Is Cortese deliberately trying to annoy the fans.

[Thedelldays]

Forget my opinions of how to sell tickets.

 

91 out of 92 clubs pro-actively sell season tickets.

 

Are they all wrong and Cortese is right?

 

what if we are trend setters...football is about to change in this country..going to change alot

 

I remember we were the first major club to introduce salary cuts if we got relegated..it was slated in saying that we are preparing for relegation.

I gather it is now quite common in the prem

[Dave Benson Phillips]

what if we are trend setters...football is about to change in this country..going to change alot

 

I remember we were the first major club to introduce salary cuts if we got relegated..it was slated in saying that we are preparing for relegation.

I gather it is now quite common in the prem

 

LOL, are you the giver or reciever in your relationship with Nicola?

[hackedoff]

Easy solution to it all; if people are not happy with what,s happening at the club then don,t buy the product. If the withdrawal of the instalment method of payment is a deal breaker then surely your finances dictate that you should not be spending your money on football at all.

[solentstars]

I really wish I had never started this thread. As I have previously stated my original intention was for an open minded and intelligent discussion on what I personally think have been PR gaffs by SFC in my assumption that NC is instrumental in these decisions. I am not anti-NC in fact I am more than happy with the majority of what is occurring atSFC. I know one or two people on here like taking a antagonistic stance just for the fun of it, but some have genuine concerns over one or even a few recent announcements at the club. If we could all differentiate between the two and ignore one and debate with the other perhaps we could all continue more amicably.

i.m with you but i think the club made a big mistake with getting rid of the payment plan and should have said last season of it intentions or brought it in next season ,bad customer relations in my view.

[Micky]

Forget my opinions of how to sell tickets.

 

91 out of 92 clubs pro-actively sell season tickets.

 

Are they all wrong and Cortese is right?

 

Nope, it's that damn Cortese again - he's wrong. Pants at PR and pants at selling too.

[Redondo Saint]

This is a private company and as such they can operate it in whatever way they think best. If Stu/SBP doesn't like the CEO and his methods, so what! Go somehwere else.

 

If crowds drop because of Stu and his multiple personalities, then maybe ML or NC will take a new direction. For the time being I think ML will stick with NC and resist the telephone call to Stu/SBP for advice.

 

I think provided the team are successful, support will remain strong despite a few moans from the few.

Time to move on.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

Nope, it's that damn Cortese again - he's wrong. Pants at PR and pants at selling too.

 

Evidently so.

 

Maybe next time he should take the advice of the person he employs to sort out the ticketing, rather than trying to do it all himself ( and making one massive balls up ) .

[Dave Benson Phillips]

This is a private company and as such they can operate it in whatever way they think best. If Stu/SBP doesn't like the CEO and his methods, so what! Go somehwere else.

 

If crowds drop because of Stu and his multiple personalities, then maybe ML or NC will take a new direction. For the time being I think ML will stick with NC and resist the telephone call to Stu/SBP for advice.

 

I think provided the team are successful, support will remain strong despite a few moans from the few.

Time to move on.

 

Funny how all the people who are " The tickets are fine " live in places such as Plymouth and the USA lol

 

Don't worry, I will fully accept the apologies off everyone when I am proven to be right. :-)

[Micky]

Evidently so.

 

Maybe next time he should take the advice of the person he employs to sort out the ticketing, rather than trying to do it all himself ( and making one massive balls up ) .

 

Talking of which Stu, have you ever thought about forwarding him your CV? Who knows, with your evident skillsets and drive, perhaps you can fix the negative PR, Ticket Tax, Press Releases and ST balls up. Would keep you happy and us happy at the same time - got to be worth the price of a 1st class stamp, surely.

[ottery st mary]

Truthfully I still luv you Duncan...As you know I have idolised you from a very young age.

 

I have sung with many versions of the Wuirzels...TOOOOOO much cider on many nights.

 

Anyway STOP listening to those old grannies and come back on board for the big push this season.

 

NC on behalf of ML is only the the fascilitator.....us the fans, the players and our great coaching staff will do a great job these next few seasons.

 

COYRS

[Smirking_Saint]

what if we are trend setters...football is about to change in this country..going to change alot

 

I remember we were the first major club to introduce salary cuts if we got relegated..it was slated in saying that we are preparing for relegation.

