National Hockey League Team Leverages SAP HANA to Better Understand Their Fans Through Data

The National Hockey League’s Vancouver Canucks are partnering with SAP to gain a deeper understanding of their fans using data. The goal is to provide more personalized fan experiences.

With SAP Hybris Marketing and SAP Cloud 4 Customer, both powered by SAP HANA, the Canucks aim to deliver more relevant services to the 3.2 million fans they reach digitally and the 18,000 that attend each of their games.

The Canucks represent the largest hockey market in Western Canada.

“The rise of big data and social media presents a unique opportunity for sports franchises, in that sports fans are particularly open to and passionate about engaging with their teams,” said John Graham, Managing Director, SAP Canada. “This means it’s possible for teams to build a powerful real-time picture of what their fans want and will respond to, right down to an individual level.”

The Canucks’ SAP implementation includes identifying, defining, and scoring fan segments to enable more intelligent fan marketing and engagement; real-time insights into fan propensity to attend games, engage with the organization and renew season tickets; and marketing and sales activities, such as email deal alerts and reminders based on previous fan engagement, which are automated.

“Understanding fan sentiment and using that to personalize the experience is not only about making fans happier, but also about helping sales and marketing reach them more meaningfully to maximize revenue opportunities,” said Graham. “I believe it’s something we’ll see more NHL teams adopt as they witness the value in what the Canucks are doing.”

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