How can the Florida Marlins get better attendance?

Question

Working on final exam for sports marketing and I am trying to get a start on a promotional idea to gain more attendance and fans.

Any leads will help just anything really would help.

Answer 1

This is really a good question. Ownership has never sent a message to the fans that they want to build a winning team. They have had great young players there and there gone after a few years because the team is trying to keep the payroll down, and the fans don't like that. A new stadium will help but ownership is going to have to step up and do more to hold on to the players that the fans have come to like.

Answer 2

The simple answer is they can't. Sorry to say the both the Florida Marlins and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays live in communities where there has been a strong hockey and/or football and/or basketball presence there long before baseball arrived.

It seems that no matter what situation happens, the Marlins attendence has only seen spikes when the team was in the play-offs and World Series. Even after then, the owners went on their post-championship "fire sale" and dismantled that particular team.

A new stadium won't help. It will just expose more lackluster attendence to the rest of the baseball world. What needs to be done is to move both the Marlins and the Devil Rays to other markets that can support a baseball franchise.

In my opinion, move the Marlins to Las Vegas and move the Devil Rays to Portland or another city.

Answer 3

Take all the good young Marlins players. Put them in white uniforms with blue pinstripes. Give them blue hats with a red C on them. Let them play out of Chicago. Refer to them as the Cubs. That will bring up attendance real fast. Unfortunately, they will finish with a worse record.

You want a real answer? I doubt there is a short term fix or promo idea that would bring up attendance that much (well, maybe $1 beer night). Keeping and re-signing popular players is key. A new stadium would also do a lot since it indicates that the team is committed to staying in south Florida. Success helps, but, of course the Marlins have already won two WS titles.

Answer 4

Take a look at their fan base and the average age of the people in the area. The average age is a lot higher than most cities that have ballclubs. Also take a look at the average income in the area. I'm sure there are lots of retired people who might not want to spend the money to see a mediocre team play. You need to think of ideas that will garner interest from those fans. Sorry I'm not specific on ideas.

Answer 5

the smartass answer is: Play the mets 162 times, when they are there the attendance isnt bad since there are so many new yorkers down there

The real answer is: They need to show a commitment to winning, the one time they invested in winning they won and the very next year held a garage sale of players. they have won again recently but of course management hasnt done anything to maintain that winning attitude, they had a great manager and fired him because of ego clashes. they also need their own stadium, they need a smaller more asthetically pleasing stadium, your in Florida but it looks like you are playing in olympic stadium in montreal!, they need to show fans they want to be a baseball team, and not just in it for merchandising and trying to make money!

Answer 6

You should already be familiar with Mike Veeck from your class, but if not, check out this site: http://www.funisgood.net/

The Veeck family is known for many creative (and crazy) promotions to draw fans. Most of the time, they worked.

Veeck's dad, Bill, was the man who signed 3' 7" Eddie Gaedel to a major league contract. Eddie appeared in one game as a pinch hitter, walking on four pitches. The next day, the Commissioner voided Eddie's contract.

Answer 7

They need to be more fan friendly as does all of baseball. They need to embrace the Internet, MySpace, Facebook, Vox and other ways of communicating to a younger audience. They also need to lower ticket prices. $50 for a seat on the 1st base line, $5.00 beers and $3.00 hot dogs for a meaningless game In June is a little hard to swallow.

Answer 8

Build a new basbeall only stadium. But first the owner is trying to get funding from the city/state and is threatening to move the team if they don't build them a new park.

Answer 9

New stadium, good players, popular players, play better, promotional giveaways, guest appearances by famous people.

Answer 10

yea

move!!

somehow the two florida teams have the worst baseball markets

so, move them out of flordida
New Orleans could use a baseball team