Ticket/Attendance Discussion: The Sequel

[Cotton Eye Joe]

Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa are all around 1.5 M in their metro’s, Winnipegs 850K can’t compete when 1/2 the people living here can’t even afford to pay attention!

Bottom line, the NHL and True Norf have priced themselves right out of this market!

Exactly.
Too pricy for me to attend many games.
By the time I drive in from a couple hours out of town, pay my gas, parking, food, drink and tickets I am pushing $500 for decent seats.

 

[Cotton Eye Joe]

1) pathetic effort in game 5 vs Vegas
2) chipman and Chevy failed here as most the team quit trying in an elimination playoff game. Coach was so embarrassed by teams lack of effort he scolded them via the media right after said "game". Coach then took back his comments because the players biatched about being blasted for their total lack of effort... Whether coach said it to the team or to the team thru press he was right. The team quit, so to your point chipman and Chevy failed. And judging by this thread the jets have failed to improve game day experience so let's say Chipmans o Fer two here
3)didn't look like the players put in the effort and try their best against, a hated rival that would've been nice to at least TRY HARD against

Well said.
I believe I large number of fans saw the "quit" in this group last spring and aren't ready to shell out alot of money to support a bunch of quitters.

 

[Jets4Life]

Winnipeg fans for all sports are very fair weather.
Bombers didn’t draw flies for years.
Jets had a few boring years and now the economy for some has made games a luxury purchase.
So the perfect storm.
There are several NFL stadiums playing to less than capacity also.

This is not even remotely close to being true. Winnipeg is a great sports city, as we more than carry our weight in terms of spending on entertainment. Fair weather fans??? The Bombers ahve always drawn well, even when the product stunk. If the corporate support was like some larger cities, the team would likely be averaging 15,000 people a game.

 

[MelikeJets]

I keep hearing about how people can't even give their tickets away. Just letting you know that I'll take them.....
On a serious note if we lose the Jets (again) it will be a sad sad day. Losing them the first time was a gut punch that I never recovered from until they came back.

 

[DRW204]

Friesen: Jets players have noticed feeble Winnipeg crowds

The Winnipeg Jets' latest ticket marketing blitz has failed. Called Forever Winnipeg, it's been more like Whatever, Winnipeg. Read more.

winnipegsun.com

 

[Jets4Life]

its not really a lie if your looking historically. there is an ebb and flow to the bombers historical average of attendance. Between 85 and 2011 there has been some deeper valleys but people still go. I guess it depends what the posters definition of attracting flies are lol.

Winnipeg All-Time Attendance on CFLdb Statistics

All-time attendance analysis for the Winnipeg.

stats.cfldb.ca

Did you ever bother looking at Bombers attendance in comparison to other CFL markets for the past 35 years? We nearly always finish ahead of Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, Montreal, and (with the exception of 2004-09), BC. The only CFL clubs that have drawn better than us historically are Edmonton and Calgary, with Saskatchewan averaging roughly the same amount of fans.

The only time that Bombers drew below 24,000 fans on average was 1997-99 (aka The Reinbold years).

 

[Gm0ney]

Again, it's not affordability that's the issue, it's the value - it's the bang for the buck. The city was 100k smaller in 2011 and 13k multi-year season ticket commitments sold out in 2 minutes and there was a waiting list 8000 long. The team squandered all that. They somehow didn't realize it wasn't 2011 anymore until, when, 2020? It's mind boggling how they blew it. Can they win the fans back? We'll see.

 

[WpgSteve]

Lower the ticket prices and win games will solve the attendance problems.

I think we've reached the point in the franchise where we are no longer a cap team every year.

You can buy decent seats for $30. I don't think the price is the problem.

 

[DannyGallivan]

You can buy decent seats for $30. I don't think the price is the problem.

Please elaborate.

 

[cbcwpg]

You can buy decent seats for $30. I don't think the price is the problem.

No STH is paying $30 for their seats. Those $30 tickets don't exist without season ticket holders because they only exist because a STH decided they couldn't attend a game, and wants to get something for them.

Seats are not cheap. Price is definitely one of the problems.

2011 Prices ranged from $39 ($1,599 41 games) to $129 ($5,289 41 games )

2023 Prices ranged from $59 ($2,419 41 games) to $185 ($7,585 41 games) *not counting special seats

 

[nobody imp0rtant]

View attachment 754450

I was just kiddin', @snowkiddin

 

[WpgSteve]

Please elaborate.

Wait until game day and go to Fans First (ticket resale site). There are usually decent tickets that cheap available. You might have to pay a bit more ($40 to $50) for a weekend game.

I get that seasons ticket holders pay more. I'm just pointing out people can go to games for cheap. They still arent going. Therefore the cost isn't the issue.

 

[snowkiddin]

I was just kiddin', @snowkiddin

Was that a custom made meme? I’ve never seen that one before

 

[nobody imp0rtant]

Was that a custom made meme? I’ve never seen that one before

Yep, just Google soup nazi meme generator. Type in what you want, use your snip tool and paste.

 

[snowkiddin]

Yep, just Google soup nazi meme generator. Type in what you want, use your snip tool and paste.

That’s perfect. Even though the show ended before I was born, I do enjoy a good Seinfeld reference.

 

[Gm0ney]

No STH is paying $30 for their seats. Those $30 tickets don't exist without season ticket holders because they only exist because a STH decided they couldn't attend a game, and wants to get something for them.

Seats are not cheap. Price is definitely one of the problems.

2011 Prices ranged from $39 ($1,599 41 games) to $129 ($5,289 41 games )

2023 Prices ranged from $59 ($2,419 41 games) to $185 ($7,585 41 games) *not counting special seats

That's not far off from inflation.

