Wow,a new website...that changes everything. I'm straight down the ticket office first thing on Monday.
I'm here now, the queue is 10 deep and reaches Harvey Gardens.
Chaos down here, police have been called to restore order. Not many vinegar types, mostly made up of Tottenham cabbies and rugby chaps from West London.
The current site is a mess. It's hard to navigate and is not well designed - it is much the same for the other sites on the Football League platform to be fair.
Websites can drive an increase in customers if they are well designed, intuitive and the branding is right. But we aren't a fashion label or alcohol brand.
There's a good reason that Chelsea, Man Utd etc., have lots of visitors to their websites. They aren't clubs at the bottom end of League One who also play shit football and don't treat fans as "customers".
Websites don't drive football success. Football success drives a club's website. Like so much else about CAFC right now, the idiots running the show really don't understand that everything stems from the performance on the pitch and the way fans are treated. Get them both right and the club and fans are sorted and happy.
Who regularly visits the Club website nowadays? The news articles are all spin and turd-polishing. Personally, I only look every now and then to check ticket availability and that's increasingly are as I am going far less often. As for breaking news, everything happens quicker elsewhere - remember, it was CARD who announced Slade's sacking! Charlton Life is the best and most reliable site for real news and honest opinion.
The obvious issue is that a new website should not be a primary focus for a football club. Additionally they haven't managed to get anything else right, in three years, so I'm expecting deadlinks, browsers crashing and generally de cloob breaking the Internet. My main concern is that I am assuming game audio coverage will be run by the club and monies generated to go directly to them. I will not subscribe to this service and that's me being pushed one step further away from the club.
The current site is a mess. It's hard to navigate and is not well designed - it is much the same for the other sites on the Football League platform to be fair.
Websites can drive an increase in customers if they are well designed, intuitive and the branding is right. But we aren't a fashion label or alcohol brand.
There's a good reason that Chelsea, Man Utd etc., have lots of visitors to their websites. They aren't clubs at the bottom end of League One who also play shit football and don't treat fans as "customers".
Websites don't drive football success. Football success drives a club's website. Like so much else about CAFC right now, the idiots running the show really don't understand that everything stems from the performance on the pitch and the way fans are treated. Get them both right and the club and fans are sorted and happy.
Just sell up and go......!!!!
For some reason I have an image of a facilitator on a team building event providing the SMT with a cart and a horse, and spending the next five hours watching their antics in disbelief...
I go on the site to buy tickets only. I think I will continue to do this as I don't believe anything the club says, what is the point? It is far better getting your information from other sources. If I want to watch a video of an old match, I'll find it on you tube!
My OP was driven by the declaration at the pre match Trust meeting that a new website was the ONLY strategy they mentioned to get fans back. I get my information from here, and only check the club site for U23'S fixtures. If the website needs tarting up fair enough providing a person has access, but as the main idea to get people back it stinks.
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
I look at the club site every day and find it adequate for a L1 club, of course they spin things their way as does any company web site
Wow, that's amazing. Not digging you out Lancs, each to their own and all that, but I find these days my visits are limited to about one per month. Can I ask you what you get out of your daily visits?
From my perspective, I find that if something important is posted on there, it will be on Charlton Life in minutes (maybe even quicker). Conversely if something important is posted here, it may take hours or days for an official comment; and many things these days won't even make it onto their radar, let alone get past the official censors. I used to use the official site for match reports and fact-checking but I find it so cumbersome, that it's easier to google stuff and then double-check from other sources. In the past I wouldn't have trusted that as an approach, because I know that lot internet material is re-published without the necessary fact-checking. Since the club decided to re-accredit Therry Racon's Luton goal to Johnnie Jackson on little more than a whim, I've decided not to trust their stats either. I have found a guy elsewhere though who produces an excellent 'stat bank' for every single match, that's a far more interesting and reliable source!
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
Especially given any new site of this magnitude is going to have plenty of teething problems. Even worse given this bunch of clowns track record of cock ups. So give it to everyone for free as a goodwill gesture and have a way to give feedback on the website and overcome any teething problems.
Who regularly visits the Club website nowadays? The news articles are all spin and turd-polishing. Personally, I only look every now and then to check ticket availability and that's increasingly are as I am going far less often. As for breaking news, everything happens quicker elsewhere - remember, it was CARD who announced Slade's sacking! Charlton Life is the best and most reliable site for real news and honest opinion.
