Name: Cade Webber
Institution: University of North Texas
Title: Director of Ticket Sales

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in Athletics?
Growing up playing baseball through college I always loved being involved in athletics and following all sports. I then got a college job as a student worker at the University of Oklahoma in the ticket office and did that for my final 2 years and that really showed me college athletics on the working side. Once I started doing that, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in college athletics.

What advice would you give someone looking to enter the field of collegiate ticketing?
I'd tell someone that it's a fast-paced environment and a relationship driven business where effort directly impacts results. Be ready to fail, there's a lot of getting told no on the sales side of athletics and you have to embrace the sales process. It's all about generating revenue and creating a valuable experience for fans. Learn your product inside and out, it can help increase your success in the industry. Connect with others in the industry, one of the best things I have done is connecting with others at other schools and learning from their failures and success. Lastly, be willing to start wherever you can and outwork everyone around you, the hardest thing you will do in this industry is making it out of your first job title and your starting location.

Who has been the most influential person in your career and what is the best advice they have given you?
My boss Josh Massey when I started off as an Account Executive as the University of Oklahoma with Learfield. He was our Director at the time and I remember on one of my first days he said you are going to get out of this job what you out into it, if you want to make money the opportunity is there to do so, but the opportunity to not make any money is there as well if you do not get after it. He then told me "treat this cube like you are running your own business, you never want your own business to fail, do what you have to do to have success that then leads to our overall team success."

What is a book, podcast, or resource that has positively influence your career?
The book Fanatical Prospecting. It really enforces the importance of consistent outreach and controlling what you can control.

What is your favorite memory you have working in college athletics?
My first football season at UNT was this last fall and we were able to sell out the stadium for the first time in school history. Being a part of that and getting to take in the gameday atmosphere was a memorable experience.

What is one job you would like to try for a week and one job you would not enjoy trying?
I would love to try being an Athletic Director for a week and seeing all of the back-end items that goes into that. I would not enjoy trying event management, huge props to those that do but that is not something I would enjoy for a long time.

About NAATSO: NAATSO is the first organization of its kind to provide educational and networking opportunities; enhancement of acceptable operating standards and ethics; and establishment of the overall prestige and understanding of the profession of athletics ticketing administrators. For more information about NAATSO, please visit www.naatso.com. NAATSO is administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 61st year. For more information on NACDA and the 19 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.