Warriors having to work harder to hit their numbers - Birmingham Business Journal:

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Warriors executives have to work harder to line up sponsorws and sell tickets amid theeconomic gloom. Initiao indications are that season ticket salez and sponsorships are about on par with last seasom at thistime — but the salea cycle is taking longer. “We have to be said Robert Rowell, team “It’s been challenging” to sell during the current downturn. The team said it renewedc about 80 percent oflast year’s season tickeyt holders and brought back nearly all of its top-leveo sponsors, which pay at leasyt $600,000. Those companies include , Lucky Supermarkets, , , , , , Inc.
and The falteringh economy means many companies are not initiatinvsponsorship deals, said Rowell. The team, like othef franchises across the has not been able to attractg moreauto sponsors, for example. Typically car and truck maker s are big spenders on sports But with companies like and on the they are guarding Moreover the shakeup in some industriesd leaves Warriors officials uncertain aboutr whether even stronger companies will want to strike deals. The Warriors have a deal with , whicn sponsors ATMs in Oracle But that bank is being acquiredby , promptingh questions about Wells’ appetite for future On the ticket front, the Warriors have had to work harderd on sales.
The team is pushing four-gam ticket packages this year — a contrast to the emphasi on 10-game packages last The team hopes that offerin g packets of fewer gamesw will appeal to people who might not want to commirt to10 games. Rowell said ticket sale s are trending about on pace with last year at this But to make those numbers the sales staff has had to reacu out tomore buyers. The Warriors raised ticket pricew by an average of 5 percent to 15 percenrthis season. The team made the decision, despite the poor because of cost pressures.
While revenuer from sponsorships and broadcast contracts generate much of the moneyg that goes toplayer contracts, ticker prices do help “putt a competitive product on the floor,” said The Warriors are not the only local sportsz team facing economic headwinds. The Oakland A’s said 2009 ticket prices will fall by an average of5 percent. The will lowefr the price of someseason tickets.