The Impact of Technology on Sports Entertainment Revenue and Fan Engagement
Innovation is a key enabler to the digital experience economy.
- Enable the digital economy. The future is in the digital economy – you must be there to succeed.
- Develop business alignment. You must build business alignment and trust as a reliable operator to change IT's role into a business partner or innovator.
- Understand where and how to improve relationships. Business leaders are often unsatisfied with the quality of service they receive from IT. Identifying those areas, speaking with business stakeholders about their expectations, and addressing gaps through improvement initiatives are fundamental steps to repairing and building relationships and ultimately building trust.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
Industry leaders are aware of the impact the 360-degree experience has on revenue and fan engagement but often ignore the full fan journey cycle. Initiatives that would create high-value fan journeys and business alignment are recognized but still not prioritized.
Impact and Result
- Review the survey results to understand where the rest of the industry sits in terms of digital fan engagement and overall digital business strategy to compare.
- Assess the organization’s IT department through Info-Tech's CIO Business Vision Diagnostic to learn what the business sees as important as well as what their satisfaction is with core service areas to start the journey to becoming a business partner or innovator to achieve alignment.
- Devise a list of improvement and/or digital initiatives you can integrate into your IT strategic plan to transform the role IT plays in the organization.
The Impact of Technology on Sports Entertainment Revenue and Fan Engagement Research & Tools
1. The Impact of Technology on Sports Entertainment Revenue and Fan Engagement Deck – This report will walk you through survey results on how to improve revenues and fan engagement through technology.
Read our report to find out how you compare to the rest of the industry, how to receive buy-in from your business, and how you can create holistic 360-degree fan journeys.
The Impact of Technology on Sports Entertainment Revenue and Fan Engagement
Innovation is a key enabler of the digital experience economy.
Analyst Perspective
Leverage technology to achieve innovator status
In collaboration with the Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD), Info-Tech Research Group conducted a survey in the spring of 2022 to better understand the key priorities of industry leaders. The ALSD is an association of sports and entertainment professionals from all levels of the venue marketplace, from premium seating to ticket sales, technology solutions, and facility operators. The association is made up of decision makers, sales leaders, service professionals, foodservice providers, architects, and builders of memorable experiences (ALSD, 2022).
In a post-pandemic world, the sports entertainment industry must adapt to remain competitive in the digital experience economy. This economy relies on younger generations that are not currently engaged with sports, such as Generation Z, to drive expectations and needs. Sports entertainment organizations must begin targeting the younger generation before it is too late.
Most sports entertainment organizations are beginning to implement or already have implemented technologies that further engage younger generations. However, it's important to highlight the importance a holistic high-value fan journey has on fan engagement and revenue. When organizations are only focused on 60% of the fan journey, they are letting 40% of opportunities go to waste.
A majority of industry leaders are aware of the great impact that a holistic high-value fan journey can pose on their business but remain hesitant to implement initiatives that would enable it. In the end, this hinders the organization’s success in becoming a business partner or innovator.
Additionally, sports entertainment organizations require business alignment to gain business buy-in for any type of high-cost investment. Overall, business alignment is critical to enable holistic high-value fan journeys and achieve innovator status.
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Elizabeth Silva
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Executive Summary
Your ChallengeEnabling the digital experience economy: The future is in the digital experience economy – you must be there to succeed.Developing business alignment: You must build business alignment and trust as a reliable operator to change IT’s role to a business partner or innovator. Understanding where and how to improve relationships: Business leaders are often unsatisfied with the quality of service they receive from IT. Identifying areas of dissatisfaction, speaking with business stakeholders about their expectations, and addressing gaps through improvement initiatives are fundamental to repairing and building relationships and ultimately building trust. |
Common ObstaclesTechnology has a large impact on fan engagement and revenue but requires investment. In the sports entertainment industry, technology and innovation deliver fan experiences that help meet business expectations. To compete with other forms of entertainment, even before the pandemic, the sports industry has had to adapt and innovate. Stakeholder satisfaction can impact support. Sports entertainment stakeholder satisfaction is generally not where it needs to be. Organizations within the industry need to assess where they are to understand where opportunities exist and engage with business leadership to better align the business and IT. |
Info-Tech’s ApproachReview the survey results to understand where the rest of the industry sits in terms of digital fan engagement and overall digital business strategy to compare.Assess the organization’s IT department through Info-Tech's CIO Business Vision Diagnostic to learn what the business sees as important as well as what their satisfaction is with core service areas to start the journey to becoming a business partner or innovator to achieve alignment. Devise a list of improvement and/or digital initiatives you can integrate into your IT strategic plan to transform the role IT plays in the organization. |
Info-Tech Overarching Insight
Industry leaders are aware of the impact the 360-degree experience has on revenue and fan engagement but often ignore the full fan journey cycle. Initiatives that would create high-value fan journeys and business alignment are recognized but still not prioritized.
