Season tickets

[Publius Ovidius]

An NSC poster who has since moved away bought a ST for Charlton with the option of a freebie for next year ( I think if they went up) which he took a punt on hoping to see some premiership football for free .....

 

[Easy 10]

I think if you have a "sit where you like" policy, you're meant to leave 10% of the capacity empty so that everyone easily gets a seat. Still, it's a lot more than 10% empty at games at the moment, so again it's a good idea that would be well worth introducing.

If they just set a limit for the number of "Rovers" season tickets they sell for each block (say no more than 50% of that blocks capacity) then it should be easily managable. I think they should also look at incorporating something like this at Falmer.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

I take it they will have to do this at the Hikers Rest Stadium


If we are looking at roughly 12,000 home gates in a 25+k stadium, they are going to have to spread the people about, or its going to be a case of closeing stands like they do at Milton Keynes at the moment

I can see maybe the main stand being all ticket and the other two stands sit where you like ( away stand being the other one)

 

[Titanic]

If they just set a limit for the number of "Rovers" season tickets they sell for each block (say no more than 50% of that blocks capacity) then it should be easily managable. I think they should also look at incorporating something like this at Falmer.

You couldn't possibly mix 'rovers' with fixed ticket sales. You would have to allocate a specific area of seats as 'rovers' and leave 10% of that area unsold each time.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Assuming that the diggers are actually going to go in at Falmer sometime this year, and a season when the club will move in to the new stadium is agreed, then the club could do FAR worse than halve the price of a season ticket for the next two or three seasons. Get some money up front from the fat cats that will be pumping money into the new stadium, get them to invest in the current fan base who have done WAY over the odds to keep the whole circus on the road for the past ten years. Else there's a likelihood that a thousand season tickets a season are not going to be renewed. The warning bells should be ringing bigtime now.

 

[bright1064]

Very interesting thread, and some points well made.

I think the club need to seriously think about their ST prices before they announce them in March.

I think the club have to reduce ST prices, as well as individual ticket prices. I have heard of a lot of people who won't be renewing their ST's for 08/09, which is obviously very worrying.

When you put that with the fact that Albion attendances are falling by the game, you can see that the club have a real problem on their hands.

Reducing season ticket prices is vital in the years leading up to falmer. The club need to bring the fans back, and they need to do it fast!

 

[Easy 10]

You couldn't possibly mix 'rovers' with fixed ticket sales. You would have to allocate a specific area of seats as 'rovers' and leave 10% of that area unsold each time.

Sounds do-able.
I don't know this as FACT, but I'd assume the majority of STH's at Withdean are in the North Stand as a whole, and the South Stand central blocks. I'd suggest setting blocks A-B and H-J as the Rovers, as well as the East stand behind the goal. Sell Rovers season tickets for those blocks up to 50% or 60% of the capacity, leaving plenty of spare rovers tickets for the occasional fan to buy.

Everyones happy then....no ?

 

[JJ McClure]

The Bradford idea is certainly a good one. The promise of cheaper season tickets but only if more people buy them.
Result now = improved attendences and atmosphere and supplimentary revenue (programs, food etc)
Result in 2 years = Larger established fan base for Falmer.

 

[Knotty]

A very interesting topic for debate - as it always will be.

BUT, it is so easy for us to suggest prices and guess at the gate increase. It would be a HUGE gamble for the club to decrease ticket prices substantially. What is the optimum level of decrease of price/increase in gate?

Without knowing all the costs involved, all the overheads etc. any guessing from us is, frankly, futile.

And even if we did know those figures, it still remains a guess and a gamble.

It must be just about the most difficult decision the club has to make because, if the gamble fails and the club's financial situation becomes much worse as a result, there will be torrents of criticism from the fans and, more importantly, a real danger to the club's existence.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

I will run naked round the Withdean running track, stopping every 20 foot to let people throw darts at me if the club HALF the price of season tickets.

More likely a price freeze with the free season ticket wallet and free Johnston Paint cup ticket back...

 

[Titanic]

I will run naked round the Withdean running track, stopping every 20 foot to let people throw darts at me if the club HALF the price of season tickets.

More likely a price freeze with the free season ticket wallet and free Johnston Paint cup ticket back...

and some sort of Falmer promise / option / discount.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I will run naked round the Withdean running track, stopping every 20 foot to let people throw darts at me ...

Is that the latest extreme sport to hit The Hastings Observer then? Dartour anyone?

