Jamie_Beatson Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 I'm not advocating a new casuals group here, just a potential way of getting more people in the ground! Today's crowd was horrific. I suspect there were possibly less Saints fans in the ground than we have season ticket holders. I did something I don't normally do today before the game - I went into town for lunch with a friend. The pubs were heaving - particularly those showing football. The bookies was heaving with people putting on football coupons. The town centre was busy - and many of the people, mostly kids, I saw were wearing football tops. Yet how many of these people made it to McDiarmid today? How many even knew there was an SPL match involving a team now a win away from second place in our country's top league not two miles from where they were out, spending money. Surely a presence in the town on matchdays would help. Get some nice looking young PR people out in the street spreading the message from midday until half two when we're at home on Saturdays. Even better, equip them with some tickets, and maybe some kind of mobile credit/debit card device, and sell tickets on some kind of deal. Do a deal with Stagecoach so that said tickets also entitle the bearers to a return journey on a 1/2 bus to and from McDiarmid. There were thousands of people out happily spending cash in Perth today, and hundreds, if not thousands, of those were football fans, I suspect hundreds have some kind of allegiance to Saints - but their money was going to Ladbrokes, William Hill, national pub chains, and various shops and not to our club. Instead of backing their local team they were watching TV in the pub. There was nothing in town to suggest an SPL match was taking place nearby today and that it was a viable option to attend. That needs to be addressed at the very least. We need to make it far easier for people to attend, to put it in their mind that it is something they might want to do. Selling tickets online would also be a good idea, as I think blueheaven forcefully put it the other day! Get a weekly email blast out to people ahead of home games with a link to online ticket deals. If you buy them early enough they're posted to you, if you're a bit closer to the time pick them up from the souvenir shop. A pound or two off the gate price might just be enough to tempt someone sitting at their desk on a Tuesday afternoon to commit to attending the game on Saturday. If you've already bought and paid for your ticket you'll ignore the fact its a bit chilly and easier to stay in the pub when Saturday actually arrives. Biakeronroomo, Davis Love III, Kevin James Is On Stilts and 7 others 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slf Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 i agree with your post. maybe we should swap with asda and return to muirton. fazman1977 and stanley saint 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davis Love III Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 Amen to that Jamie. All of these things would take a little time, money, inspiration and assistance, but I certainly think it would be worth it. If the Club is willing to attempt new ideas (which I believe they are) then there are still enough people who would be willing to devote their time (and perhaps expertise) to help them carry them out. But it's about opening communication, and discussion, with as many supporters as possible. We don't have many, so we must value everyone's input on how the Club can innovate itself. That's where the Club often lets itself down. It's not only distant in terms of the town, but it also feels separate from its own most devoted followers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie_Beatson Posted March 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 I don't think sticking people in town on a Saturday would necessarily cost much. Pay half a dozen people £20-£25 a head for 2-3 hours work. If they sell two tickets each they've more than covered their pay. I do think the online ticket sales thing is a big deal, however. It's far too easy for people to think about going then, on the day, decide "no, it's too cold/there's something good on the telly/I can't be bothered/I'll go for a beer instead". If you've got an email on the Tuesday saying "hey, there's a game on Saturday, we need your support in our fight for the top six, here's a word from Steve Lomas and Dave Mackay, and by the way, if you buy your ticket online before Friday it will be £2 off and will be delivered to your door or there for you to pick up on Saturday at the club shop. You can then beat the queues by using it at a season ticket holder gate" you might well take up that offer and that's you committed to attending. Or if you still decide not to, well, the cash is still in the bank. Simple things, they might not attract thousands in one go, but if between them they got 100 paying adults through the gate that's £2000 per home game - a not insubstantial sum. I'd hope these kind of initiatives could be even more effective than that though. There are thousands of people out there with an affection for St Johnstone FC that have, for whatever reason, drifted away from the club for whatever reason. I do think it isn't all the club's fault - for example, the fact we've barely played on a Saturday at 3pm for the past six months hasn't helped get people in the football habit. But we have to work to get some of them back! Norsaint, MySpazz and Mr_Plow 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davis Love III Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 (edited) I think you're absolutely correct with all of that. If any of these initiatives are attempted, (and I hope they are), immediately dramatic results are unlikely. However, that shouldn't discourage. It's all about combining the short-term, with the longer term effect (as the Family Stand is an example of). Any initiative has to be followed through with the strength of will to maintain it over a period of time. Build a relationship with the town (and wider county), and rebuild the relationship with fans who no longer attend regularly, if at all. We would see a small results over the short-term, but a longer term improvement if it's carried through correctly. Many of us have great ideas. It would be nice if we had a more immediate forum to relay those ideas to the Board. Edited March 9, 2013 by Davis Love III Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stanley saint Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 What about using some of the youth players to spread the word Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rik2304 Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 What about using some of the youth players to spread the word Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rik2304 Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 What about using some of the youth players to spread the word Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rik2304 Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 What about using some of the youth players to spread the word Good idea. Liam Caddis is doing feck all on a saturday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MySpazz Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 Start of story:Tickets are too expensive.End of story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy rhodes fancy watch Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 Agree with what you are saying but its a two way street , saints have taken the fans for granted by NOT having any presence in town . They have neglected the're duties by having a business strategy that got by without increasing or even trying to increase the fan base . They will argue that they are trying now etc . But they should have been constantly encouraging new fans with various schemes , which they have not been doing . People talk about perth people not having any interest in saints , well saints need to be interested in attracting perth people . