"What We've Got Here...Is a Failure to Communicate"

"The Bucking Bronco"

Many of you will instantly recognize this famous line from the 1967 classic "Cool Hand Luke" starring Paul Newman.  Luke refuses to buckle under the constant punishment handed to him by the Captain. After Luke's repeated attempts to escape, the Captain utters the famous words above.

I worry we have the same issue with Santa Clara Men's Basketball.  

Now, I get it.  I'm only a blogging season ticket holder.  I'm just a customer/fan, like you, who wants the best product we can get.  The reason I write this Blog, is because we in the "chairbacks" and other fans who are die hard supporters, are not getting the communication and information we want.

We're not talking game stats or summaries or EyeBronco videos.  There's PLENTY of that.

As customers, we want to know things:  like where are we going as a team?  who are we going to play?  who would we like to recruit?  And a hundred more bits that loyal customers expect.

I've made a number of requests to represent you  - the season ticket holders - as a voice, and I'm getting the "4 corners stall" from Men's Basketball.  

It feels like their communication policy is not to communicate...

To be fair, I did get a chance to sit down with both Coach Keating and A.D. Dan Coonan. Those meetings were a good start to, what I thought, was a conversation and avenue to go into topics they wanted to expand upon.  Since then, the stall - "wait until after the season".

OK.  

Now, it's after the season and I am being pushed to "maybe in the fall" before the next season starts. You get the drift.....

The "Cone of Silence" has fallen....

I'm confused and now a little - miffed...I just don't understand the benefit of waiting to communicate with your best customers at the exact time they desire the MOST information - now.

Can you imagine John Chambers of Cisco Corporation telling his shareholders - "you'll have to wait until next quarter to talk about this quarters results!  I don't think so.....  

Now, SCU is not a publicly traded company, but as season ticket holders, we feel like, we are the stakeholders - buying our tickets year after year - and would like to be treated as such.  I know for sure one piece of communication that is consistent - the call to renew your season tickets - that's always on time...

How about an outreach or even maybe a "thank you" for your loyalty?

In the absence of communication, comes speculation - which, without dialogue, is usually negative. What are we hiding?  It's grossly unfair to the coaches and the A.D. who, without a face and a voice to their customers - are deemed aloof and uncaring - which having talked to them - I know is completely false. 

Maybe it's just ME...I'll take the rap....

When I've asked why, I am told:  "coaches don't do interviews during the season - except for game recaps - they're focused on game prep and the season"  and "no amount of communication is ever enough" and  "we are still figuring out what to do about Blogs versus credentialed media"...I'm no cyberspace wiz by any means - but "dealing with Blogs" - we're talking 10 year old web technology......Really???  

You have a captive audience of some of your best fans and supporters, who are "in the moment" seeking information and you have at least one vehicle - a Blog, that reaches more than a thousand of these customers and your strategy is to push the "mute" button...or hope it goes away...

If our PR theme, "We're On A Mission" is our tag line to build the "Brand" of SCU Athletics, how do you do that without extensive communication?   I hear USF's radio announcements and I see St.Mary's ads in the San Jose Airport - but we can't get a dialogue going between Men's Basketball and our own season ticket holders...This is OUR turf - like our home court - defend it!

Well, I'm not going away.  I have many topics to expand upon - your topics - because I believe in the potential of this Brand and I'm willing to speak up.

It'd be nice if our program did the same...