Thunderbirds Recognized at AHL Marketing Meeting

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield Thunderbirds received a trio of American Hockey League business honors at the 2017 AHL Marketing Meeting presented by ExteNet Systems on Tuesday, as more than 200 representatives from the league and its member clubs gathered at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa in Phoenix.

Team and league front-office personnel from throughout the AHL meet each summer to discuss best practices and innovative ideas in several areas, including ticket sales, corporate sales, and digital media.

In their inaugural season, the Thunderbirds saw tremendous growth in the areas of season tickets, corporate sponsorship, and group ticket sales. As a result, the Thunderbirds received three different honors for reaching year-to-year benchmarks.

First, the team was honored for achieving a greater-than-10% increase in per-game full-season equivalents, a statistic that tracks the combined sales of all ticket packages. The Thunderbirds’ corporate sales team also was recognized for having a greater-than-10% growth in corporate cash sponsorships generated in the market. Lastly, the organization reached the benchmark of a greater-than-15% growth in revenue for per-game group ticket sales.