Three Things I Learned In SaaS, Sports, Tech & Live Events Podcast

As quickly as Lyte exploded on the scene... it imploded and left customers holding the bag.

What I've learned about vendors and cheats in my 17 years at TicketManager, where we've been stolen from plenty.

The Origin Story - Part 1

17 years into our business, the question I get asked the most is: What led to the beginning of TicketManager.

It is a simple story.

Part one:

This week: What I learned at the US Open about corporate hospitality, careers in the sports world, and sponsorship Valhalla.

Three Things I Learned In SaaS, Sports, Tech, and Live Events

The "Hospitality" Conundrum

The ticketing market has come a long way since I started at the LA Dodgers in 2001.

Back then, tickets were dramatically underpriced and sold to season ticket holders for teams and "insiders" (read: brokers) for major events.

In the mid-2000s, the NFL caught on to the price vs market disparity and created a program they called "On-Location," where consumers could buy tickets bundled with a room and hospitality for a price exponentially higher than face value.

Simply: They could charge the actual market price for the tickets and hide the difference in the package. Nobody could break out what costs what.

Since then, hospitality has exploded with private equity stroking huge checks to get in the game (Sixth Street & Legends, Arctos & Elevate, Endeavor-via-Bruin Capital & On-Location, Liberty and Quint, and so on).

Hospitality is now offered at nearly every major event and, for many, business in the hospitality game is booming. Revenues are setting records annually, though we don't know how profitable the business is as there are usually large upfronts paid for the right to sell hospitality exclusively.

Three things I've learned from being in/seeing all the hospitality over the past year at all the biggest events

The unmitigated disaster that was the 2004 AEG Olympics.

Sometimes great people have terrible ideas.

In 2004, I worked at AEG as a sales person. AEG had just finished building the Home Depot Center (now Dignity Health Sports Park). It was a multi-use sports facility with a professional stadium for the LA Galaxy with training facilities for track, tennis, cycling, baseball, and more.

The AEG brass had a big idea: We could bring companies in for a team-building company Olympics. The market for such events was big and we could leverage the entire property for a daylong event. They laid out the plan and we, AEG's internal staff, were going to be the guinea pigs.

I can't properly relay how much of a disaster it was.

Three Things I Learned in SaaS, Sports, Tech, & Live Events

I mentioned back in April that we had to take a hiatus until after Memorial Day "for reasons I'll share then."

Well, we were in court. In a jury trial for nearly a month. I'll be sharing a LOT about that experience after appeals. But for now:

Three things I learned about telling the truth during the most stressful month of my life:

1. You cannot hide who you are in court.

In a trial, everything is public. Much more than you might think, too. Your emails, slacks, instant messages, texts, and even your personal notes. This trial looked at everything that happened between 2010 and 2020—ten whole years.

Witness after witness got up there and tried to bend the truth. They'd be shown an email they wrote themselves and then try to explain why it "doesn't really say what it says."

Some were so absurd they'd claim entire sentences were "typos".

It would be silly if it weren't so tragic.

Tell the truth—all the time. You'll have nothing to hide when you end up on the stand, like I did for an entire day.

2. "He doesn't know what to do!"

Lying and deceiving are standard operating procedure for the vast majority of people. We sat and watched one person after another knowingly lie. They couldn't even look us in the eyes in the hallway.

But that can work to our advantage.

We only know the world we know. When they strategize, they think of what they'd do in certain situations, such as cross-examinations. What they'd say.

They read emails through their own corrupted lens. They can't fathom we'd actually get up and tell the truth.

My favorite moment of "The Miracle On Ice" is near the end of the game. The Soviet Union's coach doesn't pull his goalie. Coach Herb Brooks turns to Craig Patrick and gleefully shouts "He doesn't know what to do!"

He didn't know to pull his goalie as he'd never been in that situation.

We had a similar moment when their attorney was attacking me in cross-examination. I had to try to hide my smile. The truth was going to deliver us.