I gather it is now quite common in the prem

 

True,

 

The problem is everyone does the exact same thing. What if this is a success and you start to see more clubs doing the same ?

 

And Stu we will all look forward to your apologies if we are proved right !

[dune]

Funny how all the people who are " The tickets are fine " live in places such as Plymouth and the USA lol

 

Don't worry, I will fully accept the apologies off everyone when I am proven to be right. :-)

 

Those who see no wrong in the decisions made of late can't see past the end of their noses. This is just taster of what's to come and looking forward it's looking very likely that watching SFC will cost a bomb if and when we get back to the top flight. It can be argued that if we want the best players we've got to pay for it, but this is all very well for those who only intend to go to the odd game.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

Talking of which Stu, have you ever thought about forwarding him your CV? Who knows, with your evident skillsets and drive, perhaps you can fix the negative PR, Ticket Tax, Press Releases and ST balls up. Would keep you happy and us happy at the same time - got to be worth the price of a 1st class stamp, surely.

 

No doubt you will think I am just having an answer for everything... blah blah blah, but the people on here that know me personally such as Denzil, Steve Grant should confirm.

 

Yes I did forward my CV in a while ago, yes the club did contact me, yes I did attend an interview and yes I was offered a second interview ( which I was told was a job offer , and no, it was for sales and not burger sales ) . I got drunk after the Sheff Utd ( i think ) midweek game, we played sh!te, I got drunk and I sent an email telling them to poke their poxy job as I would never work for that ***t Lowe. The real reason was I knew from ITKness that the club was slipping into admin and didn't like the thought of risking redundancy/late wages. And also I didn't like the thought of running one of the corporate suites on a matchday and not being with my pals in the pub.

 

Yes - Epic Fail. True story though.

Edited 30 June, 2010 by Dave Benson Phillips

[Micky]

Those who see no wrong in the decisions made of late can't see past the end of their noses. This is just taster of what's to come and looking forward it's looking very likely that watching SFC will cost a bomb if and when we get back to the top flight. It can be argued that if we want the best players we've got to pay for it, but this is all very well for those who only intend to go to the odd game.

 

Could you make the text a little bigger please - the screen is beyond my nose and so I'm struggling to read it.

[Thedelldays]

of course that is not ****** what so ever is it...

[Micky]

No doubt you will think I am just having an answer for everything... blah blah blah, but the people on here that know me personally such as Denzil, Steve Grant should confirm.

 

Yes I did forward my CV in a while ago, yes the club did contact me, yes I did attend an interview and yes I was offered a second interview ( which I was told was a job offer , and no, it was for sales and not burger sales ) . I got drunk after the Sheff Utd ( i think ) midweek game, we played sh!te, I got drunk and I sent an email telling them to poke their poxy job as I would never work for that ***t Lowe. The real reason was I knew from ITKness that the club was slipping into admin and didn't like the thought of risking redundancy/late wages

 

Yes - Epic Fail. True story though.

 

It was a genuine suggestion - not a dig. Sorry you never got the position - I know how it feels - I was once told by my OC that I would never get promoted again because I say what everybody else is thinking, but too afraid to say. He was correct on both counts.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

True,

 

The problem is everyone does the exact same thing. What if this is a success and you start to see more clubs doing the same ?

 

And Stu we will all look forward to your apologies if we are proved right !

 

I am man enough to do that, as I have done in the past.

 

( I won't be wrong though )

[Dave Benson Phillips]

It was a genuine suggestion - not a dig. Sorry you never got the position - I know how it feels - I was once told by my OC that I would never get promoted again because I say what everybody else is thinking, but too afraid to say. He was correct on both counts.

 

I did get the position, I just got drunk and in the heat of the moment told them to poke it.

 

When Lowe left I sent an email to the HR girl again asking if I could have that job I was offered now Lowe had gone... I never got a reply. :-(

[dune]

I did get the position, I just got drunk and in the heat of the moment told them to poke it.

 

I think that was a wise move.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

I think that was a wise move.

 

I did always wonder what they would have thought if they ever found out i was StuRomseySaint though.

[dune]

I did always wonder what they would have thought if they ever found out i was StuRomseySaint though.

 

I think you'd have been silenced.

[Ponty]

I did always wonder what they would have thought if they ever found out i was StuRomseySaint though.

I doubt anyone would have ever known, what with your skills at hiding your identity and all.

