Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a rich and unique environment that offers a variety of ways to engage with fans through multi-sensory touch-points. Sponsorship brand activations play a pivotal role in shaping the overall fan experience and impacting moments to connect with people. To build these connections successfully, you need to build brand engagement. You need to give consumers a reason to want to take time out of their busy days to engage with your brand. To define and discover the value Mercedes-Benz Stadium Fans and Guests are seeking, it is important to define and deliver the value and motivation that will jump start the brand activation. The Value opportunities and motivations can be discovered through a range of inputs:
Overview
Connections
WHY does it matter to our fans? Emotional connections are rooted in motivations, habits, and feelings. They are people-centric, not brand-centric. They are about discovering ways that our initiatives, propositions, sports marketing brands can connect with our audiences life. We must find truly insightful ways to connect Atlanta fans to what they are thinking and feeling.
Context
WHERE are we communicating with our fans? From the moment they arrive to when the experience concludes, the context is about understanding where people are and when they are open to communication, so we know where we can connect with them. We use research, communication tools, and user-experience resources to identify the places and spaces in which our target audience will be most likely to engage with the experience.
Catalysts
HOW are we driving the behavior of our fans? Catalysts are the visuals, communications, technology, and tools we create to actually persuade people. They are the tactics we use to accelerate the experience in intuitive, engaging, and memorable ways.
Event Types
The ability to leverage and shape the environment to better suit the experience will be a game changer. Mercedes-Benz Stadium is designed with functionality and flexibility in mind. The seating capacity can be expanded to up to 75,000 to play host to a potential future Super Bowl or FIFA World Cup, or to up to 83,000 for other events such as the NCAA Final Four. Alternatively, by utilizing an innovative mechanized curtaining system for the stadium’s mid and upper bowls, capacity for events like family shows, concerts and Atlanta United (MLS) games can be reduced to optimize the appropriate event setting. Mercedes-Benz Stadium will host more than 100 experiences a year, including:
- Atlanta Falcons 10 Home Games scheduled for 2017
- Atlanta United 17 Home Games Scheduled for 2018
- Family Shows/Spectaculars Monster Jam, WWE
- Collegiate Tournaments
- Concerts
- Guided Tours
Distinct Differences
When considering the brand activation, recognize the changing environments, moods, and energy levels in Mercedes-Benz Stadium that correspond with the wide variety of event types. A good example exists in the variety of game day time line scenarios. The average Atlanta Falcons Experience last 5 hours when including the pre-game tailgating activities with multiple flow scenarios and concession surges throughout the game. An Atlanta United Game experience averages about 3 hours with less breaks in play. The Concert/Spectacular scenario can widely vary but ussually averages 2 hours per event with less pre and post activity.
Engagement Opportunities
Brand activations need to take into account a variety of users in these environments. Activation Designs don’t have to be generic or all-encompassing, but shouldn’t isolate or exclude any audience. When discovering the possibilities that surround partnership activations, think about the fan journey and how that relates before, during, and after the variety of events.
Pre-Event
First impressions mean everything. Consider that first moment of arrival. Examine the opportunities that can provide a more enjoyable Fan Journey. For example, over one-fourth of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium audiences will be arriving by MARTA. Are there opportunities to provide value around the Tailgate experience and pre-game events?
Half Time/Intermission
Different sports fans have distinctive fan flow and surge aspects during game time. Consider the average NFL game day event lasting 5 hours versus the average MLS game day experience lasting 3 hours. The intervals and concession traffic will vary depending on the sport. Concert and family events will provide a much shorter time-frame for engaging the fan audience.
Post Event
Special connections are fostered when the event ends on a positive feeling, which ultimately brings the fan audience back for more. Mercedes-Benz Stadium wants their fan audience to leave with special memories that reflect on experiences they can’t get at home. Attending an event in the stadium environment is not simply the act of watching — It’s watching with a group of others. It’s a shared experience that builds energy from the crowd. It’s that feeling of connection to the team, the players and entertainers.
Atlanta Falcons Fans
Since celebrating 50 years in the NFL, the Atlanta Falcons fan base continues to RISE UP. Loyal Falcons fans reflect the spirit and culture of Atlanta and it’s surrounding communities with great sporting tradition.
Atlanta continues to be the largest city in the state of Georgia and ranks as the 40th-largest in the United States. And although the city of Atlanta has recently become more diverse, the core demographic of the Atlanta Falcons fan base primarily consists of African American and Caucasian audiences of all ages.
