True. That "Fire Rudy" is a joke. So is "Trade Francis." Most of those are emotional reactions, rather than logical or practical. But I think it's funny to hear those guys talk like that. Man! You should hear Washington Redskin fans! Or Boston Red Sox sports radio callings! Yikes! Those fans are rabid dogs! Talk about emotional or unpractical! But, I think that's what sports radio should be about. Just weed out the unreasonable.
To a certain extent, having critical fans is MUCH better than the other way around. Anyone who's ever lived in San Antonio knows exactly what I'm talking about. Over there, the Spurs can do NO WRONG. Greg Popavich can do NO WRONG. David Robinson is the best center ever, and whoever's on the team is a great player. They are TOTALLY BLIND to the team's faults and David Robinson's inadequacy compared to Dream. I mean, try to argue that Dream is better than the Mermaid in San Antonio. It's just not possible to get any sort of give on this. Dream destroyed Robinson in David's very best season. Straight up, there is no way that one could possibly argue any other way with a semblance of sanity. But San Antonio blind faith fans will do it every time . . .
That goes back to my post about the Houston cultural/history problem. The Astros, Rockets, Texans should be a PART OF YOU! Is it YOUR CITY OR NOT? Have some home-town pride! If you don't have home-town pride, then you probably haven't been in Houston very long. Houston sports should be just as much a part of the cities history as anything else (Sam Houston/The Battle of San Jacinto, etc). Just because it's modern doesn't matter. http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/abouthouston/
Excuses, excuses, excuses. There is no reason this team should be dead last in attendance. The ticket prices may be high but even the $10 and $13 tickets aren't selling out. The economy is bad but it's also bad all over America. Yes the Rockets have had a few bad years but nothing like the Clippers, Clevland, Atlanta, Denver, and Golden State. There is no excuse for the Rockets being dead last in attendance.
I think its fine to support a mediocre product if one wants to. So, I amend my statement, no Houstonian should feel obligated to do such a thing. And perhaps the lack of support for a mediocre product is, in the long term, an incentive for someone to improve the product.
That's fine. See you at the game (after the Rockets build a winning team). By the way, the Rockets will have new unis next year, and a new arena, and lots of awesome food/beer, etc... Tempted?
I think it comes down to two things: 1)winning games 2)lack of marketing. I used to work next door to Compaq from 1998-2001 for an energy company based in Wichita, KS (rhymes with Coke). My co-workers and I would randomly go to games for fun. Granted we just had to walk across the street, and we had disposable income, but it wasn't hard to get guys to go to games. The team was winning, Charles and Pippen were on the team, and the team was highly marketed within the City. The lack of marketing is really hurting. I wonder if there is a reason for the lack of marketing to put people in seats. Is it because the new arena is being built and with a packed house noone could justify using city funds on the new arena? I'm not sure, but I will bet anything that next season is highly marketed because of the new arena. Hmmm...
There are many, many good points in this thread, most of which I agree with. But one reason a few have listed is parking, how can you complain about parking there? Its close, its very cheap (its included in the ticket, I think its like $.50), and its covered. Dont let that be a bs reason. I cannot wait for the new arena, but you think the parking is bad now, wait till next season.
Marketing, Marketing, Marketing.. I can't say it enough. Granted Tim is trying to communicate with fans by posting on here, but he is communicating with the wrong fans. We are the ones buying the tickets, we are not the problem. Its the other people that they need to communicate to. I never see any marketing outside of the billboard campaign and Rockets broadcasts. Obviously the message is not out there and clear enough. What did we see from the beginning Yao Ming, Yao Ming and more Yao Ming. He no doubt will have a promising career, but this team is built around Steve and guys like Cuttino, Eddie and other key players like Kenny and Maurice. Yao Ming is just another piece of the puzzle. My point is, this is a team. They will not win games with one player. Why not market the Houston Rockets and their exciting team. Blitz that message on every radio station, TV station and newspaper. Everytime I use to turn on the TV, there was always a story about the Rockets, whether they were out in the community or they were talking about the team. Bottom line, they need to reach the people that are not attending games more effectively.