[Micky]

I did always wonder what they would have thought if they ever found out i was StuRomseySaint though.

 

You are, really, well blow me, I would never have guessed.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

You are, really, well blow me, I would never have guessed.

 

I will think up another one soon, problem is, I want to keep this one now so I can tell you all " I told you so " when things start going wrong.

[dune]

I will think up another one soon, problem is, I want to keep this one now so I can tell you all " I told you so " when things start going wrong.

 

I said we'd go into admin if we weren't promoted within 2 years and was ridiculed...

 

You will be proved right about Cortese because all you're saying is that he's going to continue what he's doing already. Prices will become sky high, fans will be exploited to the max, and it's going to be one PR disater after another.

[Micky]

I will think up another one soon, problem is, I want to keep this one now so I can tell you all " I told you so " when things start going wrong.

 

Fair play to you Stu, but what do you actually want? You say 'when things go wrong', but like what? Are you expecting the club to implode or something? Don't forget, only a year ago we were in the mire, basically looking down the barrel, but now one year on we have had a decent season, won a cup and in good shape for the upcoming season. So what do you expect to go wrong and why constantly look at the negatives in life?

 

I except your points Stu, they are valid and fair - but if I'm really honest mate I don't think they are 'Big Issue' are they? They are more 'annoyances' that perhaps some fans could have done without, and the Club could well have handled a little better in some cases.

 

But you seem to be saying that the whole lot is about to come tumbling down - after only 1 season. Do you have an inside track or are you just one of those half empty sort of people? The Saints fans that I talk to at work are all looking forward to the coming season and have no worries, but you seem to be painting a totally 'everything is doomed' sort of picture.

[Smirking_Saint]

Fair play to you Stu, but what do you actually want? You say 'when things go wrong', but like what? Are you expecting the club to implode or something? Don't forget, only a year ago we were in the mire, basically looking down the barrel, but now one year on we have had a decent season, won a cup and in good shape for the upcoming season. So what do you expect to go wrong and why constantly look at the negatives in life?

 

I except your points Stu, they are valid and fair - but if I'm really honest mate I don't think they are 'Big Issue' are they? They are more 'annoyances' that perhaps some fans could have done without, and the Club could well have handled a little better in some cases.

 

But you seem to be saying that the whole lot is about to come tumbling down - after only 1 season. Do you have an inside track or are you just one of those half empty sort of people? The Saints fans that I talk to at work are all looking forward to the coming season and have no worries, but you seem to be painting a totally 'everything is doomed' sort of picture.

 

+75000000

 

This is pretty much how i see it TBF

[SparkySaint]

LMFAO

 

A decent businessman that says " We want to encourage people to purchase in advance " , then goes and makes the cheapest way for most to buy tickets buying at the box office on the day. Great business decision. lol

 

That's just one example. Making kids prices more expensive for a Carling Cup game than it is for a league game? Yeah... priceless. lol

 

Alot of his ticketing I swear he is just writing on the back of a fag packet.

 

Time will tell my friend

[SaintBobby]

Can I just say I think Stu has a point here.

 

Ok, he may need a crash course in how to make friends and influence people, but that doesn't mean he's wrong.

 

There's a lot of very odd, weird and incompetent behaviour going on at SMS.

 

All things being equal, I'd expect Season Ticket numbers to be up by about 2K-3K for next season. With good management, it should be an increase of 4K-5K or more. This time last year, we had a threadbare squad and were starting with a ten point penalty. We now are clear bookies favourites to win the league and have c.45,000 fans who saw us win a Wembley trophy just a few weeks back.

 

If we haven't sold about 15K season tickets by kick off on August 7th, the club has done something pretty badly wrong. And stupidly so.

 

Nicola Cortese is obviously a very intelligent and capable man. But I don't think his (and his staff's) recent decisions bear much scrutiny.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

Can I just say I think Stu has a point here.

 

Ok, he may need a crash course in how to make friends and influence people, but that doesn't mean he's wrong.

 

There's a lot of very odd, weird and incompetent behaviour going on at SMS.

 

All things being equal, I'd expect Season Ticket numbers to be up by about 2K-3K for next season. With good management, it should be an increase of 4K-5K or more. This time last year, we had a threadbare squad and were starting with a ten point penalty. We now are clear bookies favourites to win the league and have c.45,000 fans who saw us win a Wembley trophy just a few weeks back.

