Houston Astros
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Challenge
The Houston Astros set out to strengthen their connection and re-engage fans who have only purchased tickets once, by offering a new way to buy tickets and experience baseball. The goal of the pilot was to introduce a novel way for fans to reconnect with the team: Rather than simply sending generic email campaigns and promotions, the new strategy aimed to engage with fans directly, discover their preferences, and uncover insights about the desired price points that would encourage them to return to the stadium.
Solution
As part of the pilot program, TicketRev introduced a new ticket-buying process enhancement that was A/B tested with a group of Houston Astros fans who have purchased tickets to only one game in the past year. To entice fans to purchase tickets for the three remaining games in the 2023 regular season, the Astros implemented a “Pitch Your Price” program built by TicketRev, in which fans could propose, or “pitch” a price for their desired stadium seats instead of paying the advertised ticket price.
Fans easily participated in the “Pitch Your Price” program through four straightforward steps:
- Select the game(s) they wish to attend
- Choose their preferred seating location(s)
- Propose their desired ticket price
- Obtain their tickets once their proposal is accepted
This improved ticketing experience is characterized by its simplicity, convenience, and an important benefit: fans pay the exact price they pitch, without any additional charges.
Results
To conduct the A/B test, the Houston Astros sent two email campaigns to a group of fans who had only purchased tickets to one game in the past year. One half of the list received a standard sales email prompting them to purchase tickets for the last three games of the regular 2023 season, and the other half received an email prompting them to use the TicketRev solution, with email copy promoting the benefits of the “Pitch Your Price” program.
As a result, the TicketRev email sold over 4 times more tickets (4.6x more) and garnered over 3 times the ticket revenue (3.3x more, in dollars) compared to the standard ticketing email.
The pilot unearthed valuable insights into what their fans truly value and prioritize, which form the basis for informed decisions on how to enhance upcoming fan experiences.