3. If you are inauthentic, people can see it. Even if you worry they can't.

We were so nervous. We knew we were telling the truth. We knew the evidence was clear. We knew who was being paid through "consulting agreements" to testify.

But we didn't know if the jury would see it.

They did. Our lawyers got to talk to them after the trial ended. 11-1 on all counts.

I wrote in April that it was Daniel's faith that got him thrown in the lion's den and only his faith could get him out.

I lost my father four days before I took the stand. He was the most honest man I've ever known. I watched people take advantage of his integrity time and time again my whole life. But he never wavered - he always did the right thing and told the truth. No matter the cost.

And when we needed it most, the truth was our most powerful weapon.

Three Things I Learned in SaaS, Sports, Tech, & Live Events

1) You can compete without being enemies.

Competition is a part of life. If would be great if there was enough for everyone to be wildly successful, but we haven't figured that out yet, despite many wars.

When someone else is stiving for what we want, and there is a limited supply, the easiest thing to do is de-humanize the other person and make them "evil" or "bad." It's human nature and the default position of so many people. When 'that' kid is playing 'their' kid's spot, rivalries begin for no reason.

But it isn't necessary. One of my closest friends for the past 20+ years I met when we played the same position at USC. We competed every day. Another friend was a fifth year Senior at the same position when I was a freshman. I got playing time (he did too). Easy to see, though, that if I weren't there he'd have gotten more. I'm still friends with them both today and our families have become friends.

Just because someone sees the same opportunity you do, doesn't make them evil.

One caveat: Ryan and Trent are honest men who competed fairly. If others not competing fairly or legally, it's necessary to use the resources you have to defend yourself and those you're responsible to.

2. Nothing works harder than grateful

I'm often asked a great question at the end of the interview process. It's usually a version of: "What characteristics make people successful at TicketManager?"

I've spent a LOT of time considering the answer: People who want to be here.

Been doing this sixteen years - and led teams at StubHub and AEG as well. There are so many diverse characteristics which can be very successful. Everyone is so unique. But all super-successful hires share the one characteristic that they have a choice as to where they will work and they really want to be here. It's not just "a little bit better" for them than elsewhere.

If we can find that, we can build around it.

I love my job so much that when I hear others talk about theirs I immediately think "I need to go work even more" I'm so thankful for it.

3. Sometimes your faith will get you into an uncomfortable situation, and it's only that same faith that'll get you out.

Enjoyed a lesson on Daniel. His faith is what caused those around him turn on him and throw him in the lion's den to die. That same faith was the only thing that delivered him safely.

Keep the faith and do the right thing. No matter how hard it can be in the moment.

To that end, the Three Things will be taking a break until after Memorial Day for reasons I'll share then.

Say a prayer for the good in the world!

Three Things I Learned in SaaS, Sports, Tech, & Live Events

Let's do a fun one this week:

The top sporting events I've been to as a result of my job.

1. The Greatest Game Ever Played: USC - Texas Rose Bowl 2006

2. The Helmet Catch

3. Kobe's Finale

4. Tiger Wood's One -Legged Major

5. Super Bowl LIV - Chiefs vs Niners

6. The Fastest Knock-out in UFC History

7. Bama- Clemson 1 - The 2016 Fiesta Bowl Shootout

8. World Heavyweight Title: Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder 1

9. Corey Seager's Heroics - 2023 World Series Win Amidst Loss

10. The Infamous Plaster-in-the-Gloves: Cotto vs. Margarito 1

11. * Jason Lezak’s comeback - The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

Much more in the Substack about the experience along with some pictures.

Please excuse that we didn't have cameras on our phones until 2007, and even then they were pretty bad, so I don't have the best pics of each event.

Next time we see one another, I'd love to hear yours - along with a list of the top 5 in history you'd go to if you could

What I learned spending a week in Florida at The Players Championship, the de facto Super Bowl of golf.