Bring in your Red Wings jersey, buy a Predators' one for half off.
Quote:
Director of marketing for the Predators, Chris Parker was just on 102.5 the Game in Nashville.
"PredWing" fans(fans of the Preds for 76 games a year, revert back to being Red Wing fans the other 6), of which there are quite a few in the Nashville area, are being encouraged to make the full commitment to being a Nashville fan with a deal in which they can trade ANY Red Wings jersey for a new Preds sweater, at 50 percent discount.
The Red Wings sweaters collected will then be cleaned and sent to Detroit charity organizations.
Kind of a funny\neat promotion, there's a big focus on "getting the Red out,' or "Operation Visine," this spring
Credit goes to BarryTrotzsNeck on this one. What do you think of this promotion?
Columbus has the same problems, that even STHs are fans until they play the Wings. Its obviously that the Wings are far older and have been good for so long, but I wouldnt begrudge a franchise from trying to convert them full-time.
Very clever. I like the Visine/Get the Red Out idea.
You know what really makes this great versus something borderline? That they're sending the jerseys to charitable groups in Detroit. If they just burned them or did something to insult the logo, that would cheapen the whole thing, but they found a way to appeal to someone allegiance while not insulting the original team.
To give you a little background, the Nashville area has quite a few Michigan transplants/natives living there...a number of them associated or formerly associated with the GM plant about 30 miles from town. A lot of them are or were Red Wings fans. A number of them who were here before the Preds arrived were Knights/Ice Flyers fans (where there was no conflict of interest).
When the Predators arrived, some of them switched allegiances to their new hometown team -- some didn't. A lot of them became "Predwings"...they would cheer for the Preds over everyone but the Red Wings. Some are STH who wear gold/blue to 38 games a year, and red to the other 3. Besides Detroit having a large fanbase, it's one of the reasons that regular season games have a good portion of red in them. Yeah, Detroit fans travel from Michigan to see our games -- but a lot of the red is local.
The idea is that with some of these "halfway" fans, who see the Predators a lot more than the Wings should take the plunge and go all in with the gold and blue.
Will it work? Maybe a little. I don't expect there to be a drastic change unless we win the Cup. Even then, old habits and traditions die hard...and I can respect that.
But it's not out of fear that they do this. Every team in the NHL wants their barn to be as close to 100% their fans as possible. We're no exception.
Very clever. I like the Visine/Get the Red Out idea.
You know what really makes this great versus something borderline? That they're sending the jerseys to charitable groups in Detroit. If they just burned them or did something to insult the logo, that would cheapen the whole thing, but they found a way to appeal to someone allegiance while not insulting the original team.
Agreed. It would be disrespectful and wasteful to destroy perfectly good sweaters. If they were destroying them, I wouldn't support it as an official promotion.
That's an awesome deal. I wish I could go with one of my old Wings sweaters, just to get a brand new jersey. I haven't purchased a new jersey in ages, and I wouldn't mind to wear that Nashville Suter jersey, regardless of where he ends up next season!
I think some people will go to the game just to take advantage of the deal, and I'm not quite positive that it will change how much they love each team.... but at the same time, it may actually cut down on the red, and even with half off on the Nashville jerseys, it still helps put money in the team's pockets!
Even if I was borderline, I don't know that I would want to get rid of an old jersey just so I could get a discount on a newer one.
Maybe it's just not something I would be into.
I think it may just be you. It depends on the player for me. I wouldn't trade in my Yzerman jersey for a discount on a new one, but I'd definitely trade in my old Lapointe jersey for a discount. I think that if you have multiple jerseys, especially, you're more willing to do this deal. I'd love to get half off of a Red Wings jersey right now, so if I got a similar deal involving old Wings jerseys, I'd definitely jump right on it and get myself a brand new jersey.
To give you a little background, the Nashville area has quite a few Michigan transplants/natives living there...a number of them associated or formerly associated with the GM plant about 30 miles from town. A lot of them are or were Red Wings fans. A number of them who were here before the Preds arrived were Knights/Ice Flyers fans (where there was no conflict of interest).
