Response to Gurly Bull about basketball

[USFCollin]

I started typing this on the thread... but when I realized it had nothing to do with the original topic of the Sun Dolls being hot, I figured I'd start a new thread here:

Keep in mind every single seat in the lower bowl is completely sold out.  And the gifts attached to those seats range from $1000 (my seats behind the basket) up to $10,000 for courtsides with the right to purchase up to 4 tickets per gift.  The problem isn't that the tickets are too expensive... the problem is quite frankly people who buy the tickets don't always show up.  

I know its frustrating right now, but trust me.... I bought my season tickets this year because I really believe USF Basketball will the toughest ticket in Tampa Bay in 10 years.  There's only 12-15 home games (as opposed to 41 for the Lightning), and the Dome only holds around 10k for basketball (as opposed to 20k at the Forum or 70k at Ray Jay for the Bucs).  I know I see all those empty seats and get frustrated myself,  but as the product on the court improves, so too will the number of people who want to attend.  

I know most people think the two most important seasons at USF are football and spring practice, but the Big East to the rest of the country is a basketball conference.  Its the best in the country, and we'll have the best basketball in America being played on our campus for years and decades to come.  And enough people have figured that out that they're buying tickets "on spec."  They know how tough those tickets are going to be in a few years, and they're locking in now.  It would be one thing if we weren't selling those tickets... but we are!  We're just not getting the butts in the seats.  

Our marketing and sales guys have done a great job bringing in groups for games, giving tickets to our soldiers serving at MacDill, etc... but those people aren't ever going to be able to sit in the lower bowl because literally every seat there is sold.  If you know enough people who you think would want to attend a game, call Mike Stuben at 974-7843.  They'll get you a great group rate on an upcoming game this season.  And keep in mind that UConn might be a sellout (though granted that's a lot of UConn fans).  

And the thing I always see mentioned on here about how we should call people and ask them to give us their unused tickets back hurts us in so many ways:  1.  People really don't like it when you call them and ask them to give back something they've paid for, even if they're not using it.  2.  That's less people buying tickets if we're giving them away.  3.  We're devaluing our product if everyone knows they can get a free ticket to a game whenever they want one.  

Just some things for everyone to consider.  Believe it or not we have some people that work here who know a thing or two about sales and marketing, and are actually professionals in this business:).  They think about the exact same things you guys do, but we also see the other side of it and have to take a long-term view... plus we have budget and money pressures that have to factor into every equation.  

[BullDoug]

And the thing I always see mentioned on here about how we should call people and ask them to give us their unused tickets back hurts us in so many ways:  1.  People really don't like it when you call them and ask them to give back something they've paid for, even if they're not using it.  2.  That's less people buying tickets if we're giving them away.  3.  We're devaluing our product if everyone knows they can get a free ticket to a game whenever they want one.

My advice to the empty seats is for the Sun Dome or athletic department market a system for these fans not showing up to swap them with person's that purchase tix from T'Master or USF for a fee of $10-$15.  I know personally, I would go to more games and pay extra if I could sit in the lower bowl.  The ticket holder would get 90% of the fee and the system supporter would get the other 10%.

A second solution is since the tix are scanned, why couldn't the no shows or the stu tix be resold at or immediately after half time.  If you don't get there by halftime, you wave your right to the lower level seats and when you do arrive a new seat can be re-assigned at the ticket box office.  This would be a set policy for all ticket purchases.

Heck ,if it could be done with ATM type machines with 4-8 installed in one or all of the S'Dome entrance lobbies.  The ticket scanners would have bluetooth type technology could be purchased/used to instantaneously download scanned seat numbers to the box office.  Since this is a fairly new business/technological type of venture, there may be low cost biz loans available for the equipm't & installation.  It may add a new revenue stream to all of sporting events.

[Jewbull]

My advice to the empty seats is for the Sun Dome or athletic department market a system for these fans not showing up to swap them with person's that purchase tix from T'Master or USF for a fee of $10-$15.  .

