Scott Frasnelly is responsible for the ECHL's new corporate sponsorship agreements and attempts at continually branding itself as the premier AA hockey league in the country. Frasnelly oversees the ECHL's 23 teams, examining how to help each sales staff maximize growth in their marketplace. Frasnelly understands intimately what each team's sales staff is going through, a former member of three of the team's sales staff, rising up to CEO of the San Francisco Bulls prior to joining the league office. Frasnelly talks candidly about the state of the league, where it needs to go, and how corporate sponsorship revenue has changed for all sports teams following the 2008 economic crash.
A companion to this episode is a minicast, available to premium subscribers, where Frasnelly speaks about developing "Marketing Plans" for teams.
Sheldon Arsenault is a seven-year veteran of hockey administration, hiring a new sales staff at the WHL's Vancouver Giants as well as implementing several strategies for success. Arsenault eliminates some of the mythos about the Canadian hockey fan, especially the idea that it doesn't take much to get fans in the building up in the Great White North. Arsenault talks about the Giants' marketing strategies, especially growing a fan base even when its not a winning season.
Jeff Higgins talks about UNLV athletics broadscope through the lens of a marketer, especially how the college basketball & football competes on the Vegas landscape amid the casino industry of The Strip. How does a Division I FBS school sell its product with an entertainment center of free tickets and multi-million dollar marketing budgets? Higgins discusses his time as an NCAA compliance investigator as well as working as a criminal defense attorney for five years, including Death Penalty cases.
Robert Kingston oversees ticket services for the Sacramento Kings, focusing on sales, customer service and relationships. With Maloof Sports & Entertainment for the past 7 years, Kingston talks about how to keep fans around after the first initial purchase, what NBA teams look for in terms of new prospecting of potential customers, and the development of a sales staff from top to bottom. Kingston discusses identification traits in both customers and complainers, fostering one while not enabling the other.
A companion minicast to this is available exclusively to premium members on the iOS app (available in the Apple App Store). The minicast focuses on "Retention Tips" for sales staff looking to keep customers long term.
Ryan Flynn has been the CEO of Baseball New Zealand since 2011 after a 5 year stint as the Director of Guam Baseball Federation. Flynn considers the New Zealand program to be one of the fastest growing in the world, there are some credentials to back up that claim. New Zealand has 3 players under contact by MLB teams, was invited to the World Baseball Classic qualifiers in Nov. 2012 and has an IBAF World Ranking of 29. New Zealand's history with baseball goes back to 1888 when Albert Spaulding hosted exhibitions in Auckland during his Asian tour. A firm believer that it can take hold in New Zealand as a hotbed for MLB talent development, Flynn talks politics, program building, Major League Baseball’s involvement, and promoting the game in general. @NZBaseball
Mike Gordon offers up various strategies of how the Wolves have positioned themselves in the major market of Chicago. The Wolves have the metropolitan area to itself while the NHL's Blackhawks are on strike, but Gordon thinks that's not a good thing, especially long term. Gordon talks about how the team markets itself, trying to make itself "cool" to the younger population, without spending into oblivion on premium giveaways, as well as consciously keeping the play on the ice from being hindered by group or promotional activities. Gordon discusses the issues surrounding how the Wolves' price point of $9 has led to its success, especially in selling out $50 glass seats.
A companion to this podcast is "Menu Item Design" which is available to all premium app subscribers by downloading the free iOS/Android podcast App.
Jason Martin has been at the forefront of out-bound ticket sales at major universities since joining Ohio State in 2008. Martin's leadership oversaw the building & subsequent leading of a brand new outbound ticket sales department (from the ground up). While other university athletic departments contract out their ticket sales to third party companies, The Ohio State's model has focused on non-football sales, earning $125k in its first year to over $1 million in year 4. Martin talks ticket sales, building a staff, customer service and serving every sport that the Buckeye sells admission to.
A companion to this podcast is "Defeating Campus Roadblocks" which is available to premium subscribers who download the FREE iOS/Android App (available in the smart phone/tablet marketplaces).
Bill Guertin is an expert speaker and sales motivator, with 25+ years in successful small-market broadcast advertising sales, medical sales, and sales training. CEO of The 800-Pound Gorilla, a sales improvement company that works with a diverse mix of companies and individuals to help them become the dominant player (the "800-Pound Gorilla") in the market they serve. Bill's affiliated company, Stadium Gorilla, works specifically with the ticket sales departments of professional sports teams, including those in the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS, NASCAR, and others. Bill is the author of two books, including "Reality Sells: How to Bring Customers Back Again and Again By Marketing Your Genuine Story," (WBusiness Books) and "The 800-Pound Gorilla of Sales: How To Dominate Your Market" (John Wiley & Sons). Guertin talks ticket sales on the podcast, as well where the sports industry is headed.
A companion piece is "Diagnosing Prospects" which is exclusive to Premium Subscribers. Download the FREE App in the iOS/Android App store to listen to this exclusive material.
John Dittrich has spent 40 years in professional baseball, with 36 of it being in the minor leagues, both affiliated and independent. Dittrich talks promotions that have gone wrong, the differences between what regions get & don't get about certain marketing, how to craft a good lease agreement with a stadium, and what generally works for a new owner's good business plan. Dittrich expands into why the minor leagues are able to draw fans when some of the bigger leagues can't, and talks ticket sales, marketing, corporate sponsorship and why some teams fail because their ownership didn't take the operation as seriously as they should. Twitter: JohnDittrich
"East Bay Moneyball" may not get a movie made about it, but the concept of dynamically pricing baseball tickets has been just as controversial for the San Francisco Giants as its cousins in Oakland had with who they chose to stick in the batting lineups. SF Giants VP of Ticket Services & Customer Relations Russ Stanley brought the concept to Major League Baseball and was able to show success with a new revenue stream since adopted by several professional teams across sports. Stanley sits down to talk about what dynamic pricing is, how he sold the team's ownership on its implementation, and why the concept is not only good for the bottom line, but also for the fans who want to see a Pirates v. Giants game on a Tuesday night. While the team has won two of the last three World Series, its also achieved a larger success at the gate, selling out over 150 straight home games. Twitter: @SFGiants