Hartley Miller's Slap-Shots November 30th Edition

By Hartley Miller

Although ticket promotions appear positive, and are usually laced with incentives, they do not always present win-win situations.

For instance, let’s examine the Harlem Globetrotters game, in Prince George, last week. Organizers became desperate when ticket sales for the “show” were slow, so they created a last minute idea. The day prior to the event, advertisements were on the radio with a special offer. Specifically, customers had an opportunity to buy tickets for 27, 21 or 17 dollars. Moreover, if fans purchased one of these cheap seats they earned another seat, for free. On the surface, it seemed like a workable gimmick. In fact, it may have generated a few more sales, although with an overall attendance in the 1,000 to 1,500 range, people certainly did not flock to the event. As a result, don’t expect to see the Globetrotters back in PG for many years.

This 2 for 1 sale created a problem. The idea angered many fans, who had earlier purchased a ticket in that price range, and at the time, were not given the same opportunity. In the case of the Globetrotters, having a few disgruntled spectators isn’t a big issue because they travel from city to city and don’t rely much on repeat business.

However, on the hockey front, teams like the Prince George Cougars and the Spruce Kings need to be careful with their promos, since they do rely on the same base of people to attend their games. Keep in mind, with both teams having losing seasons, it becomes more and more difficult to market and therefore extra promotion is needed.

The Cougars recently offered “Half Season Tickets” sales. Yes, over an 18 game home period, fans will be able to take advantage of discounted ticket prices and pre select seating for all home playoff games. (Okay, in all likelihood, there won’t be many or any home playoff dates, but that’s a different story for another column).

This is not a bad promotion, but again how do the full 36 game season ticket holders feel? Perhaps, next year, some of those loyal fans may choose to wait because the benefits are the same (other than twice the amount of regular season games) and the cost is considerably less. Let’s face facts, people in a busy world would rather attend 18 games, instead of 36.

The Cougars also sold 1,000 tickets to a sponsor (which I assume was a special deal) for Thursday’s game with Vancouver and then the sponsor offered them free for any of their customers that wanted to walk down to their place of business to pick them up. So, with so many free tickets out there for the Giants game, why would anybody want to pay for one?

Meanwhile, the Spruce Kings practically stand at street corners pleading with innocent bystanders to take complimentary tickets for upcoming games. Again, what message does this send long time supporters who have been paying full price or close to?

Promotional or free tickets certainly have benefits because the more people in the building to see your product the better. As well, higher attendance obviously provides a boost to the organization.  However, teams should remember that discount or giveaway tickets can also come with a “price” to pay.

From the quote rack:

“Hey, maybe the Patriots weren't filming defensive signals after all.”Pete McEntegart of SI.com, after the NY Times reported that some male New York Jets fans near one gate at Giants Stadium continually yell at women in the hopes of getting them to remove their top.

“Hours in the rain and mud and a final score of 3-0. There hasn't been such a low scoring mess in primetime since the last Presidential debate.”
Comedy writer Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California, on the Steelers Monday night football victory over the winless Dolphins.

“Apparently, there's no truth to the rumour that the Devil Rays changed their name because the Devil himself had threatened to sue for defamation of character.”David Thomas of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, on the lowly major-league baseball team in Tampa Bay officially changing its name to the Rays.

“Curt Schilling is reportedly a WWII buff. Yes, I believe he got the strategy for the weight incentive in his new contract from the Battle of the Bulge.”Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California, on the Boston Red Sox pitcher.

“Mike Tyson spent one day in jail for a DUI charge and later phoned Lindsay Lohan to swap prison tales. Asked how he was able to get out early Tyson said he managed to get the ear of the warden.”Contributor Derek Wilken of Calgary (http://smacksport.blogspot.com)

And in case you missed it:

Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns is one of four Canadians playing in the NBA. The others are Jamaal Magloire of the New Jersey Nets, Joel Anthony of the Miami Heat and Samuel Dalembert of the Philadelphia 76ers.

And how was your week?

Hartley Miller is the sports director for radio stations 94X and the Wolf@97fm. He also writes for the PG Free Press. Send along a quote, note or anecdote to hmiller@94xfm.com

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