GaryMrMets
11-13-2003, 01:55 AM
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/phi/news/phi_news.jsp?ymd=20031112&content_id=602802&vkey=news_phi&fext=.jsp&c_id=phi
11/12/2003 4:41 PM ET
Weber: Fans will enjoy view
By Ken Mandel / MLB.com
PHILADELPHIA -- By this time next week, Phillies season-ticket holders will begin receiving their seat locations for Citizens Bank Park.
The process of assigning seats to the 14,800 existing season-ticket holders -- not to mention the roughly 5,000 new accounts that are expected -- began in July, when questionnaires and applications were sent out.
The biggest logistical issue is how to handle displaced fans who won't find themselves in exactly the same spot in the new ballpark. With that in mind, John Weber, the team's director of sales, sat down with MLB.com to address some of these issues.
MLB.com: Can you explain the process of how seat assignments were determined for the full and partial-season holders?
Weber:: In July we mailed out a questionnaire and a guide explaining the factors that would go into the 2004 seat assignment. After inputting the information, we looked at every account individually to assign a location.
The seat assignments were prioritized according to the a number of factors: the type of plan they had previously, where they sat at Veterans Stadium, how long they've had seats, whether they have a full season or partial plan, and their answers to the questionnaire.
We started with the full-season plans, and assigned fans the best available seats, based on that criteria. A partial Sunday season-ticket holder, in some cases, can't bge in a similar area, but won't be displaced terribly. We have many Sunday season-ticket holders, and that made it difficult.
MLB.com: How difficult were the assignments with regard to fans around the Diamond Club section directly behind home plate?
Weber: That was our biggest challenge. With the architecture of the Diamond Club behind home plate, the fans who had seats behind home plate were affected. We offered seats in the Diamond Club to full-season ticket holders first, and to some partials, then sold the area out. That was only sold as a full-season ticket.
The problem was that we had to move these fans, and that had a ripple effect on some long-term fans in those areas who weren't displaced by the Diamond Club, so we had to intermingle all those people in those areas. It has an impact on everybody's seating arrangement.
We have to get customers to understand the uniqueness of the new ballpark, but I think once the fans are here, they will understand the differences.
MLB.com: How do you intend to address concerns regarding a particular seat assignment?
Weber: We know we can't accommodate everybody. If someone is willing to be flexible and move to a lower-priced area or higher up, we can help. If they want to move closer, it might be tough, because those most likely have already been assigned.
MLB.com: To help the move to the 43,500-seat ballpark, and to iron down the logistics, the Phillies are imposing an accelerated payment schedule for 2004. Can you elaborate on that?
Weber: The first payment (33 percent of the total amount) is due Dec. 17, and can be cash, credit card or check. The final amount is February, which is a few weeks earlier. The main reason we've done this is because we need more time to mail out tickets. We expect to have 20,000 for next season.
MLB.com: Obviously, people with full season-ticket plans have tickets for the first regular-season game on April 12, and demand for that game will be extreme. What about those fans with partial plans? Have any possibilities, such as a lottery system, been discussed?
Weber: We haven't decided what we're going to do yet. We'll release that information in January.
MLB.com: Are some of these seat assignments difficult to sell because fans can't actually see where they're sitting?
Weber: Naturally. I think once the fans get in there, they'll enjoy what will be a totally different experience than what they're used to. There's so much to do in the outfield areas and all over the ballpark, and there's so much more to see instead of seats across the way.
As far as the actual field, in the outfield at the Vet, for example, you were 15-20 feet above a 12-foot wall. Here fans will be right behind an 8-foot wall in left field. In right field, you have a great view of the scoreboard. I think people will realize how special this ballpark is the minute they walk in.
Of course, the biggest thing we have going for us is the team. Though we fell short last year, Billy Wagner provides a huge boost. Our jobs (selling season tickets) have been made easier because of what the front office has done. We're set up for long-term success, and a lot of people want to get in.
