I traveled this weekend to Raleigh, North Carolina to keynote an event later in the week. As I had a little free time, I decided to visit Duke University in nearby Durham.
I’m by no means a fan of the Duke Blue Devils but I do respect the elite level of talent and success of their Men’s Basketball program. I’ve watched many Duke vs. North Carolina hoops games (arguably the greatest rivalry in college basketball) on television and have had the opportunity to witness one game in person many years ago at the Dean Smith Center on UNC’s campus in Chapel Hill. I was also in attendance at the Men’s Final Four in 2015 in Indianapolis when Duke won their last National Championship over Wisconsin.
Cameron Indoor Stadium is where the Blue Devils play their home games and it’s considered one of the best college arenas and home-court advantages in the game. As I parked in the lot near the student union, I was just hoping for an opportunity to get inside the iconic gymnasium and feel the heritage and tradition. It would be a great sports facility to add to my “Been There” list.
The campus was beautiful and rather quiet as it was Sunday morning. The team had played the night before, barely escaping with a 1-point win over Clemson. As I made my way through the stone buildings and open green spaces, I knew I was close when I saw the tents of Krzyzewskiville. This temporary housing scene is named after the former Hall-of-Fame Coach, Mike Krzyzewski, who coached at Duke for 42 years and led the Blue Devils to all 5 of their championships.
Students camp out for the chance to get into the annual UNC game. It’s not a random lottery or tickets for sale. It’s first-come, first serve and it’s not just an overnight experience.
This year the tents started going up outside of Cameron a week ago. The North Carolina game isn’t scheduled until March 7th!!!
I spoke to a senior student from Tampa who told me about the policies and protocols for the tent village, which include regular check-ins with university administrations or security personnel as well as occupancy rules for the tents. It starts with 10 people in each tent, then drops to 6 people in each tent, then just 2 when it gets closer to the big game…and exams.
When it comes down to the order of occupancy or where in the queue the students will be for game admittance, it comes down to a trivia/team knowledge quiz. You have to know the Duke Basketball team inside and out if you want to get from outside Cameron to inside Cameron to see the team play.
If you want to go to the game, you’re gonna have to know the game.
So what does this have to do with real estate?
You gotta know your stuff. If you wanna get in front of more people and earn the opportunity to “get into” their top-of-mind-awareness, you are going to have to know your stuff…and your people.
Market knowledge ✅
Technology skills? ✅
Your client’s names, spouse’s names, kid’s names, pet’s names, and more? ✅
Community info? ✅
Local vendors and affiliates? ✅
Directions? ✅
Local history and event schedules? ✅
Turns out, when you show up and know your stuff, you have a really good chance of getting in the game.