 

[Fourteenth Eye]

I like DTG's idea of the "roving" season ticket. Thats a very good shout buying a ticket for a stand as oposed to a specific seat. This would then enable more flexibility when a STH wants to take an occasional fan along, or a son/daughter to the odd game now and then and still be able to actually sit with them at the game.

Maybe the South Stand 'wings' could also accommodate the "Roving Season Tickets" (say blocks A & B and H & J). Sit where ya like, and anyone who buys a single ticket for any of those blocks can also sit where they want within those blocks.

Why WOULDN'T this work ?

I like it too. The only flaw would be for big cup games or league games against the likes of Leeds, forest etc which sell out and would leave people scrabbling for spare seats come kick off. But then that could be solved by allocating a seat number on nthe ticket which you sit in for the over subscribed games

 

[Conkers]

To be honest, I will still be buying my very first season ticket next season regardless of whether the price is £200 or £400. I must be mad

 

[The Oldman]

I would love to see them a lot cheaper.
However,some fans have 3 year or 10 year tickets so it is unlikely to be reduced that much.

I've got a 3 year ticket but have no problem with reduced season ticket prices at Withdean as long as the club gives 3 or 10 year STHs some discount when we get to Falmer.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

I've got a 3 year ticket but have no problem with reduced season ticket prices at Withdean as long as the club gives 3 or 10 year STHs some discount when we get to Falmer.

would you only give discount at Falmer to those who have a ST the season before, or would you reward those who have had one for years, but cant be arsed to get one any more as they dont attend all the matches and its very expensive if it is devided by 15 instead of 23

 

[The Oldman]

would you only give discount at Falmer to those who have a ST the season before, or would you reward those who have had one for years, but cant be arsed to get one any more as they dont attend all the matches and its very expensive if it is devided by 15 instead of 23

See where you are coming fromDave . I was only thinking of 3 or 10 year STH as they have paid up front at then current prices. So if you are now going to sell STs at a significant reduction then I would think you have to do someting for those who paid up front quite large amounts.

However, no reason why folk such as you who are not going to buy a ST next season but are long term STHs could not have some form of Falmer incentive. If I was in charge though I would try and encourage you to buy a season ticket next seasson, at a price that is lower than this years with the promise of a discount at Falmer but not as great as the one I would give to 3 or 10 year STHS.

 

[Bevendean Hillbilly]

Roving tickets= Worth looking at.

£200 season ticket...no chance, As Harty pointed out last Tuesday it relies on uptake, what if there are not a huge amount of takers, the only thing you achieve then is your current STH's paying half as much as now, you'd need a lot of new bodies to make up the lost profit...well to be precise the same amount again, and if response is poor you end up like Leyton Orient not even covering their admin costs when they tried this strategy.

The board are business men not lunatics.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

See where you are coming fromDave . I was only thinking of 3 or 10 year STH as they have paid up front at then current prices. So if you are now going to sell STs at a significant reduction then I would think you have to do someting for those who paid up front quite large amounts.

However, no reason why folk such as you who are not going to buy a ST next season but are long term STHs could not have some form of Falmer incentive. If I was in charge though I would try and encourage you to buy a season ticket next seasson, at a price that is lower than this years with the promise of a discount at Falmer but not as great as the one I would give to 3 or 10 year STHS.

I suppose its all down to how much you can screw out of the loyal fans who you know will buy a ST come what may, and give an incentive like a DVD, that is supposed to come out at Christmas and because the franking machine didnt work, comes out in the middle of January with Xmas offers and party details in it!

I just think it is not all about the cost anymore....I think people are genuinely fed up with the whole situation and are chosing to do something different - hense the crap gates. The really odd thing is that with the Falmer decision and supposed action on the tenderning side, people should be up and really positive....trouble is when you get loyal 1000%ers like Storer69 getting hacked off, then things are getting bad!

 

[The Oldman]

I suppose its all down to how much you can screw out of the loyal fans who you know will buy a ST come what may, and give an incentive like a DVD, that is supposed to come out at Christmas and because the franking machine didnt work, comes out in the middle of January with Xmas offers and party details in it!

I just think it is not all about the cost anymore....I think people are genuinely fed up with the whole situation and are chosing to do something different - hense the crap gates. The really odd thing is that with the Falmer decision and supposed action on the tenderning side, people should be up and really positive....trouble is when you get loyal 1000%ers like Storer69 getting hacked off, then things are getting bad!

I tend to agree with Ernest I think it's much more about what is happening on the pitch. If we saw attractive football and were really challenging for promotion fans would be turning up. Let's face it the last 3 seasons have not exactly been wonderful entertainment.