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Increasing JAR Attendance/Engaging the Fans


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20 minutes ago, Reslife4Life said:

Well, I just checked the ticket website. All tickets for the rest of the season have gone up by $5. GA $15, Upper reserved $25, Lower reserved $35, Lower center reserved $55. It seems like the ticket office knows how good this team is now

So Groce wants more people to attend and the U raises the price of tickets.  How stupid is that?    

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13 minutes ago, 1981 grad said:

So Groce wants more people to attend and the U raises the price of tickets.  How stupid is that?    

Kind of strange to raise tickets prices during the season, but it might be that variable ticket pricing like a lot of professional teams do these days. Now we're in the thick of the MAC schedule and the holidays are over ticket prices are raised. My 6 game mini plan tickets were only $25 each, so I'm saving even more money now. 😉

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36 minutes ago, Reslife4Life said:

The upper reserved section at $25 now just seems way overpriced. The first 3 or 4 rows have the railing in the way of the view. It always seems like a very sparse crowd in those seats

To my knowledge they typically don't sell those row 1-2 seats. Unless it is a Kent game. They're used by older people who have seats elsewhere but can't/won't walk up higher, or those who just prefer them.  

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I actually thought GA for $15 was the normal price in previous years. They probably discounted them for winter break and OOC play. It's why in prior years I just bought season tickets. At $4 a ticket it's cheaper than going to a high school game. The breakeven is literally attending 4 home games.

Edited by kreed5120
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11 minutes ago, LZIp said:

Agree with @kreed5120 . GA tickets have fluctuated between $10-15 for literally as long as I can remember..


Akron athletics may be one of the single remaining entertainment entities, aside from the parking situation (which does suck), to ride out inflation without getting out of hand in this area. You could take a family of four to every Zips basketball game in a season and get some concessions for the same price as maybe attending a single Blossom Live Nation concert and sitting with the drunks and psychos up on the lawn. Throw in matching T-shirts, 4 beers for the adults and some sodas for the kids and you’re tacking on an extra $200 or so, probably more. 
 

Minor league baseball is not a comp and will never be a comp. College basketball is played during the worst weather months of the year indoors, not outdoors May-August when it’s gorgeous 85% of the time. 
 

Of all things Akron has done wrong over the years, and Lord knows it’s been plenty, ticket pricing doesn’t sniff the medal stand. 

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5 hours ago, 1981 grad said:

So Groce wants more people to attend and the U raises the price of tickets.  How stupid is that?    

To be upset with the price of tickets, one would have to know the original price of the tickets. I don't think people are paying that close attention. 

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Years ago, I would argue about the price of tickets assuming it was a supply and demand issue.  I was wrong. Akron doesn't have a ticket price problem. People aren't going to the games because of $7.00, $10.00 or $15.00 GA tickets. 

 

They need to sell hundreds of tickets, probably thousands. Thousands people aren't staying home because of the price of tickets. 

 

Bigger problems revolve around but are not limited to weather, start times and past game day experiences.

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4 minutes ago, GP1 said:

Akron doesn't have a ticket price problem. People aren't going to the games because of $7.00, $10.00 or $15.00 GA tickets. 

I do not have season tickets.  When I want to take my son to a game, we go when our schedules permit.  I don't decide the game/date by seeing if the GA ticket is $10 vs. $15.  The price difference doesn't matter - we go when we want to.  The U needs to figure out what needs to be done so Joe Akron wants to go to the game.  If Joe Akron wants to go, $10 vs $15 doesn't really matter.

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11 minutes ago, zipsrule said:

I do not have season tickets.  When I want to take my son to a game, we go when our schedules permit.  I don't decide the game/date by seeing if the GA ticket is $10 vs. $15.  The price difference doesn't matter - we go when we want to.  The U needs to figure out what needs to be done so Joe Akron wants to go to the game.  If Joe Akron wants to go, $10 vs $15 doesn't really matter.

Good post. 

 

Many times kids want to go but to isn't practical. For example, is it practical or reasonable to take a elementary or middle school child to a basketball game starting at 9 PM on Friday night?  If course not. For many kids that age is isn't reasonable to expect them to stay awake past halftime while watching a game that late on Friday night. 