ALSD and Info-Tech surveyed a cross-functional group of professionals
- The demographics of the survey participants are shown below.
- Technology that impacts revenue and fan engagement has a role within three different departments.
- IT has the smallest presence, indicating their seat at the decision-making table for fan engagement and revenue-related initiatives is not large.
- IT should not only be an enabler to this technology but also a business partner.
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Fan profiles are missing Generation Z
Through the survey, many sports entertainment organizations claim that most of their fans are families with children and millennials, but Generation Z is missing from the stands.Success will depend on attracting Generation Z, as they are the current generation to come out of college or university and into the workforce, meaning they are the next generation this economy depends on. This is especially important in the digital experience economy that Generation Z and coming generations will own.
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The next generation is a challenge for the sports & entertainment industry
Gen Z men are a significant concern
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Multiscreen viewing is typical during a sporting event
Gen Z is a multiscreen generation – they need multiple activities to be engaged. Compared to the general population, they are more often engaged in other activities while watching sports.
Gen Z is focused on apps, social media, and online games while watching sports. Integrate these activities into the fan experience to increase engagement and revenue.
(Source: Nielsen Sports, 2021.)
Provide a holistic fan experience with various areas of enhancement
The fan experience is a lot more than just providing a service to fans through their preferred channel; it’s also about providing personalized content that enhances the entire fan journey.Consider the following recommendations:
Why?
Download the Discover High-Value Fan Experiences trend report for more recommendations |
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Real-time interactive digital experiences are most important when delivering event-related information to fans
When participants were asked to rank the relative importance of delivering event-related information to fans through the following initiatives, they answered...
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Top-rated features for digital experiences are seamless and ensure connectivity
When participants were asked to rank the relative importance of the following features for digital experiences, they answered...
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Pre-event and during-event fan experiences are considered the most important parts of the 360-degree experience
The importance starts to fall for reaching beyond the venue and creating at-home excitement.When participants were asked to rank the relative importance of the following digital experiences they answered...
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Digital differentiators that impact the entire 360-degree experience are crucial
What's important to realize here is all three of these initiatives would impact the 360-degree experience for fans. Therefore, industry leaders are aware that the initiatives that would make their business different from others in digital terms are those that impact all avenues of the fan experience.
However, that isn’t reflected in the industry today, as a lot of sports entertainment organizations are mainly focused on the pre-event and during-event experience for fans.
When participants were asked to rank the relative importance of the following digital differentiators and they answered...
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Only a 360-degree experience will make fans feel like real VIPs
A 360-degree experience must be omnichannel and must enable seamless, direct, and personalized experiences throughout the entire fan journey. However, as survey data shows, most organizations are focused on the first three areas. The fourth and fifth are typically ignored. It's essential to understand how important the entire fan journey is in order to create ultimate fan experiences and drive revenues. |
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| Download the Discover High-Value Fan Experiences trend report to learn more | Download the Accelerate Through Digital Fan Engagement report to learn more |
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Nearly all budgets have increased since the pandemic to keep up with the digital experience economy
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Frictionless experiences are the top initiatives currently being prioritized...
