Subway rewards fans of several NFL teams

From Redskins.com and from BuffaloBills.com

Review by Ali Noel in KIN 332 (section 2)

The article(s) I selected to do for my first article review dealt with Subway Restaurants partnering with two NFL teams; the Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins. As I was working the other night (at Subway on Port Republic), multiple people brought in coupons regarding the promotion. The deal is “When the Redskins score 20 or more points at any home game, fans can go to the Redskins website and print out a coupon good for a FREE regular 6” sub with purchase of 30-ounce drink and chips on the day after that home game.” This is a really good promotional tool for both Subway and the Redskins. In order to print the coupon, users must first visit the Skins team’s web page. By visiting the Redskins site, this creates the potential for fans to come back and view the website for information regarding the team. The only stipulation to this deal is that you must print off the coupon and bring it to a local Subway restaurant in the greater DC Virginia area the day after the game. This article also mentioned Robert Griffin III’s (Redskins starting quarterback) relationship and sponsorship deal with Subway Restaurants since he is a major marketing tool. RG3 is the most marketable player in the National Football League. He is constantly in the public eye because of his marketability and endorsement deals with multiple companies. Therefore, it was a good idea, from a marketer’s standpoint, to mention Griffin in this article.

The Bills article was very similar to the Redskins and Subway partnership deal article. This article did mention how Subway will benefit from this deal by getting airtime on the Bills All-Access Television show, preseason television ads, print collateral and Bills website advertising. The deal was similar to that of the Redskins, although if the Bills do not score 20 points, Subway Restaurants in the New York area will be giving away one free cookie to fans that bring in the coupons. Bruce Popko, Buffalo Bills senior vice president of business development says that the partnership is beneficial to both Subway and the Bills because fans get a valuable way to engage with Subway Restaurants.

As you can see from both of these articles, the target market for both teams is to contact fans so they can earn the promotional deal with Subway Restaurants. This promotion essentially is everything that sports marketing wishes to achieve. By activating this partnership, both Subway and the two NFL teams are attracting a broader spectrum and group of fans and promoting their product to fans in order to achieve marketing objectives. Subway most likely did extensive market research to find that many football viewers enjoy Subway food and see the commercials that are running during the games. Therefore, they have incentive to print off the coupon, purchase a drink and chips in order to get a free sub. Subway is a great sponsor for any sports team based on the fact they produce healthy meals for athletes and people who live an active lifestyle.

"Is Dynamic Ticket Pricing Hurting MLB Attendance?"

From Forbes.com

Review by Courtney Hamner in KIN 501

The article “Is Dynamic Ticket Pricing Hurting MLB Attendance?” starts out by discussing the Yankee’s decrease in attendance. Their attendance is down 3.5 percent year-over-year. The Yankee’s are traditionally a standard bearer for sports franchises. This leads other MLB team managers to worry if the same is going to happen to them. The article discusses the possible reasons behind the decreased attendance of the economy, and bad on-field performance. The writer points out that these are just convenient excuses. 

One of the main reasons the article points out is the use of Stub Hub. This is a secondary market for ticket sales. Stub Hub is dramatically undercutting the face value of tickets available on the official Yankee website or physical box office. According to Dead Spin, the more expensive the face value, the more likely it is going to be sold under face value. This causes the Yankees to underestimate the market. Another reason could be that the Yankee’s don’t use dynamic ticket sales. But as the article goes on it discusses how all MLB teams are struggling with attendance.

The writer says a number of things can be causing decreased ticket sales. But if we try and say the Yankees ticket sales and attendance numbers are caused by misreading the market or not using dynamic ticket sales, than what explains the other team’s decreases? The main focus is based around ticket sales being too confusing.

Dynamic ticket sales are full of flaws. The first flaw is that it offers too many choices. Yes, human beings love to have many options but when given too many options we are faced with not being able to make a choice. This leaves us feeling dissatisfied. Dynamic ticket pricing often includes a daily (sometimes hourly) fluctuation in price. The second flaw is pricing schemes often shift the burden of pricing decision and activity from the franchise to the fan. Fans are tasked with trying to determine what the right price for a ticket is. The last flaw the article discusses is that dynamic ticket pricing may tax franchise personnel more than establishing ticket prices in the off-season and sticking with them for the 162-game slate.

