Our 2013 NFL Tech Series provides a quick hit of tech insight on all 32 NFL teams up until kickoff of Week 1 of the regular season. Each feature includes the latest tech advances implemented by the organization in the effort to advance the team’s success… in a wide variety of venues. Stadium experience, fan engagement, mobile technologies, player performance and health, statistical data gathering and analysis… any and all aspects of the organization’s procedures in the effort to find success in the NFL is on the table. We’re uncovering those efforts, investigating those innovations and pondering the benefit they might provide, for the team, players and fans alike… today and looking forward.
Today’s focus is on the Detroit Lions and how they are introducing some revolutionary elements to Ford Field and the fan experience.
The Detroit Lions are a team with a lot of talent. From being one of the worst teams in NFL history a few years ago, they have built a competitive team in a relatively short amount of time. The Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson connection is the best tandem in the league, and with a young scrappy defense and the addition of Reggie Bush in the backfield, there are some high expectations for the Lions this year.
Not only are they getting better on the field, they are seeking to become innovators in their tech initiatives around Ford Field. Last year in December, they offered Wifi in Ford Field through Verizon Wireless for fans. Since then, their focus has been on engaging their fans through mobile activation, as well as introducing a new digital processes with stadium upgrades.
Digital Ticketing
The Detroit Lions are becoming trendsetters in the NFL for digital ticketing. They will eliminate the third party Ticketmaster system and have more management over ticket data by working with a Cleveland-based ticket system called Veritix. Veritix provides the most dynamic paperless ticketing, event marketing, and relationship management applications through Flash Seats.
The deal is the first NFL agreement for Veritix. It will let the Lions use Flash Seats’ paperless system to sell individual game tickets, and allow them to handle secondary-market ticket sales for all non-football events at Ford Field.
Flash Seats uses a digital entry method and will allow fans to enter with a digital ID such as a credit card or driver’s license. Tickets will also be fully transferable giving fans the flexibility to share tickets with just a click of the button.
Luis Perez, the Lions’ Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, said one of Veritix’s biggest advantages is its ability to provide clients with a better profile of the crowd of 60,000-plus that fills the seats on game day.“This gives our fans a much better experience in procuring and using our tickets, and it gives us a much better knowledge base and data around who is using our tickets.”
“The Detroit Lions are innovators in the NFL, and their selection of Veritix proves they are leading the pack,” added Guy Villa, the vice president of sales at Veritix. “We look forward to providing them with the best ticketing, event marketing and relationship management technologies available and working as partners for years to come.”
App
Similar to other teams, the Lions’ mobile app is powered by Yinzcam and the organization’s goal is to enhance the mobile experience for the fans. With the mobile traffic and engagement continuing to skyrocket, it is essential to stay on top of it or get left behind. The Lions understand that the future and current opportunities are available through mobile so that is a huge focus going forward, making the app vital to the game day experience.
The Lions’ app, like other teams, provides content from the team such as news, stats, depth chart, social media, and schedule. It also allows for streaming of the NFL Redzone and multiple camera angle replays. However what’s unique about the Lions’ app will be the partnership with their new official app sponsor, Ford.
Ford will activate new in-stadium promotions at Ford Field through the app. Ford has a number of upcoming game day promotions and the Lions plan on driving entries through the mobile app as well as allowing fans to play along from their seat with some of the promotions happening on the field. Director of Digital Strategy & Partnerships, Kevin Currie stated “the typical stadium promotion you’ve got people on the field participating and you’ve got 65,000 people in their seat watching. We want those people to become active in these promotions.” What’s nice is that fans participating in the promotions through the app will generate points throughout the season that can go towards prizes from the Lions. Whether that is picking the winner of promotion games or making a selection from multiple choice, participation is rewarded. This is a rooting effort not only to make fans download the app, but to engage and have an interest in some of the things happening on the field and within the stadium for all the Lions’ promotions.
As these promotions evolve, the Lions’ hope they can make the mobile experience bigger and better every year. Some of the future initiatives in mind include mobile ticketing, in-stadium commerce opportunities such as mobile ordering from your seat, and weather and traffic checking coming in and out of the stadium. “We look at it from the standpoint of, what’s the real ROI for our fans that are making the trip down to Ford Field,” said Kevin Currie. “It starts from the moment they wake up in the morning with weather and traffic, then through game in-stadium promotions, to post game and maybe post game promotions.”
Stadium Advances
As mentioned before, the Lions upgraded to Verizon Wifi last season, but they are also doing some other cool things to advance the stadium experience. They are rolling out a program called “DJ of the game”. Through the Lions’ website fans can create, from a database of songs, a playlist that can be shared through their networks to vote up, and one fan will be chosen for each game to become the “DJ of the game”. They will receive two tickets with sideline passes and their playlist will be integrated within the game-day presentation. This gives the Lions the opportunity to reach the online fans that don’t get the opportunity to come to a lot of games and provide a great experience for them.
The Lions are also making dreams reality with a “premium” seating section called Dream Seats. What’s Dream Seats you might ask? Imagine a man cave, but in a stadium. This section is the first and only of it’s kind in the NFL, and will include 54 overstuffed black leather recliners embroidered with the Quicken Loans logo and large high definition LCD televisions mounted in front of them so the fans in the section can catch up on scores from other games or watch replays of the amazing action taking place inside Ford Field. An additional eight “premium” Dream Seats will be located in the first row above the player tunnel where the team enters and exits the field, offering great views of the action, and the opportunity to get very close to the Detroit Lions players.
The Dream Seats will be available to team members and business partners of the Quicken Loans family of companies, and available for all Detroit Lions home games, as well as select events taking place at Ford Field. Talk about feeling royal at the stadium!
What’s also new and upcoming at Ford Field will be a new college football bowl game. The Lions have entered into a six year partnerships with Big Ten and the ACC to hold a bowl game at Ford Field starting in 2014, becoming the second team since the Houston Texans to officially host and operate a college football bowl game. Representatives from each conference will be chosen at the conclusion of the regular season to face off at Ford Field.
“We are excited to finalize our conference partnerships for this new bowl game in Detroit,” said Detroit Lions Team President Tom Lewand. “Having representatives from two elite conferences like the ACC and Big Ten will provide fans with an exciting college football postseason matchup for years to come.”
As you can see, there are a lot of forward thinkers in the Lions organization. People like Kevin Currie are influential in the digital decision facing the team. Even people like new senior personnel executive Brian Xander are making a digital impact on the organization by improving the Lions’ scouting system. In all, the Lions have introduced a plethora of new ways to improve this year’s fan experience and the organization as a whole. Hopefully their play on the field will begin to reflect some of the exciting things they do digitally. With a hungry defense and an explosive offense, the sky is the limit for the Lions in 2013.