Club website - what would you do?

[Linz]

I've read people slagging off the OS and newsletters these past couple of weeks and in some ways, the club's hands are tied about how they can present themselves online thanks to licencing stuff.

But I'm just curious what, as online football fans, you would want from a football club website?

The way I read the OS at the minute, it seems very impersonal. There's no "personality" behind it so that you feel the content is created by a person, rather than a PR company. It's all a little humourless.

There's also very little input from fans or indeed any real chance for fans to engage with what's on the site. I've also noticed, from my point of view, that the issues fans contact the club about are very rarely publicised in order to address wider concerns.

Does anyone have any thoughts or does anyone think that if there are gaps, they could be plugged by something this site could do?

 

[Fiery Blade]

I've read people slagging off the OS and newsletters these past couple of weeks and in some ways, the club's hands are tied about how they can present themselves online thanks to licencing stuff.

But I'm just curious what, as online football fans, you would want from a football club website?

The way I read the OS at the minute, it seems very impersonal. There's no "personality" behind it so that you feel the content is created by a person, rather than a PR company. It's all a little humourless.

There's also very little input from fans or indeed any real chance for fans to engage with what's on the site. I've also noticed, from my point of view, that the issues fans contact the club about are very rarely publicised in order to address wider concerns.

Does anyone have any thoughts or does anyone think that if there are gaps, they could be plugged by something this site could do?

The club website highlights the fact that there is little or none two way communication between club and fans
Not that I would want to see fans slag off the manager on the OS (heaven forbid anyone that sunk to such depths!) but i would like to see the clubs view and dialogue with fans say after the Hartlepool match who had spent valuable time and money travelling up there to be let down and disappointed by the display (and result)
Such dialogue would then prevent anger being vented on other mediums and also get a true reflection of how the club viewed the cup display.

 

[Paddys Cough]

Linz and Foxy should be in charge of it - build the forum into it! Simple lol

 

[Houso]

I personally don't think there should be any 'personality' evident for the end-user. The Barnsley website makes me cringe on the occasion it's been presented as being written by a 'supporter'. Football club supporters follow brands in a different way to the average brand devotee and for this reason, I think it should stay impersonal.

I'm also not keen on the idea of social networking as incorporated by Mr Strafford when he was at Wednesday. There are much better established social networking sites out there on which mini-networks or general seeding can be achieved.

With that in mind, I'd be happy to see more regular updates and better utilisation of existing social media channels. There should be a forum on there too with a couple of mods on the payroll to protect against libel and offense. It's really not difficult to run for a well instructed digital marketing team.

Our PR has always been poor, and with digital media now being the central channel for external communications, it's essential that they address it before the pigs snaffle a few young floating supporters.

 

[Balham]

I've read people slagging off the OS and newsletters these past couple of weeks and in some ways, the club's hands are tied about how they can present themselves online thanks to licencing stuff.

But I'm just curious what, as online football fans, you would want from a football club website?

The way I read the OS at the minute, it seems very impersonal. There's no "personality" behind it so that you feel the content is created by a person, rather than a PR company. It's all a little humourless.

There's also very little input from fans or indeed any real chance for fans to engage with what's on the site. I've also noticed, from my point of view, that the issues fans contact the club about are very rarely publicised in order to address wider concerns.

Does anyone have any thoughts or does anyone think that if there are gaps, they could be plugged by something this site could do?

My main gripe with the site is that it's a mess. It was built years ago and it's showing its age. The in-text adverts are just annoying too.

The content is a difficult balance - too partisan and you end up like Barnsley, too unbiased and it's like a newspaper. It sometimes feels like the people who write the articles don't really care though.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

The official site should be totally professional and for that reason cannot really have such things as forums etc where, as we all know, things get out of hand from time to time. Forums such as this exist exactly for that reason.

They are slow on the news front although you can understand that they have to have things 100% confirmed and the forums will always have 'news' quicker which in itself is not a criticism of the OS, just fact.

For me, the OS should be there for ticketing, stats, history, interviews, player profiles that kind of thing but I don't think it'll ever totally be what people want it to be.

The main problem, however, is that most websites are formulated and run by the same company and we end up with the farce we get on blades player when someone nothing to do with the club commentates on the highlights and can't even identify the right players.

 

[j j]

Pages that are readable with more content than ads and plugs. More content without payment (limit it to season ticket holders if they like, but all this subscribe to Bladesworld stuff is bollocks). And more interesting content than "match coming, gaffer says we want to win" or "Morgs says play as a team" or "new signing hopes to do well". Basically, something to look at, something to read that is interesting and a feeling that is inclusive rather than exclusive.

