The Pirates are using a CD-ROM software device, D&B
MarketPlace, to assist them in targeting corporations for
group ticket sales. The team began using the business-to-
business marketing tool, produced by MA-based iMarket, in
'96. Pirates Marketing Systems Analyst Jim Pappas said it
has helped him develop better leads for sales reps by
allowing him to segment the Pittsburgh market by criteria
such as company size, revenue or number of employees.
Pappas: "I had no idea how many viable companies were in
Pittsburgh." Aside from the initial software fee and
quarterly updates, users are charged on a per-lead basis
based on what is downloaded. The cost of leads varies from
$.10 to $.35. In their first year, the Pirates paid about
$10,000 for such leads. While the Pirates have generally
had a 4% success rate with targeted lists, Pappas said the
team has had success rates as high as 10-12% with D&B, and
he hopes to have had a 6-7% success rate with D&B for a 16-
week direct marketing campaign the team recently completed.
The campaign targeted 100,000 businesses, and Pappas
estimated the team spent $15,000 to $20,000 on D&B leads.
Final results of the campaign have yet to be completed.
Overall, group ticket sales have increased by 25% since the
Pirates started using D&B two years ago. In addition, the
team's full-season equivalents this year have increased from
6,800 to 7,800, which Pappas partially attributes to the
software. The White Sox also use D&B (THE DAILY).
