Case study of Ticket Sales Strategies in Major League Baseball

美國職棒大聯盟門票銷售策略之個案研究

10.6223/qcpe.2704.201312.1005

楊啟文(Chi-Wen Yang)；李國維(Kuo-Wei Lee)

定價策略 ； 職業運動 ； 運動行銷 ； pricing strategy ； professional sports ； sport marketing

中華體育季刊

27卷4期（2013 / 12 / 01）

309 - 321

英文

本研究旨在探討美國職棒大聯盟球團所採取門票的定價策略與售票策略。研究方法採用質性研究之多重個案研究法，主要研究問題：美國職棒大聯盟球團所採取門票銷售策略為何？分析單位為30隊美國職棒大聯盟之各隊官方網站，使用網站內容分析法來收集資料。研究結果顯示美國職棒大聯盟使用4種定價策略與7種售票策略。4種定價策略包含變動定價、非線性定價、產品組合定價以及促銷定價。7種售票策略為家中列印服務、儲值門票、二手門票銷售市場、手機售票服務、彈性付款、快速通關門票以及門票拍賣。本研究建議：1.美國職棒大聯盟應該延伸動態定價的使用於新的市場來開拓收入來源，例如春訓比賽與小聯盟比賽。2.在產品組合策略中，各隊應該尋求策略聯盟與涵蓋非賣品的難忘經驗，前者可以協助球隊滲透新的市場，後者有助於吸引球迷的賽會再訪，尤其是針對死忠的球迷。3.球隊應該築起促銷活動與贊助商的關聯，適當的組合不但可以維持銷售的效能並可增強贊助商的效益。

The purpose of this study was to explore pricing strategies and ticketing strategies adopted in the Major League Baseball. A qualitative approach with multiple-case study was chosen to solve the research question - what are ticket sales strategies in the MLB? The unit of analysis for this study was limited to the official websites of all 30 MLB clubs. Website content analysis was selected to collect data. The results found four pricing strategies and seven ticket strategies. The four pricing strategies include variable ticket pricing, non-linear pricing, bundling pricing, and promotion pricing while the seven ticket strategies contain home-printed ticket, stored-value ticket, secondary ticket market, mobile ticketing, flexible payment, flash seat, and ticket auction. The conclusions of this study are as follows: Firstly, the MLB should extend dynamic pricing to new scenarios such as spring training and Minor League Baseball games to expand its revenue streams. Secondly, as to bundling strategies, the clubs should seek strategic alliance and include no-for-sale experience. Former is helpful in penetrating a new market, latter can be attractive to fans, especially die-hard fans, to revisit the ballpark. Thirdly, the clubs should associate promotion with corporate sponsors. Appropriate matchup can maintain the effectiveness of promotion and amplify sponsorship benefits.

