Picture this: Thousands of fans are gathered to watch the world’s single largest sporting event. Each one of those fans has an identity, and a story.
Some may be students, watching from the common room. Some are volunteer first responders or military serving their country. Others are seniors with decades of celebrations and heartbreaks watching their team on the world stage once more.
Each fan brings their story, values, and reasons for caring. When brands recognize their audiences for who they are in moments that matter most, they earn something golden: lifetime customer loyalty.
This year’s fans are already engaged, with 46% of military members more likely to stream the tournament, 21% of educators likely to watch it live on television, and 18-24 year olds—the sports most engaged group—most likely to pay for a premium ticket.
In the noise of the world’s most-watched match, generic ads are invisible. Brands that fail to connect personally will lose the match before the first goal.
Let’s explore how exclusive audience offers can help your team close the gap between what consumers want and what you deliver, and how verified offers are the ticket to earning trust and loyalty.
The Expectation Gap: What Fans Want Vs. What Brands Deliver
If football’s number one rule is no hands, then a marketer’s number one rule is this: Know your audience really, really well.
Far too many brands overlook this simple premise. They lead with their story, their goals, and their special features. They make messaging about themselves, rather than the people that they want to engage with.
Brands mean well, but miss the wide open net. Meanwhile, generic offers fly by prospective fans. The simple truth is that consumers aren’t listening to your brand unless it has to do with them. Their ears perk up when it does.
It’s time to close this gap and give fans what they need, which is to feel seen.
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Fan’s Wish List: 1 |
Brand Reality: 0 |
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“You get me” moments |
“This deal is for everyone.” |
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Timely, relevant experiences |
Time agnostic generic launches |
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Easy on-brand verification |
Clunky, off-site journeys |
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Purpose-driven perks |
Flat promos with no meaning |
How Leading Brands Are Scoring Big
When brands make their audience feel seen in a crowd, individuals in that crowd listen. A survey found that brands see a 306% increase in CLV from emotionally connected customers.
Instead of offering generic discounts, these brands craft offers that are relevant and feel personal. They have messaging that’s meaningful, and that may even tap into the universal layers of truth and emotion that are buried within each person’s story—whether they’re a student, a senior, a healthcare worker, or military member. Here are some examples:
The Winning Plays:
- Timed Offers: A match-day-only student offer that activates during the knock out stages, driving urgency and social buzz across campuses.
- Local Rewards: Military members near host cities who claim an offer unlock rewards to restaurants and retail experiences, amplifying civic pride and foot traffic.
- Insider Access: Young adults get pre-sale, or behind-the-scenes swag when they verify their eligibility and claim an offer, boosting their likeability for your brand.
- Doing Good: An offer for healthcare workers that donates to a relevant cause for every redemption, benefiting their hardworking community.
While every brand will have ideas that fit with their products and services, the goal is the same: personalized offers that are intentional and hold meaning is what makes your brand unforgettable. With 5B+ fans expected to engage with the world’s biggest game, there’s no time to waste.
The Goal That Keeps On Giving
When campaigns feel highly relevant and personal, the numbers tell the story. Brands using exclusive offers report:
But fans in the crowd tell the story, too. More than 90% of students, seniors, educators, military members would share an offer with those who they know would benefit. And all marketers know how powerful word-of-mouth is.
Once a group’s eligibility is verified in real-time, brands have an invaluable resource in their pockets: permissioned, privacy-safe consumer data. SheerID’s Audience Data Platform (ADP) makes this effortless by integrating directly into your interface, to keep the consumer experience seamless, on-brand, and in your voice.
With this data, your marketing team can get deep insights into what matters most to your high-impact audiences. These insights fuel future engagement and a nurture strategy that leads customers back to your brand, driving long-term loyalty.
Permissioned data is the golden goose of exclusive offers. Or, in this case, the golden trophy. Consider it a well-earned reward for giving audiences what they really, really, want: to be seen in the crowd.
Ready to turn recognition into results? Learn how.