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He's got a point at a certain level. They should definitely be marketing to and trying whatever they can to get graduate students (especially medical/optometry/dental) into the fan base.

(02-08-2013 07:14 AM)KevMo4UAB Wrote:  And the Memphis games at The Bart have come to an end. Memephis isn't coming to The Bart ever again.

never say never

(02-08-2013 08:55 AM)mixduptransistor Wrote:  He's got a point at a certain level. They should definitely be marketing to and trying whatever they can to get graduate students (especially medical/optometry/dental) into the fan base.

(02-08-2013 07:14 AM)KevMo4UAB Wrote:  And the Memphis games at The Bart have come to an end. Memephis isn't coming to The Bart ever again.

never say never

They should market to them. What is saying is that he wants reserved lower level seats at a discounted price for the Brahman so they don't have to associate with the Harijan

I agree with the principle of better marketing to grad students. The majority of them went elsewhere for undergrad and already have those allegiances, but there's no reason why we can't market UAB athletics to them to be a dual fan especially if they stay in Bham. Plus these people will be the ones making big money most likely.

(02-08-2013 10:37 AM)bladhmadh Wrote:  

(02-08-2013 08:55 AM)mixduptransistor Wrote:  He's got a point at a certain level. They should definitely be marketing to and trying whatever they can to get graduate students (especially medical/optometry/dental) into the fan base.

(02-08-2013 07:14 AM)KevMo4UAB Wrote:  And the Memphis games at The Bart have come to an end. Memephis isn't coming to The Bart ever again.

never say never

They should market to them. What is saying is that he wants reserved lower level seats at a discounted price for the Brahman so they don't have to associate with the Harijan

I'd want the grad student section next to the student section. It's not about not associating with undergrads, it's about 1- not having to compete with undergrads for tickets, and 2- allowing grad students to build a community.

Duke has a separate grad student section. Lower level, free, just like their undergrad section. Just separate. Think they might know something about building a sustainable fan base?

And sure, I can walk in 5 min before the games right now, get in for free, sit in the student section and it's usually fine. But that's because attendance is horrible. When attendance picks up (which I believe it will-- do you ?) that won't really work. What happens when you have to get there an hour earlier just to get into the student section for the games? It'd be nice to have something different for the grad students-- and it'd be good business sense. Any lower level ticket sales lost to the grad student section will probably be recouped when the students graduate, and now that they're accustomed to lower level tickets, donate.

I think it is actually a great idea to try to get more grad students involved and into the fold so to speak when it comes to purchasing tickets. I know everyone thinks tickets are affordable as is, but when most grad students are coming out with anywhere from 100k to 300k in debts, I think it makes sense to really try to target grad students/new grads with better deals.

(02-08-2013 11:43 AM)sadolakced Wrote:  

(02-08-2013 10:37 AM)bladhmadh Wrote:  

(02-08-2013 08:55 AM)mixduptransistor Wrote:  He's got a point at a certain level. They should definitely be marketing to and trying whatever they can to get graduate students (especially medical/optometry/dental) into the fan base.

(02-08-2013 07:14 AM)KevMo4UAB Wrote:  And the Memphis games at The Bart have come to an end. Memephis isn't coming to The Bart ever again.

never say never

They should market to them. What is saying is that he wants reserved lower level seats at a discounted price for the Brahman so they don't have to associate with the Harijan

I'd want the grad student section next to the student section. It's not about not associating with undergrads, it's about 1- not having to compete with undergrads for tickets, and 2- allowing grad students to build a community.

Duke has a separate grad student section. Lower level, free, just like their undergrad section. Just separate. Think they might know something about building a sustainable fan base?

And sure, I can walk in 5 min before the games right now, get in for free, sit in the student section and it's usually fine. But that's because attendance is horrible. When attendance picks up (which I believe it will-- do you ?) that won't really work. What happens when you have to get there an hour earlier just to get into the student section for the games? It'd be nice to have something different for the grad students-- and it'd be good business sense. Any lower level ticket sales lost to the grad student section will probably be recouped when the students graduate, and now that they're accustomed to lower level tickets, donate.