1. Huang, Y.(2005).An analysis of pricing strategies of health and fitness clubs in metropolitan areas.Journal of Taiwan Society for Sport Management,3,25-42.
   連結：
2. Huang, Y.,Wei, W.(2007).Ticket pricing strategy of baseball clubs in Chinese Professional Baseball League.Physical Education Journal,40(3),101-114.
   連結：
3. Brown, M. (2011). MLB revenues grown from $1.4 billion in 1995 to $7 billion in 2010 (MLB News). Retrieved from The Biz of Baseball, MLB News Website: http://www.bizofbaseball.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5167:mlb-revenues-grown-from-14-billion-in-1995-to-7-billion-in-2010&catid=30:mlb-news&Itemid=42
4. Statista (2012). MLB: Regular season ticketing revenue as percentage of total revenue from 2006 to 2010. Retrieved from Statista Website: http://www.statista.com/statistics/193408/percentage-of-ticketing-revenue-in-the-mlb-since-2006/
5. Barilla, A.,Gruben, K.,Levernier, W.(2008).The effect of promotions on attendance at Major League Baseball games.Journal of Applied Business Research,24(3),1-14.
6. Boyd, T.,Krehbiel, T.(2006).An analysis of the effects of specific promotion types on attendance at Major League Baseball games.American Journal of Business,21(2),21-32.
7. Boyd, T.,Krehbiel, T.,Farmer, R. T.(2003).Promotion timing in major league baseball and the stacking effects of factors that increase game attractiveness.Sport Marketing Quarterly,12(3),171-183.
8. Browning, R.,DeBolt, L.(2007).The effects of promotions on attendance in professional baseball.Sport Journal,10(3),1-14.
9. Chen, C. Y.(2009).The exploration of ticket sales strategies in professional sport organizations in the United States.Quarterly of Chinese Physical Education,26(1),79-88.
10. Dolan, R. J.,Simon, H.(1996).Power pricing: How managing price transforms the bottom line.NY:The Free Press.
11. Drennan, J. C.,Cornwell, T. B.(2004).Emerging strategies for sponsorship on the Internet.Journal of Marketing Management,20,1123-1146.
12. Fisher, E.(2007).MLB clubs split over StubHub deal.Sports Business Journal
13. Fisher, E.(2010).Smartphone use drives mobile ticketing.Sports Business Journal
14. Howard, D. R.,Crompton, J. L.(2004).Tactics used by sports organizations in the United States to increase ticket sales.Managing Leisure,9,87-95.
15. Huang, Y.,Tsai, M.(2005).Demand and development of managerial personnel in professional sport organizations.National Sports Quarterly,34(2),44-51.
16. Kim, H. D.,Shin, H. B.(2008).Website content analysis of PGA and LPGA based on sport marketing mix: Comparisons across the United States, Japan, and South Korea.The ICHPER-SD Journal of Research,3(1),76-80.
17. Lanzillo, J. D.(2010).Delaware,Wilmington University.
18. Lincoln, Y. S.,Guba, E. G.(1985).Naturalistic inquiry.Beverly Hills, CA:Sage.
19. Loakimidis, M.(2010).Online marketing of professional sports clubs: Engaging fans on a new playing field.International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship,11(4),271-282.
20. Lombardo, J.(2009).5 fresh ideas to watch.Sports Business Journal
21. Minichiello, V.,Axford, R.,Greenwood, K.,Sullivan, G.(1999).Handbook for research methods in the health sciences.Frenches Forrest, Australia:Pearson Education.
22. Moore, D.(2010).The times they are a changing: Secondary ticket market moves from taboo to mainstream.Texas Review of Entertainment & Sports Law,11(2),295-307.
23. Mullin, B.,Hardy, S.,Sutton, W. A.(2007).Sport marketing.Champaign, IL:Human Kinetics.
24. Muret, D.(2008).Loaded tickets catch on among MLB teams.Sports Business Journal
25. Muret, D.(2010).Variable or dynamic, ticket pricing gets fresh look from teams.Sports Business Journal
26. Rascher, D. A.,McEvoy, C. D.,Nagel, M. S.,Brown, M. T.(2007).Variable ticket pricing in Major League Baseball.Journal of Sport Management,21,407-437.
27. Schoenrock, A.,Johnson, M.(2009).The effects of promotions on attendance at Major League Baseball Games.Oshkosh Scholar,4,28-36.
28. Schwandt, T. A.(2001).Dictionary of qualitative inquiry.London:Sage.
29. Silverman, D.(2005).Doing qualitative research: A practical handbook.London:Sage.
30. Sinkovics, R.,Penz, E.,Ghauri, P.(2008).Enhancing the trustworthiness of qualitative research in international business.Management International Review,48,689-713.
31. Stremersch, S.,Tellis, G. J.(2002).Strategic bundling of products and prices: A new synthesis for marketing.Journal of Marketing,66,55-72.
32. Venkatesh, R.,Mahajan, V.(1993).A probabilistic approach to pricing a bundle of products or services.Journal of Marketing Research,30(4),494-508.
33. Weber, K.,Story, M.,Harnack, L.(2006).Internet food marketing strategies aimed at children and adolescents: A content analysis of food and beverage brand web sites.Journal of the American Dietetic Association,106(9),1463-1466.
34. Yin, R. K.(2003).Case study research: Design and methods.Thousand Oaks, CA:Sage Publications.

1. 楊啟文,林子涵(2019)。探討親子運動生活型態行銷方法－以麗嬰房兒童運動賽會行銷組合策略為例。成大體育學刊，51(1)，54-69。