Season tickets 2023-24 - what could/should be offered ?

[Mattybrfc02]

This isn't relevant to the season ticket debate but, pick out a few games a season no more than 5 no less than 3 that look like dead rubber fixtures that don't look like they'll sell to well and price them at £10 adults £7.50 young adult/seniors u18 £5 u12 £2 and we'll get a good gate on especially if they pick out say 2/5 on a weekend. Surley it's doable? COYB🔵⚪️🌹

[tomphil]

2 hours ago, Miller11 said:

Another point I forgot to add…

The club introduced an international flexi season ticket this year apparently off the back of loads of requests from fans. They thought there was heavy demand based on what supporters were asking for, but they sold 2. I get the sense this has added to their reluctance to try more novel approaches.

How many did they expect to sell ?

Are they really that stupid.

[windymiller7]

Just a bit of advice to anyone rejected by V12 - as I have posted previously,  I was rejected for reasons only V12 seem to know so applied for a 12mth interest free credit card. Went to pay with said card today only to find I couldn't purchase them online.

I rang the club & was told that V12 hadn't informed them about finance not being accepted, so the very helpful lady had to manually add them back onto the system so I could buy. All sorted now thankfully.

So, if you're going to purchase by other means before the deadline, such as I did, then don't leave it til the last minute & check that they're back on system first. The 7th is a Sunday so the club won't be open.

[Guest]

32 minutes ago, Ozz said:

How about this? Free entrance.

 

Free Entry to matches

Great things happen with the 50+1 ownership rule they have in Germany.

[rigger]

15 minutes ago, Mellor Rover said:

Great things happen with the 50+1 ownership rule they have in Germany.

Forty years ago I went to a game at Dusseldorf. I was in the standing area behind the goal. When it strarted to rain, most of the fans in that end were getting soaked. The stewards moved us all into the side, seated area under cover. A simple but effective guesture to show that the fans were being considered.  

[Mattyblue]

28 minutes ago, tomphil said:

How many did they expect to sell ?

Are they really that stupid.

As it’s the same folk who think the ‘future of fandom is NFTs’ I am going to say yes.

Edited April 27, 2023 by Mattyblue

[Mike E]

I'd like to add that the RT's ideas behind the Marketing Prospectus (and imo what SHOULD be the thoughts of our Commercial department) is:

Making it as easy as possible to support Blackburn Rovers.

[Herbie6590]

3 hours ago, Miller11 said:

This is from my own working knowledge of consumer credit rather than any discussion with the club… Regarding the direct debit function, the club can’t offer finance. They aren’t licensed to, and it’s a non-starter. I do wonder what criteria v12 are going by, as I know homeowners who have been rejected and people with CCJ’s who have been accepted… I’d guess they are looking more at current work/income status than credit history to make their lending decisions.

 

 

The FCA is all about affordability in consumer finance right now. Owning assets matters less than disposable income. 
Finance companies are under intense pressure to demonstrate all liabilities have been taken into account & that the customer can meet the repayments. 👍🏻

[BobdaBuilder]

I think the best way that the club can increase attendances is to encourage  the existing season ticket holders bring other non attending fans along to games. 

As a suggestion, could the club offer a discounted rate for some matchday hospitality, a limited number at every match. Bring some friends along, with the incentive of a cheep meal and a drink and hopefully the team delivers and makes it a good day.

I doubt we sell out all the hospitality every game, so should be a fairly risk free.

[Upside Down]

It's so fucking simple.

250/300-350/400

Anything less than 12000 should be considered total failure. To get this wrong you must be a complete moron.

Over to you maggot......

[wilsdenrover]

1 hour ago, tomphil said:

How many did they expect to sell ?

Are they really that stupid.

Who knows

Yes

[rigger]

Don't support Waggott. Don't buy a season ticket.

[PeteJD13]

6 hours ago, Miller11 said:

To add to what @only2garners has posted above, The Supporters Trust have also had similar conversations. Some ideas we’ve put forward include:

Entry level pricing - we don’t have a “cheap” season ticket, and some fans are priced out. It’s a big commitment for fans who have never had one before. The front 6 rows of the Riverside are uncovered, they should be cheaper. We proposed £150 for a season ticket there. 

Obviously that’s a limited number of cheap tickets. I doubt you’d see many regulars giving up their seats elsewhere to sit in the worst seats. You’d literally just attract people who wouldn’t buy one otherwise. There was an argument that “people will just move back into other seats”. My answer was in a 1/3 full ground, so what?

 

Flexibility - massive issue. I think there will be a larger than anticipated number not renewing this season off the back of the number of games we’ve had moved to evenings that people (especially those who generally take their kids) can’t make. Loads of suggestions around this.

 

Tied into this and the significant number of fans I’ve spoken to who’ve had a DD knock back, we suggested a “pay as you go” season ticket.

Currently you pay £40 to a finance company for the privilege of spreading your payments. We suggested a £50 membership/initial cost (money to the club) that then allows you to buy a ticket to any league game at a pro-rata price equivalent to the season ticket price per game, so around £18. If you want to go to all of them, you pay about the same as someone on a direct debit. If you can’t make half you aren’t wasting hundreds of pounds. You’d also get the other fringe season ticket benefits like access to away tickets etc.

