Team executives place so much attention on building a database for new sales that they often ignore existing data that could be employed to identify potential target segments.
Thanks to an offering called Personicx, developed by SmartDM/Acxiom Corp., the Denver Nuggets are hoping to change the way team ticketing departments use their databases. These new electronic databases are loaded with additional leads if teams will simply take the time to understand the types of segments that are within their existing databases.
The Nuggets are using Personicx to recognize leads from a segmented database to learn more about their ticket buyers’ purchasing habits. By doing so, they should be able to identify more customers within the same demographic profile and thus sell more tickets.
The Nuggets’ first step is to send a prepaid postcard to customers who match a selected demographic profile. The customers then return the postcard to enter a sweepstakes. At the same time, they can choose to sign up for e-mail team news and request more information on season and group tickets.
The cost of the initiative, including postage and printing, is $5,515. The Nuggets project the mailing will generate 60 season tickets at $6,000 per account. Subtracting the costs, the Nuggets estimate a total profit of $354,485.
“[The Personicx system] is really allowing teams to take an educated approach to what they are already doing with their database and ticket-outreach programs,” said Larry Martin, marketing strategy consultant for SmartDM/Acxiom.
The system completes what SmartDM/Acxiom is calling a Personicx Portrait analysis, which is a method of identifying and profiling customers. For example, the system can break down customers based on such characteristics as household income, age and marital status.
The team can dictate virtually any criteria it desires to search from and create a target list customized to its needs. By using the Portrait analysis, the Nuggets can append their existing data or purchase new data from SmartDM/Acxiom to create groups of individuals that they can sort and draw upon for potential new sales opportunities.
For example, if a family from a particular ZIP code with a household income of $100,000 is identified as the most profitable customer segment, the system will identify other prospects that match that profile.
“The challenge for teams is that segments and customer tendencies are constantly changing,” said Rich Maradik, CEO of SmartDM/Acxiom Corp. “Thanks to a stronger database, this system keeps up with the changes and allows teams like the Nuggets to be more aggressive in their efforts. A lot of teams don’t even realize the potential leads that are right under their noses. You’re going to see a lot more teams looking at data this way.”
The Nuggets are the first team to use the program, but Martin said the Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers, among other NBA teams, have signed on, as well. That is in addition to the roughly 30 major professional sports teams that utilize SmartDM/Acxiom’s services for customer relationship software programs.
“A quality database has often been measured in terms of its size,” Martin said. “We’re trying to bring the healthiness of the [active, updated accounts] to the forefront of how databases are managed in order to establish higher close rates — [the percentage of recipients who buy tickets] — to teams. The quality of a database should ultimately be determined by how much business it generates, not just its size.”n
Dan Migala (dmigala@sportsbusinessjournal.com) is publisher of The Migala Report.
