I actually think you have a point...everyone knows: SEX SELLS! Maybe a few lucky fans should be given lap dances?
Wow, who woulda thought they use actors for commercials So maybe those two chicks on the Miller Lite commercial aren't really that angry
All 6 Rockets games I've attended so far (Mobley ticket pack) have been okay from the "hospitality"standpoint except for a couple of things: WTF ARE THE GOODIES? Hand the free stuff out at the door. I have yet to get one damn giveaway despite the fact that I get to the arena 30 minutes before tipoff. It's not enought to circle around looking for parking, wait in line for the half-ass "homeland security" check at the bottom of the stairs, deal w/ the disorganized rabble trying to push their way in at the top. No, now I have to go wait in yet another line just to get my bobblehead, calendar, etc. Stupid. Do it the way they used to - hand it out as you come in. Security at the arena is also a freaking joke. There was damn near a race riot in section 210 during the Lakers game & it took security 30 minutes to get police up there. Some fans had to go alert these guys...
Actually Jeff, I'm not calling you out on the stats, but those teams used to score right at 100pts per night. They used to be around 97-100 pts per night. It was good team basketball and I'm pretty sure those teams in the early to mid 90's used to avg way more fast break points than this current squad.
Man, I went to the US this past Holiday season, visited some friends in Houston, and was in attendance at the crappy yet sold-out (because of the Moochie Celebri-Duck?) HOU-NYK game. You guys ARE lucky you're getting a new arena next season. Even my third-world country has better arenas.
Sort of right, but not quite Jeff. The Rocks still passed the ball around even though it went through Dream each and every time. That team also played instense defense, and was fun to watch. Granted, winning cures a lot of ills, but this team is just WAY worse then any Rockets team in the 90s....highly unwatchable at times as they make the same mistake over and over and over again. Pathetic...all we want is some signs of significant growth, is that too much to ask in your 4th year in the league? DD
Man, don't check here for a whole morning and look what happens. First: We love having kids at games. We love having families at games. Kids and families are one of the signs of a growing, diverse fan base. It creates a fun environment. We've done a number of things -- re-pricing the upper bowl to create more affordable tickets, scheduling more games during the holiday break, offering mini-packs (very family friendly), and offering more (and we hope more creative) premiums to make it more attractive for kids and their families to come to games. Second: At the same time, our marketing is not just aimed at kids. The TV spots showing the players goofing around with kids? Kids may laugh at some of the bits, but the real target is adults who are at risk of becoming disenfranchised by some of the negative images surrounding NBA players (or pro athletes in general). We have a young team, and our players generally come from a pretty different socio-economic background than our core ticket buyers. If we don't show them like they really are, it's too easy for somebody to put a negative stereotype on them. They're good guys -- showing them being good guys, playing around with kids (believe me, it comes very naturally to them) gives fans a more honest look. That's important to us. (And for the record, I've been spilled on twice this season, both times by adults, both times by adults trying to leap for t-shirts.) We also know that one of the main reasons people follow sports is that people want heroes. On the court heroics are easier to define. Off the court heroics are important, too. Charitable endeavours are important (and we do as much or more than any other pro sports team), but for :30 TV spots, showing the players through kids' eyes is a great way to do that. By the way, we've never had a kid get into a fight with another kid over one of our giveaways. That honor belongs strictly to the adults. Kids love the giveaways, but in addition to families, the target there is the casual fan who may need a little prompting to come to a few more games than he or she normally would. We've gotten big boosts this year on our giveaway nights, and it hasn't all been just kids. Clutch, by the way, has many, many fans, both kids and adults. If he isn't for your tastes, fine -- but just realize not every element of our game presentation is meant to please everybody. Nobody is going to compel you to watch him. As for the uniforms? We're working on them. It'll probably be late summer before we show anything. And, contrary to one of the postings upstream, the Mavericks didn't release their new uniforms until well after the end of the regular season. (Fun fact of the day: it's an NBA regulation that you can't show anything regarding uniform changes until AFTER the NBA Finals are over.) Whew. Tim McDougall Vice President of Marketing Houston Rockets and Comets timm@rocketball.com
Tim, They may be good guys off the court, but on the court, they are selfish, brattish, gutless players. At least our 2 starting guards are....and THAT is the biggest problem you have. Your supposed STAR player only passes to his friends, ignores wide open teamates, and has zero committment to defense. Now, all that being said, I have taken my 4 year old to the game, and we loved all the "SIDE" show entertainment you guys do.... Believe me the Rocks presentation is a TON better then the Spurs...but the Spurs are a lot more fun to watch...they play as a team, not as a group of selfish, spoiled brats. DD
Not being fair to Tim. Not one bit. Coaching ain't his thing, marketing is. But then, IMHO, unless we see smart, fun basketball and win, there isn't anything that the best marketing can do to improve attendance. The Nets are a different story altogether.