This is from my own working knowledge of consumer credit rather than any discussion with the club… Regarding the direct debit function, the club can’t offer finance. They aren’t licensed to, and it’s a non-starter. I do wonder what criteria v12 are going by, as I know homeowners who have been rejected and people with CCJ’s who have been accepted… I’d guess they are looking more at current work/income status than credit history to make their lending decisions.

We’ve also had massive discussions around catchment areas and the marketing of season tickets the club do. I have to say the insight Fraser Reed has into this is brilliant from a digital point of view - very illuminating. There was an acknowledgement they needed to do more in more traditional/non-digital channels, as well as an acknowledgement they don’t have our strength of local knowledge and that was identified as an area they’d like some help. One comment was “the majority of our database has a BB postcode” which resulted in me literally getting a map out and showing them that that meant they could be coming from Rossendale, Ribble Valley, Hyndburn or even Burnley.

We asked for tickets to be on sale sooner. That box was ticked, but the issue of only having a window of one or maybe two paydays before a price hike remains, frustratingly. Personally I’m sick of deadlines and cut off points. Season tickets should be available at any point during the season on a pro-raga’s price basis. What happens if someone who has been out of work finds a job in September? They have to wait til half season tickets go on sale at Christmas.

We’ve also discussed a membership scheme on very similar lines to the fans forum, as an additional product and not a replacement for the traditional season ticket.

There’s a lot more I could go into and the Trust will be putting out Comms regarding this in the near future. We do appreciate any input though, so feel free to reach out. We’re also looking to expand our membership (always) and our board, so please keep an eye open.

 

edit - I should’ve added that there wasn’t any great expectation from our side that there’d be anything much this season. We see this as a longer term project, but id be disappointed if there isn’t something a bit more radical in 12 months time.

Great post, sadly I won’t be renewing with my two kids that’s three season tickets off the list. I know two others with kids that aren’t renewing. The constant moving of games as we don’t go midweek means my match tickets average to about 60 quid a game. With a massive increase in my mortgage it’s a luxury we have to give up. It’s a shame as my lads rovers daft 

[Mattyblue]

That post Pete is exactly why I’d be amazed if we even tread water in sales this summer.

[tomphil]

9 hours ago, SIMON GARNERS 194 said:

Bolton have shifted nearly 15,000...we can only dream of those sales.

I'm sick of them and knob end fans sneering at our crowds whilst totally airbrushing the fact their's are so much cheaper.

If we did the same we'd get similar, more than PNE i'd wager but we are run by detached idiots who want less for more instead.

[JHRover]

'Hoping' to 'push towards 6000' by the deadline is the line being fed to the Telegraph. 

Good god.

[Mattyblue]

The heady heights of 9,000 was fun while it lasted…

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

17 minutes ago, JHRover said:

'Hoping' to 'push towards 6000' by the deadline is the line being fed to the Telegraph. 

Good god.

You can probably guarantee we have sold about 4,000.😟

[Mattyblue]

Early bird extension incoming then.

 

[Wheelton Blue]

I think a membership type scheme is the way forward.

Pay an amount at season start to secure your seat, then pay an amount for a ticket per individual match.

If you don't buy a ticket say 24 hours before KO, then your seat is freed up.

Edited April 28, 2023 by Wheelton Blue

[superniko]

I didn’t realise until I read that article that there is ANOTHER price increase after playoff final. 
So the £429 price is only between 7th May and 26th May, then it goes up AGAIN.

Get out of our club you useless useless Brent impersonator. 

[Wheelton Blue]

It's the same old story.

Do the lazy thing and fleece the ST base to hit the revenue numbers, but make no effort to increase revenue elsewhere.

[Sweaty Gussets]

14 minutes ago, superniko said:

I didn’t realise until I read that article that there is ANOTHER price increase after playoff final. 
So the £429 price is only between 7th May and 26th May, then it goes up AGAIN.

Get out of our club you useless useless Brent impersonator. 

On the day of the play-off final. What a strange coincidence!

[Mattyblue]

With that sales projection, we could well hit another 30+ year low, even worse than the shocking sales post Covid 2021 summer.

Takes some doing that, Swag 👏

Edited April 28, 2023 by Mattyblue

[JHRover]

37 minutes ago, SIMON GARNERS 194 said:

You can probably guarantee we have sold about 4,000.😟

Yeah probably about that. Although there is likely to be a late surge in the final week before the deadline as various people will leave it to the last minute (me included) it seems he's already factored that into his ambitious push towards 6000.

I take a bit of issue with the club describing it as a 'special super saver'. It's approximately 5% early bird reduction IF you do it quickly.

I also don't like this comment:

"Despite the huge increase in operational costs that the club has felt in recent months, the Owners are deeply committed to supporting the people of Blackburn, enabling supporters to access initially-reduced prices to watch their team during these challenging times"

Making out as though it is only through the generosity of Venkys that we are able to enjoy such prices and that without them it would be much higher, which of course isn't correct as most other clubs in the Football League are proving.