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Post by tallpaul on Dec 28, 2010 20:57:49 GMT
How about posting any suggestions for fund raising, increasing spectator numbers, making game night more entertaining, etc in here?
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Post by tallpaul on Dec 28, 2010 21:24:57 GMT
Could I please add a quick condition to this thread - namely that all postings should be constructive. This isn't a place to have a pop at promotional activities undertaken to date; members of the Board; or to dismiss any suggestions that are put forward. This is a place to put forward your thoughts for what you think might help to keep the Tigers a going concern. I've no idea who will run with anything added here but I'm sure the Board will welcome volunteers!
Anyway, I'm happy to start with my suggestions but please, please don't shoot me down. I don't know what has already been attempted and I'm not, in any way, trying to undermine those who have already devoted time and effort to get the Tigers this far. Sadly though, I suspect we can't just sit back and wait for people to come to us, so I guess there's going to need to be a coordinated push to increase visibility. Here are some of my starters for ten -
1. Proactively contact all schools and colleges in Telford & Wrekin and Shropshire (well as far as Shrewsbury anyway) and offer player visits, etc. I don't know if the Schools Programme page of the Website is up to date but that indicates that Tom has carried out (up to) 11 school visits. I reckon there are 70+ schools in Telford & Wrekin alone so there must be some untapped potential there. How about sending a mail shot to them all?
2. Linked to the above, offer promotional ticket pricing as part of the school visit
3. Have a 'drive for five' (or whatever they are called) promotion, whereby we target a particular game and try to get 500 supporters to it. Could I also suggest we avoid one of the 'glamour' clubs as they won't mean much to most of the newbies and watching Tigers get (potentially) hammered isn't likely to help.
4. Organise combined event promotions with other local venues e.g. bowling + hockey; bingo + hockey; Frankie & Benny's + hockey; skating + hockey, etc
5. Ask the Ice Rink to distribute leaflets to everyone coming for a skate. This could perhaps be a questionnaire with the first question asking whether people even know that the Tigers exist.
I'm sure there are plenty of other things that could be done.
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Post by tom on Dec 29, 2010 13:13:45 GMT
4. Organise combined event promotions with other local venues e.g. bowling + hockey; bingo + hockey; Frankie & Benny's + hockey; skating + hockey, etc |
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Post by pressoffice on Jan 3, 2011 12:57:17 GMT
Hi All, and thanks for taking such a keen interest.
We keep saying it, but the Tigers is OUR club now. If we want it to be successful, we all need to pitch in...
Regarding the specific ideas here:
We do have a good school visit schedule going now. Tom Watkins is visiting as many schools as will let him in to address assemblies, and takes in special offer vouchers to encourage families to come to games. We have generated some good publicity from this in the local media, and it has been mentioned in programmes, but if we are not banging on about it enough to ensure everyone knows we're doing it, then we'll have to try harder!
If someone could put together proposals for how we run a 'drive for 500' promotion, who to target, etc, we'd be happy to work with the ideas.
There is currently a discount for skating after a game, but there is only so much the Tigers can offer as an incentive - every penny we knock off our ticket price comes out of our operating funds, so we have to have a sound business case to risk 'losing' short term to gain longer term. But again, if anyone can work up some ideas, we'd be happy to look at the numbers.
The ice rink leaflet/questionnaire idea is good - we'll have to look at the logistics and costs. Again, anyone who can help to administer/oversee this?
Similarly, with the AFC proposal, we would need to look at the numbers to be sure that cutting our price would bring new people in. We have had discussions with AFC and, while they have been generally supportive of us, they did not have any immediate suggestions for how they could help our club. We keep the communications channels open though as we are both supporters trusts and the co-operative model is idealistically mutally supportive.
Sorry for length of this, but I realise that the board and volunteers do a lot behind the scenes that other supporters might not be aware of.
Often, the ideas mooted have already been investigated and there are reasons why we aren't doing them. Sometimes there is the germ of possibility but our limited resources hold us back.
Anyone who would like to offer practical help can always talk to a board member at games or email interest@telfordtigers.co.uk - we'd love to hear from lots of you!
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Post by tom on Jan 3, 2011 14:56:29 GMT
We should also bear in mind that cutting ticket prices may lead to increased secondary spending. For example, if we cut £3 off a ticket for an AFC Telford season ticket holder, then the ticket holder may then buy a programme, 50/50, etc with the money they save.
I'd say that an extra 100 people in at say £3 a head would be good for the club, because that's £300 we've then got that we wouldn't otherwise have had. Then let's say 25% of them buy a programme at £2...that's an extra £50, so in total the club would be £350 better off, assuming that the 100 people in question wouldn't have come in if they'd have had to pay full price.
