Did you know that the event tickets market worldwide is projected to reach a revenue of US$85.07 billion by the year 2024? Hello and welcome to the Sports CDP Crash with me your host Lorraine Moalosi.  In today's episode, we'll be highlighting the significance of focusing on selling tickets in the sports industry. 

To kick things off, let's revisit that staggering statistic I just mentioned. According to Statista, the event tickets market worldwide is projected to reach a revenue of US$85.07 billion by the year 2024,. Yes, you heard that right - $85.07 billion. That's not just a number; it's a testament to the thriving industry that revolves around live experiences.

But what's even more intriguing is the projected annual growth rate (CAGR 2024-2028) of 2.54%. This growth is expected to result in a market volume of US$94.06 billion by 2028. Now, you might be wondering, why are these numbers so crucial? The answer lies in the heartbeat of any sports event—the fans. Selling tickets is not just about filling seats; it's about creating an unforgettable experience for the supporters. The revenue generated from ticket sales is the lifeblood of sports organizations, enabling them to invest in talent, infrastructure, and overall enhancement of the fan experience.

This all means that as we navigate the ever-changing landscape of sports and entertainment, teams and organizations need to prioritize the sale of tickets. This not only ensures a steady revenue stream but also strengthens the bond between the team and its fan base. Consider this: when fans attend live events, they become part of something larger than themselves. The atmosphere, the camaraderie, the shared passion—it's an emotional connection that goes beyond the game itself. And this emotional connection translates into brand loyalty, with fans more likely to support their team through thick and thin.

Speaking of loyalty, did you know that despite many sports organisations having hundreds and thousands of social media followers and supporters, in quotes, many of them know zero to a few of those followers? Very few organisations know what their supporters are buying from them, how often they buy, and how recently each supporter bought something from the organisation. The trap that these clubs fall into is not growing their supporter base, continuously and not collecting supporter data with contact information, and merging it with their other data. What do I mean by this?

It is impossible for any sports organisation to know:

1. The kind of tickets each of their supporters buy, for example, are they buying single tickets or season tickets
2. When do they buy the tickets and how much do they usually spend in one go whenever they buy said tickets

It is hard to know this information for a hundred supporters, in real time, let alone for a couple of thousands or millions. That is why we at Data Talks came up with the 4 fundamentals of selling tickets. The 4 Fundamentals is a groundbreaking process innovation and transformative approach that empowers sports organizations of all sizes, across seasons and regions, to harness the power of their data. By seamlessly integrating all supporter data into one place, the result is not just increased sustained revenue streams, but a genuine commitment to placing fans and supporters at the heart and centre of every initiative. These four fundamentals are: 

1. Grow your contact database, continuously
2. Collect supporter data with contact information and merge it with your other data
3. Find out which supporter segments you should target with your campaigns
4. Send relevant offers to those segments in a way that your supporters will appreciate

These four fundamentals are powered by our sports platform that:

1. Collects data in one place so it gives you a complete view of each of your supporters, who they are, how they interact with your organisation, how often, and so forth
2. Cleans the data so that there are no duplicates
3. Updates the data with every interaction your supporter has with your sports organization so that you don’t have any obsolete
4. Makes this data available to other systems such as your customer relationship management system (CRM) and marketing automation tool.
5. Makes this data available to share with other people, in all departments, that may need it
6. Displays your data in easy-to-understand dashboards
7. Allows you to get actionable insights from the data that you can then power ALL of your supporter activity with
8. Allows you to act on your data through activations via email, SMS, social media, and other platforms.

Curious to hear more about the 4 fundamentals and the Data Talks Sports Platform, join me in two weeks as we talk about the 4 fundamentals of selling tickets and how you can use them to take your organisation to the next level when it comes to ticket sales.