The Carolina Hurricanes have recently turned to SAS for help with maximizing revenue regarding their home games this year. According to this article by News and Observer reporter David Ranii, the lead time for some promotions may be extended in the future. For instance, instead of needing to buy reduced price tickets on game day, perhaps they will allow fans to purchase them in advance.
Last season, the team offered discounts to groups such as college students and families for specified games, as well as military discounts for all games. They also made some discounts available only on game day; that may change this year, Nowicki said. "We have re-evaluated how we are going to handle those promotions specifically, and some will be available for longer periods of time," he said.
The team is also taking a hard look at how reducing prices to get more bodies in the building might help with the bottom line.
IDeaS is based in Minneapolis and has 206 employees. Its software analyzes reams of sales data and identifies ways for customers such as Hilton, Hyatt and US Airways to increase revenue. IDeaS' analysis of 2007-2008 ticket data concluded that the Canes could have boosted ticket revenue by 4.5 percent with better pricing. With some promotions, the team could have sold more tickets and generated more revenue with deeper discounts, while in other cases it cut prices more than was necessary, said Martino.
This news should be encouraging for fans in that the team seems to be more receptive to new ideas than in the past. We will see how it works out.