With over 120 plus college football games under my belt, I am a College Football SME (subject matter expert). Combine that with a long corporate career that had plenty of roles as both salesperson and customer and I have a pretty good handle on what makes for effective customer entertaining on autumn Saturdays.
As the college football season approaches, you may view tailgating as a great opportunity to host a client or potential customer at a game. However, before you do, consider the following:
Know your audience: Hard to believe, but not everyone enjoys football. If your guests are international, I’d make sure they are genuinely interested. Foreigners often find the game confusing and live games, especially with TV timeouts, can seem interminable to the uninterested. I also wouldn’t classify by gender either. I know plenty of men who could care less about football. On the other hand, women, well a bunch of women from SEC schools, often love college football. Lastly, more mature guests will probably appreciate a nice chair and some shade over Fireball shots.
Know the objective: Tailgating and college football games are best for low key, informal interactions. Most tailgating environments don’t involve sitting around a table even if they are provided. There’s unlikely to be a deal brokered in a crowded tent or standing around in the parking lot. Even during the game, the venue’s probably going to be too crowded for any substantive discussion. Unless, of course, you are at a dog of a game, which will probably leave your customer wondering why you dragged him/her to Florida International in the first place. (I was going to change this reference, but FIU has been pretty bad as of late). But you get the point; this is relationship building not negotiations.
Know your budget: Between tickets, parking, food, and beverages, a college game day experience can easily run into the thousands.
Catering for the tailgate can often be done at similar prices to a stadium suite and nearly every BCS football program either offers it themselves or through a third party. If you are or know a dedicated alum, you/they may likely already tailgate during the season and have a better set up than what you can get from a third party. This assumes the parking spot is already secured.
Alternatively, you can go on aftermarket sites like StubHub and Vividseats and buy your own parking pass. For the Power Five conferences, those are going to run $150 – $300 per space. Smaller conferences can be more problematic as there’s often not a market for the spaces and they may be only available for alums.
On the plus side, if you are doing the catering yourself, it becomes much more affordable. I would consider getting some help if you plan on doing it on your own. One should not underestimate the difficulty of manning the grill, keeping the cooler stocked and schmoozing with the guests simultaneously.
Having a loge/box/suite is not cheap but assuming corporate takes care of that issue, there’s still the question of refreshments. Even with a generous budget, it is easy to hit $100/person for food and drink in the box. It’s not that it isn’t plentiful or tasty, but it is still basically dogs, nachos and the like. There’s usually no craft beers or top shelf liquor unless specifically ordered. Unfortunately with a full spread tailgate prior, the food in the box may get wasted.
Know the venue: Not all college football programs are created alike. Some have great tailgating, but a weak team – hello Ole’ Miss. Others play an exciting brand of football, but the location is in the middle of nowhere – like the Red Wolves of Arkansas State. Or, the tailgating could be very weak. There not much fun in being the only tent in the lot – hello Kennesaw State. In other instances, the venue is pure football. This is great if your companions love sitting crammed on the bleachers and enjoy non-stop noise, but not so much if they don’t – “Go Big Red”.
Know your associates / staff: Any time you mix colleagues and alcohol, there’s a risk something can go wrong. Add in passions of dedicated alums / ardent fans and boorish or downright bad behavior can rear its ugly head. The last thing you need is your Miami Hurricane Sales manager screaming at a potential new customer who happens to be part of the Fighting Irish faithful. At least, you can presumably limit the likelihood of that occurring.
What you can’t control is the eighteen year old freshman who has just finished his first Jaeger bomb and is suddenly learning that what goes down often comes up. Some folks don’t react to well to getting vomit on their shoes and/or clothes. Or, it could be that your rather genteel work colleague is easily offended by those of a more “free-wheeling” personality/wardrobe.
Know what can go wrong: I have already covered some of the issues but there are other things to consider. These are outdoor events. I am a hard core fan but even when I am wearing the right all-weather gear, I don’t really enjoy a game in a driving rainstorm. Additionally, you can’t control the traffic or other spectators. Perhaps, you encounter the leather-lunged fan who decides to pick a fight with someone in your party because he is wearing ‘Bama crimson instead of LSU purple. Finally, there’s no guarantee the game is going to be a good one. If you need proof of a sure thing gone bad, see my review of Clemson.
What else? Make sure you review the team’s website where any and all procedures and limitations will be listed. I was already in the habit of having hand sanitizers at my tailgates because good hygiene can be hard to find in a college parking lot. If you haven’t packed it in the past, it is obviously a post Covid must now. You may want to throw in some antiseptic wipes and spare masks just in case.
Another big pitfall is the clear bag policy. Folks who either don’t know or don’t go to games often can easily forget that most stadiums heavily restrict purses and handbags. I have lost count of how many times I have rolled up to a stadium with a larger party and someone has a purse they cannot take in. The walk back to the car can be a very long one.
The other most common request is for a battery charger. A good tailgate host will have a spot to charge phones and a portable charger as well. Along with that challenge is knowing how to dispense electronic tickets. Most associated apps work fairly well these day, but it is best to have a back up screen shot of each ticket and make sure they are in your electronic wallet. This way a lost signal is not a lost ticket.
The intent here is not to discourage you from entertaining business clients at college football games. On the contrary, it can be a great experience, often times at a reasonable cost. However, as with all things, the key is to assess the risks and plan accordingly. Who knows, there’s always the chance the weather’s perfect, the venue is sublime and NIU upsets Notre Dame at South Bend. Cheer on my friends.