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Many of you have posted comments and questions about the activities of the athletic department's marketing and sales staff. I have been asked by some of you to use this forum to answer many of those questions and invite any friend of SMU with specific ideas and input to contact Shawn Heilbron or me at anytime directly. I typically do not review message boards but have been asked by some Mustang Club members and friends to respond to some comments.
Contact information:
Woody Norris - [email protected] or 214-768-8377
Shawn Heilbron - [email protected] or 214-768-2885

Those who have talked with us can tell others that we listen and respond and react. Many of the ideas that we are implementing (such as Mustang Rocks that has generated a tremendous amount of FREE advertising and promotion. Mustang Rocks cost us nothing in that ALL prizes were provided by our sponsors.) came from Mustang Club members and fans that love the university and make great suggestions.

Recap of activities:
Most everything talked about on Ponyfans was done last year and we are doing again this year.
Groups we invited and are inviting again this year include:
- Scouts
- Methodist (Every youth minister in the area receives at least four e-mails or calls a year about events for SMU. When we place flags on e-mails letting us know when and if the e-mail was read, many are deleted without being read. For the Delirious concert, we called every youth minister in the metroplex)
- Baptist
- All Churches
- FCA
- Charities
- All area youth football leagues - Two played in Ford Stadium this year generating over $30,000 in revenue
- Basketball leagues
- Soccer leagues
- Baseball leagues
- High Schools
- Middle schools
- Elementary Schools
- Cheer groups
- Dance groups
- Bands (We tried desperately to have a band day last year and could not get even two bands to participate) We are trying again this year for the Rice game.
- Carlton Cooper gave out at least 5000 free tickets to area kids/schools.
- Over 5,000 tickets were given out via radio promotions

We not only have a season ticket plan of action but a by game "Gap Analysis" that breaks down each game by group and by staff person. The plan allows us to manage the attendance gap well in advance and attack the gap to ensure maximum attendance at each game this fall. Each staff member is held accountable for specific targets. We did the same thing this past year only after getting off to a late start. (I got here in May)
In addition, we also have a working marketing plan for each gap complete with themes, activities, special offers and a preliminary ad campaign.

I invite concerned fans to give me a call and set up an appointment. I would be grateful to walk them through our plan and ask for any ideas they may have.

Many people have asked if I am the "Marketing Guy". Actually as Senior Associate AD, my responsibilities include:
Ticket Sales
Marketing
Ticket Office
Sponsorships
Outreach
While I enjoy working with Shawn Heilbron and the small marketing staff, I have worked with other staff members and Mustang Club members to generate results as follows:
1) Attendance up in football vs. LY
2) Revenue up in football vs. LY
3) Basketball attendance and revenue up TY vs. LY
4) Sponsorship and advertising revenue up (so far to date) 40% vs. LY and still counting
5) Those numbers do not include the Kroger revenue that is beginning to come in
6) Through a reorganization of the departmentand by taking our sponsorships "in-house", we were able to add to some needed staff in sales and marketing

I joined the university out of a passion for athletics and a desire to help the SMU athletics program. I sincerely appreciate your open and direct comments and suggestions

Woody Norris

Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about! Props to Mr. Norris for 'taking the high road' and posting on here! Even though some of us may not fully agree with some of the school's marketing and sales plans, I want to compliment him on taking the time to post here. (I called his office immediately after seeing the post but he was 'out' along with Shawn Heilbron.) I look forward to an even better marketing and sales strategy for the future! Thanks, Mr. Norris! I look forward to meeting you VERY soon! Unfortunately, I know there will be some folks who will respond to your posting with idiotic comments and suggestions. I hope there are few and that the majority of the fans of SMU will respond with 'positive feedback.'


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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

[This message has been edited by MrMustang1965 (edited 02-13-2003).]

All great news!

But I have a question about the Methodist Church emails. Are you targeting just the metroplex or a particular conference list? And is there any additional contact made, i.e. direct mail/phone calls/personal vists?

My first experience with SMU came in the 70s when my UMYF group took two buses from Longview to see SMU play Houston. I changed that day from a Longhorn (Dad's school) to a Mustang (Mom's school). There were about 150 UMYF and parents in the group. That was just one person's experience, but it made a huge impression on me.

