Project FOF

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Vital Champions League
I like the idea that Scally is at least trying to attract more fans but whats not clear is whether (a) he is asking why people are staying away or (b) if he is even listening to the answers.

Even in the KOL interview he has his customary dig at the fans "Those that seem to moan and complain about everything must have stayed away" referring to the better atmosphere at the Plymouth game. Either that Paul or for the first time in ages (at home) the team actually put on a performance and scored a few goals. Mav be that was it.

So if he really wants to attract the stay away fans then perhaps he should ask why.

Anyone one here who stays away from games want to put forward what he could (realistically) change to attract you back.

I tend to go to most games (but don't have a ST) so I don't think its me who he is targeting.

What I would say is cut the price increase on the day and have a pay cash on a turnstile with an unrestricted seating block in each stand. That might make it easier for fans to actually get in on time.
 
A considerable amount of damage was done early last season. Gates did not really improve under SL when we had our purple patch. He alienated ST holders and simply does not listen to the hardcore support - it is his way or no way. I sit with many long term ST holders and in the 23 seasons he has owned the club I have never known so many to say they are not renewing as they did last April.
Until he can show that the club has real ambition, we sign better quality players and play better football they will stay away. Whenever he makes statement/Chairman's report etc there is a clear lack of meat on the bones information. The talk of new investors, the new stadium, the annual best squad ever etc has been going on for too long now so many fans just take the attitude of I will believe it when I see it.
He has a mountain to climb to get back lost support - good luck to him but I really fear this is trying to close the stable door after the horse has bolted. Many things need to change at the club - stop this extra £2 potd and the ludicrous pointless searches before going in the ground would be a good start.
I realise many will disagree - cue a lecture from Durham but it is obvious ST take up has been minimal - hence the early bird extension although he has done this in some previous seasons. Quite honestly so many fans now have battle fatigue from false hopes and promises that unless we get off to a solid start expect home gates to be hovering around 4k - our true dedicated home support.
 
PR is NOT Scally's thing and it certainly won't improve simply by extending the early bird promotion. He still has this 'agenda' thing with others that don't agree with him 100%. People have opinions and he has to recognise that. Many people don't have a lot of cash to flash, unlike Durham aka Scally, and have every right to be critical if they pay out hard earned cash for a ST. That's not a criticism of SL, who did his best with a limited squad. Scally needs to be humble.
 
'He still has this 'agenda' thing with others that don't agree with him 100%. People have opinions and he has to recognise that'

Enough about yourself Wayne , let's stick to the subject.
 
Same as the last 54 years, I will be watching the gills irrelevant of who the players, manager or chairman is.
Apart from the odd games the home support is negative from the start, away support, apart from the odd game is positive.

Maybe rose tinted but the RE used to be behind the team irrelevant of who the chairman is lol.
 
'Maybe rose tinted but the RE used to be behind the team irrelevant of who the chairman is lol'

Couldn't agree more.
COYG
 
Gimmer, the only reason that the 'Early Bird' was extended was that the computer system for recording season ticket sales on the computer had gone down and was out of action for just over a week.
 
On the Gills website there are seats that can't be chosen for season tickets as the system still hasn't been updated. Some seats remain unavailable because the seat had someone in it for the Plymouth match.
 
I seem to think the early bird gets extended most years.

The biggest change is social media, everyone now has a platform so peoples "moans" are documented. In the old days you could only moan to the bloke next to you or to the people down the pub, so it seemed a lot less.

The Rainham End did back the team more in days gone by but I think terraces and the lack of mobile phones (look at how many stare at their phones throughout the game) was perhaps the biggest reason.

The other thing is that chairmen gone by were far less visible. Do you remember Tony Smith ever saying anything controversial ? He backed the club as best he could in the background. Scally always wants to be front and center and lets be fair love him or dislike him he does court controversy.

Times have changed and I don't think we can compare the two.
 
If the IT system for ticketing is not fit for purpose then it needs to be replaced or upgraded, even with an interim fix. Just another of the many things at the club that need sorting out. You would have thought that as this is one of the major sources of income for the club it would be high priority, yet we have in recent months seen numerous posts on here from fans who have had ticket purchase issues. I accept the club may be working towards a smart card or similar for ST holders but all the time the existing system is not functioning correctly the less income is coming in.
 
I believe the system is not restricted to GFC, but a much larger software package. Similar to the 'smart card' system that Scally has spoken of, it is a nationwide package and not something he knocked together on the back of a fag packet.
 
If that is the case Hardy, then there will presumably be contracted Service Level Agreements in place with the suppliers with penalties in place for unacceptable periods of service unavailability. No one is suggesting Scally has cobbled the system together on the cheap. I assume "someone" within GFC has responsibility for monitoring and fault reporting the existing IT system, which should be religiously enforced with the IT providers.
 
The online ticket office is ran by a third party who also do the online tickets for cubs like Liverpool and Harlequins and a host of other big events. From layout design, one of the main ticket sellers like Ticketmaster or SeeTickets also seem to use the software. Sometimes IT goes down. Should we boycott Visa credit cards because the network was down for several days?

