RACK the Raiders
Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2006 9:38 pm
Fan-friendly Raiders?TICKET PLAN A POSITIVE STEP By John RyanMercury News
The question was about the small stuff, prices or payment methods or somesuch. But the answer painted the Raiders' new big picture.
``I would think that and I would hope that, based on everything you've heard this morning, you'd see that this isn't going to be like last time,'' CEO Amy Trask said Tuesday, when she invited reporters upstairs at HQ to preview the Raiders' first experience with ticket-selling since the L.A. days.
The new strategy has three components:
1. Reduced prices on two-thirds of the seats, including a drop of more than 50 percent for the cheapest ticket.
2. Perks for former PSL holders who stick around.
3. ANSWER THE PHONE!!
That last one is unbelievably revolutionary in these parts, as anyone who ever dealt with the blasted Oakland Football Marketing Association can attest. On Nov. 2, the Raiders settled their legal differences with Oakland and Alameda County; as part of the deal, they disbanded the cooperative entity OFMA and brought sales in-house.
(Blame can go around on all sides for OFMA. But it's gone. There. Do we feel cleansed?)
The Raiders have sent packets to about 15,000 holders of the personal-seat licenses that expired after last season. Those former PSL holders have an exclusive window until March 15 to renew their season tickets, relocate them or add more. On March 16, season-ticket sales are open to the public.
Trask outlined big plans. She said a wing of the building has been dedicated to ticket operations and rebuilt with new furniture, computers and phone lines. The Raiders have a new tickets-only Web site at http://www.raidernation.com. They have hired 15 people. (Symbolic, perhaps, that none of OFMA's half-dozen staffers joined the new operation.) Trask promises beefed-up ad campaigns and, most of all, a voice on the other end of the line when customers call.
Start-up costs, she said, will probably prevent a profit on tickets this year.
The average price will be $65.60 -- below the NFL average and also below last year's Raiders prices of $67.31 for PSL holders and $70.90 for non-PSL holders. (We could explain the old two-tiered pricing system. But why relive that painful past?)
Will this vision help Al Davis make the thing work in his stated five-year window?
We'll see.
We'll see if ideas like community barbecue pits -- so fans can ride BART to the game, put their meat on the grill and throw the paper bag in the trash -- pan out.
We'll see if the Raiders found the right price for the casual fan. (Costs went up for premium seats, but those have never been the problem.)
We'll see how many of last season's 30,000 season-ticket holders come back.
We'll see about the buyers. But it's a good start that the sellers care.
Contact John Ryan at jryan@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5266.
Thank god they finally have control of ticket sales. The surcharges through ticketmaster and the OFMA were outrageous. Hope this will bring back the fans as well as Mr.Shell's commitment to getting the raiders back to the glory days.
The question was about the small stuff, prices or payment methods or somesuch. But the answer painted the Raiders' new big picture.
``I would think that and I would hope that, based on everything you've heard this morning, you'd see that this isn't going to be like last time,'' CEO Amy Trask said Tuesday, when she invited reporters upstairs at HQ to preview the Raiders' first experience with ticket-selling since the L.A. days.
The new strategy has three components:
1. Reduced prices on two-thirds of the seats, including a drop of more than 50 percent for the cheapest ticket.
2. Perks for former PSL holders who stick around.
3. ANSWER THE PHONE!!
That last one is unbelievably revolutionary in these parts, as anyone who ever dealt with the blasted Oakland Football Marketing Association can attest. On Nov. 2, the Raiders settled their legal differences with Oakland and Alameda County; as part of the deal, they disbanded the cooperative entity OFMA and brought sales in-house.
(Blame can go around on all sides for OFMA. But it's gone. There. Do we feel cleansed?)
The Raiders have sent packets to about 15,000 holders of the personal-seat licenses that expired after last season. Those former PSL holders have an exclusive window until March 15 to renew their season tickets, relocate them or add more. On March 16, season-ticket sales are open to the public.
Trask outlined big plans. She said a wing of the building has been dedicated to ticket operations and rebuilt with new furniture, computers and phone lines. The Raiders have a new tickets-only Web site at http://www.raidernation.com. They have hired 15 people. (Symbolic, perhaps, that none of OFMA's half-dozen staffers joined the new operation.) Trask promises beefed-up ad campaigns and, most of all, a voice on the other end of the line when customers call.
Start-up costs, she said, will probably prevent a profit on tickets this year.
The average price will be $65.60 -- below the NFL average and also below last year's Raiders prices of $67.31 for PSL holders and $70.90 for non-PSL holders. (We could explain the old two-tiered pricing system. But why relive that painful past?)
Will this vision help Al Davis make the thing work in his stated five-year window?
We'll see.
We'll see if ideas like community barbecue pits -- so fans can ride BART to the game, put their meat on the grill and throw the paper bag in the trash -- pan out.
We'll see if the Raiders found the right price for the casual fan. (Costs went up for premium seats, but those have never been the problem.)
We'll see how many of last season's 30,000 season-ticket holders come back.
We'll see about the buyers. But it's a good start that the sellers care.
Contact John Ryan at jryan@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5266.
Thank god they finally have control of ticket sales. The surcharges through ticketmaster and the OFMA were outrageous. Hope this will bring back the fans as well as Mr.Shell's commitment to getting the raiders back to the glory days.
and throw the paper bag in the trash -- pan out. 