So what your saying is "seperate but equal"

No, what I'm really saying is separate but better. I'd settle for separate but equal.

At the end of the day, grad students are different from undergrads-- they have different priorities, different time commitment, different demographics. It's not unreasonable to treat them differently.

Right now, the entire student experience is directed solely at undergraduates. Grad students are kind of ignored.

(02-08-2013 02:41 PM)sadolakced Wrote:  No, what I'm really saying is separate but better. I'd settle for separate but equal.

At the end of the day, grad students are different from undergrads-- they have different priorities, different time commitment, different demographics. It's not unreasonable to treat them differently.

Right now, the entire student experience is directed solely at undergraduates. Grad students are kind of ignored.

Some students are more equal than others

I'd like to see some outreach to Grad students, as they are something of an untapped resource.

That said, long term loyalty to the school is built at the undergrad level. Most grad students who come to UAB either lack the time and inclination to get involved in campus sports attendance or have previously given their loyalty to another university. It can be a tough sell, especially when our athletics is at anything other than a high level, winning games and entertaining to watch.

As mentioned above, Grad students tend to wind up with better jobs making more money, and more of them as UAB fans would be a good thing long term.

Is there really a need for a bigger student section right now? I'd love for them to take over the rest of the bleacher sections eventually, but the student section looks pretty roomy to me right now.

The ticket office does a ton of discounts all the time. Past a certain point, we really need to start giving them actual money.

(02-09-2013 10:43 AM)UAB Band Dad Wrote:  I'd like to see some outreach to Grad students, as they are something of an untapped resource.

That said, long term loyalty to the school is built at the undergrad level. Most grad students who come to UAB either lack the time and inclination to get involved in campus sports attendance or have previously given their loyalty to another university. It can be a tough sell, especially when our athletics is at anything other than a high level, winning games and entertaining to watch.

As mentioned above, Grad students tend to wind up with better jobs making more money, and more of them as UAB fans would be a good thing long term.

Agree with this. Grad students who do have an interest in UAB (either because they are open to experiencing athletics at a school different from their undergrad or because they are in grad school here following going to undergrad here) should be targeted and marketed to more directly. Grad students are indeed likely to be higher income earners meaning they are more likely to have the disposable income to get season tickets. Not that you have to be grad level degree to afford season tickets, but just more likely to have the extra money.

I think it would be a good idea to offer recent grads (of both undergrad or grad school) reduced prices on season tickets for at least a year or two. New grads usually have less money, and so if you get them hooked, they are more likely to pony up more money once tickets would rise back to their usual price.

(02-13-2013 12:00 PM)Blazer85 Wrote:  

(02-09-2013 10:43 AM)UAB Band Dad Wrote:  I'd like to see some outreach to Grad students, as they are something of an untapped resource.

That said, long term loyalty to the school is built at the undergrad level. Most grad students who come to UAB either lack the time and inclination to get involved in campus sports attendance or have previously given their loyalty to another university. It can be a tough sell, especially when our athletics is at anything other than a high level, winning games and entertaining to watch.

As mentioned above, Grad students tend to wind up with better jobs making more money, and more of them as UAB fans would be a good thing long term.

Agree with this. Grad students who do have an interest in UAB (either because they are open to experiencing athletics at a school different from their undergrad or because they are in grad school here following going to undergrad here) should be targeted and marketed to more directly. Grad students are indeed likely to be higher income earners meaning they are more likely to have the disposable income to get season tickets. Not that you have to be grad level degree to afford season tickets, but just more likely to have the extra money.

I think it would be a good idea to offer recent grads (of both undergrad or grad school) reduced prices on season tickets for at least a year or two. New grads usually have less money, and so if you get them hooked, they are more likely to pony up more money once tickets would rise back to their usual price.

I agree we should market to them. I don't agree that they should get treated better than regular students. Sure grad students have a higher earning potential but they are less likely to follow the teams and more likely to leave the area after graduation. I have worked with a lot of people who took graduate courses at UAB that went to other schools for undergrad. They all had little if any interest in attending UAB games. There is a new guy that's from a basketball school outside the south that said he would consider going to a couple of games next year if they improve. That's the most positive I've heard in the last 14 years from a UAB grad student here