MUScoop

MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: DienerTime34 on September 28, 2015, 08:41:13 AM

Title: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: DienerTime34 on September 28, 2015, 08:41:13 AM
Completely forgot that single-game tix went on sale to season ticket holders on Saturday. Logged in late Saturday night and got four for Iowa in the lower bowl, row W. I usually get extras to 1 or 2 big games every year and am usually four rows deep upstairs. I'm seriously frightened about what the Bradley Center is going to look like on a Tuesday night in December against Chicago State.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: mu03eng on September 28, 2015, 08:48:05 AM
As long as the team wins this year, it will be a one time blip.  If this team doesn't win this year.....next year MU could really be hurting.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: PBRme on September 28, 2015, 09:10:05 AM
I'm not so sure.  I bought 50 for Villanova and they are about the same location as last year and I was more on the ball and was in at 12:05
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: mu_hilltopper on September 28, 2015, 10:29:38 AM
Yeah .. I checked a few single games, and I don't see a huge difference.  Yes, there are a handful of lower bowl tickets, most are in the end-zone, and the last 2-3 rows. 

But upstairs .. I usually buy a bunch of tickets for friends, and the areas we look for are about the same.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Tugg Speedman on September 28, 2015, 10:47:14 AM
Completely forgot that single-game tix went on sale to season ticket holders on Saturday. Logged in late Saturday night and got four for Iowa in the lower bowl, row W. I usually get extras to 1 or 2 big games every year and am usually four rows deep upstairs. I'm seriously frightened about what the Bradley Center is going to look like on a Tuesday night in December against Chicago State.

Tickets sales are a lagging indicator.  They are based on how a team did the year before.

When we win the NC with a senior laden team, the next year the place will be sold out.

Like said before, win this year and next year sales will be stronger.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: The Lens on September 28, 2015, 01:25:01 PM
My section (219) had a dozen seats available for the Iowa game.  That usually never happens.  Biggest question to me is why didn't more upper bowl ppl move down.  I understand some upper bowl STH have better seats than me, but not all.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: warriorchick on September 28, 2015, 01:27:28 PM
My section (219) had a dozen seats available for the Iowa game.  That usually never happens.  Biggest question to me is why didn't more upper bowl ppl move down.  I understand some upper bowl STH have better seats than me, but not all.

I think our upper bowl seats (center court, Row C) are much better than many lower bowl seats.

To move to lower bowl seats that we think are better isn't worth what they are asking (IMO).
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: The Lens on September 28, 2015, 03:42:11 PM
I think our upper bowl seats (center court, Row C) are much better than many lower bowl seats.

To move to lower bowl seats that we think are better isn't worth what they are asking (IMO).

Of course, I would take yours any day.  Aren't there STH is the upper corners, uppers row L, etc, etc?  Not every Upper STH has it as good as you.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: 🏀 on September 28, 2015, 04:18:27 PM
I think our upper bowl seats (center court, Row C) are much better than many lower bowl seats.

To move to lower bowl seats that we think are better isn't worth what they are asking (IMO).

You got stairs to deal with.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: warriorchick on September 28, 2015, 06:52:38 PM
You got stairs to deal with.

Seeing as I am neither lazy nor infirm, it's not an issue.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: bradley center bat on September 28, 2015, 07:59:51 PM
My section (219) had a dozen seats available for the Iowa game.  That usually never happens.  Biggest question to me is why didn't more upper bowl ppl move down. 
The cost?
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: ChicosBailBonds on September 28, 2015, 08:42:45 PM
My section (219) had a dozen seats available for the Iowa game.  That usually never happens.  Biggest question to me is why didn't more upper bowl ppl move down.  I understand some upper bowl STH have better seats than me, but not all.

Price?
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: WI inferiority Complexes on September 29, 2015, 09:52:28 AM
Price?

I've had the opportunity to purchase lower bowl seats since probably the '11-12 season, but remained upstairs because of the cost. I'm holding off until I'm independently wealthy, (give me 4 or 5 years).
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Warrior of Law on September 30, 2015, 08:04:21 AM
The whole upper vs. lower bowl debate will be moot when the new arena is built.  It will have 3 levels, and they'll tarp off/close/darken the 3rd deck for most MU games.  Likely 10K in the lowest level, 4K in the 2nd, and another 2-3K in the top.  For the MU game that draws 12-14K, it will be ideal.