My opinion (I hope these weren't already stated): First off, I live 100 miles away and have a 12 game pack. I have a message on my answering machine from a Rockets sales woman seeing if I am doing well. I do believe the marketing is better this year, and so is the customer relations. Also, my friends and I moved up to empty seats closer at the games and unlike years past, we haven't had a problem yet...that is cool, it makes sense if the seats are empty and it makes me want to go back. Now for the reasons I believe attendance is bad: (other than those previosly stated) 1) The Rockets have an identity crisis in marketing. Are they trying to get families to come? Are they going for sports fans (guys)? A big teddy bear mascot? Hot power dancers? I think they are trying to much to cater to different crowds (ex. Asians, families, men, hardcore fans, quiet fans) and it all gets jumbled up into a product that is 100% satisfactory to no one. I am Asian with a family of over 80, and I must say that was some of the dumbest crap I saw during halftime of the opening game where that dude who looked like any one of my uncles was without a clue and got to be "fan of the game". I just laughed, while many guys in my section appeared to be puzzled while saying "WTF". Also, you cannot convert Asians who are not basketball fans into basketball fans just because of Yao. We'll go support a family member who opens a new restaurant once or twice, but the food has to be good for us to come back. Those of us who don't understand/watch basketball won't buy season tickets because of one guy. 2) The atmosphere and entertainment value. In Houston, when people go out in the evening, there's restaurants for all types of budgets, cafes, movies, bars, clubs, theatre district, gang activity...basically there's a lot to do. In Sacramento, there's just the Kings. In Lubbock, there's the Red Raiders. I mention those two because The Rockets need a Kings/Aggie football game type atmosphere (not a suck ass Red Raider game atmosphere) to be attractive to people who want to go out and have fun. The economy does hurt, but not too much because people are going to the bazillion multiplexes in Houston all the time. They're also still getting drunk at bars and clubs, fat at restaurants, and cultured at cafes and the theater district. Why would you want to go to a Rockets game unless you are a Rockets fan? which brings me to my opinion of a solution: Bring back the typical 80's fans and try to cater to that crowd. REALLY ENCOURAGE NOISE. Maybe even YELLS like at A&M. Support the fans that heckle the opposing team. We need more coordination at games for this. Weed out those people who tell you to "be quiet" at Rockets games. Shorter skirts on the power dancers. Send the Power Dancers to Sports Bars to sell tickets. Have Rockets employees in the crowd during games, helping everyone make noise. Stop the wave-it is stupid. Have a ClutchCity.Net section reserved for many games. Give us discounts. We will organize the noise. We will Lead the crowd. Mainly, a Rockets game needs to become an experience that a first-timer would go to and leave thinking, "this is bad ass...the tickets aren't too pricy, the place is cool, the fans are awesome, the food good, the team is fun to watch, and the team is winning." Some of those things are already happening: new arena, better team...but the Atmosphere needs to change. I know much of the resposibility belongs to the fans, the hell, if no one showed all Aggies how to yell and lead during games, no one would know.
Someone mentioned how the Toronto Raptors sell out each game. Yes. this is so even though Vince Carter is not playing. The following generalizations may or may not be insightful. I have asked my Toronto friends their opinions on why Toronto games are sellouts. Some comments from them: (a) Torontonion's do not really think of the Raptor's as "Canada's Team". Their popularity does not stem from Canadian pride. (b) Raptors have a very nice basketball arena (Air Canada Center) which is very easily accessible by subway/highway (c) All Raptor games are broadcast on TV for the local audience (d) Everywhere you go, there are Raptor advertisements in the City. (subway, bus shelter, posters. billboards). (e) Game attendees are either corporate sponsored, middle-income and professionals, family. Attending the games are considered "hip" here too. Indeed, it's considered a "cool" treat to offer someone tickets for the Raptors game. (f) Toronto does not have a real basketball culture. People attending do not truly understand the game but enjoy the spectacle.
Just as Beep mentioned, you can't go anywhere in Toronto without seeing something about the Raptors. Its a similar concept, people should not go anywhere without seeing Rockets or turn on their TVs or radio. Rockets, Rockets, Rockets should be seen everywhere. That builds excitement and creates synergy with the fans. The Texans do a great job (granted it is their first year), but the Rockets marketing needs to work harder getting the message out. Its just not clear to people. I would be asking everyone I can talk to and ask them, outside of price of a ticket, what would it take for you to attend a game. Then turn that around into a Marketing campaign. The marketing campaign should be similar to a political campaign without the negative part. Everyone should know when the Rockets are playing and how exciting they are to watch. I give them a D- on their marketing effort. As far as I can see, they seem to have inexperience people with little NBA experience to Market this team.
