LOCATION IS MORE THAN A CAMPUS VIEW

With 7,000 students living within a five-minute walk, George Mason University’s EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va., has a good handle on its demographic.
“Our location in an affluent county of Washington, D.C., is a good fit not just for youth-oriented rock shows, but also family entertainment,” said the arena’s general manager Barry Geisler. “We’re a part of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, so we’re also able to share the same resources and customer lists as the nearby Verizon Center.”
Marketing is not as cut and dried at the University of Nevada’s Sam Boyd Stadium and Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, which face stiff competition from local casinos and entertainment venues.
“It’s tough to market in Vegas with the number of venues in the city,” said Mike Newcomb, executive director of Sam Boyd Stadium and Thomas & Mack Center. “The key to our success is targeting annual corporate events in conjunction with hotels and making them grow.”
For St. Louis’ Chaifetz Arena, run by Spectra Venue Management, building relationships with local and national promoters has been effective.
“Providing promoters with great value and being a good partner [has worked well],” said Lindsay Gjerde, the arena’s director of marketing.
University venues also are getting creative by partnering with local companies.
Last year, Iowa State Center at Iowa State University in Ames marketed a Gordon Lightfoot concert in conjunction with local company Wine & Canvas. Participants created sundown paintings, and these were posted on Facebook for people to vote on their favorite.
“The winner received free concert tickets and a meet and greet with Gordon,” said Tammy Koolbeck, executive director at Iowa State Center. “He also signed all of the works of art. We got lots of mileage out of that.”
The venue also promoted its annual “Nutcracker” performance, now in its 36th year, on Facebook with its #ispystevie campaign. Ticket sales increased 15 percent.
“We had a stuffed Stevie the Nutcracker moving around for a week and people had to guess where he was located from his Facebook picture,” said Koolbeck. “We provided clues and also activated sponsors in town.” Winners received free tickets to the performance.”
Save Mart Center at California State University, Fresno, is being marketed as a rehearsal space to expand its use and visibility in the marketplace.
“We’re close enough to Los Angeles for artists who don’t want to deal with the craziness of that city,” said Sean McElhinney, assistant general manager.
To better communicate with local media and fans, The Jerome Schottenstein Center at Ohio State University in Columbus, has developed a local celebrity, The Arena Guy.
The USF Sun Dome, Tampa, Fla., increases its visibility in the market by community-driven efforts, including clothing and school supply drives that it ties into its events that also benefit local organizations.
“We also focus on enhancing our patrons’ experiences at our events by incorporating pre-show block parties, happy hours and dinner packages into most concerts and shows,” said Trent Merritt, Spectra regional vice president/general manager of USF Sun Dome. “And we are always implementing new ideas for database acquisition through digital campaigns, contesting and grassroots initiatives to expand our reach and overall imprint locally and regionally.”