The projected seating capacity is 16,500.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Dr. Blackheart on September 30, 2015, 08:21:42 AM
Besides a crappy game product the last few years, I think there are changing demographics going on.  Baby Boomers are becoming snow birds and are simply not around as much in the winter.  The Millenials are burdened with debt with still weak high paying job opportunities.  And there aren't a lot of Gen X and Ys in between.

But mainly, the product has sucked.  There will be a lot of pressure on Wojo to turn it around.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: TAMU, Knower of Ball on September 30, 2015, 08:22:53 AM
The whole upper vs. lower bowl debate will be moot when the new arena is built.  It will have 3 levels, and they'll tarp off/close/darken the 3rd deck for most MU games.  Likely 10K in the lowest level, 4K in the 2nd, and another 2-3K in the top.  For the MU game that draws 12-14K, it will be ideal.

The projected seating capacity is 16,500.

I like that. 16,500 is a size that we could sell out pretty regularly. And if we can't, just darken the third deck and it will look like we are full!
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Warrior of Law on September 30, 2015, 09:21:00 AM
Here are some comparable attendance numbers:

Nova-9,639
G'town-9,630
St. John's-7,463
Seton Hall-7,587

MU may see a reduction in tickets sold, and fannies in seats, over the next few year, as we move closer to these peer institutions.  However, the new venue will make it look and feel more like a MU in the 70s/80s MECCA experience and less like a All-State Arena-De Paul experience.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: vacinator on September 30, 2015, 11:00:47 PM
The annual reseating process is a pain for many people.  It wakes up the sleeping dogs and is more complicated than simply writing a check or automatically debiting an account.   It takes some sort of active participation every year and there is a decent chance your seats will be different from the year prior.  I bet this process is contributing to cancellations.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: warriorchick on October 01, 2015, 07:35:24 AM
The annual reseating process is a pain for many people.  It wakes up the sleeping dogs and is more complicated than simply writing a check or automatically debiting an account.   It takes some sort of active participation every year and there is a decent chance your seats will be different from the year prior.  I bet this process is contributing to cancellations.

Are you saying that people are choosing to forgo the entire season simply because of the extra few minutes reseating takes?  I doubt that number reaches double digits.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Skatastrophy on October 01, 2015, 07:51:07 AM
Are you saying that people are choosing to forgo the entire season simply because of the extra few minutes reseating takes?  I doubt that number reaches double digits.

People have to actively choose to re-up every year instead of just having the automatic payments take care of it.

I would expect to see more volatility in the season ticket purchasing because of that active choice having to be made every year instead of every two.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Litehouse on October 01, 2015, 08:56:04 AM
If a couple sweater vests drop out because of the minimal hassle of logging onto your computer once a year to renew tickets, thereby allowing me to leapfrog them in priority points and get better seats, I'm OK with that.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Golden Avalanche on October 01, 2015, 09:37:14 AM
The annual reseating process is a pain for many people.  It wakes up the sleeping dogs and is more complicated than simply writing a check or automatically debiting an account.   It takes some sort of active participation every year and there is a decent chance your seats will be different from the year prior.  I bet this process is contributing to cancellations.

Is it a pain for many people?

From my chair, it couldn't be an easier process that has resulted in the same seats five years running.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Brewtown Andy on October 01, 2015, 10:21:27 AM
Here are some comparable attendance numbers:

Nova-9,639
G'town-9,630
St. John's-7,463
Seton Hall-7,587

MU may see a reduction in tickets sold, and fannies in seats, over the next few year, as we move closer to these peer institutions.  However, the new venue will make it look and feel more like a MU in the 70s/80s MECCA experience and less like a All-State Arena-De Paul experience.