As our diverse fan base continues to grow, we will remain dedicated to our surrounding communities through the Falcon’s values and vision.
Community will always play a major role with the Atlanta Falcons as it becomes a part of the elevating spirit present in our people, our fans, and our team.
Fans at a Glimpse
Note: data as of 11/12/15 and includes the 2,434 applicants invited to join council; “African American” and “Caucasian” ethnicities do not include Hispanics.
Note: data as of 11/12/15; includes the 2,434 applicants invited to join council; does not include 237 “Prefer not to answer” responses.
Game Day at a Glimpse
Atlanta United Fans
When the Atlanta United unifies our audiences with memorable experiences, our fans will want to shout about it from the mountain top — or the hottest social platform.
The United fan base epitomizes the millennial male — and the millennial sports fan does have different motivations for engaging with brands. They want to interact, they want to share, they want to express their opinions, and they want to “belong.” Through this engagement their loyalty grows as a result.
These are rich insights for brand activations looking to take the effectiveness of sponsorship to the next level in the age of the social sports fan.
Fans at a Glimpse
Event Fans
The Mercedes-Benz Stadium’s goal is to tap into our audience’s deepest feelings. Moving them to dream bigger, inspiring them to do more, give more, and be more. Connecting with the fan in a real, compelling, and relevant way.
When considering the Mercedes-Benz Stadium event experience, take into account the wide spectrum of audiences. The Stadium’s mixed-use capability will also include family shows and spectaculars, as well as community, hospitality, and other special events.
As the Mercedes-Benz Stadium sets the spotlight on Atlanta, it sets the stage as an ICONIC fan destination to the world, and the anchor to revitalize the surrounding communities.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Connecting Through Technology
Digital experiences are not mandatory at every touch-point, but when technology is used throughout the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the challenge is to bring the experience and each focused brand to life through innovation and connectivity. By providing engaging content, we stay connected with the Mercedes-Benz audience, in an effort to fulfill their entertainment experience. Staying connected ultimately allows the ability to interact with the fan base and community by sharing heritage, history, and knowledge through videos, motion graphics, and interactive experiences.
Think creatively. The first challenge of any tech execution is to avoid becoming wallpaper. Break free from convention and get noticed. Ask why this technology is the best delivery. Does the story help navigate, educate, or inspire? What’s the heart of the story? Does the technology provide a unique delivery, or creatively present a compelling way to dramatize a proposition? Above all else, be memorable. Memorable experiences get people thinking and talking and coming back for more. Find a way to get inside heads. Educate, amaze, generate smiles, and provoke emotion.
Consider that technology is the delivery tool. It takes good creative and strategic principles to make it stand the test of an ever-changing digital landscape. Don’t over complicate the experience. Focus on creating moments of pleasure. Keep them simple and easy to consume and remember. The simpler it is, the easier it will be for fans to engage and remember the experience. A question to keep in mind: Does the technology embrace the Mercedes-Benz Stadium principles listed below?
- Enhance the Fan Experience at the stadium
- Provide ubiquitous connectivity
- Personalize the fan experience
- Build a system for the future
- Embrace new technologies and eschew old
- Converge systems – don’t duplicate functionality
- Provide an environment which is safe and secure
- Build an environment which can be maintained, managed, and operated in the long run
Upper Gallery: Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be home to a first-of-its-kind halo video board.
Above: The stadium will feature a multi-story, digital “mega column.”
Iconic Technologies
Mercedes-Benz Stadium will include technology to allow fans to completely immerse themselves in a multitude of live events. A highly adaptable 360-degree wraparound video screen — the largest screen in the NFL — and more than 2,000 displays throughout the building mean that spectators never miss a minute of the action. A high-density (HD) Wi-Fi network will let fans text, post to social media and watch replays on their mobile devices. By interacting with and engaging fans as individuals, Mercedes-Benz Stadium has the opportunity to create a truly immersive, one-of-a-kind stadium experience.
The stadium anticipates gaining a significant increase in operational efficiency by leveraging technology and using interconnected, centrally managed traffic, gate, security and concession management systems.
A PON replaces copper wiring with fiber optics, providing nearly unlimited bandwidth. It also reduces the number of intermediate distribution frame (IDF) cable rooms by 33 percent, freeing roughly 4,000 square feet of space and providing power and cooling savings, reducing the stadium’s environmental footprint.
Please see Stadium Infrastructure Guidelines for additional information regarding the stadium’s IT Framework.