Welcome to the Show: Episode 2
While the world is speeding up, baseball is slowing down, and the Savannah Bananas are determined to provide the best fan experience anywhere in the world. MarketScale followed the team during their weeklong lead-up to Opening Day 2018 to see how the Bananas sellout games in a town where baseball has failed for decades. If you haven’t watched episode one, you can catch up on all the action right here.
Opening day is a rebirth in baseball. A clean slate. A fresh start. For the Savannah Bananas, a team still trying to endear themselves to the community in just their third year of operation, a first impression is more important than a win or loss. They cannot afford to play in front of empty stands.
Opening Day has not come for the Savannah Bananas quite yet, but for the front office and staff, the season has already begun. Just minutes before gates open for Fan Fest, the first major event of the year, questions remain to be answered.
Director of Fun Tyler Gray is set to make his debut as a host with the Bananas and must execute his first game plan with team Owner Jesse Cole. Simultaneously, Cole must be sure to keep his spirit high in front of fans, while also directing a new team of interns and staffers through their first live event.
The operations team is tasked with serving fans free food, facilitating children onto the field to interact with players and ensuring families leave with a positive impression. This is easier said than done.
Feedback is overwhelmingly positive from attendees, but behind the scenes, the staff knows there is much work to be done in order to accommodate close to double the attendance expected for opening day.
The drama is unresolved on game day, as furniture for the team’s luxury suite seating areas has not been delivered. Team President Jared Orton must scramble to find replacement furniture with only six hours before first pitch and cannot be sure if his order will arrive before the gates open.
As Cole says, the show must go on.
If you haven’t make sure you watch episode one of “Welcome to the Show”, to see how the new staff can deliver the fan experience Savannah has come to expect with the Bananas, launch the first event of the season, and continue to reinvent the game of baseball.
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