The articles will remain spin and turd polishing. The difference is the turds will be on a state-of-the-art website. A change in content will require a massive change in mindset. And that's imply not going to happen.
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
I'm not sure that allowing people to watch the football that we're playing would be a great marketing strategy!
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
This directly negates the customers need to be at the game, it actually supports the fans that want to boycott under this regime! Honestly free commentary to bring protesters and fans/supporters that are on boycotts back onside is an awful idea!!
Maybe that really would be something they would consider!
*edit*
Why not add video streaming for £6.99 a weekend a bit like Now TV does for a 24 hour sky sports pass? We know the stream already exists don't we Roland
What's better having 9,000 people in the stadium make no money out of protesters and fans with no drive to go to games or having 9,000 people in the stadium and another 7,000 paying to watch games on a stream you own?
7,000 * 6.99 = £48,930 per week. (Obviously the appearance bonus for commentators would eat into that, but Shirley worth considering).
Overseas fans could be charged £10 a game that'd be another £30,000 easy Pretty much will pay our playing budget each week!
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
This directly negates the customers need to be at the game, it actually supports the fans that want to boycott under this regime! Honestly free commentary to bring protesters and fans/supporters that are on boycotts back onside is an awful idea!!
Maybe that really would be something they would consider!
*edit*
Why not add video streaming for £6.99 a weekend a bit like Now TV does for a 24 hour sky sports pass?
I disagree, it's not a bad idea at all - the video highlights, player interviews, special features they're hinting at etc. wouldn't affect matchday attendances at all.
Giving it away free for a full year is probably a bit excessive, but making the first three months free to air could work and get people hooked on the content (assuming it's good enough quality, both the action on the pitch and the production values that is!)
I don't think a weekend pass would work, as who'd pay £6.99 for a few interviews and match highlights?
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
This directly negates the customers need to be at the game, it actually supports the fans that want to boycott under this regime! Honestly free commentary to bring protesters and fans/supporters that are on boycotts back onside is an awful idea!!
Maybe that really would be something they would consider!
*edit*
Why not add video streaming for £6.99 a weekend a bit like Now TV does for a 24 hour sky sports pass?
I disagree, it's not a bad idea at all - the video highlights, player interviews, special features they're hinting at etc. wouldn't affect matchday attendances at all.
Giving it away free for a full year is probably a bit excessive, but making the first three months free to air could work and get people hooked on the content (assuming it's good enough quality, both the action on the pitch and the production values that is!)
I don't think a weekend pass would work, as who'd pay £6.99 for a few interviews and match highlights?
If they really wanted to use the new website and player service to increase sales and drive attendances then the only way to actually make an impact would be to make the player service free to all for the first year.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
This directly negates the customers need to be at the game, it actually supports the fans that want to boycott under this regime! Honestly free commentary to bring protesters and fans/supporters that are on boycotts back onside is an awful idea!!
Maybe that really would be something they would consider!
*edit*
Why not add video streaming for £6.99 a weekend a bit like Now TV does for a 24 hour sky sports pass?
I disagree, it's not a bad idea at all - the video highlights, player interviews, special features they're hinting at etc. wouldn't affect matchday attendances at all.
Giving it away free for a full year is probably a bit excessive, but making the first three months free to air could work and get people hooked on the content (assuming it's good enough quality, both the action on the pitch and the production values that is!)
I don't think a weekend pass would work, as who'd pay £6.99 for a few interviews and match highlights?
Yeah re-read it padded it out with proper details
What you've described is what is already there.
But they're not going to be streaming live games, that's only available for one very lucky special customer owner.
They've also been suggesting that they're filming a load of new content for the new service so it will be loads better than what you can already get (obviously we won't know whether that's the case or not until it launches)
p.s. I'm not defending the new website at all, just agreeing that making it free to start off with to show it's value is a viable proposition and wouldn't affect attendances like you suggested.
I have this awful woman sitting next to me every game, who comes along with her husband who I work with and who also sits close by. She really is clingy, and seems to think I am fantastic and brilliant (which, or course, I'm not!). Whenever I get into conversations with my friends, she always tries to appear to know what I'm talking about, and answers their questions and comments before I get a chance, which is really annoying, both to me and to my friends. Recently, she has been photo-bombing me at every opportunity, and stealing my smirk in videos, leaving me with nowhere to look. It really is tiresome. I am told that she goes on and on and on about me on social media, building me up as some sort of goddess like being, who has saved de cloob from oblivion, which of course I haven't (if only, eh?!?). I've tried talking about this issue with my uncle, who is very close to me, but he said that while we remain in the Premiership playing to sell out crowds every week, he doesn't see how we can change the seating arrangements at all. I just can't win!
