South East Melbourne Phoenix

When the South East Melbourne Phoenix launched as the NBL's ninth team, ownership wanted to bring a genuinely membership- and fan-centric mentality to a league that had traditionally leaned on corporate entertainment. With a target of 10,000 database names and 3,000 members in year one, and no existing fanbase or systems to build on, the club needed a platform that could scale from zero to a functioning membership business almost overnight.

Just six weeks before the club's Membership Campaign launched on May 3rd 2019, EngageRM was brought in to deliver the membership system, partnership solution and community engagement in one connected platform.

Data competitions run at the club's inception — "Name the team", "Win a trip to an NBA Game" — built the database to around 6,300 people before Membership even launched; by the end of the first season, that had grown to 21,000. The Phoenix sold 223 memberships on day one alone and finished the season with 2,446 members, placing fourth in the league — narrowly behind three clubs that had each been operating for 30-plus years.

Coming out of a COVID-disrupted first season, the Phoenix used EngageRM to keep members engaged with new loyalty initiatives even while the return to normal competition remained uncertain — with reserved-seat holders in particular renewing at the earliest opportunity despite that uncertainty. Reporting on membership demographics, built out with the EngageRM team, gave the club customisable, sponsor-ready reports and automated month-end financial reconciliation from day one.

Having evaluated every platform on the market before choosing EngageRM, the Phoenix now has a single, connected view of every fan interaction — merchandise, corporate sales, community programs, venue attendance and communications — giving the club the foundation to keep building genuine, data-backed loyalty season after season.