Glen Gower’s blog has a great new piece about the Wrigley Field scoreboard (GGower Blog)….which also cites an article on SI.com.

He makes a great point about the nod to tradition and the fact that Bill Veeck was the one who installed the then “forward-thinking” manual scoreboard. He notes that Veeck would likely put in a video scoreboard, a comment Veeck’s son agrees with.

Veeck was innovative and passionate about fan expericence, so I would only disagree on one point. Veeck wouldn’t put in a video board now….he would have done it years ago. In fact it would probably be in HD format with a stage extending out of it and the whole thing would be rigged for pyro.

As noted by Gower, if you want to learn about sports entertainment you can’t go wrong with any book by Bill Veeck….or for that matter any book by Mike Veeck (like Fun is Good).

–Cudo

It may be hard to see, but its been a busy month at Gameops.com.  In addition to the office move we’ve been busy working on some back-end functions of the site and cleaning up some older pages.

First a couple parts that you can see:  The Act White Pages have been cleaned up, which is a list of over 100 national touring acts.  Some of the acts have additional information, and all of them have a contact phone number.  Its a great place to start your search for entertainment acts.

We did the same clean-up on the Vendor White Pages.  Find the right service provider and their contact numbers.

We also have been working on several new updates that are not quite finished yet.  Most notably the navigation has been re-thought.  We have changed the general labels (like “Spotlights”) which don’t mean much to new visitors…and tried to make sections that are a little more clear.  The finished product is probably a few weeks away, but its been good progress.

The blog has been updated too, stopping the mass of spam commenting (I won’t go off on how lame that whole concept is).  We tried to fix the message board too, to limit spam…but as of right now that has created some other problems logging on.  For all the successful add-ons we have put on Gameops.com, I have to admit that the message board continues to be one that is hard to get right.

With all of these wonderful updates I wish I could share the pending updates for July…but as of today, the July content is a bit up in the air. 

…but stay tuned, I am sure it will be, um, memorable.

-cudo

From 1964 to 1981, the Sign Man, dressed in a blue shirt and a black derby emblazoned with a Mets logo, responded on cue to much of the drama played out between the white lines.

This weekend The New York Times featured a story on “The Signman”, a fixture at Mets’ games for nearly 20 years at the start of the franchise, so much so that he was invited on the team charter and team functions.

Later the team soured on his uncensored impromptu signs and he stopped coming.  Under new management the team invited him back in 2002.

I have this to say about that:

I love the organically grown fan traditions and the characters at the game that are pure fans.  It the most genuine honest expressions of the event.  Every team should welcome and encourage fans to honestly express themselves and highlight these in their show.  it shows fans that it’s not only okay to get wrapped up in the emotion, but that it’s encouraged.

I can name a dozen fan inspired events across the country, each is positive and entertaining…each organic.  If you can’t name your own, you should not only be asking “where are our great crazy fans“, but “what can we do as a team to encourage and highlight those fans“?

-Cudo

I had an interesting conversation with a former minor league hockey executive this week.  In it he outlined three ways to build a team.

1. Start by selling tickets…the larger crowds will attract sponsors.
2. Start by selling to sponsors…adding programs around the sponsor, and that added value will attract more fans.
3. Start with entertainment…make the show the most entertaining it can be, which will draw fans and sponsors.

Clearly if you read Gameops.com you probably know where I would fall on this.  However, I don’t think the answer is #3. 

I don’t think success can be found by focusing on any one of these, it has to be a blend with focus on the overall product. 

There are a lot of teams who produce a entertaining product, but neglect #1 (tickets) and #2 (sponsors).  My local example is the Cleveland Barons.  After attending a game a couple years ago, I met with the Game Director afterwards.  He asked me what I thought of the show.  Actually I liked almost everything they did….but I couldn’t answer.  With so few fans in the building (they drew under 1000 on some nights) it was impossible to gauge if the show was “good”, since it failed to create any energy in the empty venue.

They had produced a great show (and did all year)…but very few people saw it.  The team recently left the market after failing to catch on with local fans.

Which brings me back to #3.  Creating a great show in the absence of successful ticket sales or sponsor support doesn’t always create a success story.

This shouldn’t be a reason not to create the best show you can, rather a reason to make sure your team is supporting the efforts of all three departments.  It’s also a good starting point when you build your next promotional night….does your promotion speak to all three, selling more tickets, providing a sponsor connection, and creating an entertaining event?

-Cudo

Not that anyone was checking….until now.

The Hagerstown Suns will be celebrating the 100th birthday of the hot dog at their June 8 game. As part of the birthday bash, hot dogs will be a $1 throughout the game, there will be a hot dog eating contest, “Happy Birthday” will be sung to the hot dog, and the first pitch will be thrown out by the Esskay Hot Dog Man. Plus, the fan that finds a gold ticket in their hot dog wrapper will win free hot dogs for the rest of the season. (team PR)

The team seemed to admit in their promotional information that the date may be disputed, with a quick check I found this:

The American story of the invention of the hot dog, like the hamburger and ice cream cone, is often attributed to the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri. However, similar sausages were made and consumed in Europe, particularly in Germany, as early as 1864. The hot dog’s association with baseball also predates the 1904 Exposition. St. Louis Browns owner Chris von der Ahe sold them at his ballpark in the 1880s. (wikipedia)

Whoops.

Actually I think this is all in good fun, but I think the team should have had a silent prize to the first person who uncovered their ficticious date (like me) and given them a ride in the Oscar Meyer Weinermobile (since I have long dreamed of that).

Maybe I will follow the (male) LA Angel’s fan who, because he didn’t get a Mother’s day gift bag, sued the team. 

Hagerstown Suns…you have been warned!

-Cudo

PS:  Of course, I jest…this is a fun promotion.  Just like I like my dogs….well done.

Did you like this promotion?  Comment here or Vote on the Message Boards.

This from NYTimes/AP on Sunday (6/4), Fans Feeling the Pressure While Sitting in the Stands.

But when Dallas Mavericks games get close, as they often have in this season’s playoffs, Maria Malone throws up into her souvenir cup.

“It’s this total feeling like I don’t know what’s going to happen and I know what I want to happen and there’s nothing I can do about it,” said Malone, who gets sick whether she is watching at home or at courtside. “Each time I tell myself I’m O.K. and it’s not going to happen.”

First of all, I would not want to have season tickets next to Ms. Malone. 

Aside from that, I wondered if there might be some premium giveaway potential here.  How about Airline Sickeness Bag night?  Those bags are ripe for sponsor logos, the sponsorship is obvious (Dramamine, travel agencies, or airlines), and for people like Ms. Malone this is more useful than a megaphone or inflatable noise maker (although maybe equally as useful as a rally towel).

Neccesity is the mother of invention….but this probably isn’t what Plato had in mind.

If anyone uses this…I want royalties.

-Cudo