The point being that non-metroplex churches may respond in a more positive way since they are traveling to the "big city" to see a college game. There are plenty large churches within a short driving distance to SMU - Longview, Tyler, Waco etc.

Although I would like to see all of the Methodist Churches embrace their school.

Thanks for your efforts to date!

When are you going to run the ticket office like a business and not like a joke?

Chavo: Care to get more 'specific' with that comment? Mr. Norris posted here in good faith. The least you could do is pose your question in a manner that would warrant a response. Or, better yet...call him up and make an appointment. He made the offer to meet with ANYONE in his email. Your post shows a lack of maturity.

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

Crazy Horse: I love to hear it when a Longhorn has been converted to the MUSTANGS!

I agree with stretching outside the Metroplex. It's kind of like the ol' saying: "How can ya keep 'em down on the farm after they've been to the big city?" Bring those groups and organizations from East Texas (recruitment potential!) and other points on the compass to The Hilltop!

Unfortunately, I believe that Woody Norris may have limited resources when it comes to certain aspects of our 'suggestions'. This is where WE AS FANS have to pick up the ball and run with it as MUSTANG VOLUNTEERS. Talk up the school to your schools (PTAs and other school-oriented groups), churches and youth groups. If you know of a youth group that would be a prospect for Mr. Norris and Mr. Heilbron to contact, let 'em know! They've posted their phone numbers and emails here. All it takes is a little 'extra effort' on our part to make it a success! GO MUSTANGS!

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

[This message has been edited by MrMustang1965 (edited 02-13-2003).]

Marketing Department,
Here is a great idea to increase the basketball attendance...Fire Dement and hire a basketball coach that can get us into the NCAA Tournament!

CPC thanks you for your post and salutes your efforts, doubtless you are doing the best you can, but something about your message does not add up and CPC must admit to being thoroughly confused by this.

After the last basketball game, Charleston pony posted that our average home attendance was 3,804, and adding up the official attendance numbers from all of this years 10 home games shows him to be correct. One of the Results of your efforts from your post is that revenue and attendance for basketball are up this year over last year, but last year SMU's home games averaged 4029 fans a game, and had total home attendance of 56,404. So, we would have to average 6,120 people per game over the last 3, to meet last years totals. CPC does not understand how this could be construed as attendance being up over last year? Just a quick glance at the numbers from last years WAC games looks like attendance is down in conference-only games, as well.

I guess the new floor seats were kind of expensive, but if attendance is down, can revenue really be up that much? Particularly when we have no idea how much the WAC's split of the NCAA tournament will be, and that is an important source of basketball revenue? Last year Tulsa and Hawaii both made the 2nd round of the tournament, and frankly it doesnt look like the WAC is going to perform nearly as well this year, so we cant expect as much from that source as years past.

All the numbers used here came from the official stats at SMUMustangs.com. If thats not correct or something else needs to be factored in, please let everyone know. CPC would really like to believe that everything is going well, but it is difficult to find evidence of what you are saying.

Mr. Norris,

Thank you very much for responding with the detail and professionalism that you did. I, for one, post on this board because of my passion for SMU and its athletic programs. I think the common thread among everyone on this board is the general lack of interest and attendance. While we all have differing opinions on the problems and solutions, we share the desire for a common result: More people in the stands.

I really like many of the things you mentioned in your post. I truly hope we can have some success. As I've said all along, I think we ARE like Vandy, Duke, Georgetown, Ga Tech, USC, and a few more, in terms of academics, demographics, etc. Where we differ the most is in our won-loss record. Couple that with being in the WAC and the challenge becomes even more demanding. I am one who thinks that being in DFW is not our biggest problem. Losing is.

Someone else posted that the Methodist Church ties need to be strengthened. I have been begging for this for 15 years. I'm from east Texas and agree completely that those churches love to come to the metroplex for a college game. This used to happen all the time in the 80s. Keep in mind that Rickey Joe Meeks is from Mt. Vernon. My guess is that is you CALLED (I don't think e-mail is the best way to get the message out) the pastor at the Methodist Church in MV, you would have every Methodist, Baptist, etc. board buses and come to Ford Stadium. We have many kids coming in to our football program from east Texas. Try this which the Methodist churches in each of those cities. I can recall coming to games in the early 80s where there were literally thousands of Methodist church groups in Texas Stadium. Again, I asked the youth director at my church TODAY if he ever heard from SMU. He said No. When I informed him of the e-mails he said, "Well, I probably have gotten some but I get SO MANY e-mails about group events, that I just delete them." My point is that we should probably try and make some personal contacts. I would be happy to help with my church if you desire.

