Bruins using SAS Analytics to improve fan experience at TD Garden
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With how easy it is for fans to stay at home or go out to their local sports bar to watch games, teams and venues have been finding creative ways to figure out what will help them fill their seats. The NHL’s Boston Bruins have turned to the SAS Institute, a research company that uses analytics software to study what makes fans tick.
The Bruins will be using the company’s tools like SAS Data Quality and SAS Marketing Automation to collect data about what fans are interested in during games at TD Garden this season. They use that data to search for “fan touch points,” which are an array of different points like food and beverage selections, cleanliness and parking.
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“As a leader in analytics and fan engagement, SAS is the perfect teammate for the Boston Bruins and TD Garden,” Jim Tobin of SAS said in a statement. “TD Garden will have the insights they need to keep fans hungry for more, both in-season and throughout the year.”
SAS has been helping numerous other teams and leagues improve their fan insight and engagement, operations, player management and marketing. The NBA’s Orlando Magic, for example, have been using SAS to help their organization compete against opponents in larger markets. They were able to use the company’s programs to help increase their season-ticket base.
“SAS has helped us grow our business,” Magic VP of business strategy Anthony Perez said in a statement. “It is probably one of the greatest investments that we’ve made as an organization over the last half-dozen years because we can point to top-line revenue growth that SAS has helped us create through the specific messaging that we’re able to direct to each one of our client groups.”
This process is hoping to help sports teams to find out what their fans are asking for and what will get them a high retention rate. While most of us know that there really isn’t a better way to watch a game than in person, it’s good to know that the organizations are working to find ways to give their fans what they want and compete with the at-home viewing experience.