Ken Mandel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/images/2003/06/17/GSWkx4C6.jpg
"I think people will realize how special this ballpark is the minute they walk in," John Weber said of Citizens Bank Park. (Phillies)
11/12/2003 4:41 PM ET
Weber: Fans will enjoy view
By Ken Mandel / MLB.com
PHILADELPHIA -- By this time next week, Phillies season-ticket holders will begin receiving their seat locations for Citizens Bank Park.
The process of assigning seats to the 14,800 existing season-ticket holders -- not to mention the roughly 5,000 new accounts that are expected -- began in July, when questionnaires and applications were sent out.
The biggest logistical issue is how to handle displaced fans who won't find themselves in exactly the same spot in the new ballpark. With that in mind, John Weber, the team's director of sales, sat down with MLB.com to address some of these issues.
MLB.com: Can you explain the process of how seat assignments were determined for the full and partial-season holders?
Weber:: In July we mailed out a questionnaire and a guide explaining the factors that would go into the 2004 seat assignment. After inputting the information, we looked at every account individually to assign a location.
The seat assignments were prioritized according to the a number of factors: the type of plan they had previously, where they sat at Veterans Stadium, how long they've had seats, whether they have a full season or partial plan, and their answers to the questionnaire.
We started with the full-season plans, and assigned fans the best available seats, based on that criteria. A partial Sunday season-ticket holder, in some cases, can't bge in a similar area, but won't be displaced terribly. We have many Sunday season-ticket holders, and that made it difficult.
MLB.com: How difficult were the assignments with regard to fans around the Diamond Club section directly behind home plate?
Weber: That was our biggest challenge. With the architecture of the Diamond Club behind home plate, the fans who had seats behind home plate were affected. We offered seats in the Diamond Club to full-season ticket holders first, and to some partials, then sold the area out. That was only sold as a full-season ticket.
The problem was that we had to move these fans, and that had a ripple effect on some long-term fans in those areas who weren't displaced by the Diamond Club, so we had to intermingle all those people in those areas. It has an impact on everybody's seating arrangement.
We have to get customers to understand the uniqueness of the new ballpark, but I think once the fans are here, they will understand the differences.
MLB.com: How do you intend to address concerns regarding a particular seat assignment?
Weber: We know we can't accommodate everybody. If someone is willing to be flexible and move to a lower-priced area or higher up, we can help. If they want to move closer, it might be tough, because those most likely have already been assigned.
MLB.com: To help the move to the 43,500-seat ballpark, and to iron down the logistics, the Phillies are imposing an accelerated payment schedule for 2004. Can you elaborate on that?
Weber: The first payment (33 percent of the total amount) is due Dec. 17, and can be cash, credit card or check. The final amount is February, which is a few weeks earlier. The main reason we've done this is because we need more time to mail out tickets. We expect to have 20,000 for next season.
MLB.com: Obviously, people with full season-ticket plans have tickets for the first regular-season game on April 12, and demand for that game will be extreme. What about those fans with partial plans? Have any possibilities, such as a lottery system, been discussed?
Weber: We haven't decided what we're going to do yet. We'll release that information in January.
MLB.com: Are some of these seat assignments difficult to sell because fans can't actually see where they're sitting?
Weber: Naturally. I think once the fans get in there, they'll enjoy what will be a totally different experience than what they're used to. There's so much to do in the outfield areas and all over the ballpark, and there's so much more to see instead of seats across the way.
As far as the actual field, in the outfield at the Vet, for example, you were 15-20 feet above a 12-foot wall. Here fans will be right behind an 8-foot wall in left field. In right field, you have a great view of the scoreboard. I think people will realize how special this ballpark is the minute they walk in.
Of course, the biggest thing we have going for us is the team. Though we fell short last year, Billy Wagner provides a huge boost. Our jobs (selling season tickets) have been made easier because of what the front office has done. We're set up for long-term success, and a lot of people want to get in.
Ken Mandel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/images/2003/06/17/GSWkx4C6.jpg
"I think people will realize how special this ballpark is the minute they walk in," John Weber said of Citizens Bank Park. (Phillies)