My internship experience began at the Huntsville Havoc, the Havoc are an ice

hockey team in the Southern Professional Hockey League located in Huntsville, AL.
My time with the Havoc has been nothing, but a great experience. I have learned
new things on a daily basis. Knowing the ins and outs of running an organization.
Understanding that it takes a team effort to make an organization efficient and
effective. It matters what kind of product youre putting out there to the fan base,
how are we meeting peoples needs? The fun part is seeing that product succeed
and still see what areas can be improved upon. It takes true professionalism and
every ounce of pride to show up on time and show your commitment.
To begin with my internship experience, we started the first week with an
introduction to the internship program. The emphasis was on Group Sales, they
wanted to push more towards group sales and we were introduced with a detailing
presentation. First it was an introduction of the staff, the Owner, Keith Jeffries;
President, Ashley Balch; Head Coach/GM Glenn Detulleo; Vice President, Clay
Coleman; Director of Ticket Sales, Cline Thompson; Community Development
Coordinator, Daniel Conrad; Game Day Operations, Bridget Clevenger; and Director
of Multimedia, Justin Strickland. I have grown as a professional working with each
and one of them. Our supervisor stressed to us that when dealing with group sales,
was to find the right group leader. Whether that would be a youth director for a
church or a PTO President for a school. It was important to find the group leader and
paint the picture for them. Try to get them excited with what you want to present
to them. Some of their expectations for me as an intern was to make 50 calls on a
full day, track contracts, calls, notes, and to bring a positive attitude and a great
work ethic. The expectations they set for themselves was to give us on-going
training, emphasize that marketing will help a lot, and growth opportunities, There

were three main group sales targets: churches, schools, youth sports. I believe that
when dealing with customers, it should be important to always find out their needs.
When finding out your needs; it takes a process of learning how to solve their
needs. There are six keys to making the sale; for (1), youve got to get an
estimating number of tickets in a seating area. Two (2), and three (3) is find out
what day and month is better for them. Four (4), and five (5), what the desired seat
location preference/price point is and what is the desired fan experience. This could
be any kind of promotion night they would be interested in. Ex. Jersey Auction Night.
Six (6), may not be important as the other five, but some fans would like to see a
preferred opponent. This could be due to a star player being on the opposing team
roster.
Another thing we pushed toward group sales was fundraising opportunities.
We had two different fundraisers, but most principles applied to both. Basically,
when making cold calls to these schools, churches, and youth leagues; our main
focus was to make contact with the right group leader and pitch the idea of raising
money for their respective organization. The way our fundraising program worked
was that the Havoc would give the organization an allotment of tickets to sell. The
group would be responsible for selling as many tickets as possible at $10/ticket. In
return, however many tickets are sold, they can earn up to $5/ticket sold back the
organization. So basically if the group sold 1,000 tickets, the group would receive
$5,000; 500 tickets sold would equate to $2,500, and 200 tickets would equate to
1,000. The fundraiser program seemed like a great idea, especially for school
bands, it gave them an opportunity to showcase their skills by singing the National
Anthem before the game. Another thing we pushed for with ticket sales was our
Saturday Six Pack package which was basically our six biggest games of the year, or

what we like to call push for sellout games. They were preselected games, but
could be swapped out for other games in the future. The six nights we pushed for
was November 10th, which was opening night and it was our Veteran Appreciation
Night which included $5 tickets to vets and their families, December 26 th is Youth
Hockey Night, January 30th is Adult Jersey Night, February 27th is Weiner Dog Race w/
jersey auction; March 12th is Military Appreciation Night, and April 9th, Team Poster
giveaway night. The Six Pack package varies on prices: General Admission is $60,
Silver Level (reserved), $78, and Gold Level (reserved), $120. This kind of package
can save you up to $12. Single game tickets are priced differently than those of the
Six Pack package and Group Tickets. General Admission for a single game is $12,
Silver is $15 and Gold is $25. Group pricing which is a minimum of ten (10) tickets is
priced as the following: GA is $10, Silver is $13, and Gold is $20. Season tickets
start at $252 for GA, $308 for Silver, and $448 for Gold. This includes all 28 homes
games & preseason/playoff games. Half season tickets begin at $140 for GA; $168
for Silver, and $252 for Gold. This includes half of the home games. If youre a half
season ticket holder; you are allowed to swap tickets out for another game on the
schedule. Buying season tickets can help you save up to 30% vs. buying individual
game tickets. That is one of many other benefits of being a STH.
Tickets wasnt the only responsibility I had, I had numerous amounts of other
duties that consisted around the office or out in the arena. Some days I would help
load up merchandise for the delivery dock and bring it to the office. Some days we
would stock memorabilia and organize team apparel by sizes. There were days
where I would help set up team building activities for guest of the Havoc. I helped
assemble the Havoc merchandise booth which consisted of 4 others helping. I
prepared chuck-a-pucks for ball games. Chuck-a-pucks are for fans to buy once they

get inside the arena. At the end of the second period of the game; fans would throw
their pucks and try to make it inside of a small bucket and the winner would win
cash money. Its a great way to make money for the organization, the prices are
reasonable, but youre better off by buying five of them compared to one. For the
price of $5 you can purchase five chuck-a-pucks compared to $2 for only one chucka-puck. Other duties and responsibilities I had around the office/arena was setting
up the Chaos Kids Club stand. These kids are the ones that will pick up the chuck-apucks after all of them are thrown onto the ice. The day before game days, Ill go
into the arena and hang sponsorship banners and advertisements. I also help set up
reserved seating signs to indicate these specific sections are not for general
admission or gold section tickets. Also on game days, I would help sell raffle tickets
for a chance to win a free jersey. One ticket for $5 or five for $20. After games, we
would help break down the Kids Club stand and take down the signs/banners
around the arena and put them up in the office. I would also make sure the media
room was stocked with water, plates, napkins, etc.
Overall, I had a satisfactory experience, I first came in acting tentative and
scared, and now Ive become comfortable around the environment I was in and with
the staff. My communication skills have gotten better by making those cold calls
every single day. Each day was a struggle, but I never lost my mindset and I kept
pushing forward. Ive taken a more professional approach to each day and have
perfected my craft. As I mentioned earlier, learning the ins and outs of the
organization and perfecting your craft were two of the biggest things I took from this
experience. I couldnt have learned from a better internship agency than the
Huntsville Havoc.