My message for him would to be to stop trying to polish the turd created in Belgium. Oh and what does he expect the new website to achieve when I haven't been on the current OS for about a year?
My message to you Tom is that you can dress up the shop window as much as you want, but Meire has totally lost the fanbase and they won't come back until she (and Uncle Roland) have gone.
All the digital currency in the world won't buy you out of this one
Comments
Websites can drive an increase in customers if they are well designed, intuitive and the branding is right. But we aren't a fashion label or alcohol brand.
There's a good reason that Chelsea, Man Utd etc., have lots of visitors to their websites. They aren't clubs at the bottom end of League One who also play shit football and don't treat fans as "customers".
Websites don't drive football success. Football success drives a club's website. Like so much else about CAFC right now, the idiots running the show really don't understand that everything stems from the performance on the pitch and the way fans are treated. Get them both right and the club and fans are sorted and happy.
Just sell up and go......!!!!
Additionally they haven't managed to get anything else right, in three years, so I'm expecting deadlinks, browsers crashing and generally de cloob breaking the Internet.
My main concern is that I am assuming game audio coverage will be run by the club and monies generated to go directly to them. I will not subscribe to this service and that's me being pushed one step further away from the club.
I get my information from here, and only check the club site for U23'S fixtures. If the website needs tarting up fair enough providing a person has access, but as the main idea to get people back it stinks.
Get as many people watching the extra content and listening to commentaries. Hope it gives them their Charlton buzz back and makes them want to attend more games or buy the player service the following year.
Of course that only works if we are actually competitive on the pitch.
And will only be relevant if they are planning on sticking around...
From my perspective, I find that if something important is posted on there, it will be on Charlton Life in minutes (maybe even quicker). Conversely if something important is posted here, it may take hours or days for an official comment; and many things these days won't even make it onto their radar, let alone get past the official censors. I used to use the official site for match reports and fact-checking but I find it so cumbersome, that it's easier to google stuff and then double-check from other sources. In the past I wouldn't have trusted that as an approach, because I know that lot internet material is re-published without the necessary fact-checking. Since the club decided to re-accredit Therry Racon's Luton goal to Johnnie Jackson on little more than a whim, I've decided not to trust their stats either. I have found a guy elsewhere though who produces an excellent 'stat bank' for every single match, that's a far more interesting and reliable source!
Maybe that really would be something they would consider!
*edit*
Why not add video streaming for £6.99 a weekend a bit like Now TV does for a 24 hour sky sports pass?
We know the stream already exists don't we Roland
What's better having 9,000 people in the stadium make no money out of protesters and fans with no drive to go to games or having 9,000 people in the stadium and another 7,000 paying to watch games on a stream you own?
7,000 * 6.99 = £48,930 per week. (Obviously the appearance bonus for commentators would eat into that, but Shirley worth considering).
Overseas fans could be charged £10 a game that'd be another £30,000 easy
*this is just a joke btw*
Giving it away free for a full year is probably a bit excessive, but making the first three months free to air could work and get people hooked on the content (assuming it's good enough quality, both the action on the pitch and the production values that is!)
I don't think a weekend pass would work, as who'd pay £6.99 for a few interviews and match highlights?
What you've described is what is already there.
They've also been suggesting that they're filming a load of new content for the new service so it will be loads better than what you can already get (obviously we won't know whether that's the case or not until it launches)
I have this awful woman sitting next to me every game, who comes along with her husband who I work with and who also sits close by. She really is clingy, and seems to think I am fantastic and brilliant (which, or course, I'm not!). Whenever I get into conversations with my friends, she always tries to appear to know what I'm talking about, and answers their questions and comments before I get a chance, which is really annoying, both to me and to my friends. Recently, she has been photo-bombing me at every opportunity, and stealing my smirk in videos, leaving me with nowhere to look. It really is tiresome. I am told that she goes on and on and on about me on social media, building me up as some sort of goddess like being, who has saved de cloob from oblivion, which of course I haven't (if only, eh?!?). I've tried talking about this issue with my uncle, who is very close to me, but he said that while we remain in the Premiership playing to sell out crowds every week, he doesn't see how we can change the seating arrangements at all. I just can't win!
How do I let her down gently please?
Yours
C.E. Owen (Ms)
All the digital currency in the world won't buy you out of this one