I was disappointed when I received this from Lars, founder of Swedish Addicks.
(FYI: Lars has supported Charlton since 1978 and Swedish Addicks has existed for 20 years)
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I have probably never felt so absent. The club has gone through many hardships but now it feels like the soul is missing. I'm in a number of Facebook groups and it's very quiet in them too.
Our contacts with the club also lack soul. Despite pushback, we still haven't received the shirts we sponsored last season and this season they have raised the price for the sponsorship by about 75%. They have certainly added some features but those are only things that are interesting if you can be there at the matches. In the past, we have negotiated away such things and thus lowered the price, but now it is suddenly impossible.
Instead they offer us to sponsor 3 kits that don't include any packages but just the shirt, for £350.
Regarding this year's sponsorship, it feels extra sad considering that we have continuously sponsored 2-3 players for 20 years with the exception of one year when we boycotted it due to RD.
Overall, interest from my side has never been lower than now, unfortunately.
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Surely the club can do better than this?
Comments
In all seriousness, this is a bit sad though, hopefully someone reads this and makes a change
(Much bigger rivalry between Norway and Sweden - mainly due to winter sports).
I agree. It is a bit sad.
Agree and when they ring up asking why, as they love a phone call, let them know in no uncertain terms.
Sorry just channeling my 70's Monty Python spirit guide.
Another example of shooting themselves in the foot.
I asked several months ago on here what had happened to the Fans' Forum but that seems to have been scrapped. THIS was the main vehicle for dialogue berween the fans & the club & was acknowledged as such. I cannot believe that the Fans' Advisors have anywhere near the same degree of positive communication on behalf of fellow fans.
And of course there's no feedback to fans in general regarding any issues they may forward to the SMT....
Surely we're not regressing into the category of "customers" applied by that infamous CEO ?
We fans are the lifeblood of our club , wherever we live, and the manner in which we support it.
This current issue could be the tip of a looming , large iceberg....
..and we know how dangerous that could be.
Maybe offer less, but what you do you should do to a high standard.
To an extent the communications could be much better, particularly with timely information about the things that matter to fans. Especially regarding non first team stuff.
It is always disappointing if elements of the club seem to take fan loyalty for granted.
I’d say the trust & the fan advisor should be the first port of call & take it from there.
It's not easy to navigate the OS when seeking information but I would suggest The Fans' Charter( if it's still in existence) is sought & checked as I believe there is something regarding the timescale in which communications must be responded to.
Once upon a time, the OS listed the names & contact details of staff responsible for a variety of issues ...
In recent seasons, under TS especially I believe, these were removed so the supporter requiring assistance is forced to contact the Club's Supporter Liaison Officer , Emma Stamford , with just an email address given. NO telephone numbers on the "Staff" link whatsoever.
Hardly adequate for open, prompt & satisfactory problem solving with the lifeblood of our club IMO.
The club will endeavour to respond to customer complaints within 10 working days of receipt of the communication. However, if it is not possible to provide a full response to the matters raised within this timeframe as further investigation is required, the complaint will be acknowledged within the 10 working days and a response sent within 21 working days. The club may respond by e-mail, letter or telephone
It almost appears that if you aren’t at the Valley spending money in person then there’s no real interest.
I received a response from the Commercial Sales Executive, who promised to rectify the issue. I also provided him with a link to this thread and urged him to address the concern about the lack of communication with his team.