Teams are constantly on the lookout for added value that their fans really crave. Yes we love swag; bobbleheads and water bottles, tshirts and towels, and the quest for added enhancements has led to all kinds of improvements in stadium food as well, but how about an enhancement that goes way beyond the traditional.
Sunday we found it at Met Life Stadium, a new partnership between the New York Jets and IdentoGO for TSA PRECHECK, the fast-growing universal enrollment process that has made travel easier for millions of travelers in and across the US. Now getting the forms for TSA PRE has always been easy; finding the time to go to a facility, get an appointment and enroll has not been. It is a nice addition, but certainly not essential; that is of course until you get stuck at a long line traveling and see others whisk by.
The partnership between such a service and pro sports teams is not that new: CLEAR, a similar service has worked with some MLB teams this year and has even had its own CLEAR lines at ballparks like Yankee Stadium and CitiField, but the signup has not been as easy to find as it now is at Met Life Stadium, with a van sitting right in the fan zone for anyone to come over and sign up. You pay the usual fees, and if you happen to have a birth certificate it is even a little cheaper, but the whole process took less than 10 minutes, less time than some fans took sampling the Jets improved VR experience, and is good for five years.
Also since it is a new sponsorship the word had not gotten out yet; frankly even without a ticket to the game paying the parking fee to get it done is even an option for those in and around the stadium. However once the word gets out in the coming weeks for Gang Green, the TSA PRE stop may be the one must do for fans who would never have thought about an added value of that kind found in a stadium parking lot.
For a company like TSA PRE the partnership makes great sense: NFL games are massive day long events, with thousands of early arrivals staggered throughout the lead up to kickoff. Other sports are smart sure, and CLEAR has taken advantage of some, but football as a destination for a mobile unit makes great sense, and perhaps there and no fans that are more road friendly than NFL fans. Now is it a one and done for fans? Sure (although you could see the TSA PRE folks are interested in repeat visits by offering some swag and referral opportunities), but as an added value, especially for people with busy schedules, the TSA PRE Jets partnership was a great and unexpected one; and one that will surely fly and be welcomed by anyone who has had to brave travel lines at any time.
Smart, easy and effective; everything you want in a partnership, even without a cool t-shirt to take away.
