CASE STUDY
In the spring of 2020 , as COVID-19 spread across the world , live entertainment and spectator sports were brought to a screeching halt . With stadiums shuttered , sports teams had to find new ways to engage with fans .
Thankfully AEG Sports , which includes storied franchises like the LA Kings , LA Galaxy and Ontario Reign , was already an analytically savvy organization adept at using data to make informed business decisions . Using AI-powered SAS Viya on Microsoft Azure , AEG Sports was able to anticipate the needs of its fans and keep engagement high even amid a pandemic .
“ Times are unpredictable – but with SAS and Microsoft , we have two key partners that we feel confident can help us adapt and thrive under any circumstances ,” said Aaron LeValley , Senior Vice President of Business Operations and Strategy at AEG Sports . “ We might not know what ’ s going to happen , but we know SAS and Microsoft have our goals in mind and will enable us to respond to any challenge we may face .”
“ Customers like AEG benefit from the strategic partnership between SAS and Microsoft because they can seamlessly move workloads to the cloud and discover new efficiencies and real-time answers ,” said Rodrigo Rocha , General Manager Cloud Solutions and ISV Alliances at Microsoft . “ Now more than ever , Digital Transformation is critical as organizations learn to adapt to new customer behaviors . SAS Viya on Azure helps make that transformation easier and faster , providing much-needed , immediate actionable insights .”
Analyzing fan sentiment
Using analytics to understand fan sentiment has been crucial . Using SAS Viya , the AEG Sports ' analytics team created models to gauge fan perspectives toward such things as returning to in-person games . By continuously analyzing fan sentiment during the pandemic , AEG Sports has been able to personalise messages based on interest and feelings on personal safety , and identify which fans needed targeted retention efforts . Using these tactics AEG Sports has kept fans happy and boosted the ROI of marketing campaigns .
“ A lot of our fan communication during the COVID-19 pandemic has been fairly casual , often through surveys , which we use to gather and analyze their
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