Nova and St. John's attendance numbers don't tell the full story on their attendance.  Given their games in the Pavilion and Carnesecca Arena respectively, their average is much lower than it would be if they played every game at Wells Fargo or MSG.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Brewtown Andy on October 01, 2015, 10:25:34 AM
The whole upper vs. lower bowl debate will be moot when the new arena is built.  It will have 3 levels, and they'll tarp off/close/darken the 3rd deck for most MU games.  Likely 10K in the lowest level, 4K in the 2nd, and another 2-3K in the top.  For the MU game that draws 12-14K, it will be ideal.

The projected seating capacity is 16,500.

Marquette averaged 14,318 paid in the Bradley Center last season.

I don't think anything is getting tarped off.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: bradley center bat on October 01, 2015, 11:14:32 AM
The whole upper vs. lower bowl debate will be moot when the new arena is built.  It will have 3 levels, and they'll tarp off/close/darken the 3rd deck for most MU games.  Likely 10K in the lowest level, 4K in the 2nd, and another 2-3K in the top.  For the MU game that draws 12-14K, it will be ideal.

The projected seating capacity is 16,500.

How do we know the new arena will be three decks? There has not been a design out.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Warrior of Law on October 01, 2015, 01:14:53 PM
We don't know if it will have 3 decks, but every full-size arena built in last 20 years (including the Kohl Center) has more than 2 levels. I would envision the arena to look a lot like Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.  Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland technically has only 2 levels, but the 1st level has depressed courtside seats, so it looks like 3 tiers.  The Sprint Center in Kansas City may be the most likely model, however.  That venue has a large lower bowl, with balcony-type mezzanine seating, and a small upper deck.  Of course, Sprint sits 18,000+ and accommodates hockey.

The Bucks undoubtedly have the best minds and designers working on it and I'm sure they seen every new arena in North America.  Keeping hockey out is the real interesting dynamic.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: vacinator on October 01, 2015, 11:55:46 PM
Is it a pain for many people?

From my chair, it couldn't be an easier process that has resulted in the same seats five years running.

Not everyone views the world from your chair.  The process forces the customer to spend more time revisiting the renewal decision.  From a pure business perspective the less attention that decision gets the better.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: avid1010 on October 02, 2015, 05:52:45 AM
Not everyone views the world from your chair.  The process forces the customer to spend more time revisiting the renewal decision.  From a pure business perspective the less attention that decision gets the better.

Exactly...
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: MU82 on October 02, 2015, 06:57:52 AM
I'm very troubled by all the calm and reasoned explanations.

I was counting on Hiroshima XII (or whatever number we're up to).
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: GGGG on October 02, 2015, 08:52:04 AM
We don't know if it will have 3 decks, but every full-size arena built in last 20 years (including the Kohl Center) has more than 2 levels. I would envision the arena to look a lot like Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.  Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland technically has only 2 levels, but the 1st level has depressed courtside seats, so it looks like 3 tiers.  The Sprint Center in Kansas City may be the most likely model, however.  That venue has a large lower bowl, with balcony-type mezzanine seating, and a small upper deck.  Of course, Sprint sits 18,000+ and accommodates hockey.

The Bucks undoubtedly have the best minds and designers working on it and I'm sure they seen every new arena in North America.  Keeping hockey out is the real interesting dynamic.



While the new arena will undoubtedly have seating that primarily benefits basketball, it has to be built big enough to accommodate hockey right?  Even if that means movable seating.  And not because it will necessarily be hosting hockey games, but because it just makes sense to be as accommodating as possible.

From a seating perspective, I expect this new arena to be awesome.  I have said this before, but the Kohl Center seating for basketball is 100 times better than the BC.  I imagine 15 years later than an NBA arena can do much better than the Kohl.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: warriorchick on October 02, 2015, 09:05:59 AM
Not everyone views the world from your chair.  The process forces the customer to spend more time revisiting the renewal decision.  From a pure business perspective the less attention that decision gets the better.

This is true, but you still won't be able to convince me that the number of season ticketholders who  didn't buy them this year because of reseating is statistically significant. In the past, you still had to confirm in some official way that you intend to buy tickets again and give them your billing information, even if it wasn't a reseating year.  It's not a gym membership.

You are talking about folks that have spent hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars per year on tickets, have a closet full of gold sweater vests, and have stuck with Marquette through some pretty crappy seasons.  The folks in the cheaper seats are typically younger, wouldn't be intimidated by the process, and don't have enough points for reseating to make a significant difference in where they end up sitting.

