2016 All Things Lions Marketing & Promotions

[MikeAK]

Really wanted to go to the game this past weekend but no way in this world was I going to pay these ticket prices for me and my partner. What the hell happened? Sure, I could sit in the endzone and save some cash but why would I want to do that and watch half the game on the screen. I may as well stay home and watch the whole game in HD and catch every moment. Oh well, the TSN broadcasts on HDTV is fantastic and I don't have to pay $10 for a flat beer. I fear for the Lion's future with prices being what they are. I don't see where the new fans are going to come from. No wonder anyone under 20 has no idea who the Lion's are. Heck, even 30something is a stretch. With the current price of attending a game they've eliminated themselves from a lot of peoples minds right from the start.

[SammyGreene]

Really wanted to go to the game this past weekend but no way in this world was I going to pay these ticket prices for me and my partner. What the hell happened? Sure, I could sit in the endzone and save some cash but why would I want to do that and watch half the game on the screen. I may as well stay home and watch the whole game in HD and catch every moment. Oh well, the TSN broadcasts on HDTV is fantastic and I don't have to pay $10 for a flat beer. I fear for the Lion's future with prices being what they are. I don't see where the new fans are going to come from. No wonder anyone under 20 has no idea who the Lion's are. Heck, even 30something is a stretch. With the current price of attending a game they've eliminated themselves from a lot of peoples minds right from the start.

It's funny and kinda of sad that you can actually see where the different price categories are now in BC Place due to the empty seats. We have moved our $83 per game seats from the 25 yard line to midfield this season thanks to the declining season ticket base. Right now, our old seats (and the entire row) are unsold for the Calgary game. In fairness to the Lions, those 25 yard line seats seem to cost the same in every other CFL city or even more.
So I would suggest this is a league wide problem and it reflects in attendance numbers for the majority of teams. I bleed orange but can't see how the typical casual fan is going to pay $83 for decent sideline seats to a Lions game, never mind take his children versus watching it on HD TV.
My season tickets on the 25 yd line 10 years ago were roughly $45 per game in a price category that was eliminated in 2011. I get inflation but not many of us have seen our wages double over the same time period.

[DanoT]

In most markets the CFL seems to be shifting from a gate driven league to a TV driven league. I hope they are smart enough, and they do appear to be, to realize the future of the CFL lies in a large part with the internet as a online product.

[Qman]

Really wanted to go to the game this past weekend but no way in this world was I going to pay these ticket prices for me and my partner. What the hell happened? Sure, I could sit in the endzone and save some cash but why would I want to do that and watch half the game on the screen. I may as well stay home and watch the whole game in HD and catch every moment. Oh well, the TSN broadcasts on HDTV is fantastic and I don't have to pay $10 for a flat beer. I fear for the Lion's future with prices being what they are. I don't see where the new fans are going to come from. No wonder anyone under 20 has no idea who the Lion's are. Heck, even 30something is a stretch. With the current price of attending a game they've eliminated themselves from a lot of peoples minds right from the start.

It's funny and kinda of sad that you can actually see where the different price categories are now in BC Place due to the empty seats. We have moved our $83 per game seats from the 25 yard line to midfield this season thanks to the declining season ticket base. Right now, our old seats (and the entire row) are unsold for the Calgary game. In fairness to the Lions, those 25 yard line seats seem to cost the same in every other CFL city or even more.
So I would suggest this is a league wide problem and it reflects in attendance numbers for the majority of teams. I bleed orange but can't see how the typical casual fan is going to pay $83 for decent sideline seats to a Lions game, never mind take his children versus watching it on HD TV.
My season tickets on the 25 yd line 10 years ago were roughly $45 per game in a price category that was eliminated in 2011. I get inflation but not many of us have seen our wages double over the same time period.

isn't the 25yd line the difference between 720s and 540s ... remember they changed to fully all-in pricing including faciity fees, taxes, gst, ticketmaster fees. my 720s is like low-60s per game on actual ticket. so 540 would be mid-40s on ticket.

i go to every game, and the sideline seats are basically full and can't tell the zones ... those are the most expensive seats.

the cheap seats are empty ..they are/were always empty in the summer even with 35,000 avg under tv blackouts.

lions should continue the $5 kid thing dor all the summer games especial in endzones.

all in prices includes taxes and fees
season tickets: sideline is 72, 54, endzone is 32 and 25.
per game tickets is 90, 72, endzone is 43 and 35

[CardiacKid]

In most markets the CFL seems to be shifting from a gate driven league to a TV driven league. I hope they are smart enough, and they do appear to be, to realize the future of the CFL lies in a large part with the internet as a online product.

The CFL certainly does seem to be embracing the interweb in a systematic and forward-thinking way. But....I hope they don't think of reaching existing fans and potential fans as being a case of 1 medium vs. another or TV and Internet at the expense of the live experience.

At one point in its somewhat recent history, the CFL did get a rich TV deal via Carling-Okeefe. However that didn't last forever and the league had to exist on gate receipts....things got tough.

The league shouldn't assume that its current deal with TSN is going to remain the cash cow forever. Particularly if TV viewership in general continues to drop across the board as it has of late, then TSN will be pressured to re-evaluate what sports it wants to include in its stable of offerings. Right now, I am going to surmise that the CFL is a valuable commodity for them. But will that remain the case a generation from now? I hope so....

