Madgesdiq
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by Madgesdiq on Mar 3, 2006 11:58:59 GMT -5
Agreed. There currently is no coherent system, no transparency- that is a major problem here. But I think you miss my point, Dan. You can't market joining the HHC as a tickets thing. That clearly won't work- you chase away all lower-level donors. Also confusing. You market it as straight donation- with tickets possibility being an added benefit. We are going into a brave new world- this is not bad, but we have to change how we think of these things. It has to be straight donation, in the end.
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Post by FromTheBeginning on Mar 3, 2006 11:59:31 GMT -5
YB - I'm not saying people should not disagree with me or that I don't get your point - we just have a difference of opinion as to whether we are making a donation to the University or purchasing a ticket option. Should the HHC refund money if the team doesn't make the tournament? If the team doesn't make the tournament, should you still be required to exercise your priority right to buy those tickets? If its a contract it should have to work both ways. I know that probably sounds ridiculous but if it's a contract------
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YB
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by YB on Mar 3, 2006 12:02:14 GMT -5
I never said it was a contract. But the Ath Dept should not be marketing it primarily as a ticket thing anymore. It should be marketed as a donation- with some ticket benefits.
I know it's not a ticket contract or a guarantee. But that was NEVER made clear before now, the process is shrouded in secrecy- that's where the problem lies.
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SFHoya99
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
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Post by SFHoya99 on Mar 3, 2006 12:03:10 GMT -5
I wonder if the Hoop Club has ever done any market research to identify just who their donors really are in terms of what they want, and who their potential donors are?
The assumption in the organization seems to be that the vast majority of donors do it completely out of charity and the goodwill they feel in supporting the program.
To me, the fact that that the vast majority of members are in DC and not elsewhere seems to put a bit of a lie to that. It heavily implies that members are influenced by benefits -- seating priority and I'd bet, the inside access feeling.
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DanMcQ
Moderator
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Post by DanMcQ on Mar 3, 2006 12:05:46 GMT -5
You can't market joining the HHC as a tickets thing. That clearly won't work- you chase away all lower-level donors. Also confusing. You market it as straight donation- with tickets possibility being an added benefit. I think we're circling the same point. The marketing here may well be the culprit - as SF Hoya explains fairly cogently. My point is that while I agree you cannot market 'ticket access' as an enticement to get the lowest level donors to join, you also cannot take that access away as an enticement to those who might want to bump their donations precisely to achieve better access. For every FTB, there are likely 3 or 4 HHC members who might not make a donation directed to the basketball program without such perks. For people who live in the DC area, that means HHC seats. For those of us elsewhere, it means the ability to get decent seats to see the Hoyas when they're near our homes and to drop in to see the occasional home game with reasonable seats (better than those given to most SU fans for instance).
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hoyatables
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by hoyatables on Mar 3, 2006 13:39:05 GMT -5
HHC probably needs to also be more clear at how it works out ticketing for home games with the MCI Center.
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tgo
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
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Post by tgo on Mar 3, 2006 13:52:22 GMT -5
GU gets the same HHC tickets regardless of whether we make the BET, only the student sections are affected by our appearance in the tourny
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hoyatables
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by hoyatables on Mar 3, 2006 14:11:39 GMT -5
Yep--hence the reason why South Florida got its allotment of tickets and was offering them for face value plus a $1000 donation to their program. I guess $2000+price of 2 tickets is the going rate; come to think of it, Ebayers are selling at a discount :-P.
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Madgesdiq
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
Posts: 1,434
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Post by Madgesdiq on Mar 3, 2006 20:13:18 GMT -5
I have talked to each of the ticket office and Hoop Club with pretty satisfactory results.
1. The ticket office and Hoop Club indicated that they will coordinate in NYC, bring the Hoop Club list and make sure that IF there are extra or reallocated tickets, they get to Hoop Club members on the list or students that can present student IDs. Will this happen? Who knows. But at least they are constructing a game plan to deal with the usual unmitigated chaos at the Southgate.
2. Hoyas Unlimited got approximately 300 less tickets than they were expecting. They were caught off guard and "unprepared" as "this had never happened before" and are contacting other schools attempting to get as many tickets as possible to distribute to students and alum who were shut out. They definitely understand that Gold Hoya members expected to get tickets, and they expected to be able to provide them. Unlike DFW and FTB indicated above, there was a clear understanding from the two Hoyas Unlimited people I spoke to that a donation was not just a donation, rather a donation at a certain level meant that the donors should have expected to receive the option to purchase BE tickets. They are going take the offseason to review the ticket process and I would expect to see new guidelines next year. (earlier cut-off date, transparency as to how tickets are allocated with respect to donation level and donation history, etc.)
Overall, I am satisfied with the response I got from the ticket office and hoop club to the 'concerns' that I expressed.
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Bay99
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
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Post by Bay99 on Mar 3, 2006 21:15:16 GMT -5
Sounds like a good response to a difficult situation. Glad to hear it.
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hoyaboy1
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by hoyaboy1 on Mar 4, 2006 1:09:01 GMT -5
So if I'm a student who wants a ticket, I should just show up at the Southgate early Thursday?