$39 in 2011 would be $51 today (vs $59).

$129 in 2011 would be $170 today (vs $185).

Seats were never cheap, and yet fans were lined up in 2011. It's not the money.

 

[DannyGallivan]

Wait until game day and go to Fans First (ticket resale site). There are usually decent tickets that cheap available. You might have to pay a bit more ($40 to $50) for a weekend game.

I get that seasons ticket holders pay more. I'm just pointing out people can go to games for cheap. They still arent going. Therefore the cost isn't the issue.

…Or Fan First needs to advertise better.

 

[ps241]

This is not even remotely close to being true. Winnipeg is a great sports city, as we more than carry our weight in terms of spending on entertainment. Fair weather fans??? The Bombers ahve always drawn well, even when the product stunk. If the corporate support was like some larger cities, the team would likely be averaging 15,000 people a game.

I heard Mark comment on the corporate support I can say most business ownwers I know are part of season ticket groups. Those owners have attended Jets Games in force especially in the first run up to Covid. I assume Mark must mean something above the level of business owners and he might mean larger businesses?

Times are harder all around and companies have had to tighten their belt too. One of the first things to go are luxury items (season ticket packages) I know there is lots of fractional ownership even in the luxury boxes by large businesses. This season I will be back to buying more tickets but it won’t show up as business owner.

I think Mark needs to be careful about his sales strategy because guilt, singling out groups, veiled threats, might have the opposite effect of what he is hoping for. It makes it sound like some customers are to blame for not buying the product. That’s not how business works, demand is a very complex topic and challenge for a business owner, but one thing is true , when demand drops its not the customers fault.

 

[Jet]

Wait until game day and go to Fans First (ticket resale site). There are usually decent tickets that cheap available. You might have to pay a bit more ($40 to $50) for a weekend game.

I get that seasons ticket holders pay more. I'm just pointing out people can go to games for cheap. They still arent going. Therefore the cost isn't the issue.

Seems a bit ignorant to say that paying $30 for a ticket plus gas plus parking plus any food or bev isn't expensive. You might be out of touch with how the average middle classer is struggling right now.

If you think of a family of 4 you're looking at hundreds of dollars for a 2.5 hour event.

A lot of people just don't have that disposable income right now.

I don't think it's the only issue but it absolutely is a problem.

 

[DRW204]

That's not far off from inflation.

$39 in 2011 would be $51 today (vs $59).

$129 in 2011 would be $170 today (vs $185).

Seats were never cheap, and yet fans were lined up in 2011. It's not the money.

Include the comparison with gas prices, groceries, rent etc.
Then compare wages.

How many dollars are left over?

 

[Jet]

I heard Mark comment on the corporate support I can say most business ownwers I know are part of season ticket groups. Those owners have attended Jets Games in force especially in the first run up to Covid. I assume Mark must mean something above the level of business owners and he might mean larger businesses?

Times are harder all around and companies have had to tighten their belt too. One of the first things to go are luxury items (season ticket packages) I know there is lots of fractional ownership even in the luxury boxes by large businesses. This season I will be back to buying more tickets but it won’t show up as business owner.

I think Mark needs to be careful about his sales strategy because guilt, singling out groups, veiled threats, might have the opposite effect of what he is hoping for. It makes it sound like some customers are to blame for not buying the product. That’s not how business works, demand is a very complex topic and challenge for a business owner, but one thing is true , when demand drops its not the customers fault.

Yup, I think the org is coming to grips with having to sell the product for the first time since the team arrived.

I feel like they miscalculated and thought they could weather the pandemic and everything would be fine but they're really going to have to build out their sales team and hit the corporate pavement.

I don't think it's a gloomy as some are saying here, the one thing TN has done is built some gate insurance into their business model. The good news is once they figure out how to get the building back to capacity they'll have all that revenue back - and they still have investments that will add to their bottom line once they come on line

 

[Jet]

That's not far off from inflation.

$39 in 2011 would be $51 today (vs $59).

$129 in 2011 would be $170 today (vs $185).

Seats were never cheap, and yet fans were lined up in 2011. It's not the money.

But you know this isn't in a vacuum. The inflation adjusted salary I make today doesn't go nearly as far as it did in 11. You can't really use inflation numbers because they don't accurately reflect true cost of living today vs. then.

 

[CorgisPer60]

When you build your brand on the organic growth of passionate fans, then stifle it to make it as blase as possible, casually threaten them with relocation if they don't start buying tickets, throw a pandemic and insane inflation on top, you get outcomes like last game. If $50 is the difference between a full-tank of gas to get to work and go into a Jets game. I'm taking the gas every time. The Jets need to get some corporate buy in - this isn't the AHL anymore.

 

[Jets4Life]

I heard Mark comment on the corporate support I can say most business ownwers I know are part of season ticket groups. Those owners have attended Jets Games in force especially in the first run up to Covid. I assume Mark must mean something above the level of business owners and he might mean larger businesses?

In most NHL cities, the seats are gobbled up by businesses or corporations. As many as 50% are taken by businesses in most markets. The Jets only have 15% of their tickets sold to businesses in the area, which is inadequate.

 

[Channelcat]

In most NHL cities, the seats are gobbled up by businesses or corporations. As many as 50% are taken by businesses in most markets. The Jets only have 15% of their tickets sold to businesses in the area, which is inadequate.

That is the main issue and TNSE certainly recognises it. A private citizen STH can see that the person beside them is just buying individual tickets for less than them and get upset. Corporate season ticket holders tend not to care.