From my interested but largely uneducated eye, successful and viable pricing models for web-based content delivery is still trying to find its way. For every Netflix that is now well entrenched and totally successful, how many others fall by the wayside?

While the live experience is only a part of the puzzle, I really hope the league doesn't let that aspect of entertaining the fans rot on the vine. I don't think they will. I follow the league and the Lions via Twitter, social media etc. Who post the most enthusiastic accounts of being fans or watching games? The fans who are in attendance; watching the game in the stadiums.

So really it is all intertwined; one means of enjoying the game feeds the other. I love watching the games on my big screen but I reallllly love watching the Leos in BC Place. And when I can't do either, I love my Interweb. And lastly, when I want to relive the game and its various aspects, I hop on Twitter and Lionbackers.

[Ballistic Bob]

The decline of the Bobblehead giveaway over the last 16 years or so. Thnx BB

[SammyGreene]

[quote="Qman"
isn't the 25yd line the difference between 720s and 540s[/quote]

Yes, section 212. Big price jump reflected the move back to BC Place when they eliminated gold pricing (about 8 sections in total between the 20-30 yard lines). The renos included padded seats between the 20 yard lines and thus the Lions felt they could put them all in the same price category.

[MikeAK]

In most markets the CFL seems to be shifting from a gate driven league to a TV driven league. I hope they are smart enough, and they do appear to be, to realize the future of the CFL lies in a large part with the internet as a online product.

That's all well and good, but they have to find a way to get the people into the stadium and connect with the team and the atmosphere. I think so any way. I like to think of myself as a diehard fan even though I don't go to games nearly as much as I use to. It all started when I was young with my Dad taking me into the stadium and feeling the game. Had I not had those experiences I probably wouldn't feel the same way today. You aren't going to form that connection through the internet. I'm just one guy with an opinion and don't pretend to represent the majority, but I seriously worry about the Lions future when most of us old long time fans are gone. Ticket prices and absolutely criminal concession prices have eliminated the CFL game for a lot of people.

[LakeLions]

I agree so much with this ^^

There HAS to be a push to get younger fans and families into games. I went Saturday and was pleasantly surprised to see how many there were - but there still weren't many.

And you're really going to struggle getting families in when four tickets cost $200 (or whatever, I'm just picking a number), plus food, plus maybe parking, plus everything else.

I've said this before, and I really think its true. If the Lions truly think TV money makes attendance numbers less of a concern, then they should drop prices and do their best to use that promote their brand. It can't be all about "oh, I saw the game on TV and it looks like fun". There has to be a push to build a new generation of fans, and the best way to do that is to get them in the building

[footballtom]

It is like anything else if people think the product is good enough to travel too they will . does not matter if it is a movie concert sporting event etc. This is going to take sometime were people thinking that BC place and the lions are the place to be. It is like that in any city in the world.

[TheLionKing]

Lions are playing exciting and winning football. The Whitecaps are playing boring and uninspired soccer. Lions need to take advantage and market their product.

[DanoT]

Lions are playing exciting and winning football. The Whitecaps are playing boring and uninspired soccer. Lions need to take advantage and market their product.

Needing to do something and knowing how to do something are two vastly different things and the numbers of fans in the stands seem to be pointing to the "not knowing."

If the Lions where to steal a few ideas from Lionbackers no one would mind but the marketing dept probably thinks that they are too smart and too professional to need advice from a fan forum. Of course they would be wrong and we have the attendance numbers to prove it.

[LakeLions]

I maintain, as I have for a while, that Lions management thinks the team is a big player in the market - and those views are backed by TSN telling the Lions that they're a huge property.

Because of all that, I truly think the Lions feel they don't need to offer cut-rate prices on tickets. They feel people will want to come once they start winning and will be willing to pay high prices - just like people do with the Canucks and Seahawks.

This season will be a very telling one. This is a good team, an exciting team, and Jon Jennings has proven he's a legitimate star. If that doesn't bring the casual fan out - and I have a feeling it may not get the Lions above 23, 24000 fans- then we may see marketing changes.

all my two cents on this.

[DanoT]

I maintain, as I have for a while, that Lions management thinks the team is a big player in the market - and those views are backed by TSN telling the Lions that they're a huge property.

Because of all that, I truly think the Lions feel they don't need to offer cut-rate prices on tickets. They feel people will want to come once they start winning and will be willing to pay high prices - just like people do with the Canucks and Seahawks.

This season will be a very telling one. This is a good team, an exciting team, and Jon Jennings has proven he's a legitimate star. If that doesn't bring the casual fan out - and I have a feeling it may not get the Lions above 23, 24000 fans- then we may see marketing changes.

all my two cents on this.

I kinda agree with the above. I think it is more a case of the Lions figuring a small crowd paying big bucks is more profitable than a big crowd paying cheap prices. Add to that the fact that Lions get zero from parking and concessions and it financially reduces any incentive to increase the gate.

I think the team is currently not actively for sale but if it was and the team was making money without selling out, then it becomes attractive to a new owner who sees the financial potential realized if he can fill the place.

[Alputt]

I see the promotion for this Friday's game is now Pokemon... People have been saying the Lions should do some more marketing for kids, well I hope this brings a few families to the game.

If they were really smart there would have been a kids discount again as well, however $3 from every ticket going to Children's Hospital is pretty cool.