 

If we haven't sold about 15K season tickets by kick off on August 7th, the club has done something pretty badly wrong. And stupidly so.

 

Nicola Cortese is obviously a very intelligent and capable man. But I don't think his (and his staff's) recent decisions bear much scrutiny.

 

I am quite arrogant in the way I present my opinion, I will grant you that, I suppose in the same way many people cannot put themselves in other peoples shoes to see the inconvenience of no installment plans, lack of notice etc, I am also guilty of not being able to appreciate that possibly as someone who works in sales/marketing/advertising I get a more qualified look on what is happening and it's more obvious to me that there is some very strange things going on at SMS.

 

I have tried to break down and reason why I feel decisions that are being made are wrong to make them more easy to digest. I honestly would be massively surprised if we have more season tickets this year, so many factors are againsts it, even things such as Englands performance in the World Cup would have an affect on people, as football is put to the back of peoples minds over the next few weeks.

 

The reality is we will never know how many season tickets holders we have, I very much doubt the club will announce it ( maybe someone could phone/email the ticket office, I don't think they are in the mood to talk to me at the moment! ) , I also think the attendance figures next season might have to rely on a bump up... less than half empty stadiums being given attendances of 20,000

 

Cortese has got this massively wrong and is going to be made to pay for not listening/taking advice off the experts employed at the club such as David Luker, Jordon Sibley etc etc

Edited 1 July, 2010 by Dave Benson Phillips

[Thedelldays]

I wonder how many times stu is going to tell us the same thing again today..

 

sure fire way of actually turning people away from this board let alone SMS

[Dave Benson Phillips]

I wonder how many times stu is going to tell us the same thing again today..

 

sure fire way of actually turning people away from this board let alone SMS

 

I wonder how many times Delldays is going to sit and troll from behind his PC again, this debate is now cooling down and turning into a civil discussion, enough so that people are putting their head above the parapit again, showing that it's not just me, as you seem to think it is, that feels this way.

 

Don't spoilt it Dulldays, get out of your bedsit, stop making model boats and go get some fresh air. It's obvious what this thread is about, people are pretty retarded ( like you ) if they keep visiting this thread if they think the subject is boring/tedious.

 

You need to get a life fella, seriously.

[Chez]

I wonder how many times stu is going to tell us the same thing again today..

 

sure fire way of actually turning people away from this board let alone SMS

how many times are you going to respond with a personal snipe rather than argue the specific point he makes?

[Thedelldays]

I wonder how many times Delldays is going to sit and troll from behind his PC again, this debate is now cooling down and turning into a civil discussion, enough so that people are putting their head above the parapit again, showing that it's not just me, as you seem to think it is, that feels this way.

 

Don't spoilt it Dulldays, get out of your bedsit, stop making model boats and go get some fresh air. It's obvious what this thread is about, people are pretty retarded ( like you ) if they keep visiting this thread if they think the subject is boring/tedious.

 

You need to get a life fella, seriously.

 

ironic...I will go for 60..you will make the same point about 60 times today..

and this board will be frequented largly by you with the odd splash from stanley

 

 

bye

[dune]

ironic...I will go for 60..you will make the same point about 60 times today..

and this board will be frequented largly by you with the odd splash from stanley

 

 

bye

 

Is this bye as is bye forever, or bye as is bye for 10 seconds?

[Dave Benson Phillips]

how many times are you going to respond with a personal snipe rather than argue the specific point he makes?

 

There is no point discussing things with Dulldays, when he is proved wrong he simply ignores it and pretends it never happens, this was proved yesterday when he called me a liar and bullsh!ter and making things up just to have a pop at Cortese when I said I was p!ssed off SFC hadnt announced the dates and country for the pre-season tour because I had intended on going.

 

I showed him a thread I ( SRS ) started in January asking when details would be announced as I was going to attend the pre-season tour and wanted to book flights.

 

He has ignored this point ever since. I think that says all we need to know about Dulldays, he is a very sad trolling little c*nt. For the record, if I am wrong and come the end of the season we have a marked higher attendances than last season, I will put my hands up and apologise, like I have done before if I have got something wrong. There is no point debating with Dulldays because he will never put his hand up and admit he was wrong, ignore is now the only option for old Uncle Albert.