 

[Ted Danson]

I agree that the OS is a complete mess, its always the last place I look for any information about the club just because you have to sift through all the advertising crap to find anything of interest and then its never an in depth article it just skims over information Ive read elsewhere. the amount of advertising on there makes it look almost like a free hosting site too. As for the emails, they should just make them readable.

 

[cooperblade]

Thought the recent 'blog' style posts by Dean Riddle and Carly Barnes along with the interviews with Sabella were excellent. More exclusive, interesting content like that along with key info like tickets etc and i'd be happy. Agree with others that it isn't a place for 'personality'.

 

[Houso]

I'd also make a clearer separation of Bladesplayer and free for all content. The amount of times I've been frustrated to click on a story, only for it to be a paid video has made me less enthusiastic about looking again.

It's a tricky one though, I personally don't think I'll ever use the website for anything other than informational purposes or to buy tickets or merchandise. I'd never go on to read a match report unless it's the reserves or a friendly, as every single club website is biased.

Like others have said, it's very limited in what it can report and of course it's going to be used as club propaganda. If people want something for more discussion etc, then an unofficial site is needed. Like this one, but somewhat broader - that takes money and time though (as Linz and Foxy well know).

 

[beightonblade]

Club website - what would you do? ............................close it down.

 

[JohnDenver]

Thought the recent 'blog' style posts by Dean Riddle and Carly Barnes along with the interviews with Sabella were excellent.

Yup. More from Carly please.

 

[Bergen Blade]

Agree with most of the points above. Furthermore, these are my wishes:

- Skip the stuff about clubs that are not Sheffield United. Maybe leave a link in the bottom corner, but don't let match reports from the Chinese second division sides push down Blades news items
- We haven't had academy profiles for years, rubbish. Youngsters suddenly appear in the squad, and you have to be a total geek to know something about them.
- Highlights or streams from reserve or academy games
- Maybe it's just me, but I don't find the interviews very interesting anymore. The lack of detailed football questions/answers is an insult to the paying members of BP. You find far more tactical insight from posts and debates on here than most player or staff interviews.
- When the team selections are up before a game it seems the writer are just about able to work out who is our goalkeeper, the rest are listed randomly. Makes me think it's written by someone who have no idea about football, and therefore shouldn't be doing that job. Pathetic!
- Logging into Blades Player is often a struggle

- I like the match commentaries, and think people are often too critical of them. In general I take pundits/commentators' opionions with a pinch of salt, and don't get wound up if they say things I don't agree with.

 

[SwissBlade]

Yup. More from Carly please.

Maybe we can get Foxy and Linz to carry on the Carly Barnes stuff on here... Carly Cam anyone?

 

[Balham]

- When the team selections are up before a game it seems the writer are just about able to work out who is our goalkeeper, the rest are listed randomly. Makes me think it's written by someone who have no idea about football, and therefore shouldn't be doing that job. Pathetic!

I don't look at that but some media outlets report players in squad number order - is it that?

 

[Zinedine]

I'd like a more up to date ticketing information system where they tell you excatly how many have been sold and how many are left daily and to sort out the Loyalty Points system (bit off topic but when in Rome)

 

[Come from away]

Glad to see this thread and hope it goes over to the PR folk at SUFC. For those out of country it still remains as the obvious place to go as we do not have the ease of access to other media. I like many of the positive suggestions as I do not get the sense they have really asked the end users what they want, but have simply seen it as a place to advertise as a means to cover operational costs of having a public face. It could be much more, but PR money must be going elsewhere.

 

[Linz]

I don't look at that but some media outlets report players in squad number order - is it that?

As far as the official site (and our MOTM polls on here) this is indeed the case.

Cheers for the responses. It was just personal curiosity that led me to ask but I do know that we're "kept an eye on" so some of this may get back.

I suppose the flip side is, is there anything that we could do better as an independent and unofficial vehicle?

 

[Bergen Blade]

I don't look at that but some media outlets report players in squad number order - is it that?

Squad numbers are also a mess nowadays, so that's no indication of our set up and formation. I think they always put the goalie first though, even though he may be no 31. They're able to identify who he is, but after that - they're lost.

 

[Linz]

Squad numbers are also a mess nowadays, so that's no indication of our set up and formation. I think they always put the goalie first though, even though he may be no 31. They're able to identify who he is, but after that - they're lost.

The fact that quite often teams play a fluid formation kind of makes putting them in any other order kind of redundant though surely?

How many times has there been an argument over whether we've played 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 fr'instance?

 

[JohnDenver]

The fact that quite often teams play a fluid formation kind of makes putting them in any other order kind of redundant though surely?

