St Johnstone's Public Relations


O'Rourke
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The intention here is to focus on how the PR side of our club could be improved.

I'm not interested in any negative stuff, just positive suggestions.

This last few weeks has seen a couple of situations that could (and should) have been handled better but how?

The handling of the clousure of the Muirton club and the late postponement of Saturday's game would suggest that we need a better method of informing and engaging supporters.

Personally I think Paul Smith does a fantastic job at Saints but perhaps there is scope for someone not on the club's payroll to provide a direct link to the support?

Any suggestions how the current situation can be improved?

As has been suggested by soulfulsaint we should ALL be right behind our club and support the achievements of Del and the team.

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No question there could be more official contact via social networks and micro-blogging Twitter and Facebook feeds. But ensuring there is always someone on call to take media enquiries in moments of 'crisis' rather than hope it passes. I would also propose an 'instant-rebuttal' policy. The club should admit its wrong when its wrong and rebutt anything that is either not true, biased or brings us into unfair disrepute.

I'd like us to use this forum working more positively with more meet the manager Q&As, online and polls over and above MOTM etc. So turn this from bickering to democracy.

If we did live interviews with Del once a quater all web particpants could be involved.

But that means getting behind Jamie and the administrators to make that happen.

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what about a fans representative or something similar, someone that could act as a go between between the fans and the club?

there aint one? Thats very amerturish.any self respecting club talks to its fans....some even let fans attend board meetings.fans should be consulted for improuvements to the club i.e.north stand

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The intention here is to focus on how the PR side of our club could be improved.

I'm not interested in any negative stuff, just positive suggestions.

This last few weeks has seen a couple of situations that could (and should) have been handled better but how?

The handling of the clousure of the Muirton club and the late postponement of Saturday's game would suggest that we need a better method of informing and engaging supporters.

Personally I think Paul Smith does a fantastic job at Saints but perhaps there is scope for someone not on the club's payroll to provide a direct link to the support?

Any suggestions how the current situation can be improved?

As has been suggested by soulfulsaint we should ALL be right behind our club and support the achievements of Del and the team.

Is Paul Smith actually qualified or trained in PR? If he's not qualified then he should be replaced by someone who is because the PR in the past few weeks has been disgraceful.

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there aint one? Thats very amerturish.any self respecting club talks to its fans....some even let fans attend board meetings.fans should be consulted for improuvements to the club i.e.north stand

not to my knowledge, afaik its just the club and us fans with nothing official between us

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I don't think there is any question of Paul being replaced. Anyone who has contact with the club will appreciate the good job that he does.

It may be that he needs someone "on hand" to assist him or someone to liase with the board more directly. I think however that this post would have to be an unpaid liason between the club and it's life blood, the fans.

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Do you think being qualified automatically makes you a better person in your job?

Do you think it's better to have a qualified doctor write prescriptions?

Anyhoo...since when was it about being a better person?

The PR about this debacle yesterday will cause a massive financial loss to the club. A decent (qualified) PR guy would have handled the situation better and minimised the clubs losses.

When I said replaced I didn't mean sacked.

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Do you think it's better to have a qualified doctor write prescriptions?

Anyhoo...since when was it about being a better person?

The PR about this debacle yesterday will cause a massive financial loss to the club. A decent (qualified) PR guy would have handled the situation better and minimised the clubs losses.

When I said replaced I didn't mean sacked.

You are completely off your head. Paul Smith is the greatest PR asset we have. I have the utmost respect for him. There are few people in life that I rate as "top drawer", Paul is easily in that backet.

The board are fully aware that PR is not great and the changes for this season have improved the communication by a good margin. The current handover at board level makes situations like yesterdays far harder to manage.

It was also made more difficult by the kick off time. Of course the usual hot heads are making themselves look like dickheads. "Falkirk should be fined and the supporters buses should all be paid by Falkirk..." Our fans are a veritable embarassment at times, the Falkirk game was a perfect example of why this forum can never link or be associated with the club. Far too many, ill-educated, seflish reactionaries. The club must continue to be run as a form of dictatorship, it's the most efficient method for any business.

I am not at all happy that the game was cancelled, indeed I was close to apoplexy at one point, but sometimes things go wrong and it's important to step back, calm down and move forward.

I trust the club, I am certain that the club will make an official announcement when it's good aand ready to do so. I don't think our PR is as bad as we often make out. I remain fully convinced that we have a well run club from top to bottom.

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There was a fans survey - it says so on the clubs website - that Paul smith was suppoosed to have done. Did anyone ever see it?

There is one every season where the same issues are brought up. It is however only for season ticket holders, don't know why they only accept their views.

If you search the news section of the of the official site you will find the results.

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Is Paul Smith actually qualified or trained in PR? If he's not qualified then he should be replaced by someone who is because the PR in the past few weeks has been disgraceful.

Are you taking the p***? I take it you have very little contact at the club. Paul is a supporter through and through and very much sees things from a fans viewpoint. There will however be times when no matter how he feels about things that he is simply not allowed to put out or scomment on.

Re the survey I suggest that you read the website news articles in more depth. The results of last year's survey were put on there months ago.

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You are completely off your head. Paul Smith is the greatest PR asset we have. I have the utmost respect for him. There are few people in life that I rate as "top drawer", Paul is easily in that backet.

The board are fully aware that PR is not great and the changes for this season have improved the communication by a good margin. The current handover at board level makes situations like yesterdays far harder to manage.

