Fresh on the heels of signing our first collegiate partner, Mercer University, University of San Diego’s Toreros athletic program is the next to transition away from a legacy solution to our modern commerce platform.
Established in 1949, the University of San Diego (USD) stands out as the youngest among the top 100 independent U.S. universities ranked by U.S. News & World Report. Located on Southern California’s scenic coast, what truly sets USD apart is its innovative experiential learning programs across diverse fields. The private Roman Catholic institution boasts prestigious degree programs such as the distinguished Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies and continues to shape the landscape of higher education.
The Toreros’ athletics program fits a similar mold. With a range of Division I sports such as football, basketball, baseball, and soccer, among others, USD’s coastal location facilitated its early inclusion of men’s and women’s volleyball. The university competes in the Football Championship Subdivision and the West Coast Conference for the majority of its other sports. Despite the sports program’s relative youth, Toreros athletics keeps growing and progressing.
“As we continue to build our sports programs into national contenders, it’s important that we keep up with trends. We also must find new ways to deepen our relationship with our students, alumni, and fans who bring their energy to every Toreros event,” said Bill McGillis, Associate Vice President/Executive Director of Athletics for University of San Diego. “Tixr has the kind of flexible technology, innovative spirit, and deep expertise that will help us do just that.”
As a Southern California-based company, we couldn’t be more excited to partner with the university’s athletics program, especially with some former Toreros on our own staff! Starting with season packages and individual games for fall sports, we’ll serve as the new exclusive ticketing platform for all of USD Toreros’ events. Our long-term partnership will enable the Division I program to transition away from a legacy solution to a fully-digital operating system, powered by our modern ticketing and unified commerce technology.
Empowering an Athletic Department on the Rise
In the hyper-competitive intercollegiate athletics space, trading a legacy ticketing system built on antiquated technology for a modern alternative is a great place to start. Yet, the most transformative ticketing partnerships don’t just offer innovative technology, but they also provide dedicated, expert support from industry experts to get the most out of the platform and offer the best possible fan experience. When McGillis sought out a new exclusive ticketing provider for USD athletics, that’s how we won him over.
“We are beyond excited to partner with Tixr in an effort to deepen our relationship with USD students, faculty, staff, alumni, and fans,” said Bill McGillis, USD Associate Vice President/Executive Director of Athletics. “Tixr’s extraordinary customer service, flexible and cutting-edge technology, innovative spirit, and unmatched expertise will help us do just that.”
Details matter, and we worked hand-in-hand with the USD team to train their staff, set up all new equipment, and migrate their whole ticketing operation to Tixr for fall sports sales in a matter of weeks. Come onsale day, USD sports fans will enjoy a highly visual, user-friendly interface for seamless browsing on desktop and mobile, a superior mobile experience, and intuitive reserved seat selection across the breadth of the Toreros’ athletic events. A custom Toreros-branded purchase experience is the icing on the cake.
McGillis adds, “Partnering with Tixr streamlines our ticketing operations and gives us powerful ways to uplevel one of the most important touch points we have with the USD community. There is no doubt Torero fans everywhere will enjoy a truly enhanced ticket-buying and gameday experience as a result of this partnership.”
Transforming the Ticket-Buying Experience
All too often, sports properties and their fans get bogged down by systems of the past because of inflexible technology built before smartphones, social media, and cloud computing. Our modus operandi is to transform the ticket-buying experience, providing large-scale event producers, like University of San Diego, with modern eCommerce solutions that solve complex legacy ticketing challenges.
“What Bill McGillis and the University of San Diego are doing to build the athletics program’s standing on the national collegiate sports scene is truly remarkable,” said Patrick Bradley, Chief Revenue Officer for Tixr. “We are thrilled to be partnering with them to bring the very best customer experience to every Toreros sporting event and ensure that the ticketing and ecommerce experience matches their excellence on the court and field.”
USD Athletics is already utilizing a host of tools in their Tixr toolkit for fall sports, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for the Toreros’ sports program. Season tickets and individual games for men’s and women’s soccer, football, and volleyball are available now.
Want to transform your university’s ticketing operations? Contact us for a demo.
