Score more points with your fans using Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One

The energy, excitement, and atmosphere of a live event is unlike any other. Discover ways to use frictionless technology in arenas and stadiums to elevate the fan experience.

Imagine you’re at a show or sports game surrounded by friends and family. You all want to cheer for your favorite team or artist. Others tag along to enjoy a day out. Although people attend events for different reasons, everyone wants to spend more time having fun and less time waiting in lines.

Today’s fans expect convenient amenities that allow them to enjoy the game or show that they’ve come to see. Sports and entertainment leaders are trying to get more fans off the couch and into stadiums by transforming operations and embracing new technologies. According to the Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD) and Info-Tech Research Group, 72 percent of leaders are planning on investing in new technology in the next 18 months, and 75 percent are prioritizing checkout-free experiences. But how can leaders boost the return on their investments and drive fan engagement?

Here are three ways to elevate the fan experience, reduce wait lines, and improve operations by using Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One.

1. Welcome fans with a frictionless, personalized experience.

First, we’ll cover how arena and stadium leaders can greet their fans with an effortless, memorable experience without disrupting the stadium atmosphere.

The fan’s in-person engagement begins with ticketing and entry. Amazon One is a palm recognition service that empowers businesses to deliver a seamless, more personalized experience to their consumers. In arenas and stadiums, Amazon One can be used as a contactless way for fans to enter the event, access VIP benefits and discounts, and pay for concessions using their palm.

Fans new to Amazon One can sign up at an enrollment kiosk before entering. Once signed up, fans hover their palm over an Amazon One device to quickly enter the event—and future events—without showing a mobile ID or ticket.

Businesses can also use Amazon One to engage fans with rewards and incentives. Visitors to Amazon One enabled stadiums can link their memberships to their Amazon One ID to earn rewards and access other loyalty perks, like VIP suites, discounts, and private amenities. By streamlining fan access, leaders gain a holistic view of stadium touch points, discover new ways to connect with fans across channels, and deliver more engaging loyalty programs.

2. Shorten concession lines and increase store throughput.

Next, we’ll see how retail leaders are making it easier for fans to get food, beverages, and mementos during live events.

Arenas and stadiums foster a unique environment where concession shopping takes a leading role. Shoppers expect it all—convenience, selection, and speed. Though concessionaires can improve the quality and assortment of items available in stores, wait times can still be demanding. Long checkout lines, congested concourses, and payment holdups consistently rank as major pain points. Plus, they bog down retail operations.

Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One equip arena and stadium retailers with a convenient checkout-free shopping experience by giving fans the option to come in, grab what they want, and get back to their seats in a flash. Fans enter Just Walk Out technology–powered stores at the gates by inserting their credit card, scanning a QR code on an app, or hovering their palm over an Amazon One device. In the store, the technology recognizes what shoppers select and adds those items to their virtual cart. Anything returned to the shelf is automatically removed from the virtual cart. Fans simply choose what they want, and their credit card is charged after they leave the store.

According to Malcolm Rogel, vice president of fan experience with the Seattle Mariners, cutting out the checkout not only streamlines the fan experience but can also increase store performance. “Our store at T-Mobile Park, powered by Just Walk Out technology, delivers three-to-four times more transactions compared to non-enabled stores,” says Rogel. “With Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One, we deliver an improved store experience while serving more fans quickly and easily.”

The Walk-Off Market at T-Mobile Park

3. Efficiently scale to address location and business needs.

Finally, we’ll discuss how leaders can confirm that their technological investments are boosting operational agility, meeting requirements, and delivering long-term business value.

With new technologies come new opportunities to make the stadium experience more convenient, personalized, and engaging for fans. Amazon invented, tested, and refined Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One within its own stores—including Amazon Go and select Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market locations—before offering them in other environments.

Stadium and arena leaders can use the years of innovation and expertise from Amazon to advance their digital agenda at scale. And thanks to the flexibility of Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One, retailers can dial in integration options based on their vision for the complete fan journey. Businesses can embed this technology in new store designs and current locations or use prefabricated models with a defined footprint and equipment layout.

Just Walk Out Analytics also allow leaders to dig deeper into the ways that consumers find, pick up, and purchase products in enabled stores. This helps to reveal a product’s performance across stores and at the shelf. From there, retailers can create more productive layouts, refine inventory levels, and make smarter space decisions. Plus, the technology is designed to simplify the process of moving and changing product selection and availability between events. By equipping fans with the selection and convenient, automated experiences that they expect, stadium staff can spend less time on operational tasks and focus on value-add activities that strengthen fan engagement.

The excitement of a live event isn’t only about the show or game. It’s about designing a stadium experience that puts fans at the center. Stadiums that do it well are set to win fan loyalty, become the heart of their city, and gain a competitive edge.

Interested in bringing Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One to your arena or stadium? Contact us to learn how.