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Post by frazy85 on Jan 3, 2011 20:20:33 GMT
Personally at the moment, as much as i would love to come to every game, my financial situation restricts me from doing so, £10 a week amounts up over time, and then youve got a drink before the game, food during the game, programmes etc. I pick and choose my games at the moment because i have to, and i know its impossible to make ticket prices cheaper, and i wouldnt advise it at all, as i believe it wouldnt affect things "that" much, but if it was £5 a week i would come every week.
But aside from me personally, i just fear for the fact that not enough people know the tigers exist, and the people that may have heard of them, stay away because ice hockey is unfamiliar to them, and the conception of the rules seems too confusing.
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Post by topbeats on Jan 4, 2011 10:51:29 GMT
...i just fear for the fact that not enough people know the tigers exist, and the people that may have heard of them, stay away because ice hockey is unfamiliar to them, and the conception of the rules seems too confusing. This is where we, as trust members (team owners) and fans need to step up and fill the gap. Our press office is top notch, 2-3 articles in the sports section of the Star every week, on-line weekly video coverage, the lions share of the back page of the Journal each week (which hits every household in Telford) and BBC Radio Shropshire providing us fantastic coverage. PR's are also submitted to Beacon Radio and media outlets further afield, however we have no control over whether they are used or not. We also have had a number of 'non sports' stories in the press in the general news section of the papers, complete with colour photos, such as the Park Inn story, Wilkinsons Opening etc... I don't think media wise there is anything more we can do (especially with 2 Shropshire Star journalists on our trust board and a BBC Shropshire presenter being our game day MC) so its down to us. We need to be banging that drum to anybody that will listen, posting on various non hockey chatrooms and social networking sites where we are all no doubt members. Each of us speaking to our own employers about the possibility of sponsorship (or even just providing the trust contact details), supporting every team event - especially anything away from the rink and through the summer to keep our profile high - and generally making as much noise about our sport as we physically can. |
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Post by tom on Jan 5, 2011 11:39:45 GMT
Has anyone seen the giant poster on the stairs that lead to Skate Hire at the rink that advertises our upcoming games? Maybe we could get some more of these and get the local council to put them up at other council venues like libraries, leisure centres and their own offices?
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Post by tigershots on Jan 5, 2011 16:26:26 GMT
Hi,
8" x 6" photos of the Tigers players are now available to purchase on match nights from the supporters table, they are priced at a very reasonable £2.50ea. Very handy for getting players signatures :-), their are also a couple of A3 photos as well.
Regards
Steve
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Post by pressoffice on Jan 5, 2011 23:01:35 GMT
Has anyone seen the giant poster on the stairs that lead to Skate Hire at the rink that advertises our upcoming games? Maybe we could get some more of these and get the local council to put them up at other council venues like libraries, leisure centres and their own offices? I understand the posters have gone into major employers such as PRH, TCAT, etc. Also club leaflets have gone into all the council sites, and we have a presence on the council, TCAT and Capgemini intranets (or will be on soon). If anyone is able to put up posters at their place of work, school, etc, please see a member of the board on match night and we'll find you some. But please only ask if you genuinely can put them up, as they do cost us money to print and we need to direct all resources to where they can best help us. thanks and keep the suggestions coming  |
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Post by tigershots on Jan 6, 2011 12:32:00 GMT
Here's a Curveball: i am off to florida 1st week in April, and i need to drop a 'couple' of pounds - two stones worth to be accurate !!, So i am aiming to lose 2 stones in 3 months, or as damm near it as i can. I also have a friend who is also going and would like to slim down again, so how about a sponsered slim for the tigers? :-) :-)
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Post by telfordtornadoes on Jan 6, 2011 12:37:24 GMT
;D GO FOR IT Tiger Shots
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Post by pressoffice on Jan 6, 2011 19:16:09 GMT
Great idea! How about asking DW to create a plan for you - and see if a couple of the guys will put you through your paces, to support you in your endeavours? Good publicity opportunity for all concerned. (If exercise is not your thing, I also have a client who could help lol  ) |
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Post by tallpaul on Jan 7, 2011 21:37:08 GMT
Here's a Curveball: i am off to florida 1st week in April, and i need to drop a 'couple' of pounds - two stones worth to be accurate !!, So i am aiming to lose 2 stones in 3 months, or as damm near it as i can. I also have a friend who is also going and would like to slim down again, so how about a sponsered slim for the tigers? :-) :-) Yep, I'd be happy to support that. |
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Post by drummerboy on Jan 8, 2011 1:10:14 GMT
lets look at the club from a newbies point of view: It's my first ever game. I have no previous knowledge of hockey, so how do i know if the team are playing well? take monday night for example, i wouldnt know that manchester were the best EPL team, to me it was just a tigers loss. If we want people to return for games, we need to really show them just how hard the team works week i week out. Afterall, who wants to see a team lose? Many dont understand the complex psychological, finacial and ability variation between teams. A simple announcement as the teams take to the ice would suffice, even as simple as "welcome to the telford ice rink for tonights game, as the tigers take on league leaders manchester." sorted |
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