College students are game for anything that involves getting something for free, especially if it’s money.
Finding a way to get more students to Washburn sporting events can be a challenging task. And Summer Harris, sports marketing director, can attest because that is what she has been trying to do for four years.
“We are always trying to find new ways to attract students to come to our athletic events. It’s not the easiest thing to do here,” said Harris.
So during basketball season this year Harris teamed up with Great Clips and came up with a promotion they hoped college students would be lining up for. Great Clips decided they would give away $25 in cash at each home game, both the men’s and women’s games. At each game, Harris would draw one name from the entire student body, but if they weren’t there, the money would go into a jackpot.
“We came close to giving the money away a couple of time. Someone would come up to me and say that is my roommate. But the rules stated you had to pick up the money before the end of half time,” said Harris.
Up until the last game of the season, the promotion didn’t work too well. The people who were drawn at every home game were never at the game. By the last game of the season, the jackpot had totaled $700. Work got around that at half-time of the men’s basketball game against Emporia State University, the money would be given away.
The rules were changed just slightly. When the students came into the game they had to enter their name in a drawing. Without the change, hundreds of names could have been drawn before anybody won it. The student section was packed that night and the name was drawn. Angie Jameson, who happens to be in the pep band, won the money.
“I swear the drawing wasn’t rigged. There were people watching me the whole time, it was just coincidence she happened to be in the pep band,” said Harris.
The promotion worked for half of the game. But after the drawing half the students there left before the second half started. But student support for half of the game is better than for none of the game.
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OK, I love the story. Talk to the winner. What does she want to do with the money?
ReplyDeleteI like the lead.
A few issues. Watch your opinion. You can't say the promotion was not working well. Summer can or someone else can. Writers have to stay out of the story.
You cannot end the story this way. Too much opinion. Get a quote from one of the students in the section. They can say it in a quote, but you can't. And, you also can't judge whether it's good to have some there or not.