Written By: Tracy Fuller
The rising costs of attending a sporting event have increased little by little over the years and the main reason that is, is because sport organizations want to increase revenue.
Increasing ticket prices has the quickest turnaround for increasing revenue. For instance, as the fan base of the Undefeated Carolina Panthers who play at Nissan Stadium continues to grow, so do the popularity and the demand of that particular team. Moreover, if the team is on a winning streak, especially an undefeated streak or is experiencing unbelievable trades or extending contracts of their best players, the demand of the sport and team will also increase creating more revenue. As this team continues to grow in captivating an audience, so does the price to see the team play. Typically, any fan can see their favorite team play for a reasonable price, however the better quality of the seat(s) will also play a valuable factor in the increase of ticket prices. Location and opponents of a fans’ favorite team can also provide influence in such cases.
Those affected by this issue of rising costs of attending sporting events is the sport organization itself as well as the consumers. Sure, raising ticket prices will help increase revenue for the organization, however the long term effects of doing so can damper the overall increase of revenue. When doing this, the light to moderate users of this sport product will not usually notice a change in ticket prices and will continue to attend the games sparingly. Nevertheless, the heavy users of this sport product will notice a change and will have to evaluate whether or not attending a baseball game on a regular basis might have to turn into something that happens on occasion. In theory over time, there might only be a slight increase of revenue however there will be a decrease in the relationship between the consumer and sport organization. Moreover, no consumer wants to pay more for something when they do not have too. Only the consumers will determine if there is a benefit in continuing to use this sport product.
Sport managers that have to decide whether or not to increase admission at sporting events are not an easy task. When altering such a deciding factor of whether or not a consumer can attend a game can be problematic. No sport manager wants to weaken the relationship between the sport organization and the consumer. Furthermore, by changing ticket prices, you risk doing that. The best way to lighten the idea of “higher ticket prices” is to offer the consumer some type of incentive. Moreover, create discounted ticket prices when multiple games are purchased or even discount ticket prices when a certain quantity is purchased, such as group rates. Even considering a ticket package deal consisting of merchandise or concession stand discounts. Nevertheless, when increasing admission prices, a solution needs to be created if problems with the sport organization and consumer relationship get affected. So before any sport organization attempts another increase in ticket prices, a crisis management plan needs to be designed for such unforeseen events that could potential affect the consumer and sport organization relationship.
