I would be happy just getting back to 2750...1000 more in attendance. And just one MAAC championship every 5-6 years would be fine. (The more I see of Sydney ball, the more my expectations get lowered.)
Blaming on being in the MAAC is lame. The MAAC is NOT our preferable league, but it is not a Major Factor in our success to achieve 3,000+ fans.
The fans don't seem that interested in going to the WBA to watch the Stags play Niagara, Canisius, Monmouth MAAC Basketball. Does anyone believe that Stag Basketball can or ever will consistently average more than 3,600 or 4,000 or 5,000 fans?
True Basketball fans come to see their Home team play..... regardless who they are playing. The way we atttact true basketball fans, is to win.. And Make it to the NCAA Tournament. That is how a Program is built. Ther are very few exceptions to that...... if none at all.. We might get a few more hundred people for a top MAAC team, depending on the opponenent...... but who cares. We need to do the things that get us 1000's more people...... win, win the MAAC, CT Post Pregame offseason coverage, season Tickets.
If we can average over 2000 to 2900 fans without going to the NCAA Tourney ...... then we can average over 3,000 with an NCAA bertth. And if we ever won an NCAA Tournament game, that number would certainly skyrocket.
Post by reindeerfan on May 22, 2014 12:43:20 GMT -5
To say parking fees, ticket costs, conference affiliation or wins and losses are the reason we don't draw is simplistic. All are factors, But all are factors that can be overcome.
Marketing is about getting people to the game that wouldn't normally come.
To build a fan base takes marketing. And the marketing needs to be followed up with an enjoyable stags experience. Come to a game 2 or 3 times and have a good time, and you are now a fan.
For those that say marketing has been tried, it has not. There isn't anyone at the university that understands how to market. Fairfield tries to market, but what they do is lower prices for people that were coming to the game anyway. This is not marketing.
I have posted at length dozens of things the school needs to do differently to draw fans. I am not going to repost all that stuff for the 100th time. If the school wants to fill the seats it can be done. It takes a level of commitment to marketing and expertise in marketing that the university simply has not had.
If the school wants to fill the seats it can be done. It takes a level of commitment to marketing and expertise in marketing that the university simply has not had.
Fill the seats but to what extent and what realistically is possible? The product that is being sold is Stag MAAC Basketball at the WBA. The product has not been to the NCAA Tournament since 1997 and only twice before that. Even the casual customers want to see, read about and talk about March Maddness in the NCAA Tournament and Stag Basketball is not been relevant for 18 years where it really matters. It is not UConn, BIG EAST, ACC or even A-10 college basketball with name or big time opponents that is being played at the WBA. The geographic marketing area is our fellow alumni, students, the University community, college basketball fans and the general public within easy or convenient driving distance of Bridgeport, CT on week nights and weekends. Potential buyers for the product, in addition to the die-hard Stag fans, are mostly just casual fans and to many they are people looking for another entertainment option for their family and friends. Trying to "create demand" for the product is very difficult today as opposed to the "good old days" of Stag Basketball of the 1960s and 1970s as there so many more entertainment options for people's interests and time. However, the immediate goal should be to get the WBA attendance average back to where it started at approximately 3,000 fans per season. Every season since 2001-02 with the exception of Ed Cooley's (25-8)(13-5) season of 2010-11, attendance has declined from that inaugural season. What is most troubling is that after the record setting success of the 2010-11 season with a NIT Second Round game at the WBA, attendance has declined in the last three consecutive seasons until last season set a record for the lowest attendance average ever at the WBA (1,703).
The greatest task ahead for the University is to at least get back those 2,900+ fans every season and to build on that number. IMO, getting the students to view Stag Basketball and to a lesser extent all of Stag Athletics as an enjoyable entertainment option should be a priority. Also a much greater effort needs to made to get our fellow alumni to the WBA and in turn back again for more games as they are the potential customers for the product with a vested interest already in Fairfield University. The greatest increase in season ticket sales will ultimately come from our fellow alumni and not the general public. Students and our fellow alumni can make a difference. Maybe someday they will become "true fans" but you have to successfully market to them first. A valuable and under used asset is the Dolan Business School which has a real life case study on campus with AH and 5 miles away at the WBA. An effort should be made to reach out to get the faculty and business students involved in the marketing research, promotion and selling of Stag Basketball to the students and our fellow alumni.
Post by perfectpitch on May 22, 2014 15:16:15 GMT -5
The current round of incoming freshmen were 1 year olds when the Stags last went to the NCAA tournament. Conceptually, for them, it is impossible to perceive. We need a Maac Championship now!