A.G. Spanos
Executive Vice President/Executive Officer, San
Diego Chargers
Hometown: La Jolla, Calif.
Resides: La Jolla, Calif.
Education: B.A., marketing, University of Southern
California
Defining Moments: “The one moment that sticks out
for me was winning that AFC championship game in
Pittsburgh in 1995. That was an amazing moment.
The whole body is tingling, knowing the team had
accomplished something, going on to the first Super
Bowl in the franchise’s history. I’m still waiting to
get back there. I feel like that’s going to be the
second one, when we go back there and we win it. I
know it’s going to happen at some point because we
just keep banging on the door.”
Greatest Career Accomplishment: “One of the first
things I was in charge of with the Chargers was
our online store. We’ve been able to grow tenfold
in revenue since 2001. That was a combination of
the emergence of great players on the field, as well
as really cleaning up the brand. Before, we had not
singled out the ‘Bolt.’ We essentially created a new
mark at that point. Our primary logo at the time
was the helmet, so if you wanted to buy a Charger
hat at the time, it had the helmet on it. We changed
partners, to ones who were more aggressive
marketing-wise, more aggressive with inventory. I
was very proud to see that business grow because I
felt like our merchandise was underperforming. We
also created our own store at the stadium. When I
first started, people weren’t wearing Charger gear
to games. Now, I’ve traveled to most stadiums in
the league, and our fans wear as many jerseys as
anybody anywhere. That’s a direct reflection to me
of how people feel about your brand. If they wear
your merchandise, it shows you how connected they
are to the brand.”
played off that word many, many times.”
Derrett says, “It’s an invitation to the
fans. Home field has been so important in
this league, and home field advantage is
playing in front of a great crowd.”
The campaign has also been a major
part of a new merchandising partnership
with Dreams Retail that has freshened the
Chargers’ online store, and created more
aggressive marketing outreach. Still, with
a soft economy wreaking havoc across
ticket sales for many teams in all profes-
sional sports leagues, Spanos and Derrett
made sure the campaign focused heavily
on retaining current customers, while also
highlighting the discounts that come with
season tickets.
Derrett says, “It’s a good deal. It’s $8
off per ticket, per game. And it’s the best
way to get tickets for every game. You
push and push that. Even when single-
game tickets go on sale, you still have to
hold some back for season sales because
you have some people who are undecided,
still on the fence. Through that whole
period, what we were doing more this
year than in the past, was look after our
current business. Yes, new business is cru-
cial, but in this environment, you better
look after your existing customer, and the
response we’ve gotten has been phenom-
enal, all things considered.”
Spanos adds, “What can we do, added-
value-wise? What can we give them? Sim-
ple things, like opening up training camp
exclusively for season-ticket holders,
stadium tours, facility tours, a draft party
for club seatholders. We needed more
touchpoints.”
Partnerships Help Measure Success
How are fans and consumers reacting to the campaigns? Spanos says, “Our
season ticket base is down slightly from
last season, but we tracked higher on new
sales, so it’s an interesting situation. It’s
a little disappointing because we’ve had
those five division championships. The
product on the field has delivered, but the
economy is just tough.”
With ticket sales off slightly, what
other ways are the Chargers working to
give their fan base what they want — and
how exactly do they measure success?