Besides, anyone who doesn't want to go through the hassle of doing the reseating online can have the ticket office do it for them.  It's one phone call.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: bradley center bat on October 02, 2015, 09:15:30 AM


While the new arena will undoubtedly have seating that primarily benefits basketball, it has to be built big enough to accommodate hockey right?  Even if that means movable seating.  And not because it will necessarily be hosting hockey games, but because it just makes sense to be as accommodating as possible.


The new downtown arena will not have hockey.
Admirals will be moving to UWM Panther Arena.
http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/blog/2015/07/admirals-hockey-teampreparing-for-move-to-uw.html
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: Golden Avalanche on October 02, 2015, 09:45:14 AM
Not everyone views the world from your chair.  The process forces the customer to spend more time revisiting the renewal decision.  From a pure business perspective the less attention that decision gets the better.

The process has always forced the customer to revisit a renewal. However, in 2015, it's done in the manner of a mindless opinion survey on a website rather then a dust collecting paper letter sitting under 14 other letters on my desk.

The ticket office holds your hand throughout whether it's online, in person, or on the phone. The process spent on deciding to renew your tickets in 2015 takes less time than waiting at the hostess stand for a Saturday night dinner at Chez Douche.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: GGGG on October 02, 2015, 10:13:13 AM
The new downtown arena will not have hockey.
Admirals will be moving to UWM Panther Arena.
http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/blog/2015/07/admirals-hockey-teampreparing-for-move-to-uw.html


Thank you.  I didn't state this well.  I know that the new arena won't have a hockey tenant, but I think they are still going to build something big enough that can accommodate hockey.  I would think that the bigger arena would be important for special events that need a larger space.  (Circus, concerts, ice shows, etc.) 

I'll give you an example.  Arco arena in Sacramento for years was considered to have some of the best basketball seating in the NBA.  Very loud and close to the floor.  It can still accommodate a hockey ice sheet when it is needed.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: jsglow on October 02, 2015, 10:45:54 AM

Thank you.  I didn't state this well.  I know that the new arena won't have a hockey tenant, but I think they are still going to build something big enough that can accommodate hockey.  I would think that the bigger arena would be important for special events that need a larger space.  (Circus, concerts, ice shows, etc.) 

I'll give you an example.  Arco arena in Sacramento for years was considered to have some of the best basketball seating in the NBA.  Very loud and close to the floor.  It can still accommodate a hockey ice sheet when it is needed.

I have read that they do plan to purchase ice making equipment.  While it certainly seems true that the Admirals are going back to the Arena AND that the new facility will be built with basketball exclusively in mind, the ability to put in ice for ice shows, maybe an NCAA hockey event, etc. makes sense.  Still, with the Admirals moving I think we can all be convinced that it'll be a basketball palace, not the NHL facility envisioned by the Pettits. 
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: bradley center bat on October 02, 2015, 11:58:58 AM

Thank you.  I didn't state this well.  I know that the new arena won't have a hockey tenant, but I think they are still going to build something big enough that can accommodate hockey.  I would think that the bigger arena would be important for special events that need a larger space.  (Circus, concerts, ice shows, etc.) 

I'll give you an example.  Arco arena in Sacramento for years was considered to have some of the best basketball seating in the NBA.  Very loud and close to the floor.  It can still accommodate a hockey ice sheet when it is needed.
I'm with you. I know Disney on Ice can bring it's own ice and the size is not needed for a whole hockey rink for ice shows.
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: GGGG on October 02, 2015, 08:41:18 PM
I'm with you. I know Disney on Ice can bring it's own ice and the size is not needed for a whole hockey rink for ice shows.


Hold on...they bring their own ice?
Title: Re: Ticket sales seem to be way down...
Post by: rocky_warrior on October 02, 2015, 08:47:39 PM

Hold on...they bring their own ice?

Of course. And in typical Disney fashion they haul it by horse over a magical ice road.

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Hauling_cut_ice_on_horse_drawn_sled_-_NARA_-_285734.jpg/1024px-Hauling_cut_ice_on_horse_drawn_sled_-_NARA_-_285734.jpg)