- Slug: Sports-Suns marketing, 674
By CODY FINCHER
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – The Phoenix Suns organization has seen its attendance numbers decrease a bit over the past few seasons. In the 2010 season, an average of 17,648 fans attended each game. In the past five seasons, average attendance per game has been down by about 1,000 fans.
The organization wants to reconnect with those fans.
“During this offseason, our sole focus has really been to prepare and to focus on our fans and this community which has supported us for so many years,” said Suns president Jason Rowley. “We’re very fortunate to have a very rich history in this organization and in this city and it’s important for us to celebrate that history with the people who have been along with us for that entire ride.”
The Suns unveiled the “WE ARE PHX” marketing campaign on Tuesday, Sept. 8. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton was on hand and stressed how important the Suns are to the fans in Phoenix and the community itself.
“There is only one sports franchise with such a direct and long-standing connection to our city and that is our Phoenix Suns,” Stanton said. “The history of this franchise is not just excellence on the court, although they are because they are the fourth winningest franchise in the NBA, it’s also a commitment to community. And that’s what I appreciate about the history of this team is its decades and decades of service to this community.”
Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek referenced how passionate the fans were during his playing days when Suns faced the Los Angeles Lakers in the playoffs in 1990 and how the city seemed to band together.
“We beat them on their court and all I can remember is the 12,000 people that came back and jammed into Sky Harbor Airport that night to greet us,” Hornacek said. “It wasn’t just the Phoenix Suns against the Los Angeles Lakers, it almost was like Phoenix against Los Angeles. And it was a great feeling to be a part of that. I thought our fans were so into it and it showed us what a great sports town it is.”
The Suns organization will look to directly engage the fans in the community by imprinting the “WE ARE PHX” on local basketball courts and many other locations around the Phoenix area where anybody can take pictures of the slogan and post them onto social media for the chance to win prizes. There are 40 locations total where you will be able to see this slogan printed.
There will also be murals depicting great Suns players and moments on prominent buildings in Phoenix. The first mural will be located on the Luhrs Tower, according to Stanton.
Another promotion the Suns are starting is the placement of arena seats in various locations around Phoenix. These seats will be placed in more than a dozen locations around the city.
“If you see one, don’t walk on by. Sit on down, sit in that seat, take a picture, put it on social media with ‘# WE ARE PHX’ or ‘# SOMOS PHX’ and you might get free tickets to a Suns game this season,” Stanton said.
A new black uniform was also unveiled during the event. The new “Civic Pride” uniform is primarily black with some orange and purple mixed in, but the main component is the “PHX” across the chest. Mayor Stanton pointed out earlier in the evening that the Suns are the only sports franchise in the valley that sport the name “Phoenix” across their chests. That was a main factor in designing this new uniform to go along with their new marketing focus.
Suns guard Eric Bledsoe, who was sporting the new uniform, is eager for the team to be involved within the city and says it’s important for the team to engage the community.
“’We Are Phoenix’ is something for the whole city, not just the team. We want everyone to be involved,” Bledsoe said. “For us to take the next step, we need our fans to come out and support us.”