When it comes to real-time marketing, and the emotional attachment fans have for their beloved sports teams, few industries are better poised to take advantage of the engagement opportunities than the sports industry.
Marigold Engage+ has partnered with some of the world’s top sports brands and organizations to create and launch an array of successful campaign experiences with ease. Whether it be to boost game-day excitement, connect with fans, monetize their global audience, or increase content relevancy to reach a specific demographic, sports organizations are using Marigold Grow to create impactful digital experiences that drive results.
Here we’ll look at three elite sports organizations that are leveraging a fully-fledged zero-party data strategy to connect with fans on every digital channel and collect the preference insights and permissions required to drive personalization initiatives.
How the NHL used social voting to drive marketing opt-ins
The NHL launched a social voting contest to engage passionate fans and celebrate the best hockey posts of the season on social media. The poll consisted of 20 unique categories, where fans could choose their favorite with the results shown in poll results in real time.
To aide a seamless user experience fans were not required to submit any PII data to submit their vote, however, they were given the option to fill in a simple form to keep up-to-date with the latest marketing communications and exclusive offers from the NHL.
Results:
- 16k email opt-ins within the first week of launch
- 850k authenticated votes captured within the first week of launch
How UEFA used direct video upload mechanics to capture valuable PII data
The EURO 2020 draw is one of the hottest dates in the European soccer calendar, deciding who will face-off against each other at the summer’s prestigious championships.
UEFA launched a competition to give one lucky fan the opportunity to display their soccer skills live on-stage at the draw in front of an audience of millions the continent-wide.
For the chance to win, soccer freestylers were required to upload a video of their best skills using the Marigold Grow direct video upload mechanic. Along with their entry, contestants are asked to submit a small amount of PII data. Each participant then received a Marigold Grow-powered email notification to confirm their entry.
Upon moderation, all entries were published to a gallery for website visitors to browse and enjoy.
How the NFL identifies and profiles a global fan base
The NFL created a captivating quiz hosted on its Facebook page to help international fans decide which team they should be rooting for in the playoffs. With four versions of the quiz (for the UK, Brazil, Germany, and Spain), together with 11 multiple choice questions, this audience profiling technique provided the NFL with highly useful insights about its fans’ preferences.
Upon completion, entrants were required to grant app permission, providing the NFL the opportunity to collect Facebook social data. Fans could also follow a link to the NFL website and live game times to stimulate real-time views of the games.
Results:
- 271k campaign entries
Capturing motivations, intentions, and preferences at scale lets you truly personalize each fan’s experience with your sports brand. And by leveraging Marigold Grow, and offering a value exchange, fans will tell you products they desire, what they look for in loyalty programs, and what motivates them to engage.
For marketers who take the zero-party data path, this is a unique opportunity to improve relationships and deliver better personalization.
Want to check out more inspiring examples of campaigns for sports teams and organizations?
