New Away Season Ticket

[Cowfold Seagull]

Barber out.

I'm beginning to agree.

 

[Quinney]

Would be good if you could stipulate when booking away tickets if you want to be towards the back of the stand (normally more singing) rather than getting a seat more towards the front. Might improve on atmosphere at away grounds if more like minded people are sat / standing together.

 

[Mad as my Mother]

I am happy to get a membership,
I love our Club as much as the next, but due to the fact that 2 of my 5 kids play football here in Dorset it's not worth having a ST as taking them to matches/training is my priority.
I make it to every match I can and if the only way to get the 'better' seats is to be a member then so be it, although my eldest who is a STH can buy his own membership as he sponges enough off me already!

 

[KJP]

I'm getting quite disillusioned by all this membership stuff. I know times have changed and it's fantastic to have so many ST holders, but I can't help feel that the club are effectively forcing peoples hand by saying 'get a ST or you'll have to pay extra' just to be on our database. Before long you're going to need a London salary just to be able to go and watch a game. In some respects I'm almost pleased we didn't go up as I couldn't afford to pay any more at the moment and I know of many others who feel the same. Barber wants to make the game more corporate I know but what about the average fan on the high street?

Did you even read the article?

You can still get tickets if you aren't a member, you just may miss out on being able to watch big games

 

[Very Blue Tits]

It really isn't is it? How much do you think they are likely to make? £10-£30 x what, 2000, 3000 people? Taking into account seniors and kids rates, they'd be lucky to clear one month of CMSs wages from this scheme.

The difference is that its money in the bank, rather than just "out there" as potential cash, and all businesses (yes, I know) would prefer cash in the bank rather than going to chase sales. Add onto the fact that a membership might bring you psychologically closer to the club (instead of buying (say) 4 tickets a season, being a member might encourage you to buy more), and presumably one of the benefits is a discount in the club shop, so potentially bring in more revenue as "floating supporters" who might not buy a shirt normally are encouraged to part with their cash.

This isn't a comment on whether the scheme is right or wrong - this is just where we are as a club and, alas, the way of football generally.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

I'm not sure if I'm reading this bit right. Is it saying that the one off season fee of '£10-30' will replace the match by match booking fee? If it does* anyone buying 15 tickets a year will be better off.

*IF it does.

There will be a seasonal charge for non-season ticket holders – this will range from £10 to £30 per season, depending on age and the level of membership you require.
What new benefits are there?
There will be varying new benefits and packages available for all supporters.
Season ticket holders will have the option to upgrade their package to incorporate the auto-cup scheme and the option of an away season ticket.
We have looked also looked at the booking fees structure and the new scheme will ensure a much fairer approach to our most loyal supporters

.

 

[CorgiRegisteredFriend]

I am still confused- probably missing something here but what exactly is an away season ticket?

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

I think all this is a fairly decent idea......IF we were in the Premier League. Only a few away games would sell out next season, similarly for home games.

For those moaning about it, nothing is making you sign up so it costs nothing extra. If you want to sign up, you can but its optional. It's a sensible way to potentially make money and I guess it's good to have it in place before we get promoted.

Genuinely can't see why people are bashing Barber over this, if it was mandatory then fine it's wrong, but you don't need to pay anything !!

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

I am still confused- probably missing something here but what exactly is an away season ticket?

Instead of applying online/post/phone for every league away game the club automatically allocates a ticket for you because you've paid upfront (or have a rolling direct debit) for all the away games. For the B&HA überfan there could also be an auto enrolment for away friendlies and away cup games too.

 

[jgmcdee]

Given that I'd be surprised if 1,000 people signed up for this scheme *this season* I don't see it being a money spinner for BHAFC. But if they did have a number of people saying that they couldn't afford their season tickets but still wanted some way of being able to reliably get hold of tickets for whichever games they did want to attend this doesn't seem like a terrible way of doing it. Plus it gets more smart cards out to those who are more likely to attend matches, which cuts down costs elsewhere.

Honestly, I'm struggling to see where anyone can have that much of an issue with what they are attempting to do. You could argue that £30 is too much, but given that there's a smart card involved and no doubt some administrivia to work through I don't see it being too out of line.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

What about my loyalty points, will I lose those?

No. The loyalty point system will NOT be dropped. Existing loyalty points can be transferred into the new membership scheme – at any level and the loyalty point system will operate as part of the membership scheme. All supporters will continue to accrue points, but an active membership will be required to utilise loyalty points when purchasing tickets.
Does this actually mean if you're not a member any loyalty points you have built up basically mean **** all ?

 

[Black Rod]

Honestly, I'm struggling to see where anyone can have that much of an issue with what they are attempting to do. You could argue that £30 is too much, but given that there's a smart card involved and no doubt some administrivia to work through I don't see it being too out of line.

