The 'Free Agent Fan' Strategy That Doubled the Nets' Fan Base with Darolyn Pierce

What happens when you stop benchmarking yourself against other teams and start borrowing ideas from Apple, Google, and Netflix instead?Darolyn Pierce leads three distinct functions at Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment (consumer research, advanced analytics, and sales enablement) – with her team shifting in real time between Liberty ticket performance, renewal risk, NPS feedback, arena experience, Nets fan segmentation, and next-season planning. In this conversation, she explains how that constant overlap shapes decision-making, why her team is trying to push beyond what other clubs are already doing, and how she earned the trust to move analytics from a 3 department support function into a company-wide operating capability.In this episode, you’ll hear:How the Nets doubled their fan base and generated millions by identifying untapped "free agent" fansWhy Darolyn gives every member of her team dedicated time each quarter to build passion projectsHow a 12-person team is borrowing the personalization strategies of Apple, Google, and Netflix to reshape the fan experienceWhat Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment learned launching 47 AI initiatives across 10 business functionsHow an internal AI lab uses employee competition, hands-on experimentation, and financial incentivesResources and Links:Connect with Darolyn Pierce on LinkedIn.Learn more about Next League on our website and LinkedIn. We are leading sports organizations into the digital future.Dave’s book is available now! Get your copy of The Business of Sports Technology: How To Make Smart Decisions That Drive Your Organization Forward.