It isn't just the ticketing that is third party ran. The main website itself is also ran by an external company which is why most league clubs have websites with very similar designs. As far as I know all EFL clubs use iFollow rather than use a different radio coverage scheme.
 
Baghdad_Rob said:
I'm sure we'll disagree whether or not Scally recognise other people have opinions, but upon him doing so, there is no reason why he has to change his opinion as a result.
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That would be so true if he didn't go down the line of seeking fans' opinions either by open discussion or through social media. He's bound to get views that are different to his and, while we can exclude the idiots and those that are purely anti-Scally without basis, some are valid. I worked for a guy who was single-minded but he did adopt others' views as long as they appeared to come from him. Many, including me, have advocated a revolutionary approach to ticket pricing, such as: permanent cheap deals for children; ability to pay on the day and an overall price reduction, but all we have is the same old same old softened only by 'early bird' offers. Scally sticks to his guns and ST sales continue to decline. OK, we don't see the arithmetic of the finances on a day to day basis but bums on seats is still the Club's largest source of income.
 
Jerryattrick said:
Same as the last 54 years, I will be watching the gills irrelevant of who the players, manager or chairman is.
Apart from the odd games the home support is negative from the start, away support, apart from the odd game is positive.

Maybe rose tinted but the RE used to be behind the team irrelevant of who the chairman is lol.
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I think, sadly, that is just the way football is now. The team got booed off on a couple of occasions in a season in which the team WON THE LEAGUE. It's not just a Gills problem either, look at most Premier League clubs but in particular Arsenal. They've got a new(ish), shiny stadium, they always qualify for Europe, they usually play attractive football and probably have finish more or less where they "should" If you rank teams based on investment on players (Both fees and wages), yet the fans are permanently angry.
 
Wayne.Kerr said:
That would be so true if he didn't go down the line of seeking fans' opinions either by open discussion or through social media.

Many, including me, have advocated a revolutionary approach to ticket pricing, Scally sticks to his guns and ST sales continue to decline. OK, we don't see the arithmetic of the finances on a day to day basis but bums on seats is still the Club's largest source of income.
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Your first comment really doesn't fit with my impressions. I've always found one of the more common complaints against Scally is the lack of information coming out of the club.

While most of those ideas would see more bums on seats, more bums on seats doesn't necessarily equate to more revenue. When it comes down to ST prices then I put trust in the finance team to properly analyse the data and come to a figure close to where supply equals demand.

Allowing for inflation, I think the season ticket prices have more or less remained the same in the last decade or so. The club have tried various schemes and have quickly dropped them. Logically this would happen if the club saw no financial benefit.

I think where the tickets seem more expensive is where the quality of football has been variable and the issue is one of value for money.
 
Hardy31 said:
I believe the system is not restricted to GFC, but a much larger software package. Similar to the 'smart card' system that Scally has spoken of, it is a nationwide package and not something he knocked together on the back of a fag packet.
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I have no inside knowledge, but wouldn`t be surprised if the ticketing system that PS was alluding to might be very similar to that offered by SeatGeek Enterprise. This firm is huge and seems to be rapidly gaining foothold in UK soccer. If it is, then all issues around ticketing should improve dramatically. Apparently, AFC Fylde use this platform, or something very similar and, through personal experience, it`s mega easy to use and scanning your access to the stadium is very convenient. I realise that Fylde is much smaller than GFC but Wolves and many other clubs use it. Man City may have just signed up too. So, if it does happen at GFC and it`s the same platform, then ticket buying/stadium access will be easy peasy..........
 
Baghdad_Rob said:
Your first comment really doesn't fit with my impressions. I've always found one of the more common complaints against Scally is the lack of information coming out of the club.

While most of those ideas would see more bums on seats, more bums on seats doesn't necessarily equate to more revenue. When it comes down to ST prices then I put trust in the finance team to properly analyse the data and come to a figure close to where supply equals demand.

Allowing for inflation, I think the season ticket prices have more or less remained the same in the last decade or so. The club have tried various schemes and have quickly dropped them. Logically this would happen if the club saw no financial benefit.

I think where the tickets seem more expensive is where the quality of football has been variable and the issue is one of value for money.
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That's budgeting not marketing. Scally has never tried anything regarding ST pricing other than at the margins, ie nothing radical or fundamental. The only thing that is assured is that ST numbers will decrease year on year.
 
LancsGordoRoad said:
I have no inside knowledge, but wouldn`t be surprised if the ticketing system that PS was alluding to might be very similar to that offered by SeatGeek Enterprise. This firm is huge and seems to be rapidly gaining foothold in UK soccer. If it is, then all issues around ticketing should improve dramatically. Apparently, AFC Fylde use this platform, or something very similar and, through personal experience, it`s mega easy to use and scanning your access to the stadium is very convenient. I realise that Fylde is much smaller than GFC but Wolves and many other clubs use it. Man City may have just signed up too. So, if it does happen at GFC and it`s the same platform, then ticket buying/stadium access will be easy peasy..........
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That would indeed be good news and I presume in time tickets can go on to mobile phones, like rail tickets, which is just about the same as cash at the gate.
 
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