Participants’ top three initiatives for digital experiences in the next 18 months
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
...followed by far more innovative initiatives in the next three years
Given that industry leaders are looking to be more innovative and future focused, this shows good efforts toward achieving business partner or innovator status.When Participants were asked their top initiatives for digital experiences in the next three years, these were the top two:
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Industry leaders are aware of which technology drives revenue but are still hesitant
Most of these initiatives are already implemented or currently being implemented within most modern venues today. However, the initiative that stands out here is the fan loyalty program. This initiative is not widely implemented across the industry and is typically rejected by industry leaders.When participants were asked to determine the impact on revenue for each technology, they responded with these top 5…
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
The same technology driving revenue is also driving fan engagement
Even though fan loyalty programs are not a prioritized initiative for the next 18 months to three years, industry leaders still recognize these programs have a high impact on revenue and fan engagement while extending the organization’s reach beyond the venue.When participants were asked to determine the impact on fan engagement for each technology, they responded with these top five:
(Source: Info-Tech Research Group, Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) Member Survey, 2022, N=65)
Loyalty programs are often overlooked in sports entertainment organizations
Coming to a conclusion, the survey has shown that industry leaders are aware of the impact the 360-degree experience has on revenue and fan engagement but still ignore the full fan journey cycle. Initiatives that would help complete the fan journey are recognized but still not prioritized, such as a loyalty program.
A loyalty program would be able to solve many challenges within the business and in return generate revenues and fan engagement. However, it is not easy to properly execute.
Digital loyalty programs require a proper framework and strategy for the sports industry. Read the Grow Your Top Line With a Digital Loyalty Program report to learn more about how any organization can be successful in implementing a digital loyalty program in the sports entertainment industry.ISSUE |
DIGITAL LOYALTY STRATEGY |
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| Increasing market competition and ubiquity of programs |  |
Understand who your incumbents and disruptors are and define opportunities to either compete or differentiate. |
| Increasing sophistication of fan expectations and demands | |
Understand your fans and their journeys better to meet and exceed expectations. |
| Lack of customer-facing technological progress | |
Determine opportunities to enter the digital economy and improve customer-facing technology progress. |
| Siloed marketing, operations, and IT department strategies | |
Be able to merge operational and digital maturity by aligning strategic goals and building digital fluency. |
It’s hard work to enable the digital economy
Being able to properly enable the digital economy is critical because any initiative an organization may be looking to implement will require major technology investments.
This can only be done when there is business alignment, meaning high satisfaction between the IT department and the business.
A majority of sports, entertainment, arts, and culture organizations are in the 70% to 80% satisfaction mark, making them a trusted operator.
However, only being a trusted operator makes it more difficult for IT departments to enable the digital economy. Becoming a business partner or innovator allows for that expansion and transformation.
Consider the different business drivers to achieve success
| In general, relationships are the number one driver for business satisfaction for any IT department.
If your department is looking to move up the ladder, start with:
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Source: CIO Business Vision Diagnostic, n=254 organizations that completed the survey between January 2021 and April 2022 |
Start your journey to becoming an innovatorStart your journey by completing the CIO Business Vision diagnostic to better understand what is important to business stakeholders, measure the satisfaction of your IT department, and understand where to focus to improve your department. |
Become an innovator by:
Learn more about the CIO Business Vision diagnostic |
The digital experience economy is the reality |
Key takeaways
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Bibliography
Association of Luxury Suite Directors. ALSD, 2022, www.alsd.com. Accessed 2022.
“Consumer behavior shifts and new experiences are broadening fan engagement.” Nielsen Sports, 2022. Accessed 1 July 2022.
“Gamification of Sports Events & Fan Experience: the New Era of Sportainment.” Immersiv.io, 2021. Accessed 17 August 2021.
Ghosh, Samrat. “The Third Age of Sports: Digital Disruption and impact of COVID-19.” LinkedIn, 30 March 2021. Accessed 25 Nov 2021.
“How to Boost Fan Engagement in Modern Sports & Post Covid?” Gomeeki, 31 July 2019. Accessed 5 October 2021.
“Increasing Fan Engagement: A Holistic Approach.” Tappit, n.d. Accessed 4 Nov 2021.
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