Business View Magazine - Mar 2024

that we are continuing to grow our brand and grow our reach and grow our fan base, as we’re getting into 20 seasons of Biscuits baseball. We are making sure that we’re not being stale, making sure that we’re doing unique things,” he conveys. The organization had to think outside the box during the 2020 pandemic-imposed hiatus. “We did our best to pivot in that time but maintain that focus of doing things that were different, fun, and impactful. The same way that we try to operate as a baseball business was the way that we operated as a restaurant and venue,” Murphy remarks. With creativity and determination, the team pivoted to provide alternative experiences, such as a collaboration with a local streaming company to showcase a burger cook-off on the infield. Murphy recounts, “We had five or six barbecue competition competitors that were out here. We were raising money for first responders at the time, and nurses and health care workers.” a vibrant atmosphere in downtown Montgomery on a Biscuits game day, and really every day.” Further contributing to this vibrancy, the decision was made in 2017 to shift game time from a 7:00 pm start to 6:35, encouraging fans to enjoy the surrounding amenities before games.“You think that doesn’t make a whole lot of a difference,” admits Murphy. “One of the big things for us was we wanted people to stop in the restaurants and bars around the ballpark before they came to the game. If you worked downtown, rather than going home and picking up your family, just stay downtown, meet your family at one of the restaurants, grab an appetizer, and then come and get your kids ice cream and a hotdog and enjoy those games.” This change was also motivated by the desire to create as much of a fun family atmosphere as possible, creating generations of baseball enthusiasts, and memories. “If you think about it, starting the game at seven o’clock, you’re about three innings in and it’s time for a family to head out if you have young kids. By moving those games to 6:35, you’re getting to stay later into the game.Where somebody may have been leaving in the fifth inning, now they’re leaving in the seventh or eighth inning or staying the whole time, being able to watch more baseball and being able to stay downtown for a little bit longer,” he adds. MOVING FORWARD AFTER COVID The Montgomery Biscuits host 69 home games annually, with an average attendance currently just below 2,900 fans per night, nearing pre-pandemic levels of 3,200.As the stadium continues to welcome back corporate partnerships, Murphy says that there has been a post-pandemic uptick in single-game ticket sales, acknowledging, “Part of that is due to companies not being able to do their outings. Individuals from those companies have started purchasing tickets on their own, to experience Biscuits games with their family. “ He points to remarkable growth on social media, with impressions surging from over 4 million in 2022 to over 26 million in 2023, which he attributes to enhanced focus by the staff. “That’s one of the ways 68 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 03