Season tickets - critical decisions

[lenners]

United will now be contemplating what they're going to do about season tickets next season and it is critical they take radical and imaginative decisions to maintain support next season.
It might be an idea if we came up with some thoughts on how we're going to entice people to buy them.
Off the top - and if we stay up - anyone who buys a season ticket next year should be able to get a half-price or even free season ticket the following year if we get promotion to the Premiership.
Season tickets should be reduced in price next season, along with match day prices.
Probably something like at least 10 per cent.
Any more for any more?

 

[super_pig]

play some decent football.. bottom line is.. despite protestations otherwise.. the loyalty.. the passion, blah blah.. it is an entertainment business.. it is as simple as that

 

[gavtheblade]

i cant see season tickets topping 9000 next season even if we do stay up.

 

[lenners]

We know where season ticket sales are heading and we know how wrong they got it last year.
The question is what can we do now to arrest or reverse that decline?

 

[shorehamview]

It might be an idea if we came up with some thoughts on how we're going to entice people to buy them.

What's this "we" shit, Kemo Sabe?

You had the chance to put your views to the club on all matters, season ticket prices included. You didn't take it. What about doing it through another route, like BIFF? Ah yes, only good for sorting stuff like flags out.

And given your current form anything that the club did or indeed didn't do would be slaughtered.

"We"? You are having a proper laugh now.

---------- Post added at 11:20 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:18 AM ----------

We know where season ticket sales are heading and we know how wrong they got it last year.
The question is what can we do now to arrest or reverse that decline?

What "we" can do is buy lots of season tickets next time they go on sale.

What the club can do is a totally different matter. Lower prices and better offers would certainly help. But I get the feeling that even if they offer the moon on a stick you'd crucify them for it.

 

[raul]

Len.....Season Tickets.......is Trigger away or something???

 

[super_pig]

on the exclusion of big mart, ollesandro.. welcome lenners.. the new board scapegoat.. hang in there mate..
do some of you guys actually read the posts or just see 'lenner's .. and you're off??

 

[lenners]

Er thanks Shoreham.
Gentle reminder, the thread is about knocking about ideas on a forum the club will read.
Do you have any?

---------- Post added at 11:32 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------

Anyone know what the current direct debt arrangement is?
United should be able to market a deal around watching the club for £25 a month, over 12 months, or something similar, for Kop tickets.

 

[shorehamview]

Gentle reminder, the thread is about knocking about ideas on a forum the club will read.
Do you have any?

You mean apart from

Lower prices and better offers....

Lopping 10% off all season ticket prices. Under, say, 8's get a free season ticket if they are with an adult with a season ticket. None of this Junior Blades nonsense. Less discounts for single match tickets but cheaper overall. More kid a quid games?

One of the problems with the club slinging discounts around mid-season is upsetting season ticket holders who have already forked out for the matches.

Pre-season friendly admittance free to season ticket holders? Shop discount cumulative, so you can add your 10% for your season ticket to your 10% for your Super Draw membership, and so on.

That do you for starters?

 

[JohnDenver]

I'm all for cutting prices. But if that means an even lower wage bill, and therefore more player sales and no interest-stirring signings, then we'll lose support either way. It becomes a race to the bottom.

What I've been rattling on about for the last two years STILL hasn't happened. And that's us settling on a wage structure and getting the players in to fit it. Until that happens, we cannot build anything or develop any players without flogging them as soon as they learn to trap a ball. We remain stuck with loanees, a sense of detachment and a squad in a state flux.

Point being, we cannot disconnect the issue of pricing of tickets from the club's wage bill. And the latter remains a problem.

 

[dingledog]

The current offer for kids is excellent and needs keeping.

 

[alcoblade]

I'm all for cutting prices. But if that means an even lower wage bill, and therefore more player sales and no interest-stirring signings, then we'll lose support either way. It becomes a race to the bottom.

What I've been rattling on about for the last two years STILL hasn't happened. And that's us settling on a wage structure and getting the players in to fit it. Until that happens, we cannot build anything or develop any players without flogging them as soon as they learn to trap a ball. We remain stuck with loanees, a sense of detachment and a squad in a state flux.

Point being, we cannot disconnect the issue of pricing of tickets from the club's wage bill. And the latter remains a problem.

100% agree.

UTB

 

[Highbury_Blade]

Build success on the pitch and the season ticket sales will rise again. It really is that simple.

