Shane Coghlan
VP of Sales
Qcue, Inc

I had a great trip to Atlanta attending the National Sports Forum. Ron Seaver and his team continue to provide a fantastic conference packed full of attendee experiences with great content and engaging speakers. An observation from my time at the conference: Fan engagement was at the heart of almost every conversation. No matter the league, athletics department or venue, the major theme was continuing to improve fan engagement.

The in-venue experience has evolved tremendously over the past decade. Mobile technologies are leading the way, but the investments in premium and social gathering spaces are driving new revenues. Gambling remains to be the largest unknown opportunity in 2020, much like it was in 2019. We will soon see the market flooded with gambling apps as states pass legislation and leagues determine the most lucrative path forward. 

This seems like an obvious point, but I will say it here; fan engagement occurs when the fans are at the venue. This fact is universal for all live events. There is no doubt a full venue adds exponentially to the overall fan experience by creating a loud and exciting environment. A growing number of teams and athletic departments are creatively selling tickets via pricing strategies, single game sales channels, packages and promotions with an eye on combating no-show rates. The approach of selling as many season tickets as possible to whomever will buy them is still a very common approach, but one that seems to be losing steam in the sports marketplace. 

Fan engagement and the focus on the overall game experience is what we will be following in 2020.