For decades, stadiums and arenas have counted on the big screen to deliver a big impact. But as expectations shift and every square foot becomes more valuable, forward-thinking venues are discovering that some of the most powerful advertising moments don’t happen in front of the Jumbotron—they happen in the margins.
From overlooked walkways to everyday touchpoints, there’s untapped potential hiding in plain sight. With the right strategy and technology, these quieter corners can become high-performing assets that delight fans and impress sponsors.
Creative Realities helps venue operators reimagine what’s possible—not by going bigger, but by going smarter.
How Underutilized Spaces Translate Into Lost Revenue Opportunities
Too often, teams focus their efforts on the obvious—scoreboards, LED rings, the big screens everyone expects. However, limiting the strategy to just those touchpoints means missing out on high-value opportunities that are hiding in plain sight.
Every screen in a venue—whether it’s in a restroom, premium areas like suites and clubs, or above a concession stand—has the potential to deliver targeted, meaningful experiences. With the right form factor, zoning, demographic insights, and placement strategy, even the quietest corners can become revenue-generating engines.
That’s why Creative Realities helps teams think beyond the main stage—bringing monetization and messaging strategies all the way from the concourse to the food counters. Here’s how.
Turning Distracting Second-Screen Habits Into High-Value Ad Inventory
Fans today are often distracted by their phones during games, checking betting odds or fantasy stats. This second-screen behavior means less time spent looking at in-venue sponsors.
Creative Realities is addressing this behavior by displaying on the venue screens the information fans are turning to their phones to find. By integrating the same fantasy stats, odds, and league-wide updates into venue screens, teams can recapture fan attention and turn it into premium advertising inventory.
Additionally, when that data appears on-screen—especially during key game moments—sponsors are more willing to pay a premium for placement, since they know that’s what fans should already be looking at.
Monetizing Premium Spaces Without Disrupting the VIP Experience
Historically, advertising teams have treated suites and club spaces as hospitality zones with minimal digital monetization. As such, they were largely excluded from broader sponsorship strategies.
Creative Realities has helped brands monetize these spaces by embedding small form factor panels into suite seating areas. These screens deliver personalized content, such as branded touchpoints and live stats, without interfering with the peaceful environment that suite holders expect.
Restrooms Reimagined: Delivering Engagement Where It's Least Expected
Restrooms have also been dismissed as functional spaces with no advertising value. However, Creative Realities realized that these rooms can be easily monetized, as fans typically visit the restroom an average of 2.7 times during an event.
Furthermore, performance data indicate that restroom signage achieves an 84% message recall rate and a 91% favorability score, numbers rarely matched in other areas of the venue. These stats show that restrooms are one of the most effective yet underutilized channels for sponsor messaging.
As a result, private equity firms have installed digital screens in restrooms at no cost to the venue in exchange for a revenue-sharing agreement. The result? The 20 or so venues that have agreed to this are earning hundreds of thousands of dollars yearly from spaces that had previously generated zero return. This solution also allows for fan engagement and content that can drive purchasing behavior in the venue.
Reinventing the Concession Stand
Like restrooms, concession stands have also been traditionally seen as purely functional spaces.
However, Creative Realities has been remodeling them into strategic revenue zones, evolving static menu boards into dynamic digital displays that rotate between ad sponsorships, calls to action, event notifications, and other features, including live game day feeds and the necessary food menu.
Entryways and Parking Lots as Brand Activation Zones
Entryways and parking lots are yet another type of “functional” space that Creative Realities has been helping teams monetize. These areas consistently attract fans looking for directions, safety updates, or rideshare pickup points, making them ideal for high-impact digital signage.
One of the ways Creative Realities has been transforming entryways and parking lots into brand activation zones is by displaying sponsors’ logos or branding (e.g., “Powered by Uber”) on signs directing guests to exits or elevators.
These subtle integrations help sponsors connect with fans at the very beginning of their experience, where attention is most focused and brand impressions are more likely to stick.
Creative Realities has also placed QR codes on entry signage. Once scanned, these codes link to the stadium app, providing interactive maps, food ordering tools, and sponsorships.
Tips for Identifying Hidden Revenue Opportunities Within Your Venue
As the above examples illustrate, numerous areas in your venue can be monetized. Here are some tips for identifying and activating these hidden opportunities.
- Audit your entire venue. Start by mapping every screen and sign in your venue, not just the ones in your bowl or scoreboard, but also restrooms, food counters, parking zones, and premium seating areas. Then, analyze how each screen or sign is used, what content runs there (if any), and how fans could interact with the signs and screens if they had content.
- Align signage with fan movement and behaviors. Consider how fans navigate through your space. Where do they scroll on their phones or wait in line for long periods? Identify these areas and consider putting signage there.
- Spot “dead space” with passive engagement potential: Look for zones with consistent traffic but no signage. Examples may include a blank wall near a high-volume restroom, a concourse walkway, or the back of a food stall.
- Segment your signage by demographic and sponsor tier: Screens serve different types of fans. For example, a display in a VIP suite should be targeted at high-earning, middle-aged corporate decision-makers. In contrast, a concession screen may be targeted at younger fans and their families.
- Pilot and scale: Start with a single area, like a restroom wall, and test how new messaging or content performs. Trial and error allow you to find the best way to monetize different parts of your venue.
Creative Realities Can Help Monetize Every Part of Your Venue
Identifying hidden stadium advertising opportunities is just the first step. To fully activate underutilized spaces, you need a partner who understands both the strategy and the technology behind venue-wide digital transformation. Creative Realities has helped numerous leading stadiums and entertainment venues turn overlooked spaces into powerful engagement and monetization platforms.
Contact our team to learn more about how we can help with creative stadium ad placements.