The issue is in the FAQ for me - "an active membership will be required to utilise loyalty points when purchasing tickets."

Basically, I take that to mean it's pay the £30 or your loyalty points count for nothing. So a non-season ticket holder could have been to 75% of home and away games yet that loyalty counts for nothing if they don't fork out the money to join the scheme.

 

[Drumstick]

Some benefits I can see already are lets say your a more casual fan, you can get be in a pub in Brighton an hour pre match decide you want to go, log in on your phone and buy a ticket it will then go straight to your smart card so you can head to the ground. A good way to get around the non pay on the day rule.

Not perfect but we all want progress and we all want that exciting 'flair' new signing and the Amex and it all comes at a cost which has to be paid. Plus as a STH it doesn't affect you unless you want to enrol in the away st scheme or auto enrol.

 

[jgmcdee]

The issue is in the FAQ for me - "an active membership will be required to utilise loyalty points when purchasing tickets."

Basically, I take that to mean it's pay the £30 or your loyalty points count for nothing. So a non-season ticket holder could have been to 75% of home and away games yet that loyalty counts for nothing if they don't fork out the money to join the scheme.

But as per above there is already a suggestion that if they go to this many matches then they will be financially better off paying the £30 up front and gaining reduced booking fees or whatever in addition to the loyalty points being registered.

If it was a pure "pay to matter" system then I can see people getting upset over it, but from everything that has been suggested you gain benefits from doing so. If people are actively misconstruing this then that's down to them. Shall we wait until the details of the scheme are unveiled before deciding if it really is one of the signs of the Apocalypse?

 

[Hillian1]

I'm not sure if I'm reading this bit right. Is it saying that the one off season fee of '£10-30' will replace the match by match booking fee? If it does* anyone buying 15 tickets a year will be better off.

*IF it does.

.

Good point.

Bet it doesn't.

 

[Telscombe Seagull]

I'm not sure if I'm reading this bit right. Is it saying that the one off season fee of '£10-30' will replace the match by match booking fee? If it does* anyone buying 15 tickets a year will be better off.

*IF it does.

.

Sadly i think its more likely that it will be in addition, it says they have ALSO looked at the booking fees, doesnt say removed them

 

[Blackadder]

I think all this is a fairly decent idea......IF we were in the Premier League. Only a few away games would sell out next season, similarly for home games.

For those moaning about it, nothing is making you sign up so it costs nothing extra. If you want to sign up, you can but its optional. It's a sensible way to potentially make money and I guess it's good to have it in place before we get promoted.

Genuinely can't see why people are bashing Barber over this, if it was mandatory then fine it's wrong, but you don't need to pay anything !!

Because it's the fashion for the NSC pack?

As soon as a few have a pop at Barber, the pack will follow putting the boot in.

Let's face it, people won't dare have a pop at Tony, as he has put the money in, so who else can they have a pop at regarding the club?

Several years ago, a few of us season ticket holders used to argue that we should get priority for away games. We used to get howled down by some, quite frankly, thick posters, who felt they should get priority as they went to away games but NOT home games (i.e they put no money into the club whatsoever). Most of those people have probably bought season tickets now. Funnily enough you never hear that argument anymore.

Like many people on here, I am a STH so it doesn't really affect me. However, for those that go to a fair few games, I would have thought it was a good idea. Better choice of seats and the ability to load cash on the card. I wouldn't have thought it worthwhile for people who watch less that 5 games a year. Down to the individual I guess, it's not compulsory.

I like the idea of being geared up to the big time. I could pop up to Crawley if I want a taste of the "Good Old Days".

 

[CorgiRegisteredFriend]

Instead of applying online/post/phone for every league away game the club automatically allocates a ticket for you because you've paid upfront (or have a rolling direct debit) for all the away games. For the B&HA überfan there could also be an auto enrolment for away friendlies and away cup games too.

Thanks for the clarity. I guess their wont be that many fans that can commit to all away matches as well as home.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Sadly i think its more likely that it will be in addition, it says they have ALSO looked at the booking fees, doesnt say removed them

I suspect the booking fee will stay the same at £2 or go down to £1.50 as a member but may go up to £3 if you don't want to fork out any membership fee. Many fans living in exile and going to away games will now just POTD if tickets are available rather than pre-booking.

 

[Black Rod]

But as per above there is already a suggestion that if they go to this many matches then they will be financially better off paying the £30 up front and gaining reduced booking fees or whatever in addition to the loyalty points being registered.

They've looked at the booking fees - nothing about removing or replacing them. My guess would be that the £2 booking fee stays in place for members but for non-members it goes up to £5, something like that. In that way, they can say joining is worthwhile and not lose out on squeezing a couple of more quid from every transaction.

As you say, we won't know until the full details are released