sales, Reniscow said.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of the time, it\u2019s spray and pray,\u201d he said. \u201cWe want to know\u2026Did this fan they paid to acquire, is that person disappearing? Are they coming back? Not just understanding ROI, but true [lifetime value].\u201d<\/p>\n More customized messages and offers can help create repeat attendees, said Dallas Dolen, who leads the US tech, media and telecommunications business at PwC, including its entertainment and sports work. That\u2019s something that teams<\/a> across leagues strive for, and it\u2019s likely especially prevalent in the minds of soccer execs as they work to maintain the expected boost in fandom coming from the World Cup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For sports teams, more fans is rarely bad news. 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