 

[alcoblade]

Build success on the pitch and the season ticket sales will rise again. It really is that simple.

Yes, true. But I think that will come from JD's point.

I think we've made a really positive step to it in appointing Adams too.

UTB

 

[yorkshirecoast]

I've always got the impression that our ST prices compare favourably with most. I don't think we need to reduce prices - we need to improve the team, ideally with some investment from the Board. A poor team will attract low crowds, regardless of the prices.

 

[Trigger Blade]

on the exclusion of big mart, ollesandro.. welcome lenners.. the new board scapegoat.. hang in there mate..
do some of you guys actually read the posts or just see 'lenner's .. and you're off??

It's nothing new super-pig, they've been having a pop at my mate lenners for years, going back to the BU days, it's shocking.

Please be assured that every time len says something sensible, he will have my full support.

---------- Post added at 01:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:37 PM ----------

Len.....Season Tickets.......is Trigger away or something???

That's too opaque for me raul, but rest assured I'm on patrol.

 

[SteelCity Blade]

The solution is simple.....get the product right on the pitch. The only way you'll get people through the door is by having a winning team challenging for things. Without that, forget it. Creative pricing and marketing ideas are all well and good, but if the product isnt right then people wont come back / renew.

I've been a season ticket holder with my family for a long time now but I am seriously considering whether to leave it next year and just pick and choose my games. Having severe doubts about whether United will challenge for promotion in the next five years makes me fairly discouraged to spend hundreds of pounds again come the summer.

Football is simply becoming far too expensive to continue showing blind loyalty. Like many other clubs our supporters dont get value for money most of the time. Get the team right and people will pay pretty much any price (within reason). United need to sign about a dozen decent players (minimum) by August this year, before I will feel justified to fork out on them again.

 

[alcoblade]

United need to sign about a dozen decent players (minimum) by August this year, before I will feel justified to fork out on them again.

Using that criteria I will bare my arse on the town hall steps if you get a season ticket next season. Youth and selective lower division starlets will be the future, be that right or wrong.

Why not see what Adams can do with that before you write us off?

UTB

 

[beightonblade]

If Micky keeps us up this season he will have worked wunders, if he keeps us up next season we shud all be prepaired to kiss his ass.

McCabe out !

 

[lenners]

Chaps, I know that good football will bring crowds in as it would at any club.
I'm trying to be realistic and in the current climate we are unlikely to be offering great football next season.
That being so, how do we use our pricing, out marketing etc to get people to buy season tickets?
That's the issue.
If we don't do something pretty radical, smart, imaginative, we're going to lose thousands more this summer.
Hence the suggestion some of the great minds on here came up with some ideas...

 

[SteelCity Blade]

Using that criteria I will bare my arse on the town hall steps if you get a season ticket next season. Youth and selective lower division starlets will be the future, be that right or wrong.

Why not see what Adams can do with that before you write us off?

UTB

I'm not writing anyone off alco, I just know where we are and how big a job MA has. I am fully in support of Micky and he was my first choice the whole way along. In my eyes he is the best man for the job.....but without a warchest anytime soon, it is going to take him a LONG time to sort that lot out. I think we're looking at another Warnock length tenure until he gets us right.....it is therefore hard to think about spending thousands of pounds in that time, knowing how far away we are from the finished article.

I did say "decent signings" - I'm not expecting 12 Premier League players through the door. What I want to see is an end to the club selling its best players for the first offer and more innovative ideas with recruitment. If most of it is done through youth then even better.

Whether I get a season ticket or not, I will still be a Blade and still follow them. But with what it costs nowadays, I expect a lot more than I'm likely to get anytime soon. We are where we are and I accept that, but it doesnt mean I have to buy into it. Fans need to start saying "no" right across the game or sanity will never return.

 

[alcoblade]

Chaps, I know that good football will bring crowds in as it would at any club.
I'm trying to be realistic and in the current climate we are unlikely to be offering great football next season.
That being so, how do we use our pricing, out marketing etc to get people to buy season tickets?
That's the issue.
If we don't do something pretty radical, smart, imaginative, we're going to lose thousands more this summer.
Hence the suggestion some of the great minds on here came up with some ideas...