[SaintRichmond]

I think Cortese is viewing Season Tickets purely from a Business point of view, ie MONEY

 

Taking a figure of 10000 ST's , if they had to pay Full Price on Matchday, that is a considerable amount of "extra" Revenue x 23 Matches

 

( A conservative estimate of £1.5M IMHO )

 

Me personally, I just want my Regular seat "reserved", and if that has to be at Full Price, then so be it

 

But, Nicola, please don't "scrap" Season Tickets, it's what we do in the UK.

[Langleysaint]

I am quite arrogant in the way I present my opinion, I will grant you that, I suppose in the same way many people cannot put themselves in other peoples shoes to see the inconvenience of no installment plans, lack of notice etc, I am also guilty of not being able to appreciate that possibly as someone who works in sales/marketing/advertising I get a more qualified look on what is happening and it's more obvious to me that there is some very strange things going on at SMS.

 

I have tried to break down and reason why I feel decisions that are being made are wrong to make them more easy to digest. I honestly would be massively surprised if we have more season tickets this year, so many factors are againsts it, even things such as Englands performance in the World Cup would have an affect on people, as football is put to the back of peoples minds over the next few weeks.

 

The reality is we will never know how many season tickets holders we have, I very much doubt the club will announce it ( maybe someone could phone/email the ticket office, I don't think they are in the mood to talk to me at the moment! ) , I also think the attendance figures next season might have to rely on a bump up... less than half empty stadiums being given attendances of 20,000

 

Cortese has got this massively wrong and is going to be made to pay for not listening/taking advice off the experts employed at the club such as David Luker, Jordon Sibley etc etc

 

Totally agree , we should after last season have been looking at minium of 16k season tickets with the right marketing and payment options , Cortese/Leiberr will always have my thanks for saving the club but they have made some strange decision of late, the biggest the late annoncement on the season ticket prices and the dropping of the easy payment scheme with no proper explaination. Luckily I am in a postion were I can afford to purchase one , but I feel really sorry for those who cannot and have been in my opinion treated very poorly by the club.

[Toomer]

I think Cortese is viewing Season Tickets purely from a Business point of view, ie MONEY

 

Taking a figure of 10000 ST's , if they had to pay Full Price on Matchday, that is a considerable amount of "extra" Revenue x 23 Matches

 

( A conservative estimate of £1.5M IMHO )

 

Me personally, I just want my Regular seat "reserved", and if that has to be at Full Price, then so be it

 

But, Nicola, please don't "scrap" Season Tickets, it's what we do in the UK.

 

This will never happen, I hope.

[Dave Benson Phillips]

I think Cortese is viewing Season Tickets purely from a Business point of view, ie MONEY

 

Taking a figure of 10000 ST's , if they had to pay Full Price on Matchday, that is a considerable amount of "extra" Revenue x 23 Matches

 

( A conservative estimate of £1.5M IMHO )

 

Me personally, I just want my Regular seat "reserved", and if that has to be at Full Price, then so be it

 

But, Nicola, please don't "scrap" Season Tickets, it's what we do in the UK.

 

They wouldn't pay it for 23 games though. Not a chance, never. And there is no way each lost season ticket holder will end up averaging out at 14 matches a season. Not when you have to justify each £25 ticket on a match by match basis. Would you ( or anyone for that matter ) pay £25 to watch Daggers on a November Tuesday night? How many people will pay £25 for a lunchtime kickoff against Plymouth which is on TV?

 

Then you have -

 

Weddings

Other engagements

Midweek games

Bad weather ( it's cheaper to wait till the matchday to see what the weather is doing because of the stoopid ticketing )

Unattractive opposition

3 home games in 3 weeks ( cost issue )

 

There are so many reasons why people won't justify going to matches on a game by game basis, and we don't have enough fans waiting in the wings to replace them. We are in League 1, you need to treat your core/loyal supporters with respect and gain commitment off them, push them out and you are in serious trouble.

[SaintRichmond]

Totally agree , we should after last season have been looking at minium of 16k season tickets with the right marketing and payment options , Cortese/Leiberr will always have my thanks for saving the club but they have made some strange decision of late, the biggest the late annoncement on the season ticket prices and the dropping of the easy payment scheme with no proper explaination. Luckily I am in a postion were I can afford to purchase one , but I feel really sorry for those who cannot and have been in my opinion treated very poorly by the club.

