By James Parziale
He patrols the sidelines with a pressed shirt and slacks made for walking. After all, there is little time to rest. The crowd’s eyes are fixed on the ensuing basketball game while his eyes are fixed on a 21-page script of the on-goings away from the event.
The fan’s ears are tuned into the squeaks of sneakers, the slaps of arms and whistles from the referees, while he wears a headset used to listen and coordinate the behind-the-scenes workings. Raffles, giveaways, prizes, cheerleaders and more – the sum of the parts is a show to keep the audience coming back for more. That is his job.
He is Jesse Bonfiglio, the University’s first director of Marketing and Promotions for Athletics and his task is to attract fans to the Pride’s athletic events. It’s not as easy as it sounds, however. The 24-year-old St. John’s University graduate took over in October 2003 at a University whose most advanced form of marketing was putting up the date and times of all games on the atrium above the unispan.
“It’s been hard. We don’t have advertising dollars,” Bonfiglio said. “It’s all grass-roots marketing.”
Campaigns for on and off campus promotions have not been easy, but results are in. A boisterous student section at men’s basketball games is the start to what Bonfiglio hopes becomes a passionate student following at all sporting events.
“In terms of selling out an arena on a consistent basis it’s got to be a combination [of winning and promoting],” he said. “To give it a timeline it’ll probably take three-to-five years of us doing the things we’re doing – building a database and show the fans a good time. We’re trying to move them up from casual to legitimate fans.”
Student fans are the immediate bull’s-eye. E-mails, promotions, flyers and word of mouth are part of the multilayered approach Bonfiglio and his graduate assistant, Joseph Portigiano, use to reach out to students. Last Wednesday, before the Pride’s triple-overtime victory against Drexel University, a free buffet was set up in the Pride Lounge at the Hofstra Arena. Coach Tom Pecora attended and spoke to fans, just another new addition this season.
“If the students get an e-mail, it’s not good enough. If you put something in a student publication, it’s not good enough. So we have to cover all bases,” Bonfiglio said.
One way to do so is attracting students with teetering interest by promoting more than just the game. During the Pride’s 60-58 win over William & Mary on Jan. 31, Bonfiglio and his staff gave away raffles and prizes as part of Welcome Back Students Day. He is trying to create a rapport with the students, and it is working.
“Year after year the student section is beginning to grow, hopefully next year there will be a packed section on a consistent basis,” said Brian Silverstein, a 20-year-old marketing major who attends all men’s basketball home games. “It’s not Cameron Indoor [at Duke University], but it’s starting to come together as a student section.”
Rising attendance has not been limited to men’s basketball games. The women’s team set the single-game attendance record Jan. 30 on Girl Scout day. The 2,713 fans shattered the old record of 905. In the fall, the football team grossed its highest-ever revenue thanks to the third-highest average attendance. Bonfiglio’s approach to create an event for a group – similar to the girl scouts – that otherwise would not be interested is reaping benefits.
“People start to come to us now,” said Bonfiglio, who now, at the start of his 12-hour days, is welcomed by about 50 e-mails and 20 phone messages. “When we first started we didn’t have a database or one name in it.”
Those ancient ways of marketing athletic events are starting to be phased out thanks to a new regime headed by Jack Hayes, the University’s new athletic director who took over in November after spending the past three years at the University of Connecticut, and Bonfiglio.
Before taking his position at the University, Bonfiglio earned his degree in sports management from St. John’s and interned with the New York Mets for a year. He spent time working with then General Manager Steve Phillips and Director of Public Relations Jay Horowitz before changing his life’s path.
“After I got my taste of that I said, ‘All right, I have to figure out a different direction here,'” he said.
Now Bonfiglio is morphing an apathetic fan base into a loyal following.”After last year, I never thought it would be as much fun to go to the Hofstra basketball games as it is this year,” said Justin DePhillips, a 20-year-old business management major. “It still could be so much better. If they could somehow find a way to get more students there who actually want to cheer, that arena could offer a serious home-court advantage.
After the men’s basketball team’s 74-68 victory over UNC-Wilmington Saturday, the players expressed gratitude to the student section for their support. With Bonfiglio’s efforts, there is finally a student section to thank.
The student section has taken on new life over the past two years and a lot of the credit should go to Jesse Bonfiglio, the director of marketing and promotions for Pride athletics. (Photo Courtesy Athletic Dept.)
