Durham Cricket Club Case Study

SNAPSHOT

Durham Cricket is always striving to increase the overall matchday experience for supporters of the Club.

The Seat Unique Riverside stadium hosts world-class sporting and music events and anyone attending can see how much effort is put into their experience.

Up to 17,000 people are brought together to witness internationals like the Ashes in 2013 and gigs from artists like Elton John, Little Mix and many more.

Whether attending a cricket match or a concert, people in the crowds will be making heavy use of their mobile phones. Cameras for videos and photos use a lot of battery power and adding in the sharing of imagery on social media makes for a battery sapping time.

Durham Cricket wants to make sure every minute of their attendees’ experience can be recorded and shared with friends and family.

The dreaded Nomophobia shouldn’t spoil a great afternoon at the cricket!

THE CLIENT 

Durham County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Durham in the north east of England. The club was founded in 1882 and is one of only 18 first-class county clubs in the domestic structure of England and Wales.

Some legends of the game have played for Durham notably Ian Botham, Paul Collingwood, Steve Harmison and Ben Stokes.

The cricket stadium that sits beneath the iconic Lumley Castle has over 20 different rooms for private hire. Executive boxes, meeting rooms and intimate bars all provide first-class facilities to watch the cricket or host meetings and parties. 

Each hospitality box is sponsored by a local, national or international company who want to ensure their clients enjoy the magic of cricket.

MATCHDAY EXPERIENCES SUPERCHARGED

Long, glorious days of sport are exemplified in cricket. The average match can take between 7.5 and 8.5 hours but that depends on the format being played. Fans could be attending a One-Day, Twenty20, Twenty10 or other format with some theoretically being played with no time limit. 

Keeping fans and clients happy for the duration of the match is paramount to the success of the Club. The match itself is clearly the top priority where people want to see first-class sport being played. But they want first-class service too.

Attending any event for a long time inevitably leads to people requiring charge to their phone.They will have been using their device to keep in contact with friends and family as well as to record special moments throughout the day.

Nomophobia (no-mobile-phone-phobia) affects us all to different degrees. Nobody wants to be out of contact or unable to take a photo of a magical moment on the field or stage.  

To be considered a first-class stadium, operators must provide their supporters with charging facilities for their phones.

These facilities could be called charging hubs, charging stations or charging docks. Ultimately, they should provide charging for multiple appliances at once through multiple methods of charge.

Durham Cricket decided to install Crable charging shelves in each of their executive boxes and function rooms. DCC wanted to generate brand warmth and instructed pad printing of their logo on each Crable charging shelf.

Each Crable has two wireless charging pads up top, with plug sockets and USB ports in the underside. Fast wireless charging provides people with that essential top-up to their batteries wherever and whenever it is needed. 

Wall-mounted Crables in each executive box provided Durham Cricket with a robust and befitting solution to their charging needs.  

THE RESULTS AND BENEFITS 

Fans, clients and staff are the happy beneficiaries of the Durham Cricket Club installation of charging shelf stations.

People are no longer hunting for a charging point or asking staff if they can borrow a cable to charge their phone.

Every match played or concert performed has been enjoyed by fans who have been able to keep in contact with the people that matter. Sharing their experiences via social media and even commenting that Crables should be installed at every stadium worldwide.

Crable charging shelves are supplied with 15W wireless chargers that are QI compatible and ‘fast charge’. The USB ports provide a not too shabby 12W each and will load most phones with a minimum of 1% battery per minute.

All stadia are looking to improve the fan experience and increase dwell time. Providing charging hubs and other charging zone solutions is a guaranteed way to keep everyone happy and staying longer.  

Tom Seymour, Sales Director at Durham Cricket confirmed his delight with the charging shelves designed and delivered by Crable: “Crable Charging Shelves have been a fantastic addition to our hospitality and events business at Durham Cricket. Having them installed in all our hospitality boxes has given clients an opportunity to charge their devices without having to plug in to a wall or find a charging point. Crables are a must for any business and are highly recommended.”

CONCLUSION          

Crable’s charging shelves are the perfect solution for stadium operators seeking to improve the matchday experience.

The bigger and busier the stadium the more it can be seen how Crables thrive in sporting venues. Supporters will appreciate the availability of a free charge for their phone and are much more likely to stay post-match if they have a charged-up battery.

The ability to brand Crables with club or sponsor logos provides a real opportunity to build brand warmth. Additionally, a QR code can be applied to encourage fans to interact through numerous media channels or ‘join the club’.

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