This question is primarily aimed at those who think the Rockets are "exciting to watch" or "poorly marketed", but anyone could respond. How well do the Rockets draw when they are the visiting team? I am a Rockets fan of 20+ years, but from my perspective the teams' current style is pretty boring - 1on1 play, litttle ball or player movement, no fast breaks (although the latter is changing somewhat). If they draw away from the Compaq Center, then it could be a marketing issue. If they don't draw either at home or away, maybe they aren't as "exciting" and "marketable" as some hard core fans think. UPDATE This is contrary to what I expected. http://www.ctvsportsnet2.com/nba/stats/nbaatt.shtml As of 11-19. the Rockets have averaged 17,445 for 4 away games (IND, DEN, PHX, LAL). The are/were the 10th ranked team in away attendance. The Rockets were above the average home attendance in DEN (+ 3,823), PHX (+2,372) and IND(+1,743). The Rockets 17,445 average was down in LA (-1,552). IND and LAL are a net wash. The away numbers are driven by DEN and PHX who are respectively 26th and 20th in home attendance by the source of my information. Don't know what to conclude. Are the economies of these cities better? Do the local teams market the visiting Rockets well? Are fans in other cities responding more to Francis, Mobley and/or Yao than they are in Houston? I also found it curious that the bottom 5 road draws are all decent teams - MIN, SEA, TOR, SAS, IND.
I think this issue can be solved easily... BLACKOUT home games that aren't soldout! if i still lived in Houston, I would no doubt be a season ticket holder! but i did fly back to catch the Rockets retire the Dream's jersey. I even offered to buy tix for my parents, but only my dad agreed to go. My mom didn't want to go, she said she gets a better view of the game at home on TV. i think this is clearly the problem!!! The Rockets are a young exciting team on the rise and they ARE WINNING! wasn't it just a few seasons ago we fought to keep the Rockets in Houston? how come we're not fighting to make sure they stay?
You make a good point gator. I just want to say one more thing. I will begin with one word EMOTION. In my opinion individuals buy tickets mostly on emotion. You are emotionally drawn to the game in one way or another. The Rcokets are doing a poor job of emotionally drawing people to the games. Look at their campaign. Be part of something big commercials have no emotion. The message is not emotional. Take for an example the campaign the Rockets had in the past. Is something about without you we are just another basketball team. They built an emotional attachment through that campaign. Look at the NBA in general campaigns. The built the NBA marketing machine around "NBA its fantastic" and "I love this game" Both are very powerful emotional campaigns. Rockets marketing lacks that emotional attachment. When I attend a game, the environment lacks emotion such as the Intro, timeouts, music mascots, dance team, staff, etc. Sure, I can have a good time, but overall, it completely lacks emotion when I attend a game.
I'd give it a couple of months and the attendance will start to climb. The way the Rockets' chemistry is flowing, it will pick up in no time.
All good points. A little outside perspective: I grew up in Hell (Portland) and the Blazers are the only show in town there. Therefore, they have always been THE thing to go see, and be seen at. The last few years, a lot of fans have been disenfranchised there (the entire JR Rider era, trade Whitsitt, etc.), so much so that you would think that attendance might start to suffer, but it never really did. Granted, the Blazers have always been a borderline playoff/winning team, and that helps, but I think they were able to save their attendance during these problematic times like so: THEY MADE THE GAMES FUN FOR THE FANS . Lots of ingame T-shirt giveaways, halftime shows, noise makers, noise monitor on the big screen, things like that. I was at the 1999 40-point blowout loss, and during the 3rd quarter they showed a (doctored) video clip of a space shuttle crashing after launch. Granted, I thought it was very tacky and it made my blood boil, but the crowd loved it. I'm not saying the Rockets should stoop to that level, but gimmicks like that can really get a crowd going. That said, I think the Rockets attendance will be fine in the end, provided the team keeps winning. And once they move downtown, that should bring in more fans out of curiosity. Remember, the year that Enron Field/MMP opened the Astros stunk up the joint most nights but still managed to sell out most of the games. And if I didn't live 4,000 miles from Houston in Alaska I'd go to more games myself Also, I'm trying to score some tickets to see the Rockets play the Trailing Blazers next week in Idiotville when I go home for Thanksgiving. If I succeed I'll let y'all know how it went firsthand.
