Every brand wants to turn their customers into diehard fans, but that mission is literal in the world of sports. Sports marketers today are navigating a seismic shift in how fans engage—with content, with players, and with each other.
Fans are fragmented across channels, so they expect personalized, always-on experiences:
- 84% of U.S. viewers watch the Big Four (MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL) and 69% engage with content around a game, including pre- and post-game shows, social media, and game highlights.
- 60% of fans are willing to spend more on experiences with their favorite teams and athletes.
- Younger fans follow an average of 6.3 sports, so they’re not as loyal to a single team or league.
In this environment, high-funnel, seasonal campaigns alone can’t sustain engagement or build long-term loyalty. Sports marketers must be even more agile to respond to fan behavior in the moment.
And they can’t do that if they’re burdened by tech bottlenecks.
Batter Up: Breaking Free From the Campaign Calendar
Traditional lifecycle programs are hard to scale and slow to evolve. Marketers waste hours setting up static campaigns instead of crafting dynamic experiences. The real challenge is figuring out how to activate rich fan data in real-time.
The AI boom, interactive data, and modern infrastructure have all opened the door to individualized fan journeys that deepen loyalty and drive revenue across:
- First-time ticket purchases
- Repeat attendance and retention
- Ancillary spend (merch, subscriptions, upgrades)
To understand how leading teams are putting these applications into action, in this post we reveal how two sports organizations—the NHL and PGA of America—are engaging fans in unique ways.
All of these organizations dove deep into their winning strategies at Iterable’s Activate Summit, so make sure to access our on-demand recordings for even more insightful discussion.
NHL: Driving Viewership With Personalized Game Content
Aileen Barren, VP of Fan Engagement and Data Strategy at NHL, explained at Iterable Activate Summit this year that the hockey league had previously struggled to understand how to transform casual viewers into avid fans.
The league partnered with Iterable to educate fans on where to stream games, motivate them to download the NHL app, and get them to fill arenas. One key data point they discovered was that the NHL’s average fan who was opening their emails was 47-years-old. To engage younger fans, the league would need to diversify their marketing channel mix.
“We’re just dabbling in SMS. We’re heavy on email and paid media, but trying to figure out new content for younger fans who are following creators and players on social more than our traditional channels.” ~ Aileen Barren, VP of Fan Engagement and Data Strategy at NHL
One way they’re ditching the traditional campaign calendar and delivering real-time experiences is by using Iterable and Movable Ink to send emails that are not only personalized by geo and team, but also are updated dynamically throughout each game.
“We do a game-day email, so if your team is playing that day, you’ll receive it three hours before the puck drop. Then it changes during the game to show scores, and at the end, you get recaps and videos.” ~ Aileen Barren, VP of Fan Engagement and Data Strategy at NHL
These game-day emails have resulted in a 3x increase in open rates. Because of their dynamic design, this allows a single marketer to build over 30 different content versions in a fraction of the time.
Now, the NHL can keep their fans updated by the minute—without its marketers wasting hundreds of hours on manual effort.
PGA of America: Speaking to Golfers Like Individuals, Not Segments
Joining Aileen in that Activate session on winning sports marketing strategies was Fahad Zahid, Head of Brand & Digital Marketing at PGA of America. His team’s objective is to grow the game of golf by meeting fans where they are—on their terms.
This means a less-is-more strategy, where the association sends fewer messages with higher relevance. Communications are tailored to intent and use channel-specific language depending on persona, whether the golfer is competitive, casual, or wellness-driven.
“If you’re a diehard golfer, you’re going to receive very different messaging than someone who’s a casual fan. We speak to them individually, not like mass marketing […] and that’s worked really well.” ~ Fahad Zahid, Head of Brand & Digital Marketing at PGA of America
Delivering meaningfully distinct messages also means investing in alternate digital viewing formats like AllCast to replicate the fan experience virtually. Zahid explained that while not many people will get to go to the Ryder Cup, for example, PGA of America wants fans to experience the event as if they’re there.
By fostering 1:1 relationships with golfers, rather than bucket them into generic segments, PGA of America has experience a 84% boost in engagement and doubled its unique impressions.
From a strategic marketing standpoint, that’s a hole in one.
The Tech Behind the Transformation
Modern fan engagement demands flexible infrastructure. These sports organizations succeeded because they adopted:
- Unified data lakes and warehouses, like Snowflake
- Creative optimization via dynamic content providers, like Movable Ink
- Real-time customer data activation through Iterable
- Self-serve journey orchestration, built by marketers themselves, not their engineering teams
Iterable’s world-class ecosystem includes 100+ technology partners that support marketers in unlocking growth, engaging customers, and delivering always-on experiences—even in the off-season.
“If you have the right architecture, Iterable allows us to segment and trigger messages effectively.” ~ Fahad Zahid, Head of Brand & Digital Marketing at PGA of America
The Future of Sports Marketing Is Already Here
Fans are evolving—and the most successful sports brands are evolving with them. Whether you’re growing a fan base, boosting lifetime value, or expanding global reach, real-time personalization is the new playbook.
Iterable helps sports brands like the NHL and PGA break data silos, act on fan signals, and scale personalization—without engineering overhead. Access our archive of on-demand Activate sessions or connect with our team of experts to learn how to build real-time engagement that scores.
Want a marketing strategy that’s a slam dunk? Request a demo of Iterable’s AI-powered customer engagement platform today.