Could they offer a discount for any new season ticket holder that you introduce - say £50off your own ticket
Offer a price freeze for anyone who maintains their ticket, or even a small reduction for a period?
McCabe make the statement of his life, acknowledge his mistakes, and make a real plea for support "we're on our arse, you club needs you".
Make payments as flexible as possible - interest free.
Get injured players on the phone to call non renewing season ticket holders

UTB

 

[Nick Jansky]

I would like to see an area of one of the stands where you can buy season tickets, but all seating is unreserved, on a first come first served basis. This would make it easier for casual supporters to come along with ST holding mates and be able to sit together.

 

[alcoblade]

I would like to see an area of one of the stands where you can buy season tickets, but all seating is unreserved, on a first come first served basis. This would make it easier for casual supporters to come along with ST holding mates and be able to sit together.

Yep, very good idea that's crossed my mind before.

UTB

 

[Jostein Flo]

Unfortunate as it is I don't think there's a great deal that the club can do marketing-wise to change supporters minds. Short of drastic price cuts which our currentsituation wouldn't really allow I don't think there's much the club can do. I don't think that marketing through offers like free shirts or discounts at the club shop really work that well, they might sway one or two but I think most people looking at whether to renew will base the decision on their personal circumstances and whether they still actually enjoy the matchday experience or not. Those aren't the things that the club can really do anything to change through offers and promotions.

I think a good way to boost attendences in the short term for this and next season would be to offer discounted 3, 5 or 10 game packages. A few of my mates can't commit to season tickets but a flexible ticketing system might provide an incentive to attend more games than they would usually attend. As long as the discounts didn't make the cost of attending games cheaper than buying a season ticket there's not really a downside to offering them.

 

[raul]

Unfortunately, I think Jostein has it. I'm sitting here, wanting to contribute to this thread and asking myself "What will get me back into buying ST's again?" and pretty much coming up empty.

It's a two step strategy needed. First step is to use ideas and promotions to get people back into the habit of regular attendance, there are loads of good ideas to assist this on the other thread. Step two is to then persuade them of the value of ST's.Got to go through the gears. I also think the effort, energy and subsequently expense needed to really engage people is something the club may consider too much for too little potential return. I was asked on three or four occasions if I was going to renew, followed by "why not?" but never "what can we do to persuade you otherwise?"

 

[lenners]

Raul,
Would a free season ticket if United make the Prem in either of, say, the following two seasons tempt you?
Like Alco's suggestion of interest free spread payments.
Certainly think there's room for a marketing initiative around watching United for a fiver a week or £25 a month or summat like that.

 

[Nick Jansky]

Raul,
Would a free season ticket if United make the Prem in either of, say, the following two seasons tempt you?
Like Alco's suggestion of interest free spread payments.
Certainly think there's room for a marketing initiative around watching United for a fiver a week or £25 a month or summat like that.

Agreed. Both excellent ideas. Really like the free Prem season ticket idea.

 

[Highbury_Blade]

What would tempt me is a 10 game a year season ticket (at full price) With discounted rail travel thrown in.

Perhaps the club could band together with the rest of the football leagues and go to the train companies and offer a proposal whereby a fan could pay for 10 discounted rail tickets per year from their nominated home station to sheffield that the fan can redeem on a matchday, the day before, or the day after. The train companies get the guaranteed money regardless of whether the fan uses all 10 tickets, and the fan can relax and decide to go to to a game when it suits them, or on a whim. If i decide to go to a game the day before the match now, i'm faced with astronomical fares, so i often simply won't go.

Certainly i know in my case, the club will make more money off me than they do now, and so will the train companies.

What would also make things easier from a matchday perspective is to be able to choose the seat from the comfort of my own home. I can do this for cinema tickets, why can't i do it for the football?

 

[super_pig]

lenners.. i've come to the conclusion that we're dinosaurs on here mate
most of these folks have never seen proper football.. they've been brought up on bassett, warnock and blackwell.. they're happy to be a workmanlike outfit, putting in a good shift.. yadda yadda.. never actually getting anywhere in the long term
maybe my late grandfather was right and it is a sheffield thing.. short sighted cheap options, blame it on the government, leeds, referees etc.. i was interested to note the new 'mick jones' thread.. we 'always' sell our best players.. so it must be ok then??..
i'm as fed up of posting this stuff as the other guys obviously are reading them.. we're in terminal decline, as is the game.. it's not the game we grew to know and love.. monty sums it all up for me.. the guy is a great athlete but has never been a footballer.. yet people still defend him.. 'he'd run through a wall for the club'.. i don't care about walls.. this isn't a wall running competition.. you're supposed to be able to make a five yard pass.. i give up