When the Predators arrived, some of them switched allegiances to their new hometown team -- some didn't. A lot of them became "Predwings"...they would cheer for the Preds over everyone but the Red Wings. Some are STH who wear gold/blue to 38 games a year, and red to the other 3. Besides Detroit having a large fanbase, it's one of the reasons that regular season games have a good portion of red in them. Yeah, Detroit fans travel from Michigan to see our games -- but a lot of the red is local.
The idea is that with some of these "halfway" fans, who see the Predators a lot more than the Wings should take the plunge and go all in with the gold and blue.
Will it work? Maybe a little. I don't expect there to be a drastic change unless we win the Cup. Even then, old habits and traditions die hard...and I can respect that.
But it's not out of fear that they do this. Every team in the NHL wants their barn to be as close to 100% their fans as possible. We're no exception.
It's a testament to our national fanbase that they need to do this promotion. It's perfectly understandable of course, though quite frankly a ripped Red Wings tee shirt from 1995 has more value than a brand new Nashville jersey.
It's one of the most mediocre designs in hockey and in two years time it might already be a completely different design again as it often is the case with expansion teams.
Not trying to come off as too arrogant, but why would a Wings fan become a Preds fan? They might have the better team right now, but overall there's not much of a reason to bandwagon. It's like a Red Sox fan becoming a Rays fan, or a Lakers fan becoming a Miami Heat fan. Just... why? Both good teams, but you might as well stick with the franchise that's been around longer and you've supported your whole life. Flip the jersey for more $$$
Even if I was borderline, I don't know that I would want to get rid of an old jersey just so I could get a discount on a newer one.
Maybe it's just not something I would be into.
I wouldn't be into it, either, unless I had a junk jersey laying around. Considering how rarely I buy jersey's though (never), I wouldn't have a junky one.
I'm not sure you have a good handle on the definition.
Likewise. What else is driving this? This is fear. Not shaking in their boots scared but the fear of losing and/or not acquiring fans and it having a negative impact on the product in various ways. We tend to do that.
Not trying to come off as too arrogant, but why would a Wings fan become a Preds fan? They might have the better team right now, but overall there's not much of a reason to bandwagon. It's like a Red Sox fan becoming a Rays fan, or a Lakers fan becoming a Miami Heat fan. Just... why? Both good teams, but you might as well stick with the franchise that's been around longer and you've supported your whole life. Flip the jersey for more $$$
I think most of the "Predwings" are native Michiganders, not just general hockey fans...and I know some that have fully switched, and others that remain loyal to the Wings and just go to the Preds games to enjoy NHL hockey.
A lot of those Michiganders now proudly call Tennessee their home...some of them switch allegiances to support their "new" home team. Others remain loyal to how they were raised. I can understand both perspectives. If I were to move to Michigan or any NHL market for that matter, I would probably go to some hockey games myself, just because I enjoy it...but would always be a Pred at heart.
And it doesn't just have to do with history or how you were raised. People don't always want to cheer for the dominant teams. Hometown is a factor. Nashville didn't have any major pro sports teams when I was growing up...but when we got them, many of us dropped our other teams in favor of the ones we got. I'm no longer a 49ers fan...I'm a Titans fan. I wouldn't continue to support the 49ers just because they have a greater history of success. I'm a Nashville native, of course, so that makes some difference. But some people who move from other places do adopt the local sports teams...sometimes as a way to better assimilate into the local culture.
Also, I wouldn't put a lot of stock in this being a serious push to oust all Red Wing fans from the Bridge...otherwise they wouldn't be donating the sweaters to charity. It's a rather friendly promotion.
Likewise. What else is driving this? This is fear. Not shaking in their boots scared but the fear of losing and/or not acquiring fans and it having a negative impact on the product in various ways. We tend to do that.
Do dogs pissing on trees and fence posts to mark their territory do it out of fear?
We're not worried about losing fans. Attendance is at an all time high.
Credit goes to BarryTrotzsNeck on this one. What do you think of this promotion?
I think it is an awesome idea by the Preds marketing team. Cannot see the Detroit transplants buying in on this though, of which there are a bunch down in that area.
