Karen Matthews
17th May 2004, 00:09
The 3rd Forum of the season was held prior to the Spurs game on the 22nd March.
Please see the official minutes For attendees and points of detail.
· Away Tickets
The key issue on the agenda was the away ticketing loyalty scheme introduced this season. This was an opportunity to review the system.
The forum applauded the club in its efforts to reward loyalty and for actively listening and working with us. The main area to be improved is how fans can realistically move from one pot to the other. Currently the loyalty pot stands at 1458, of these 114 have not applied for every game. The Forum voted that the pot should not be increased but stay the same size. The 114 places should be replaced by fans from the “general pot” by way of a random ballot of those who have applied for every game.
It was argued strongly that many of those in the general pot were no less loyal in there following of the team and opportunity must be provided to them fairly and equally. Again quite how this is to be achieved is still up for debate but criteria for new blood into the loyalty pot is certainly a start. It was agreed that there would be no reprieve from missing one application. There had to be a cut off point and this was it. It was also argued however that this really wasn’t a test of someone’s loyalty but their organisation and adminastrative skills.
At time of going to press there is some confusion as to weather or not the ticket office has finalised its structure for next seasons scheme. We will be meeting the club briefly prior to Leicester and I will report further then.
Despite the inherent problems with the away ticketing scheme and the frustrations it creates, it is work in progress and the club appear genuine in their intent to get it right. Whilst demand exceeds supply it is impossible to please everybody. What is important is that the scheme must be fair, transparent and manageable. Its vital that anyone with opinions on this matter voices them to the ticket office, FF e-mail or myself.
· Marketing
Peter Draper Group Marketing Director gave a presentation on marketing. Corporate partners provide around 35million to the club per annum. Currently there are 10 -15 partners. The club is looking to reduce this number and drive value for those remaining, less is more, being the strategy. They are looking for longevity in the relationships and on a global scale. Also Old Trafford will be witness to state of the art pop up digital adverting boards as of next season.
As the pledge that UNICEF “would continue to help us monitor and improve our suppliers manufacturing practices“ had to be removed from the Club Charter, I asked what systems were now in place to do such work, especially in relation to Nike and their broadly reported activities.
Nick Humby assured the Forum that the club along with their partners take the issue seriously. They recently met with Nike to discuss the topic and would continue to do so. It would seem that the club is reliant on our suppliers to monitor themselves.
· Ticket price increase
Ticket prices for next season have not been finalised and the club will notify the Forum first of its intentions prior to the Leicester game. I stressed that in light of year upon year increases and multi-million pound special dividend payouts, a price freeze for fans was long over due and much needed. Nick Humby stressed that no decision had been finalised but the drop in TV monies from SKY would have to be taken into account.
In conclusion, the Forum continues to evolve, it provides a genuine point of contact with the club and is an increasingly important area to effect change. The immediate future will bring some critical issues to the fore. Pressure must be increased on the Premier League to look at the way it treats fans with regard to kick off times, ticket pricing and allocation. The planned expansion of Old Trafford will be an opportunity to look holistically at ground configuration and ticketing. This includes the debate on safe standing, the club sadly continues to bury its head in the sand on the matter. And with the offer period over, the fight to secure the clubs independence must be maintained on all fronts. It’s important therefore that SU continues to value the Forum and articulate its voice with strength, clarity and passion.
Cheers…Gary Hirst.
Please see the official minutes For attendees and points of detail.
· Away Tickets
The key issue on the agenda was the away ticketing loyalty scheme introduced this season. This was an opportunity to review the system.
The forum applauded the club in its efforts to reward loyalty and for actively listening and working with us. The main area to be improved is how fans can realistically move from one pot to the other. Currently the loyalty pot stands at 1458, of these 114 have not applied for every game. The Forum voted that the pot should not be increased but stay the same size. The 114 places should be replaced by fans from the “general pot” by way of a random ballot of those who have applied for every game.
It was argued strongly that many of those in the general pot were no less loyal in there following of the team and opportunity must be provided to them fairly and equally. Again quite how this is to be achieved is still up for debate but criteria for new blood into the loyalty pot is certainly a start. It was agreed that there would be no reprieve from missing one application. There had to be a cut off point and this was it. It was also argued however that this really wasn’t a test of someone’s loyalty but their organisation and adminastrative skills.
At time of going to press there is some confusion as to weather or not the ticket office has finalised its structure for next seasons scheme. We will be meeting the club briefly prior to Leicester and I will report further then.
Despite the inherent problems with the away ticketing scheme and the frustrations it creates, it is work in progress and the club appear genuine in their intent to get it right. Whilst demand exceeds supply it is impossible to please everybody. What is important is that the scheme must be fair, transparent and manageable. Its vital that anyone with opinions on this matter voices them to the ticket office, FF e-mail or myself.
· Marketing
Peter Draper Group Marketing Director gave a presentation on marketing. Corporate partners provide around 35million to the club per annum. Currently there are 10 -15 partners. The club is looking to reduce this number and drive value for those remaining, less is more, being the strategy. They are looking for longevity in the relationships and on a global scale. Also Old Trafford will be witness to state of the art pop up digital adverting boards as of next season.
As the pledge that UNICEF “would continue to help us monitor and improve our suppliers manufacturing practices“ had to be removed from the Club Charter, I asked what systems were now in place to do such work, especially in relation to Nike and their broadly reported activities.
Nick Humby assured the Forum that the club along with their partners take the issue seriously. They recently met with Nike to discuss the topic and would continue to do so. It would seem that the club is reliant on our suppliers to monitor themselves.
· Ticket price increase
Ticket prices for next season have not been finalised and the club will notify the Forum first of its intentions prior to the Leicester game. I stressed that in light of year upon year increases and multi-million pound special dividend payouts, a price freeze for fans was long over due and much needed. Nick Humby stressed that no decision had been finalised but the drop in TV monies from SKY would have to be taken into account.
In conclusion, the Forum continues to evolve, it provides a genuine point of contact with the club and is an increasingly important area to effect change. The immediate future will bring some critical issues to the fore. Pressure must be increased on the Premier League to look at the way it treats fans with regard to kick off times, ticket pricing and allocation. The planned expansion of Old Trafford will be an opportunity to look holistically at ground configuration and ticketing. This includes the debate on safe standing, the club sadly continues to bury its head in the sand on the matter. And with the offer period over, the fight to secure the clubs independence must be maintained on all fronts. It’s important therefore that SU continues to value the Forum and articulate its voice with strength, clarity and passion.
Cheers…Gary Hirst.