Print |
E-mail to a friend
NEWS
Ticket sellers provide gateway to the games
Marshall University senior Dan Hager purchases football game tickets from Marshall graduate student Melissa Knepshield Friday, August 29, 2008, at Marshall University.
Purchase this photo
HUNTINGTON -- On game day, the numbers behind ticket sales come to life.
Ticket sellers at Marshall University say preparing for football season is a year-round process, but it's worth it.
That first payoff will come today, as Marshall's season kicks off with a game at 4:30 p.m. today at Joan C. Edwards Stadium against Illinois State.
That first home game is always a thrill, said Sara Jones, assistant director of ticketing.
"It's a totally different environment than what we deal with Monday through Friday in the office, but that's why it's exciting. It's interesting to see. Everyone's a dot or a circle on the computer screen, then they become people in the stands," she said.
Aaron Goebbel, assistant athletic director of ticketing, said preparation for football season never ends. He works with four graduate assistants, two student assistants and others in the office to do the majority of the physical ticket selling through the computer system. He expects about 30,000 people to attend Saturday's game, depending on the weather.
From the minute the first single home game tickets go on sale Aug. 15, ticket sellers are hard at work. Season ticket sales start in February, he said.
Jones said staff begin preparing their system in February to do renewals, which go out in March.
From then on, it's one thing after another, she said.
When football season ends, ticket sellers start selling basketball tickets, but even then staff is still looking at next year's football tickets.
This year Marshall has a great home schedule, Goebbel said, with games against Cincinnati, Houston, University of Central Florida, and more.
"Once you get close to kickoff and people realize it's right around the corner, people get excited," he said of football season.
He said excitement really picks up once the first article about training camp appears in The Herald-Dispatch. Then comes the buzz about all of the home games.
Goebbel expects Saturday will be fun, if hectic. Many fans have been buying tickets for years and can walk "blindly" to their seats, but many new ticket holders also will be starting traditions, he said.
Part of what ticket sellers do is make sure everyone is having a good time in a positive environment, he said.
"When you have a fan base like we do and you have the people who spend the money they do on season tickets each year, we owe it to them to make sure we accommodate them the best we can and take care of them any way we can," Goebbel said. "The bottom line is to make sure they enjoy the game."
Jones has been involved in ticket sales for years, starting as a graduate assistant.
She said graduate assistants handle phone and window ticket orders, among other things.
As the first home game inches closer, the demand for tickets increases, she said.
She said the biggest task involving tickets is the printing, but staff also have to be sure fans are taken care of, including making sure tickets are in the mail.
Customer service is number one, she said, and staff members do whatever they can to keep fans coming back.
Jones said few problems should arise today, aside from the occasional lost or forgotten ticket, which staff can look up.
"We're very organized here in the office to make sure that if problems do arise, they're taken care of right away," she said.
In the week leading up to the big game, staff members are stocking tickets, preparing the gates and making sure they have enough student workers.
"Our staff is well prepared," Jones said.