I feel that these factors can be attributed to decreased attendance. I think that dynamic ticket sales can change the pricing of tickets so much that fans wonder if they really are getting a good deal. But at the same time I think that dynamic ticket sales have a lot of positive attributes as well. Dynamic ticket sales help in a bad economy by offering prices that fans can afford. Yes, ticket prices may change frequently, but they change within the level of demand, type of customer, and weather. Therefore, the customer is being put first. Although ticket sales are getting very confusing, I think that it is not the main culprit for decreased attendance. I think that the economy and a bad on-field performance are convenient but very true excuses for poor attendance. Not just one factor can be given for the decreased attendance this year.

"Allen’s new Eagle Stadium plans to go beyond local high school football games"

From DallasNews.com

Review by Anne Whitmore in KIN 501

In the article “Allen’s new Eagle Stadium plans go beyond local high school football games” written by Jeff Mosier (2012), the author explains how the school district is trying to find ways to attract funding to help pay for spending $60 million dollars on a high school football stadium. The stadium has 18,000 seats and has the potential to attract 100,000 nonresidents each year to the town. The ticket revenue from events and games is expected to cover operating costs plus have money left over to put back into the general budget fund. With only four guaranteed home football games the district is looking for other avenues to fill the stands, keep concessions busy, and help other local businesses prosper (Mosier, 2012).

Advertised as a regional attraction the school district hired PPI marketing to help bring in more events (Mosier, 2012). Mosier (2012) writes that the Allen stadium has already been successful in attracting games to its new stadium held perviously at other high schools and professional stadiums. Other events that PPI is trying to attract to the stadium is the Lone Star Football Festival usually held at Cowboys Stadium. The NCAA Division II football championship and the Texas vs. the National all-star football game which is televised and attracts scouts from across the US and Canada. PPI is also looking to attract concerts and marching band competitions to this new space. Part of their marketing plan for these events is to either offer a cheaper venue for the event. Or in some cases they are able to offer more seats and a new clean environment compared to older venues (Mosier, 2012).

Along with attracting events to offset the cost of the stadium PPI has also helped Allen gain lucrative sponsorships. The stadium will have 10 founding sponsors who will pay $35,000 dollars annually for three years (Mosier, 2012). At the time of this article they had six founding sponsors signed up. Part of PPI’s marketing plan is to offer these sponsors a “clean look” (Mosier, 2012). Meaning that the district is limiting the signage around the stadium and the number of sponsors. According to Mossier (2012) each of the founding sponsors will receive ads in game programs; signs in the home and visitors concourse; sideline signs, static signs and two 30-second commercials on the video board; mention by the public address announcer; and signs in the baseball-softball complex and gymnasium. The stadium also has four “community” sponsors that pay $15,000 per year and receive a smaller amount of signage. Three of these vendors have vending contracts with the stadium or school district (Mosier, 2012).

Critique 

Like it said in the article I also believe that Allen is doing a good job of taking advantage of what the new football stadium has to offer by aggressively pursuing events and sponsorship options (Mosier, 2012). This stadium has received coverage nationwide and is earning mentions form The New York Times and national TV networks. It has the hype of being new and the “Aw” factor going for it until the next new thing comes around (Mosier, 2012). The stadium and the marketing behind it is setting a new standard for high schools across the nation. It is also setting a new standard for what businesses can look at for sponsorships. I have no doubts that more and more local public entities will try to follow suite. Leading to towns without professional teams having more opportunities for this type of investment.

I believe it is smart for a business to invest in a local project. It gets their name out to the community and beyond in a positive fashion especially in Texas where football is king. In Allen they are providing a distinct and an innovative way to offer a sponsor a deal that they will not see anywhere else. I believe that is the main reason the district has been successful with this project.

Allen’s stadium took a lot of money to build and right now seems to be on its way to supporting it self and the town. I would love to see a follow up article after three years to see if the school district is able to retain sponsorships and uphold this new standard for high school football stadiums and marketing. I would also like to see an article about what rules and regulations that are in place to help control public entities trying to gain sponsorships for their districts. I know that there are some already in place but what new regulations will come about because of the potential growth factor for sponsorships at the high school level.