There was an article in the Wall Street Journal today (and on CNN, and FOX News, and on every other news program everywhere) about Amazon.com opening up their new music store. The BIG news is that the music would be free from DRM (Digital Rights Management) software and would be cheaper than Apple’s iTunes store. (Currently, iTunes has about 90% market share of digital music; the iPod has about 70% market share of digital music players.) All of these news people were giddy about someone finally toppling Apple as the market leader.
It won’t work and here’s why: When you buy an iPod and music from iTunes, you just plug in your iPod and your purchased music just transfers to your iPod. No saving, copying, transferring, etc. To the average user, it just all happens magically with iTunes. With Amazon.com, you purchase, download, mount your music player, transfer your song…. you get the idea.
What does this have to do with running a soccer tournament? What if you invited teams to play and undercut all the other tournaments in your area by $100.00. You would probably get a lot of teams. But when they showed up to play, they had to line their own fields, hang and anchor their nets, contract their own referees, inflate the ball… you get the idea.
Our advice: Like Apple, recognize the value of the entertainment you are providing and price it accordingly. Don’t back off your price and don’t compete on price. But, follow through with the value the teams expect. If you are a higher price point in your market, make sure the fields are manicured, the registration is top-notch, the referees are qualified, the fields are lined and the staff (volunteer or paid) is courteous and knowledgeable. Oh, and a really kick-butt soccer tournament web site wouldn’t hurt either!