The PGA TOUR increased location-based app notification open rates by 71%

The company

The PGA TOUR’s mission is to showcase golf's greatest players, and to engage, inspire, and positively impact their fans, partners, and communities worldwide. Within the organization is the PGA TOUR’s digital department, which operates the app and website that helps users follow tour events happening throughout the year. Their app provides location-based experiences for fans leading up to events and during tournaments.

The challenge

Location is at the core of fan engagement for the PGA TOUR’s app. A single tour event can span 200 acres of land, so knowing where a fan is on a course allows the PGA TOUR to help guide them through vast spaces and ensure they have the information they need for an incredible experience.

As their app user base continued to grow, managing their previous geolocation product became increasingly challenging. The legacy solution lacked consistent product innovation and user-friendly design, making it difficult for the PGA TOUR team to update the geofences that powered their notifications.

Since delivering location-based push notifications to fans as they navigate a golf course was key to their success, it was essential to have a provider that could ensure accurate and fast delivery.

The PGA TOUR considered other providers but Radar stood out to the PGA TOUR for various reasons; including key integrations, advanced location analytics, and clear, easy-to-understand documentation to support rapid internal enablement.

The solution

The PGA TOUR uses the Radar SDK to power location-based push notifications triggered through geofence entries and exits on courses and in regions surrounding them. With an out-of-the-box Airship integration, Radar supports the PGA TOUR’s ability to deploy rapid notifications, which are used for:

1. Targeted ticket sales

By leveraging Radar’s Regions and DMAs (designated market areas) data, the app is able to reach fans within a local tournament’s radius to promote tournament activations through specific CTAs (calls to action) in the app.

2. Location-based push notifications

Fans in regions surrounding courses receive contextually relevant notifications leading up to and after events, including messages for upgraded experiences and questionnaires to collect both qualitative and quantitative feedback.

3. Curated on-site experiences

When fans arrive at a tournament, they receive push notifications through the app for specific areas, like hospitality tents or food stands, triggered by precise geofence entries. Additionally, Radar surfaces an event guide to users depending on the course they’re exploring.

The results

In 16 days the PGA TOUR completed development of the Radar SDK, while implementing 18,000 geofences across courses, tournaments, DMAs, retail stores, and more points of interest.

Since working with Radar, the PGA TOUR has been able to meet their fans with tailored messaging at the right place, and right time. By sending geo-targeted notifications, Radar has helped the PGA TOUR achieve a 71% increase to location-based app notification open rates, and an 8% open rate for ticket upgrade notifications.

Looking ahead

The PGA TOUR is looking to further improve on-site experiences with enhanced personalization for every fan. From notifications about your favorite player’s location to event-specific information, Radar’s capabilities help achieve their vision for the future.