How to ensure Falmer gets filled

[Easy 10]

I think we need to push hard for an all-round "Matchday Experience" at Falmer, with the match itself being the climax, the centrepiece of the day. We should be encouraging fans to be turning up at Falmer hours in advance, and hanging around like a bad smell well into Saturday night. Here's a few ideas completely off the top of my head.

Pre-Match entertainment:

* Saturday matinee's on our giant jumbo-screen inside the stadium.
* Car boot sales and programme fayres in the car park
* A mini roller-coaster running around the stand roofs
* A Big Wheel behind the main stand
* "Pin the Seagull on the NIMBY", where a Falmer resident is strung up outside the ground, and blindfolded fans attempt to jab them in the nether-regions with a rusty nail holding a seagull

Post-Match entertainment:

* Greyhounds. Have a track running around the pitch, and within an hour of the final whistle, wheel out the traps and have a night of gambling on the dogs
* Giant karaoke. Using our jumbo-screen for the words, and a microphone linked to the tannoy, invite fans to belt out their favourite songs. A dancefloor in the penalty area could also be an option.
* Falmer "Bat-Hunt". Invite fans to stay behind till twilight and see how many bats can be hunted down in the area. Free tickets to the next match up for grabs for any bats successfully captured.

So many possibilities to pull those crowds in. I could be there all day.

 

[JJ McClure]

Tell the school kids that it's actually Man u or Chelski who are playing. May be the only way to get them interested.

 

[Gary Nelson]

Lord B is correct, you cannot pay on the gate. Likewise the club will look to only have a park and ride system. The club must adress these matters and they should hold a forum well in advance to get ideas and tell us what they plan to do.
Free tickets to school kids on a regular basis a must
Advertising on the radio and with the billboards
Family season tickets
There are SOOOOOO many ideas its untrue.
Worringly though, someone who works for the club told me at the Grimsby game last season that the club is run very poorly. Everything from day to day business to the shitty club shop. Im not blaming DK here but I think the club needs to re address a few hings. The person then stated that he/she was worried that once we got Falmer the problems would still exist but just in nicer offices...

 

[Yorkie]

Easy 10

 

[Tooting Gull]

Cheers for that DRF. I could be rightly accused of not raising this at the time, didn't catch my eye in all the other inquiry stuff. But I think that plan is a PR disaster waiting to happen.

How many tickets go to each station? What if you turn up and they've run out? It won't be any easier for a driver to get in on the day than now - with loads of empty seats in the ground. I can't believe Brighton station are going to be overjoyed about huge queues for match as well as train tickets on matchdays, and it'll be even worse in the evenings.

Sometimes I really wish the club did actually consult a bit wider than the very small coterie of fans they run to for a fans opinion every time they think they need one.

Looks like it's too late now on that one, so we're just going to have to deal with it.

 

[Northstander]

What about a stand up routine at half time, perhaps we could get the Krankies at half time to keep the fans entertained!! Bob Carolgies (spelt wrong) to be the half time ring master or whatever you call those blokes with mike and giving funny introductions,

"Ladies and Gentleman, they are your Friends and mine ....The Krankies!"

 

[The Large One]

Worringly though, someone who works for the club told me at the Grimsby game last season that the club is run very poorly. Everything from day to day business to the shitty club shop. Im not blaming DK here but I think the club needs to re address a few hings. The person then stated that he/she was worried that once we got Falmer the problems would still exist but just in nicer offices...

I'll second that. The club could do with an office staff overhaul (naming no names), and get one or two people in with some imagination and drive - of which their is no lack in the city. The pieces are in place, it just needs the right talent.

And the club shop needs a makeover.

 

[Yorkie]

I'll work in the office. I need a job when I get down there.

If anyone from the Albion is reading this....

 

[Northstander]

I'll second that. The club could do with an office staff overhaul (naming no names), and get one or two people in with some imagination and drive - of which their is no lack in the city. The pieces are in place, it just needs the right talent.

And the club shop needs a makeover.

I totally agree, lets not get complacent if we get the yes. The whole shabang and infrastructure is going to need seeing to. MASSIVE PR will be needed throughout Sussex and surrounds to regain fans interest, a better Seagulls shop. Start showing people the club means business and the board wants a club with ambition.

 

[Lush]

Well if you need someone to head-up a marketing campaign you could do worse than the man who launched, ran and sold a highly successful and creative London advertising agency (DK).

As soon as we get a decent product to sell (Falmer) I'm sure it will be all systems go. Also it's a lot easier to sell Div 1 football than Div 2 to the casual supporter, which means that as soon as we get the go-ahead for Falmer I'm sure we'll see an increase in investment on the playing side.

 

[Deano's Right Foot]

Cheers for that DRF. I could be rightly accused of not raising this at the time, didn't catch my eye in all the other inquiry stuff. But I think that plan is a PR disaster waiting to happen.

How many tickets go to each station? What if you turn up and they've run out? It won't be any easier for a driver to get in on the day than now - with loads of empty seats in the ground. I can't believe Brighton station are going to be overjoyed about huge queues for match as well as train tickets on matchdays, and it'll be even worse in the evenings.

Sometimes I really wish the club did actually consult a bit wider than the very small coterie of fans they run to for a fans opinion every time they think they need one.

Looks like it's too late now on that one, so we're just going to have to deal with it.

I don't have the answer to your questions I'm afraid, and I'm not sure if anyone does yet. One would hope in this day and age that all the stations will have a link to a central ticket database so that all stations have all unsold tickets available. But tough luck if you get on at unmanned stations, or go by bus or bike or park and ride. And what if the llink goes down... Looks like there aren't any easy solutions to this one. I really hope that someone has thought this through and that a good working solution can be found.

 

[ditchy]

Terracing behind one goal for home fans..make it so as easily convertable to seats if the need be

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Dammit, you're telling us that even however many years after selling the Goldstone, we are STILL not going to be able to act like a normal football club and sell tickets on the gate??

DAMN YOU ARCHER & BELLOTTI!

They'll soon be begging to sell them on the gate once our 22,000 seater stadium gets a few 13,000 crowds.

Someone will tell me we'll have to have litter patrols to clear up all the university students' crap next.

Incidentally, ideas to fill the place: £50 season tickets for kids, Bring A Mate Free matches and so on. Though hopefully we won't need to advertise too much...

 

[Gary Nelson]

Overhall the club shop?

Best thing would be to move it to Churchill Square

 

[Mr Popkins]

get aload of shop window dummies ,dress them in albion colours,

hey presto- full staduim!