Aug 04, 2009 at 06:46 PM
written by Russell Scibetti
Who Buys Luxury Suites?
I recently had the chance to sit it in on a panel discussing database marketing and demographic profiling in relation to premium sales. Ron Contorno, who is the President of Full House Entertainment Database Marketing, talked about some of the things he’s learned through research and analysis that indicate how to best target premium sales prospects. One piece of research he referenced was an article entitled "Who Buys Luxury Suites?" that was prepared by a partnership between the Association of Luxury Suite Directors, Full House Entertainment Database Marketing, Ohio University Center for Sports Administration, and Turnkey Sports and Entertainment.
I’d also like to share some of his insights below:
Of all suite owners, almost 40% come from just 10 specific industry types and 50% come from just 20 industry types (industry type is defined by a specific SIC/industry code). The top two types were banks/bank holding companies and attorneys/legal services. Other members of the top ten were media (often through trade deals), insurance, finance, contractors, management consulting, accounting, real estate, and telecommunications. (Note: this information comes from a joint study between ALSD, Ohio University, Turnkey and Full House provided above, which was completed in 2007).
While things have definitely shifted a bit since 2007, there are still several counter-cyclical and “recession-proof” industries that are valuable targets. Some examples of these segments are collection agencies, credit counseling, education providers, discount chains, fast food, auto repair, alcohol distributors, attorneys, home repair and apartment-related companies.
There are also premium targets on the consumer side that can be easily identified. Some examples of these consumer targets include airplane owners, luxury car owners, certain publication subscribers (WSJ, Fortune, Financial Times and Golf Digest to name a few), high income/net worth consumers (both local and recent movers to the area) and consumers with a high discretionary spending index. All of this consumer data can be easily obtainable to match against your existing customer database or as new target lists.
Hopefully this information helps share the power that data can provide. By focusing your efforts based on the right SIC codes, industry segments and consumer demographics, you can generate more effective premium sales campaigns for your organization.
Russell Scibetti is the Founder of TheBusinessOfSports.com, an industry blog that features news, opinions and best practices on the business side of sports. He is a graduate of the Arizona State University Sports Business MBA program and currently works as a CRM and database marketing manager for a professional sports franchise.