 

ML/NC overspent on players last season, thinking that we WOULD get to the Play Offs

 

We didn't, so the "extra" monies spent ahead of schedule in the 5 Year Plan has now to be recouped

 

Hence, Cortese's BUSINESS decisions to cut all "perks", thus us Fans will pay Top Whack for everything

[Dave Benson Phillips]

ML/NC overspent on players last season, thinking that we WOULD get to the Play Offs

 

We didn't, so the "extra" monies spent ahead of schedule in the 5 Year Plan has now to be recouped

 

Hence, Cortese's BUSINESS decisions to cut all "perks", thus us Fans will pay Top Whack for everything

 

But fans won't pay top whack for League 1 football.

 

All the people who are in the " I will pay anything, as long as I get to see Saints play " group will have a season ticket ( minus the people who were forced out )

 

That leaves the fans who won't pay for success, they want to go and watch football, but at a good price and there needs to be offers etc. £25 for League 1 game does not provide value for money to people in this group. It might be acceptable to all of you in the core 'ardent fan' group, but after beer, programme, bus etc you are looking at £40 for a League 1 game.

 

Also, I really don't think we spent much over our revenue, with maybe the exception being the initial signings ( which would have been factored into the purchase price )

 

The ardent fans might 'pay extra for the good of the team' , but the ones which the club are relying on to come in and fill the ground most definately won't.

 

It won't work, it's a stupid and naive business decision and if it does work I will happily admit I am wrong.

[Scudamore]

(St)u-turn. Did you actually choose a new user name because you realised you'd made a big deal about the fact that you wouldn't be renewing your subscription to Saintsweb? And this way you get another year. Sneaky...

 

Here's another theory for you. And it is no more than a theory. Not saying it's a correct theory or that i endorse it mind.

 

Is it possible that Cortese has been studying the way football clubs are being run in other countries and also their ticketing arrangements? And is as such bringing us more into line with that way of thinking? It's one thing saying we're not doing things the way every other club in the country does things...but frankly i see a lot of things that we do in this country as being behind the the rest of Europe and a lot of things that are just plain wrong. Fowllyd's point about the coaching on stevegrant's blog yesterday i found particularly fascinating for example.

 

As i say just a theory. Certainly not one i've been bothered to do any research into. Maybe all European clubs offer payment plans.

[Wurzel]

Forget my opinions of how to sell tickets.

 

91 out of 92 clubs pro-actively sell season tickets.

 

Are they all wrong and Cortese is right?

 

what if we are trend setters...football is about to change in this country..going to change alot

 

I remember we were the first major club to introduce salary cuts if we got relegated..it was slated in saying that we are preparing for relegation.

I gather it is now quite common in the prem

 

 

Could be something in that. NC is from the banking industry. Stu, if I remember rightly you were involved with tele-sales in the insurance industry (?). How many times did you have to ask if there was anything else you could help customer with? Certainly banks do it all the time.

Buy a ST the club has contact with you once a year, apart from that you just turn up and watch. Buy 23 separate tickets and tha'ts 23 "contact" occasions they can try and sell you something else on top. It could catch on with other clubs if it works.

[dune]

There are so many reasons why people won't justify going to matches on a game by game basis, and we don't have enough fans waiting in the wings to replace them. We are in League 1, you need to treat your core/loyal supporters with respect and gain commitment off them, push them out and you are in serious trouble.

 

If we're winning games the fans will turn up. The big flaw in Cortese's plan is if things go wrong on the pitch. He has alienated a lot of fans with the booking tax and his treatment of season ticket holders, and he has upset the Daily Echo with his childish behaviour. If things do not pan out as he envisages, and at some stage things will go wrong, he'll be left with fans that do not feel they owe the club anything and a local rag that will return the favour.

[buctootim]

Buy a ST the club has contact with you once a year, apart from that you just turn up and watch. Buy 23 separate tickets and tha'ts 23 "contact" occasions they can try and sell you something else on top. It could catch on with other clubs if it works.

 

Interesting thought. Also people tend to feel more loyal to an organisation they have regulalr personal human contact with (as long its productive, helpful contact).

[Dave Benson Phillips]

Could be something in that. NC is from the banking industry. Stu, if I remember rightly you were involved with tele-sales in the insurance industry (?). How many times did you have to ask if there was anything else you could help customer with? Certainly banks do it all the time.