How many times has there been an argument over whether we've played 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 fr'instance?

Are we fluid or just disorganised? I'm never entirely sure...

 

[Linz]

Are we fluid or just disorganised? I'm never entirely sure...

In the interests of spin, I was trying to make out it was the former but I do feel you have a point

 

[cooperblade]

Youngsters suddenly appear in the squad, and you have to be a total geek to know something about them.

What's your point?

 

[Santos]

I've read people slagging off the OS and newsletters these past couple of weeks and in some ways, the club's hands are tied about how they can present themselves online thanks to licencing stuff.

But I'm just curious what, as online football fans, you would want from a football club website?

The way I read the OS at the minute, it seems very impersonal. There's no "personality" behind it so that you feel the content is created by a person, rather than a PR company. It's all a little humourless.

There's also very little input from fans or indeed any real chance for fans to engage with what's on the site. I've also noticed, from my point of view, that the issues fans contact the club about are very rarely publicised in order to address wider concerns.

Does anyone have any thoughts or does anyone think that if there are gaps, they could be plugged by something this site could do?

It's dreadful and although I understand they have to generate money from it I just feel when you log on there you aren't first and foremost told interesting news about the club, they try to ram down your throats ways of getting money off you other than match tickets.

I'd like the 'Latest Headlines' box to be much more prominent than it is currently.

Sort Blades World out, as that too is tacky.

Don't just have articles vanishing off the website, a simple archieve of EVERY article ever put on the Latest Headlines would be a start.

All football clubs should aspire to be like BBC Sport, which does news in general on the website brilliantly, simple, easy to navigate and with good audio and videos, but I understand why they can't be like that.

Less trivial stories which are barely linked to SUFC, that includes stories about the sister clubs - nobody cares.

As for features, well I guess the match programme does all of this but it'll be nice for the players to take it in turns to write a blog, much in the style which Wednesday's Michael Gray did last season (although less detailed obviously).

 

[Bergen Blade]

The fact that quite often teams play a fluid formation kind of makes putting them in any other order kind of redundant though surely?

How many times has there been an argument over whether we've played 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 fr'instance?

A team's formation should be judged by how they line up when they have all players behind the ball and the opposition have possession.

 

[Linz]

A team's formation should be judged by how they line up when they have all players behind the ball and the opposition have possession.

I fear for your sanity when you make it to watch United then

 

[Worksop II]

I suppose the flip side is, is there anything that we could do better as an independent and unofficial vehicle?

There must be enough Playing Staff and Staff at the Lane to either Interview one a week, or maybe even a web based Q&A session.

Those people getting their views over and their day to day would put more of a personnel link over to us the fans.

Of course any dirty washing couldn`t be done in Public, but there would need to be some leeway from the management at the Lane.

How does Johnny Ertl get by day to day in Sheffield or wherever he travels from ?

Who would do the Interviewing ? well, members of the Forum thats who, Pinchy interviewing Monty should be an early episode.

 

[bricktop]

Or what about Big Mart interviewing Monty, or one of the sunshine gang interviewing Blackwell?

:gallop:

 

[JohnDenver]

Just clicked on the Blades vs QPR match centre to be greeted with Hartlepool team news and errored feature pages.

But never mind, the condolences for the former president of Malta is still working.

 

[LasVegasBlade]

Straighten out technical issues.
The site is still geared for IE and will not behave properly in other browsers - one of the simplest and most annoying is the splash screen; it requires two 'clicks' on the link to the home page to make it work. There is really no excuse beyond lazy programming for that kind of thing . . . and since they finally managed to fix BladesPlayer so it will work in other browsers (after years) they should be able to fix the rest of the site.

I agree that too much content is 'premium' - that doesn't help win fans and a 90 sec sound bite is hardly worth paying a subscription. Also, too much content is going video only. Is it really too difficult to write a bit of text to go along with the video? Beyond the fact that not everyone wants, needs, or is able to purchase BladesPlayer, what if someone is hearing impaired? That hardly seems fair or right.

The design of the home page is dire; it looks like something created by a 13 year old. I'm not sure how much of can be resolved if they are contractually bound to feature certain things, but they really should try.

Maybe they could run a contest and ask the fans to submit new design ideas; the prize could be something Blades related, of course.

Speaking as an historian - the Club history section could be expanded; the Blades have a long and fascinating past and it's a shame it hasn't been done properly (what's on offer is offered twice (why?) in essentially the same format). Expanding the history might also afford fans another opportunity to share their memories of growing up a Blade; I'd imagine that there are many great tales and probably boxes full of photos to be shared. I know they've done books, but I'm sure Gary Armstrong, et al, didn't talk to every Blade with memories.