CSVisual Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 I talked to one of the DCI staffers on Finals night and was told that the paid attendance was 29,000. Now you take that and factor in all the 2/3 corps and their staffs in attendance and the Div 1 corps that didn't make the finals show and you are probably sitting close to 34 or 35 thousand. Now that is a far cry from 50,000, but when you look at all the other corporations in this country that spend billions of dollars finding anyway they can to sell their product to you and me, if the attendance total gets a few more people to watch the broadcast and become new drum corps fans, then its OK by me. I see both sides of the argument, but realistically, I want to see the fan base of the activity grow. I am not insecure with the fan base now or worried that they might leave, because if they do thats their choice, but to keep selling the number of seats and keep this activity rolling for future generations we need to expand the fan base. And we live in a day and age where someone is more likely to check something new out on TV for free than pay the ticket price as they see a Drum Corps show going on as they drive by. Maybe they would like it. Who knows? But at least this way they have a better chance of seeing it. Sorry for the stream of conciousness and jumping around. Chris Wendt (the opinions posted on this forum are that of Chris Wendt and not those of any group that he is or has been affiliated with) :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dckid80 Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Publicity is more art than science. Publicity is very much a science. Have you ever spent any time in the marketing department of a Fortune 1000 company? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssorrell Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 I talked to one of the DCI staffers on Finals night and was told that the paid attendance was 29,000. The accuracy of their statement depends on who you were talking to. All DCI staffers are not completely in the know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glory Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Publicity is very much a science.Have you ever spent any time in the marketing department of a Fortune 1000 company? You're going to have to do better than that. Doubting my credentials is not proof that marketing is a science! If it were, people such as me (and maybe even you)wouldn't have to spend so much time and money trying to figure out how to make good products (from my Fortune 1000 company) seem more appealing to current and potential customers. HH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DrumCorpFan Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 I talked to one of the DCI staffers on Finals night and was told that the paid attendance was 29,000. Now you take that and factor in all the 2/3 corps and their staffs in attendance and the Div 1 corps that didn't make the finals show and you are probably sitting close to 34 or 35 thousand. Now that is a far cry from 50,000, but when you look at all the other corporations in this country that spend billions of dollars finding anyway they can to sell their product to you and me, if the attendance total gets a few more people to watch the broadcast and become new drum corps fans, then its OK by me. I see both sides of the argument, but realistically, I want to see the fan base of the activity grow. I am not insecure with the fan base now or worried that they might leave, because if they do thats their choice, but to keep selling the number of seats and keep this activity rolling for future generations we need to expand the fan base. And we live in a day and age where someone is more likely to check something new out on TV for free than pay the ticket price as they see a Drum Corps show going on as they drive by. Maybe they would like it. Who knows? But at least this way they have a better chance of seeing it. Sorry for the stream of conciousness and jumping around. Chris Wendt (the opinions posted on this forum are that of Chris Wendt and not those of any group that he is or has been affiliated with) :P <{POST_SNAPBACK}> A paid attendance of 29,000 would fill the front side completely in all decks. 34-35K is more than half the capacity, completely filling the stadium past the goal posts in the endzone. Do you think that's how full the stadium was? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssorrell Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 A paid attendance of 29,000 would fill the front side completely in all decks. 34-35K is more than half the capacity, completely filling the stadium past the goal posts in the endzone. Do you think that's how full the stadium was? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not to mention that he was allowing 5000-6000 in attendance from other corps that were not in finals. That's WAY too high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manoloblahniksabre Posted August 31, 2005 Author Share Posted August 31, 2005 Someone also mentioned on a previous page in the thread that their "source" said 20,000. I'd suspect a number between that and 25k. Maybe I'm wrong, but isn't that about where it's been the past few years? A paid attendance of 29,000 would fill the front side completely in all decks. 34-35K is more than half the capacity, completely filling the stadium past the goal posts in the endzone. Do you think that's how full the stadium was? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manoloblahniksabre Posted September 1, 2005 Author Share Posted September 1, 2005 I'm not sure where you actually stand on this? Do you believe DCI is trying to expand or not? Based on your opinions in the posts, I'm just not sure. Yes, I do think DCI is trying to expand because it needs the money, more than anything. I can't slight them for it, but I don't like how it is being marketed. No, it's not their job to create feeder corps, and I never said or meant to infer that it was. I just think it needs to be done. I teach teens and am around them on a day-to-day basis. It could be that my view on American "culture"/American youth is skewed, too. I try to be objective, however, and I'm not saying the entire lot of American kids are like this. I've observed that the best of America's youth is often participating in the arts, in activities like drum corps, and when introduced to it at a younger age, has a huge impact on the life of the person involved. That's why I'm such an advocate of feeder corps and junior colorguard. I do appreciate the kindly manner in which you proposition you disagreements, though. Thank you for being cordial. :) Although I've argued that the offering of DCI on ESPN2 could bring in a new audience to some degree, why do you believe so strongly that DCI is hellbent on expanding? Because it's being aired on a more major network? Because of the movie theater shows? Isn't it possible that DCI is simply trying to maintain their present audience and possibly bring back former fans that have been lost rather than create a newer fan base? The ESPN2 deal will allow EVERY fan in the USA to see the show, because it's no secret that over the last decade we've lost lots of PBS stations. It certainly can't be a bad thing that more people will be able to watch championships. And the theater shows bring in revenues from the present fan base...I don't think any of us would agree that someone that just happens to be strolling by the theater on a Thursday night will see a marquee for DCI World Championships Quarter Finals would just have to see what that's all about and buy a ticket. DCI is doing what they can do. It's not their job to create new feeder corps. It's their job to promote what we have. And I and many others think they are doing a grand job. You don't think I have a clear grasp on American youth? Why, because my opinion differs from your's? Maybe you are a bit out of touch. Maybe we both are off base slightly. But, I've got pre-teenagers in my house and they have lots of friends. I'm very interactive with my kids and their groups of friends, which does indeed include young teenage boys and girls. What experiences do you have with teenagers today and how are your impressions any more correct than are mine? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrumCorpsFan27 Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 DCI has not released an official count (that i am aware of) so I doubt there is some conspiracy to inflate numbers. It sounds like individuals making guesses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t-mac Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 The reason is quite simple. A total of 50,000 attendees for three nights of competition is pathetic. Best to make it look like one night. I have a newspaper column from Dallas written after the 71 VFW finals that states, “…the competition drew a crowd of some 30,000 to the famed stadium (Cotton Bowl).” DC sure has grown in popularity since DCI was formed in 72. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Oh, come on people, can we get over it? There are quite frankly more things for people to do for entertainment today than in the early 70's. I mean for crying out loud, Evel Kneivel use to sell out stadiums in the 70's too but I dare say that motorcycle "jumping" is more popular today than ever before (moto cross/Xgames, etc.) but they are usually not selling out 50,000 seat venues. There are WAY more people involved in "jumping" things today, they are just doing it in more places and in more varieties of ways. The same can be said of (dare I say it) "marching arts" activities. Drum Corps has always been somewhat of a niche activity, and no matter what anyone says, Drum Corps (DCI) is largely if not solely responsible for the increase in competitive marching bands across the country. Drum Corps is still looked at as the cream of the crop, but it's kinda like baseball...have you noticed that interest in minor league baseball seems to be flourishing while attendance at MLB games only seems to be large toward the end of the season. It doesn't mean that BASEBALL isn't as popular anymore, or that any one party has "killed" the sport. Sorry, I'll get off my :ramd: now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.