It was also made more difficult by the kick off time. Of course the usual hot heads are making themselves look like dickheads. "Falkirk should be fined and the supporters buses should all be paid by Falkirk..." Our fans are a veritable embarassment at times, the Falkirk game was a perfect example of why this forum can never link or be associated with the club. Far too many, ill-educated, seflish reactionaries. The club must continue to be run as a form of dictatorship, it's the most efficient method for any business.

I am not at all happy that the game was cancelled, indeed I was close to apoplexy at one point, but sometimes things go wrong and it's important to step back, calm down and move forward.

I trust the club, I am certain that the club will make an official announcement when it's good aand ready to do so. I don't think our PR is as bad as we often make out. I remain fully convinced that we have a well run club from top to bottom.

I like Paul Smith to bits he is a genuine asset to the club. I also believe he does not have the freedom to fully implement some of the things he would like to do to push the club forward. He is also jack of all trades and I would much rather he concentrated 100% on the marketing side.

The club is well run and is in a much better position than probably all other SPL clubs.

I would not for a minute think of undoing what is being achieved , what I do think however is that the football side has moved on but there has not been sufficient movement in supplementing the board with other forward thinking individuals who would help the club.

The club asked earlier in the year for fans with specific skills that could help in a crisis to contact the club. I don't see why the club should not also tap into willing fans with other ideas to help move the club on .

I think soulfullsaint has skills that the club could utilise and I am sure there are others that would help if a forum was created to allow that to happen.

The board needs to be expanded to include new blood and the fans should have a voice via a forum of some sorts to add ideas from the fan base. The club should be working with the fans to create a formal vehicle to allow the fans more of a say with the input of fresh ideas.

I am proud to be a saintee and proud of what the club has achieved I just think it is time for some fresh assistance off the pitch to help the club move on even further.

Can't wait for 3pm next Saturday.

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The clubs PR/communication has always been an issue, it has increased with Paul being recruited to McDiarmid Park but I think he's probably only allowed to do so much. The Marketing team can only do as much as publish 'allowed' information....

The outcomes of the season ticket survey (the few who reply believing it is worth their time) generally don't get acted upon. I can't really think of many situations where the club have taken any fans comments into consideration. The federation for example failed mainly because of these reasons. Although I appreciate for every good suggestion there are 10 shite suggestions but sometimes it's worth listening to.

It's good when the club have reason to organise events (i.e. centinery year stuff, or testimonial years - although technically that's a bunch of fans doing that) they are good events. The PA isn't enough of an outlet to get people on board and neither is the official website (I barely read that myself!). We've been promised for years some events in the calender for the fans but they have yet to materialise. I also think it's no coincidence that the PR has improved when McInnes took over, he's all about the fans and the club and is keen to come to events organised.

I'm a big fan of a few board members and the fact that they are real fans of the club and I am extremely hopeful that they put their ideas across and consider lots of initiatives and how to move forward with the times. When that all starts happening it will match what's going on on the pitch. McInnes, Doc and the squad are working hard, gained promotion and holding out well in the SPL so far.

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Is Paul Smith actually qualified or trained in PR? If he's not qualified then he should be replaced by someone who is because the PR in the past few weeks has been disgraceful.

Paul was formerly with the Post Office, I believe as a manager. He has brought a lot to the club and more important of all he is a fan and the criticism he is receiving will probably hurt him as much as it does everyone else.

Intersrting that 101 says there is a handover at board level taking place, Can anyone expand on this?

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I like Paul Smith to bits he is a genuine asset to the club. I also believe he does not have the freedom to fully implement some of the things he would like to do to push the club forward. He is also jack of all trades and I would much rather he concentrated 100% on the marketing side.

But that situation is improving with the current changing of the guard.

The club is well run and is in a much better position than probably all other SPL clubs.

Amen.

I would not for a minute think of undoing what is being achieved , what I do think however is that the football side has moved on but there has not been sufficient movement in supplementing the board with other forward thinking individuals who would help the club.

I disagree. I think the board has a terrific blend. Moving forward is only beneficial if it helps to swell the coffers. Forget the feel good factor, it doesn't make the club more succesful or profitable.

The club asked earlier in the year for fans with specific skills that could help in a crisis to contact the club. I don't see why the club should not also tap into willing fans with other ideas to help move the club on .

But that process is already in place. Stan Harris was invited to join the board because it was recognised that he had the necessary skills to enhance the existing structure. If Beatson, Radford, Blue Heaven or yourself devote yourselves in a positive fashion, Stan and Wee Broonie will take note.

I think soulfullsaint has skills that the club could utilise and I am sure there are others that would help if a forum was created to allow that to happen.

Soulful, in an interview on Blueheven stated why he wouldn't!!!

The board needs to be expanded to include new blood and the fans should have a voice via a forum of some sorts to add ideas from the fan base. The club should be working with the fans to create a formal vehicle to allow the fans more of a say with the input of fresh ideas.

I hate that thought. If anything, the board is one member too many. The bigger the board the longer the meetings, the slower the decisions and the less responsibility. By all means, seek opinions from outsiders (as they already do) but don't expand. I want a thoroughbred board not a carthorse.

I am proud to be a saintee and proud of what the club has achieved I just think it is time for some fresh assistance off the pitch to help the club move on even further.

They are using fresh assistance and you are a major source of that external input.

Can't wait for 3pm next Saturday.

Aye!

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I mentioned in another thread that the club have never contacted me (an ex season ticket holder) to try & get me to stump up for a season ticket again or ask me what would encourage me or offer incentives. Surely any business should be chasing potential customers?

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I mentioned in another thread that the club have never contacted me (an ex season ticket holder) to try & get me to stump up for a season ticket again or ask me what would encourage me or offer incentives. Surely any business should be chasing potential customers?

Do you think that would be a financially beneficial thing to do?

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