Again, I truly appreciate your efforts and in no way intend my portion of this discussion to imply otherwise. Please keep up the efforts and hard work.

Woody: Thank you for this post. It's good to know efforts are being made. Here's another suggestion: enlist the help of the B-school; more specifically whoever is teaching marketing these days...to help figure out a way to increase student attendance. There's no doubt in my mind that a packed and rowdy student section both creates a hostile environment for our visitors AND pumps some life into the "old timers" in the stands. A loud and rowdy Moody makes for a more enjoyable experience for anyone attending. Would also be a great idea to try to find some student volunteers to help call those E.Tx churches someone mentioned. Make them feel like we really want them; not just that they've made it to our e-mail list. Keep the faith and thanks again for your post.

unfortunately for the marketing department they dont have a good product to sell.

there is only so much a mrkting department can do to put people in the seats, it's really up to the teams to produce on the field/court first. only then will the mrking department have a message to get out to the dfw area.

duke, gtown, vandy, etc. werent built by a mrking team. these teams have tradition, their fans support them b/c they give them something to be proud of, not b/c they want to win some stupid american idol knock off.

i'm a recent smu grad, and a huge fan of college sports. however i dont get the same feel from the smu athletic department that i get from the previously mentioned schools. we seem to be trying to bribe fans into the stands. i know we need butts in the seats, but in the long run i thing that this hurts us more than it helps.

i think we need a committee of students working on promos, give aways, and basicly building a good environment. what we dont need is a mrking department trying to create atmosphere. college bball and college football start with the students, if they dont care then nobody else is going to either.

just my opinion.

Hats off to you, Woody. It takes a certain amount of .... "juevos" to come on here, to a board on which there has been some criticism and/or skepticism of your work, and defend your position and plan of attack. I'll be the first to admit that some of the marketing moves have raised questions in my mind, but I want to be the first (OK, I missed the boat on being first) to offer an apology for my skepticism. I hope that your plan will enjoy increased success as the Mustangs improve.

Fellow Mustangs: Just wanted to follow up and let you know that Mr. Norris is a man of his word. I left a message with his secretary when he was 'out' earlier (see my first post in this thread) and he called me back within the hour. We had a very cordial conversation and I offered my 'volunteer' services to further SMU here in Houston and anywhere else needed.

A winning team DOES get fans into the stands. But that doesn't mean that fans should only go to the games when the team is on a winning streak. That's called 'fair weather' fandom. I've seen way too much of that in Houston over the years with the Oilers and the Astros. I certainly hope that SMU's fans aren't in the same league. Also, SMU needs to be sold as DALLAS' PREMIERE UNIVERSITY! The city embraced Mustang Mania back in the 80s. It can happen again!

What will it take to get SMU's student body to come out in droves to the games even if the team is in a slump? My suggestion is that the IFC 'ban' fraternity parties until AFTER the games are completed, for a start.

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

Now I know this has nothing to do with what you are talking about but I just thought I tell yall this!

I have 4 seats up in the Club Level and I bring my grandparents up to the games for a long time now! And We always have an extra ticket because after my dad got a divorce with my mom we decided to keep the ticket so me or my sis could bring a friend to the games! in the process of that! I have converted 2 Horns into Mustangs! I Love Doing That! But recently My Best Friend *who is a MAJOR!! Horn fan* Came to the game with me! I think it was the San Jose State game?! Well He keep saying that we had no chance because he knows Im a huge Mustang and he likes to tease me about it. Well The First Thing He said when we got up was that Wow!! We Get All the Food For Free? (You Know LoL) And The Whole game he was like I love it up here! So I just wanted to say that Whoever Runs the Press Box thingy is doing a great job! And When you are statisfing a Horn Is a GOOD!!!!! Compliment!

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The Red and Blue Is Back! God Bless SMU Football!