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The biggest pricing issue for the UofA is their apparel. The goal needs to be do get the "A", Zippy, Roo, "Akron", "Zips", etc., onto as many bodies as possible. $30 for their shirts, $40-50 for their sweatshirts/pullovers/polos - ridiculous prices for a college that has to compete with every knock off company making stuff for Ohio State and selling it for $10-20. Apparel is how you create excitement/attachment.

Edited by Let'sGoZips94
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50 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

The biggest pricing issue for the UofA is their apparel. The goal needs to be do get the "A", Zippy, Roo, "Akron", "Zips", etc., onto as many bodies as possible. $30 for their shirts, $40-50 for their sweatshirts/pullovers/polos - ridiculous prices for a college that has to compete with every knock off company making stuff for Ohio State and selling it for $10-20. Attire is how you create excitement/attachment.

If anyone hasn’t seen the zips gear thread this week. The Salvation Army on Brittain road has tons of new UA gear with tags. $5 T-shirts, $10 sweatshirts

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14 hours ago, GP1 said:

Years ago, I would argue about the price of tickets assuming it was a supply and demand issue.  I was wrong. Akron doesn't have a ticket price problem. People aren't going to the games because of $7.00, $10.00 or $15.00 GA tickets. 

 

They need to sell hundreds of tickets, probably thousands. Thousands people aren't staying home because of the price of tickets. 

 

Bigger problems revolve around but are not limited to weather, start times and past game day experiences.

 

This is just it. Students can get in for free and how many do? If someone cares enough about going to a game, they'll go regardless of a few bucks. Same goes with start times and weather. If you really care, you'll find a way to make it happen. 

 

People in NE Ohio only care about Cleveland sports and the Buckeyes. To them, Akron sports are on the same level as high schools. They don't appreciate what it's like to have a successful D-1 program right in town. 

 

The JAR is a dumb and a major problem. But that problem is never going away unless people start showing that they care. 

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2 hours ago, akzipper said:

 

 

This is just it. Students can get in for free and how many do? If someone cares enough about going to a game, they'll go regardless of a few bucks. Same goes with start times and weather. If you really care, you'll find a way to make it happen. 

 

People in NE Ohio only care about Cleveland sports and the Buckeyes. To them, Akron sports are on the same level as high schools. They don't appreciate what it's like to have a successful D-1 program right in town. 

 

The JAR is a dumb and a major problem. But that problem is never going away unless people start showing that they care. 

 

I feel for some it's just easier for them to make excuses for why people aren't coming than just admit people aren't interested in Akron athletics. Akron needs to find a way to enhance the experience to make people want to show. There is no cost, outside of literally paying people to show up, that will pack the JAR on a nightly basis.

 

I feel northeast Ohio just doesn't care much about basketball. Just look at how terribly the Cavs were drawing before they drafted LeBron in 2003. There was literally rumblings that the team might move. Look at how poorly they were drawing when LeBron was in Miami. Look at how bad attendance was when he left for LA. I literally paid $15 for a lower bowl seat that had $5 preloaded.

 

Fans just started returning when the Cavs got good. Nobody around here even cares much about college basketball until March. This Is very much a football first area that are more fair weather fans when it comes to anything else. We just don't have that basketball culture of a Cincinnati, Indiana, Kentucky, etc.

Edited by kreed5120
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14 hours ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

The biggest pricing issue for the UofA is their apparel. The goal needs to be do get the "A", Zippy, Roo, "Akron", "Zips", etc., onto as many bodies as possible. $30 for their shirts, $40-50 for their sweatshirts/pullovers/polos - ridiculous prices for a college that has to compete with every knock off company making stuff for Ohio State and selling it for $10-20. Apparel is how you create excitement/attachment.

I've gotten by for years with mostly $15-18 caps and $20-25 long sleeve t-shirts from Walmart or the old Campus Book Supply store on Exchange that are still holding up. Walmart has almost nothing anymore and the book store on Exchange is no longer the same business. I'm curious about what ended up at the Salvation Army.