Buy a ST the club has contact with you once a year, apart from that you just turn up and watch. Buy 23 separate tickets and tha'ts 23 "contact" occasions they can try and sell you something else on top. It could catch on with other clubs if it works.

 

Not telesales but I have worked in Insurance, and done internal sales. The flaw in your plan is that the people wilthout season tickets won't make 23 "contacts" a season. Also, what else is there to upsell? Saints have tried getting involved in the finance/insurance industries and massively failed. When I was in Insurance we sold Healthcare but I had the option to upsell personal accident insurance, home, car etc... what could the club realistically upsell?

 

Buy a season ticket and the club has your membership for a year and your commitment, they have your commitment that you will turn up 23 times a year onto their selling ground, buy their programmes, burgers, beers, megastore etc etc...

 

Businesses would much prefer to have you in their shop to upsell other products, rather than using unskilled call centre operatives.

[SaintRichmond]

But fans won't pay top whack for League 1 football.

 

All the people who are in the " I will pay anything, as long as I get to see Saints play " group will have a season ticket ( minus the people who were forced out )

 

That leaves the fans who won't pay for success, they want to go and watch football, but at a good price and there needs to be offers etc. £25 for League 1 game does not provide value for money to people in this group. It might be acceptable to all of you in the core 'ardent fan' group, but after beer, programme, bus etc you are looking at £40 for a League 1 game.

 

Also, I really don't think we spent much over our revenue, with maybe the exception being the initial signings ( which would have been factored into the purchase price )

 

The ardent fans might 'pay extra for the good of the team' , but the ones which the club are relying on to come in and fill the ground most definately won't.

 

It won't work, it's a stupid and naive business decision and if it does work I will happily admit I am wrong.

 

 

What you say may be correct, but it does not alter the fact that Cortese IS cutting out all perks to maximise Incoming Revenue

 

That strategy WILL work IF Saints are successful on the pitch WHY ? Fans Follow Success

 

But if Saints do not perform, then Cortese will realise the benefit of having regular ST holders and other genuine Fans that are being driven away

[Capel Saint]

But fans won't pay top whack for League 1 football.

 

All the people who are in the " I will pay anything, as long as I get to see Saints play " group will have a season ticket ( minus the people who were forced out )

 

That leaves the fans who won't pay for success, they want to go and watch football, but at a good price and there needs to be offers etc. £25 for League 1 game does not provide value for money to people in this group. It might be acceptable to all of you in the core 'ardent fan' group, but after beer, programme, bus etc you are looking at £40 for a League 1 game.

 

Also, I really don't think we spent much over our revenue, with maybe the exception being the initial signings ( which would have been factored into the purchase price )

 

The ardent fans might 'pay extra for the good of the team' , but the ones which the club are relying on to come in and fill the ground most definately won't.

 

It won't work, it's a stupid and naive business decision and if it does work I will happily admit I am wrong.

 

That's a bit of sweeping statement! I agree that if prices are increased that some fans will get priced out of going which is a shame but unfortunately it is the nature of football at the meoment. I have an Arsenal mate who spends well over £1000 on a season ticket each year.Maybe things will change.

 

I believe Cortese is looking at the bigger picture in respect that if the team are successful then more people will come to watch the team. Look how many Saints fans suddenly popped up to Wembley for the JPT Final that wearn't there at the start of last season!

 

I do take the point that Cortese and his team have made a couple of PR gaffs especially over the withdrawel of the installment plan for Season Tickets with virtually no notice. However it should also be balanced that he is backing Pardew in the transfer market to rebuild a competitve squad, is revamping the Scouting network, revamping the training facilities at Staplewood and hopefully improving the catering for fans at match days. He is not perfect by any means but we shouldn't lose sight of the good things he has brought to the club whilst in charge.

 

As i said before, time will tell whether the price hikes and ticket charges will affect attendances next season.. Until then, it is idle speculation.

[saint_mears]

ML/NC overspent on players last season, thinking that we WOULD get to the Play Offs

 

We didn't, so the "extra" monies spent ahead of schedule in the 5 Year Plan has now to be recouped

 

Hence, Cortese's BUSINESS decisions to cut all "perks", thus us Fans will pay Top Whack for everything

 

 

What are these perks ? marketing season tickets is surely a nailed on must