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SirSaxa
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
Posts: 747
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Post by SirSaxa on Mar 6, 2006 14:56:45 GMT -5
This is NYC. We are about 30 minutes from Connecticut -- the state, not the University. There are ALWAYS a TON of UCONN fans at the BET.
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Madgesdiq
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by Madgesdiq on Mar 6, 2006 16:36:41 GMT -5
Update.
Just received a call from the Ticket Office with an offer to buy two tickets to the Day Session on Wednesday.
I'm there!
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DFW HOYA
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
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Post by DFW HOYA on Mar 6, 2006 16:59:17 GMT -5
Just received a call from the Ticket Office with an offer to buy two tickets to the Day Session on Wednesday. I'm there! Good to hear. Hope more HHC people can also get tickets.
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Hank Scorpio
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
You're gonna die now!
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Post by Hank Scorpio on Mar 6, 2006 17:27:14 GMT -5
root hard for Seton Hall...we have done a session for session ticket swap it seems, so if they advance and we do too, there could be some more tix available on Thursday. glad to hear the hoop club is reaching out to people instead of waiting for people to come to them at the hotel Update. Just received a call from the Ticket Office with an offer to buy two tickets to the Day Session on Wednesday. I'm there!
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hoyaboy1
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by hoyaboy1 on Mar 6, 2006 18:23:49 GMT -5
I picked up some seats on ebay, didn't want to risk scalping since I'm not sure I'll be able to be in NYC before the first game of the session - good luck to everyone else.
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YB
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
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Post by YB on Mar 7, 2006 15:37:29 GMT -5
This just came across from the HHC regarding the BET tickets.... I think it's a great way of comprehensively addressing this, or at least a great start:
"A Letter from the Hoop Club President
Dear Hoya Hoop Club Member:
Thank you for your generous support of the Georgetown University men’s basketball team. The 2005-2006 fiscal year will result in a record amount of donations being raised for Coach Thompson and his program, from a near record number of donors! The support you provide is vital to helping Georgetown compete at the highest level of men’s college basketball. Your donation to the Hoya Hoop Club is used to directly offset expenses associated with running the men’s basketball program. This season, the Hoya Hoop Club donations have been earmarked for team transportation, technology upgrades and training and hydration supplies and equipment among others. As a Hoya Hoop Club member, you should take pride in knowing that you played your part in helping the basketball team post it’s best regular season record since the 2000-2001 season. You should also take pride in knowing that you played your part in the Hoyas victory over the then #1 ranked Duke Blue Devils, bitter rival Syracuse Orange and the other sixteen teams the Hoyas beat.
As a Hoop Club member, I’m sure you derive a significant amount of pleasure from a Hoya victory and disappointment from a Hoya loss. I feel confident that most Hoop Club members would like nothing more than to see the Hoyas once again competing for BIG EAST and national championships on an annual basis. Georgetown basketball has the people in place to make that happen. Coach Thompson and his staff have done an outstanding job since the moment they were hired and the last two seasons have been a pleasant surprise!
As well as the team has performed over the last two seasons, it is not difficult to understand that there has been an increased demand for season tickets, away game tickets and BIG EAST Tournament tickets. Assuming that the Hoyas are invited to play in the NCAA Tournament, the demand for those tickets will be at a premium as well. As a result of this increased demand, and in some cases like the BIG EAST Tournament, reduced supply, a number of Hoop Club members have been disappointed in either their seat locations or the unavailability of tickets. For this, as President of the Hoop Club, I apologize. It is never easy to tell a devoted fan that tickets are not available. Having said that, the athletic department and the Hoya Hoop Club are always striving to improve, and a complete review of all ticket procedures will take place before next season.
The importance of your support cannot be stressed enough. Georgetown competes against schools with state of the art facilities and well funded athletic departments. Ultimately, without your support, Georgetown will fail to successfully compete and dreams of BIG EAST and national championships will be just that – dreams! Your donation is not about tickets, t-shirts or trinkets. Instead, it is about helping make Georgetown successful on the basketball court. It has always been the athletic department and the Hoop Club's desire to provide an added benefit for your donation. We will continue to work hard to make your experience as a donor to the Hoya Hoop Club and men’s basketball program a pleasant one for you.
As always, please feel free to e-mail me at alfred.r.bozzo@smithbarney.com or call me at (202) 861-5024 with any questions or comments.
Go Hoyas!
Alfred R. Bozzo, Jr. (’85) President – Hoya Hoop Club"
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hoyatables
Diamond Hoya (over 2500 posts)
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Post by hoyatables on Mar 7, 2006 17:09:29 GMT -5
YB, Madge, others: I saw that too, and thought of our thread here. After the season is finally over (which will hopefully be sometime in April!) we should all make a point to get in contact with Mr. Bozzo and share our thoughts and experiences. I also wonder if -- again when the season is over -- we could come up with some sort of draft framework, or at least a list of concerns and suggestions, and submit it as a collective effort of the members of the hoyatalk board. I know we're not the only Hoyas fans out there, but perhaps something that is tempered, evenhanded, and comprehensive would have more value and validity in the eyes of the Hoop Club, rather than a series of individual letters. And while we're at it, YB, we would definitely have to ask for a dedicated ballroom dancing halftime show next season .
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