I had breakfast recently with the greatest sports marketing mind of our generation: Mike Veeck.
I wanted to pick his brain about the economy and advice that he had for all of us as we move forward. While searching for his prophecy, I realized what makes Mike so very special. Beyond his "Fun Is Good" franchise is a layer of kindness that is the foundation of his success.
Marketers have it wrong, according to Richard Luker: In a time when consumers are hunkering down in a bad economy, they yearn for the community of local events rather than the big national ones advertisers gravitate toward. And at a time when people are making and maintaining friends virtually on the internet (and marketers put more spending there), people actually need more social networking the old-fashioned way -- face to face.
The news of economic uncertainty is dominating talk among team sales executives. To help compensate for the changing climate, teams are looking beyond traditional resources for ideas and inspiration.
The aim of this collection of advice is to give a window into the world of how sales executives from outside the sports world are adjusting and advancing to improve their potential for a prosperous 2009 regardless of the obstacles they are facing.
Economists must be saying to themselves that someone forgot to tell the country's sports executives that we've been living in an era of low inflation for the past several years.
Taking in an NFL game costs 20% more than it did three years ago, while tickets for the NHL and Major League Baseball are about 17% higher. Only the NBA, with a 7% rise in prices since the '05-'06 season, has kept in line with the real world.
After Major League Baseball (MLB) saw its overall attendance number drop for the first time in five years, a majority of its franchises are offering more value on tickets for their fans next season, as the league watches the economy struggle. Of the 30 teams that make up MLB, 23 of them have announced a reduction or freezing of ticket prices, as well as other fan-friendly ticket plans for the 2009 season.
The teams have taken the advice of Commissioner Bud Selig who warned owners to not "get too cocky" when deciding their ticket prices for the upcoming season. See table below.