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy Saints Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 Agree with what you are saying but its a two way street , saints have taken the fans for granted by NOT having any presence in town . They have neglected the're duties by having a business strategy that got by without increasing or even trying to increase the fan base . They will argue that they are trying now etc . But they should have been constantly encouraging new fans with various schemes , which they have not been doing . People talk about perth people not having any interest in saints , well saints need to be interested in attracting perth people . I agree...I think they should go back to basics....start off in Primary schools..try to whet the appetite of the youngsters. Too many Perth kids running around with Man U strips. If kids get hooked then they will 'drag' along a paying adult. Saints first team players visiting schools wouldn't be a big ask..I'm sure the don't train all day. The Saints shop at Christmas was heaving, kids lining up to get autographs etc....so I feel it would be something which would work. I know I got hooked on Saints at an early age by being taken to Muirton, by dad and uncles...I've been trying to kick the habit for 45 years plus.....haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al C Posted March 10, 2013 Report Share Posted March 10, 2013 The ideas given by Beatson & others here are all very positive and worthy of consideration/implementation. I´ve never been one to get too concerned about the size of our crowds and in fact take pleasure in the fact other teams fans seem to use this as some kind of stick to beat us with, usually when we´ve just beaten them.  However it is getting to the stage where we need to do something as it´s hard to see how we can sustain full time football or attract players such as Morris or Vine in the future. Others will no doubt say let us go part time, it will be "more fun" and at least we are not playing to crowds of 300 which we did not that long ago. I think there is scope to be more positive than that and to try to improve things, maintaining a full time, top level team at the same time.  Saints deserve credit in certain areas, particuarly with the kids going free package this season. I also think the club is making good use of twitter and the output from there has steadily improved. However at a meet the manager event with Derek McInnes not that long ago the same kind of things about the size of the crowd and engaging with the town were being raised. Geoff Brown was in charge at the time and his attitude to any suggestion was more or less "What´s the point, it won´t make any difference". This was sad to hear, especially in a public forum such as that. Can only hope that Steve has a more enthusiastic outlook on things and the indications seem to be that he does.    Scobby_SJFC, Real Madrid and MySpazz 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Madrid Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 How many fans on here are facebook users? Â How many of you have been invited to one of the "facebook match day events" Â The idea of these seems to be for each person to then invite their own friends to go to the game and in theory each game should get a lot more of the fans promoting the fact that they are going to the game than they do. It takes seconds to invite your Saints mates but it would appear that while people do accept the request they then don't pass it on. Â I am not suggesting this will massively increase the crowds but it could add a few on to the gate. Â This is the link to the event page for the Dundee United game https://www.facebook.com/events/525015594207681/ 541ntees 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
south inch Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 An absolutely brilliant post by Jamie!  King Edward St would be one good spot for a base perhaps with some catchy music to attract business.  I'm old enough to remember when there would be information about Saints' matches in town on a Saturday - outside St Pauls at the foot of the Old High St was one spot where they told you if the match was on if the weather was bad and/or asked for volunteers to clear the pitch if it had been snowing.  I hope these ideas were aired at the fans' meeting the other night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin James Is On Stilts Posted March 14, 2013 Report Share Posted March 14, 2013 Suggested something very similar here a few weeks ago:Definitely something that I think the club should be looking into.Is this something that other clubs have? Is there an existing model that could be copied? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaintDougie Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 When in Inverness last December I noticed that ICT had a so call street team in the large shopping centre there. They had a stall set up with flags, scarf's, programmes and other merchandise that could be purchased. As well as very attractive young ladies in tartan miniskirts coming up to passers-by and handing out flyers for the next game. This surely could not be that much of an expense to arrange, A couple of folk on the stall for a few hours at minimum wage with merchandise from the souvenir shop. 541ntees 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickardo Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 When in Inverness last December I noticed that ICT had a so call street team in the large shopping centre there. They had a stall set up with flags, scarf's, programmes and other merchandise that could be purchased. As well as very attractive young ladies in tartan miniskirts coming up to passers-by and handing out flyers for the next game. This surely could not be that much of an expense to arrange, A couple of folk on the stall for a few hours at minimum wage with merchandise from the souvenir shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickardo Posted March 15, 2013 Report Share Posted March 15, 2013 Sounds like a plan but there not exactly falling over scantly clad highland wenches to get in there are they ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOODLUM65 Posted March 20, 2013 Report Share Posted March 20, 2013 Sounds like a plan but there not exactly falling over scantly clad highland wenches to get in there are they ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstar101 Posted March 20, 2013 Report Share Posted March 20, 2013 Sounds like a good part-time job for the Muirton suite ladies in their Saints tartan mini kilts ! Ancients pacemaker would go into overdrive  Certainly having them in the City Centre in their mini-skirts would chase people out of the town, possibly towards McD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu-sjfc Posted March 20, 2013 Report Share Posted March 20, 2013 I'm sick of people supporting Celtic and rangers from Perth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Born2Bru Posted March 26, 2013 Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 who else can they support? teams dont grow on trees, you know?There's only one team in Perth. That's who they should support! ANDY5565 and dave mc 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepless Posted March 26, 2013 Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 There's only one team in Perth. That's who they should support!--------------Away the Swifts... ANDY5565 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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