Bury, I think the Rocks marketing is very well done and professional. I think the Rocks team is undisciplined and unprofessional. DD
I'm with you there, DD. Like I said several posts above, I went to see a live NBA game for the first time a month ago when I visited your country. I had fun absorbing the atmosphere of it all, but the game itself sucked bigtime no-thanks to all the damn ISOs. A loss against NY at home. I still can't fathom it.
Tim, First, thanks for your post. I am confident that everyone at the Rockets organization is doing what they feel is best for the team. I am just a long-time fan who has an opinion and wanted to share it with this group. No disrespect intended. With that said, I clearly think the theme of you post is kids and family. I further think these two groups are valid markets for your efforts; however, I (as a 30 year old father) am feeling disenfranchised as a Rockets fan when it comes to marketing. I love my kids and try to share as many new experiences (sports and otherwise) with them. I just don't revolve my life exclusively around my kids. I want to feel like I can go to a Rockets game with some buddies just to have a more adult (and I don't mean Gentlemen's Club) experience part of the time. Marketing the Rockets (at games and otherwise) just feels too gimmicky to me. This is great for kids and families but a large PAYING market in Houston are people like me. I just feel a portion of the SHOW should include my market. Thanks for the response again please respect my opinion.
Hey, you're alright! I think the problem here is that when I complain about kids at the game, most people assume that I'm complaing about THEIR kids, when in reality, I don't know you or your kids. I'm sure your youngsters are just fine at the game or wherever - they may get into trouble every now and then, but then kids will be kids. But I still hang by my assessment that a lot of people bring kids to the games that are too immature to appreciate them, so instead of watching the game, they spend all of their time jumping around in their seats or obnoxiously yelling at every little thing that happens on the court. I really don't care if a child gets a bit messy or crazy at the game, but certain children act up constantly the whole time - and the younger they are, the more likely such a problem will occur. I don't by any means suggest banning kids from games or having them sit in silence. I just want people to realize that some children are just too immature to go to a basketball game and would be better off left at home with a baby-sitter until they are a bit older. I can't pin-down what age would be best, because all children mature differently.
I have little problem with the marketing, but I do feel that most of it is a wasted effort because the ticket prices are so high - just behind NY & LA. I'm sure Tim does his best job, but those prices will always keep attendance down until the team gets back into the playoffs - something that Tim has no control over (unless he can play point guard). I understand why the prices are high - the arena is small and the luxury boxes there are few and misplaced. But whatever the case may be, they still make it hard for Joes like me to go. I still say the Rockets need to slash prices and make it up in volume, but no team would ever do that mid-season, for a variety of reasons.
How about the adults and the families -- watching the same spots. Whatever happened to selling the game? Sports are fun, recreational, diversional. So, give us some fun. Show us the good plays, the joy of the winning plays. Show SF to Yao Ming for the clinching slam. Make me happy to spend my money and my time on my last professional team. I have given up on baseball and the Astros. I need more from the Texans. I still pour hours into the Rockets and NBA. Make me feel glad I do. Make me want to. Sorry, Tim, your department isn't. The fellas aren't. The coaches aren't. Two All Stars. Star growing in EG -- but, when? Show me the fun.
Point taken. I agree to an extent about misbehaving or immature kids. I guess I just havent noticed that as a problem at the games. I also agree in that I definitely have noticed crying babies at the movies and wondered what the parents were thinking by bringing them in the first place. Get that kid out of there...its annoying! But as I said it is no more annoying than some idiot taking cell phone calls during the flick. What I took issue with was the assertion that the games were an "adult place" as if kids had no business being there. To me...its a kids game. As such I understand the marketing towards kids and families. I think the Rockets...and sports teams in general do a good job of balancing the entertainment so that theres things that appeal to almost everyone. Truth is...since Im a big Rockets fan, Im there for the team and to watch the game. My family will do that regardless, the marketing matters not to us. (I still think those commercials are funny though...keep em coming Tim)
I also hate @#%*ing Tom. His whole mantra is "We're a part of Houston. We're here." But in reality, he's in LA shooting commericals for soap and collect calls. It's more than acting - it's dishonest. The proper thing for him to say would be "Reliant is a part of Houston. They're here." But I think they really want people to believe that Tom is actually somebody walking around in the community, somebody that we can relate to - not an actor at all, but a spokesman like Dave Thomas was for Wendy's. I bet you could find thousands of people who think that he actually works for the company. I also hate the @#%*ing Whataburger guy and the @#%*ing Subway moron. Why do companies base their entire ad campaigns on cheap stand-up commedians? Can't their ad agencies think of anything better than these clowns? When did this trend start?