Where in the world have you ever seen something like this done.

[Guest BullsFans]

A second solution is since the tix are scanned, why couldn't the no shows or the stu tix be resold at or immediately after half time.  If you don't get there by halftime, you wave your right to the lower level seats and when you do arrive a new seat can be re-assigned at the ticket box office.  This would be a set policy for all ticket purchases.

I'd like to see you sell that concept to a $5,000 or $10,000 dollar donor. :

[Jewbull]

These people have the right not to show, whehther they are real old donors who give $500 to sit there or new donors who give 10k to sit there, instead of seeing how you can piss off these big donors who actually make this program go, why dont you worry about the coaching & team and putting together a good product so these people want to show up.

I am just as much of a bulls fan as all of you but dang losing does get old and you do get sick and tired of seeing it. So if I take a game off or two (heck the players takes games off all the time) doesnt mean I want to get rid of my season tickets or should be called because I did not show.

[Markeymark]

Hey, I have a better idea...open up the lower bowl at halftime, like they used to do in the mid-90's when I first started going to games.

If some donor wants to make a scene, it's his/her prerogative as the seat holder. But I still don't think they have an absolute right to keep everyone out of there.

Sure, you will lose a few prudes this way...but you will gain real fans, too.

[WoolyBully]

But I still don't think they have an absolute right to keep everyone out of there.  

As long as there's a name associated with a ticket associated with a seat...yes, yes they do. It's just that simple.

When you buy a season ticket, you are buying a reservation. You know that your seat will be held, as long as you uphold your financial obligation. By purchasing the reservation, it is mine to use as I see fit...either show up, show up late or don't show at all. Point being, I have honored my part of the contract by sending the funds to USF, and they, in turn, honor their part by holding my seat.

BTW: I benefit from this a few times per year. One of the 'old school' donors give us their tix for a few games, so the seats are used. The other games, I end up buying walkup tickets.

[SkypointBull]

After I graduated I sat in the second level. it sucks. But I have made the move to get 4 lower seats.

I usually only use 2 to 3 of my seats. After half I don't want someone to sit in my 2 empty seats, just because they are not being used. I shelled out 35 a piece for my tix, plus my annual donation.

It really cheapens my tickets that I had to shell out for.  

I try to fill my seats every game, but I will damned if Joe Douchebag wants to squeeze into next to me and my wife without forking up 35 for the ticket.

[Markeymark]

As long as there's a name associated with a ticket associated with a seat...yes, yes they do. It's just that simple.

When you buy a season ticket, you are buying a reservation. You know that your seat will be held, as long as you uphold your financial obligation. By purchasing the reservation, it is mine to use as I see fit...either show up, show up late or don't show at all. Point being, I have honored my part of the contract by sending the funds to USF, and they, in turn, honor their part by holding my seat.

Your assertation that a ticket holder holds a reservation for a given seat is well taken, however it doesn't mean somebody else isn't going to occupy that seat while you're not there. And ushers dont have to actively prevent access to seats to uphold the contract. The controls in place to enforce the lower bowl seats are arbitrary and unnecessary, and in my opinion do more harm than good by moving fans further away from the game.

I don't think this is the central issue here, if it were then ushers would ensure all fans sit in the seats assigned to them as indicated on the ticket, instead of the arcane system in place now.

[SkypointBull]

The problem is that if the ushers don't restrict acces to those areas, a handfull of people move into those seats and refuse to leave and the ushers do little to get them to leave after the season ticket holder shows up.

for example:

me and the wife were late getting back to our seats after the half a few years ago. some people took root into our seats and told us no one was in them so they took them. after we calmy explained we were in line getting a beer and they could sit where ever they wanted just not in my 4 seats. They freaked and told us to sit somewhere else. After a big hassle with the usher, they finally moved down 5 seats.

Its always the small few that ruin it for the majority.