TICKET SALES IN MLBA comparison of the selling practices and strategies between large market

teams and small markets teams.

Joseph Nachinson

Vs.

Team Valuations

  White Sox PiratesValue ($) $443M $292M

Revenue ($) $193M $139M

Oper. Income ($) $30.6M $17.6M

Player Expenses ($) $108M $61M

Gate Receipts ($) $72M $29M

Avg Ticket Price ($) $29 $17

*Source: forbes.com, numbers published April 2008

$43M Gap

$54M Gap

Gate Receipts (tickets sold) represents 37% of Sox revenue vs. 20% of Pirates revenue

Season tickets represents majority of Gate Receipts

Pirates receive $$ from MLB Revenue Sharing…rumored to be around $30-$40M Overall selling strategies determined from Gate Receipts, Revenue Sharing, Ticket Prices, etc

Selling Baseball Tickets

Selling entertainment (81 times a year) Competition from numerous sports and non-

sports venues Business Strategy Marketing Strategy Sales force implements strategy through

organization’s core business philosophy Revenue from 3 main sources

Ticket sales (season tickets, group tickets, individual game tickets) 

Sponsorship sales TV and Radio rights (local and national)

White Sox Strategy

“The more you discount, the more you take away from the value of the season ticket.” “If you erode your season ticket base, you are in trouble.”  

Core Sales Strategy

Chicago competitive landscape: Chicago Cubs, Concert & Music Scene, Neighborhood Festivals, Outdoor Recreation/Lake Activities, Amusement Parks, etc

Differentiation Strategy High Profit and High Volume Sales staff

Sales personnel make high salary and low commission (1-2%) Core Philosophy build brand loyalty through long term relationships

Extra individual game tickets to season tix holders (reduced price)

Playoff ticket guarantees Special Perks: X-mas party invite, Sox Charity Golf Outing,

Discounted Parking, Free entry to stadium club lounge/restaurant

Pirates Strategy

“Knock on all Doors”…reach as many people as possible through Go-To-Market technique . Target numerous customers over the year with varying sales and marketing techniques based on price discounts.

Core Sales Strategy

Operating Landscape: “Small Market” team with typically lower attendance, lower morale & support, low payroll.

Low Cost Strategy Sales staff with high degree of turnover, 4 Vice Presidents of Sales in

6 years Sales personnel make low salary, but high commission & bonus Sales staff focus on transactional relationships; use cold calling, tele-marketing Core Philosophy focus on selling low cost and “bang for the buck”

Reduced prices for season, individual, and group tickets Sell on entertainment experience; baseball game, concert,

fireworks, etc Large corporate accounts “coddled” and receive usual perks