This article was based on the interview with Infobip’s Ben Lewis on building deeper relationships with sports fans by Greg Kihlström, AI and MarTech keynote speaker for The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlström podcast. Listen to the original episode here:
In the modern coliseum of consumer attention, sports franchises are no longer just competing with their on-field rivals; they are vying for mindshare against every streaming service, social media feed, and mobile game. The battle for a fan’s loyalty isn’t won or lost in 90 minutes or four quarters. It’s a year-round campaign fought in the quiet moments between games, in the off-season, and on the multitude of digital channels where fans live their lives. The core challenge, which should sound familiar to any CMO or enterprise marketing leader, is shifting the relationship from a series of transactions—a ticket sold, a jersey purchased—to a continuous, value-driven conversation. It’s about earning the right to be a part of a fan’s daily life, not just their game day ritual.
This is where the intersection of strategy and technology becomes the most interesting part of the field. How do you create an experience that feels personal and seamless when the data is scattered across ticketing, merchandise, and in-stadium operations? How do you leverage technologies like AI not as a gimmick, but as a genuine tool for authentic connection? In a recent conversation, Ben Lewis, VP of Marketing and Growth at Infobip, shared his perspective on how sports organizations are navigating this complex landscape. His insights reveal a playbook that extends far beyond sports, offering a masterclass in building durable customer relationships in an era of infinite choice.
The Real Goal: From Transaction to Tribe
The first mistake many organizations make is assuming the primary objective of every interaction is a sale. While revenue is the lifeblood of any business, focusing solely on monetization is a short-sighted strategy. True brand equity and long-term value are built on a foundation of genuine connection and a sense of belonging. Sports teams, particularly those working to build their fanbase, understand this intuitively. They are not just selling a product; they are cultivating a community. Lewis notes that research and direct feedback show that what fans truly crave is not another discount code, but a deeper look behind the curtain.
“Fans want to have continued relationships in the off season, even between a match or race to race. And they want to have that sort of a feeling connected to the teams. They want to feel part of that, as opposed to the team always looking to try and sell something. They actually wanted to receive that information, you know, what’s next up, how can they sort of get the sneak preview or sneak glimpses in the paddock, or in other places within the team.”
This is a critical mindset shift for any marketing leader. Our customers, much like sports fans, don’t want to be treated like an open wallet. They want to feel seen, understood, and valued beyond their purchasing power. The challenge is to reorient our communication strategy around providing this intrinsic value. Are we offering exclusive content? Behind-the-scenes access? Proactive information that makes their lives easier or more interesting? When the focus shifts from “What can we sell them?” to “How can we make them feel like an insider?”, the dynamic of the relationship changes fundamentally. The eventual sale becomes a natural byproduct of this cultivated loyalty, rather than a forced objective.
Breaking Down the Silos: The Un-Glamorous Work of Unity
Of course, delivering this kind of seamless, insider experience is easier said than done. The most common and formidable obstacle is one that plagues nearly every enterprise organization: internal silos. Ticketing has its database, marketing has its CRM, the e-commerce store has its platform, and customer support has its own system. From the fan’s perspective, they are interacting with a single brand, yet their journey is often fragmented and disjointed. This operational reality makes true personalization impossible. A fan who just had a negative experience with a merchandise order shouldn’t receive a cheerful email blast prompting them to buy more gear. It’s not just bad timing; it’s a sign that the brand doesn’t know its own customer.
Lewis emphasizes that the foundational step to solving this is unifying data into a single, coherent view of the fan. This isn’t about chasing the shiniest new technology; it’s about the essential, un-glamorous work of data integration. Without a unified platform, even the most sophisticated AI or personalization engine is running on incomplete fuel.
“Data is key… the stronger the data, the more personalization of the messaging and the tone can actually be to the fan. So it’s about unifying into a single platform which allows you to be able to take that sort of insights that come through, be able to personalize messaging and tone of voice to that person.”
For marketing leaders, this is a call to action. We must become champions for breaking down these internal walls. This often means extending our influence beyond the traditional marketing domain to collaborate with IT, sales, and customer service. The goal is to build a technological and operational infrastructure that reflects the customer’s reality—a single, unified journey. It requires starting small, proving the value with a single integrated use case, and gradually migrating systems over. The effort is substantial, but the payoff is the ability to communicate with customers with the empathy and context that builds lasting trust.
The Value Exchange: Earning the Right to the Data
In a world increasingly conscious of data privacy, asking a customer for their information is no small request. To build the rich, first-party data profiles necessary for deep personalization, brands must offer a clear and compelling value exchange. This is Marketing 101, but where many fall short is in their follow-through. The initial offer—a contest entry, a discount, access to exclusive content—is just the beginning of the negotiation. The real test is whether the brand continues to provide value after the data has been collected.
Lewis frames this not as a one-time transaction, but as an ongoing commitment. A fan or customer parts with their information with an expectation of continued benefit. If that expectation is met with a barrage of generic sales messages, the trust is broken, and the “unsubscribe” button is never far away. The key is to leverage the data provided to deliver on the promise of a better, more personalized experience.
“…once you’ve parted with your information, then it’s up to the team and the organization to actually provide you with the value, the continuous value to actually show, ‘Okay, I’ve given my information over. Yes, I’m participating in a competition, but actually, there’s a continuous value which the team is providing me in order for me to keep my data and dataset there.’ And in order for that to happen, it comes down to personalization.”
This concept of “continuous value” should be a guiding principle for every marketer. We must prove, with every interaction, that we have earned the right to our customers’ data and their attention. This means honoring preferences, understanding context, and delivering information that is relevant and timely. It’s the difference between a brand that shouts at its audience and one that whispers valuable insights. This ongoing demonstration of respect and relevance is what transforms a fragile data point into a resilient customer relationship.
Engineering the Future of Fandom
The playbook being written by forward-thinking sports franchises offers a clear blueprint for any brand seeking to thrive in a competitive landscape. The core principles are universal: shift the objective from short-term transactions to long-term community building, dismantle the internal silos that create a fractured customer experience, and treat customer data not as an asset to be exploited but as a trust to be continuously earned. Technology, from unified communication platforms to sophisticated AI, serves as the critical enabler of this strategy, allowing brands to deliver personalization at a scale that was once unimaginable.
As we look to the future, the trends point toward an even more proactive and hyper-personalized approach. Imagine a world where your favorite team or brand doesn’t just respond to your queries but anticipates your needs, delivering information and experiences before you even ask. This is the promise of AI when it’s built on a solid foundation of unified data and a customer-first ethos. For marketing leaders, the mandate is clear. The game has changed. Success is no longer measured solely by the numbers on the scoreboard or the sales chart, but by the depth and durability of the relationships we build, one personalized, value-driven interaction at a time.