 

I agree the idea is to get the merchandise out there in as many places you can at different price points. We need exposure.

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I know a lot of this is the rehashing of old discussions, but frankly I forget.

 

What are the chances of Akron basketball alone leaving the MAC at some point? I know Northern Michigan is a D2 school for every sport except for their D1 hockey program. So it can be done. If we are going to be honest that the product and culture needs to keep improving to land more butts in the seats, then I would argue that the so-called MAC officiating I witnessed the other night is part of the problem. I have been around long enough to know this is not a few bad refs, it's what the MAC ultimately wants. Game management. And the end result is nearly unwatchable and the top teams in any given year are less likely to achieve an at-large bid. I don't understand the logic.

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3 minutes ago, Illini Zip said:

I know a lot of this is the rehashing of old discussions, but frankly I forget.

 

What are the chances of Akron basketball alone leaving the MAC at some point? I know Northern Michigan is a D2 school for every sport except for their D1 hockey program. So it can be done. If we are going to be honest that the product and culture needs to keep improving to land more butts in the seats, then I would argue that the so-called MAC officiating I witnessed the other night is part of the problem. I have been around long enough to know this is not a few bad refs, it's what the MAC ultimately wants. Game management. And the end result is nearly unwatchable and the top teams in any given year are less likely to achieve an at-large bid. I don't understand the logic.

 

Can you convince the Big Ten to take us? 😉

 

College athletics is moving towards a more a-la-carte system. The MAC does not sponsor at least two sports that a few of their full time member schools are some of the best programs in the nation - men's hockey and men's soccer. Unfortunately, we're not quite there when it comes to breaking up basketball programs from FBS football programs. I am looking forward to that day, but who knows when that will come. 

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3 minutes ago, Illini Zip said:

I know a lot of this is the rehashing of old discussions, but frankly I forget.

 

What are the chances of Akron basketball alone leaving the MAC at some point? I know Northern Michigan is a D2 school for every sport except for their D1 hockey program. So it can be done. If we are going to be honest that the product and culture needs to keep improving to land more butts in the seats, then I would argue that the so-called MAC officiating I witnessed the other night is part of the problem. I have been around long enough to know this is not a few bad refs, it's what the MAC ultimately wants. Game management. And the end result is nearly unwatchable and the top teams in any given year are less likely to achieve an at-large bid. I don't understand the logic.

 

The MAC is the right fit for Akron. FBS football limits Akron's ability to move anywhere. No conference would ever accept Akron as a football only member given the state of the program and going independent really isn't an option.

 

Also, refs aren't conference exclusive in college basketball like they are football. The same guys officiating an OSU-Indiana game on a Saturday are the ones who also officiate an Akron-Ball State game on a Tuesday.

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8 minutes ago, Illini Zip said:

I know a lot of this is the rehashing of old discussions, but frankly I forget.

 

What are the chances of Akron basketball alone leaving the MAC at some point? I know Northern Michigan is a D2 school for every sport except for their D1 hockey program. So it can be done. If we are going to be honest that the product and culture needs to keep improving to land more butts in the seats, then I would argue that the so-called MAC officiating I witnessed the other night is part of the problem. I have been around long enough to know this is not a few bad refs, it's what the MAC ultimately wants. Game management. And the end result is nearly unwatchable and the top teams in any given year are less likely to achieve an at-large bid. I don't understand the logic.

 

Pulling a UConn would be a dream. Join the Big East in every sport except football and just figure out somewhere for them to play. Getting out of the MAC would definitely draw in more interest. But that's never going to happen. 

 

Nobody cares about the MAC and it shows. Personally when I was at UA and knew the Zips would be playing someone like Balls, BG or a directional Michigan school I knew nobody was going to be at the game and none of my friends would be interested in going. We only went if there was literally nothing else going on that night. The ONLY time people actually cared is if we were playing Kent or Ohio.

 

The only reason any people tune into the weekday "MACtion" football games is because there's literally no other football being played on Tuesdays/Wednesdays. Yet the stands are always empty regardless, for every school. I've never once watched a MAC football or basketball game on TV unless the Zips are playing. 

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