Justarrive Closes $5 Million in Venture Financing From Mohr, Davidow Ventures; Ronnie Lott Named to Justarrive`s Board of Directors; Justarrive Signs Stanford, Georgia Tech, University of Central Florida, University of Miami, UC Berkeley and UCLA
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE via COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Nov. 10, 2000--Justarrive, Inc., a leading provider of integrated electronic ticket delivery, fan loyalty and 1:1 marketing services, will mark its launch at the Stanford-Arizona State football game tomorrow by demonstrating a better way for teams to get fans to their seats on game day and establish lasting fan relationships.
At the pre-game launch event, Justarrive will showcase how its new service, based on the ubiquitous magnetic swipe card, allows teams to get closer to their fans while eliminating the ticket hassles normally associated with attending athletic events.
''In our work with major universities, we`ve been able to show that Justarrive solves three age-old problems in sports marketing -- creating more efficient delivery of tickets, frictionless entry at the event and helping teams build more lasting relationships with those fans,'' said Jeff Lehman, CEO of the one-year-old company. ''We do this by seamlessly integrating into one service what until now have been standalone activities -- delivering tickets, offering tools to create fan loyalty programs and marketing to those fans. Currently there are companies that help teams sell tickets to their games, and then there is Justarrive: we complement the ticket selling process by helping put fans in the seats. A fan in a seat is worth more to the team, both financially and psychologically.''
Lehman also made two other announcements. First, Justarrive received $5 million in venture financing from early-stage venture capital firm Mohr, Davidow Ventures (MDV), which will be used to grow the company and develop new entrance systems, industry partnerships, fan loyalty programs and 1:1 marketing opportunities for teams. Second, former San Francisco 49er Ronnie Lott, a recent NFL Hall of Fame inductee and Champion Ventures co-founder and general partner, was named to Justarrive`s board of directors. Lott joins MDV partner Michael Solomon, who serves as chairman of the Justarrive board.
In its pioneering work with Stanford that began with the 1999 basketball season, Justarrive helped double game attendance and nearly doubled Stanford`s revenues in the student market. Stanford extended its use of Justarrive this year to its football and men`s and women`s basketball programs. Further, Justarrive is now deploying its service at other major universities including Georgia Tech, University of Central Florida, University of Miami, UC Berkeley and UCLA. Justarrive will eventually expand to the professional sports and performing arts markets.
''Justarrive changes the face of sports marketing and goes a long way to eliminating hassles that can hamper the fans` enjoyment of the events,'' said new board member Ronnie Lott. ''Justarrive`s service ensures that loyal fans will be recognized and rewarded, and I can tell you there is nothing a team likes better than to see a full stadium, and have the regular support of happy fans.''
How Justarrive Works
Fans purchase their tickets online or offline, just as they have traditionally. But instead of having to wait by their mailbox or stand in line at ''will call'' for their tickets at each game, fans can now have their tickets attached electronically to any magnetic stripe card in their wallet -- a university ID, credit card or specially issued team card. Any of these cards now function as the fan`s ticket. On game day, fans simply swipe their cards at a Justarrive entrance unit to gain admission and receive a printed ticket to their seat.
What makes this service particularly appealing to sports teams is that Justarrive reduces the cost of marketing and distributing tickets, and can integrate with existing back office ticketing systems. And for the fans, convenient purchasing and easy admission are only two of the benefits. They also can trade individual game tickets online by electronically transferring them to friends or other fans. The transfer is registered automatically on the new ticket holder`s account allowing the recipient to ''just arrive'' at the game and swipe their card to enter. Unneeded tickets also can be returned electronically to the box office to be donated or resold, thus reducing empty seats in the stands and increasing the team`s control of ticket fraud and the secondary ticket market.
Justarrive also integrates fan loyalty and 1:1 marketing components that allow teams to drive additional traffic to their venues, and build personalized relationships with their fan base. Central to the loyalty platform`s appeal is the ability for teams to create a system where fans who swipe their cards while entering the venue automatically earn incentive points. The 1:1 marketing platform allows teams to build a dialogue with fans through dynamic messages printed directly on entrance tickets as well as personalized e-mails containing game day news, features and other promotions.
''I`m excited to work with a service that was designed with the fan in mind,'' said Leigh Baker, ticketing director, Georgia Tech. ''Justarrive`s focus is to help the fan get to the game in the most efficient way possible, and that`s really what everyone in ticketing tries to do as well. It`s great to work with a company that not only understands this, but has created a service to deal with the challenges of event admissions.''
About Justarrive
Justarrive, Inc. is a leading electronic ticket delivery, fan loyalty and 1:1 marketing platform for sports marketing. Designed and tailored to meet the needs of fans and teams alike, the Justarrive platform provides hassle-free access to sporting events and more personalized relationships between teams and their fans. The Justarrive platform is currently being rolled out to major universities across the country with plans to expand to the professional sports and performing arts markets. To date, Justarrive has raised a $5 million round of venture funding led by Mohr, Davidow Ventures. Privately held, Justarrive is based in San Francisco. For more information, please visit http://www.justarrive.com.
About Mohr, Davidow Ventures
Mohr, Davidow Ventures has built a reputation among entrepreneurs as a partner by taking a hands-on approach to investments and working to architect and build successful companies. MDV possesses a team of experts, including the firm`s partners and an active network of seasoned entrepreneurs. They focus on early-stage investments and bring years of real-world experience to accelerate each company`s time to market and optimize its long-term success. MDV funded companies include Accrue Software, Agile Software, Brocade, Broadbase, ChannelPoint, Critical Path, ONI Systems, Rambus, Shutterfly and Viant. Founded in 1983, MDV has offices in Menlo Park, Calif., Seattle and McLean, Va. For more information, visit http://www.mdv.com.
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