Mascots now charged (1 Viewer)

Just looking at Bayern’s commercial strategy. Maybe a bit high to aim arguably, but I think we can learn some stuff. They have long term commercial partners like Audi, Adidas and Allianz who own a small stake in the club and have worked with them for years with long term deals that play into the brand of the club, same as their shirt sponsor Deutsche Telekom. They also are starting to open training camps and the like in other markets that help their sponsors gain visibility there.

Just wondering what a cut price version of that would look like. Coventry and Warwickshire based businesses we could forge a long term relationship with. For me it should be JLR, Warwick Uni, Cov Uni, Aston Martin, Codemasters, big multinational locally headquartered brands.

Any other ideas or does anyone know if there’s a reason these sorts of brands haven’t been involved with the club?

Fans are peanuts really. TV money and sponsorship bring in the biggest chunk of money in most clubs. Fans should really be there to add atmosphere, spread the brand, and for lifetime value IMO. Get em in cheap and make money long term.

Other things like quality merchandise that reaches outside the fan base (see some of the recent kits especially two tone) as well but that’s much harder to reliably do. But worth a shot putting some effort into stuff that can become fashionable and promoted through influencers and the like. I won’t pretend I understand fashion though.

Alex1987 said:

with the supply and demand I think the deal is actually decent value (sorry!).

we often slate the club for being unsavvy with making money, but when they are they also get slated it seems!

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I don't think it's a question of value. Simply a shame that some kids will miss out where previously they wouldn't.

How many mascots do they have? could the club not let a couple of jsb’s be a mascot for free for each game?

They are going to look at how quickly they sold out and think that was a great success.

shmmeee said:

Just looking at Bayern’s commercial strategy. Maybe a bit high to aim arguably, but I think we can learn some stuff. They have long term commercial partners like Audi, Adidas and Allianz who own a small stake in the club and have worked with them for years with long term deals that play into the brand of the club, same as their shirt sponsor Deutsche Telekom. They also are starting to open training camps and the like in other markets that help their sponsors gain visibility there.

Just wondering what a cut price version of that would look like. Coventry and Warwickshire based businesses we could forge a long term relationship with. For me it should be JLR, Warwick Uni, Cov Uni, Aston Martin, Codemasters, big multinational locally headquartered brands.

Any other ideas or does anyone know if there’s a reason these sorts of brands haven’t been involved with the club?

Fans are peanuts really. TV money and sponsorship bring in the biggest chunk of money in most clubs. Fans should really be there to add atmosphere, spread the brand, and for lifetime value IMO. Get em in cheap and make money long term.

Other things like quality merchandise that reaches outside the fan base (see some of the recent kits especially two tone) as well but that’s much harder to reliably do. But worth a shot putting some effort into stuff that can become fashionable and promoted through influencers and the like. I won’t pretend I understand fashion though.

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I really like to read these sorts of progressive posts and I think you are onto something that sadly due to those who are in positions of power, perhaps we are not in the best place to maximise the very real opportunities you have outlined.

Taking your points here is how I could see them working in a CCFC context:

Commericial partnerships: For a while we have been a slightly toxic brand with all the infighting with the Council and Wasps etc. We have also, until recently, occupied the lower reaches of the footballing pyramid and those two factors have not made us the commercial asset we have the potential to be. To an extent that has changed and now is the time for Fisher, Boddy etc to try and develop lasting commercial relationships that can generate the long term revenue streams we need.

Training camps: I grew up 40 miles from Coventry and went to a school arranged soccer camp run by CCFC (then of the premiership) it was great and spread the brand and resulted in a few locals in my area getting trials with the academy. There is no reason this should not be happening now and also the model implemented in overseas markets for brand promotion and talent spotting. The amount of technically skilled youngsters playing street football in France, Spain and further afield is significant. If CCFC were strategic we could target areas that had large populations but are not dominated by established big clubs.

Finally the branding of merchandise and it's wider reach: There is only so many occasions you can ware products with a full size logo on them. But there are variations that can be created that come from the logo or represent the essence of the club. Last season we produced some Phoenix from the flames type gear and a logo based around a castle. Both looked decent but did not scream exclusively sporting ware and therefore not suitable for nightclubs and bars etc.
There are so many designers out there these days i dont know why the club dont run a competition to create some clothing brands that could have crossover mainstream appeal in different markets. COH is definitely an influencer so is Tom Grennan and we should be using those links to appeal to wider target audiences. The cost of running a competition and getting a factory to make a few hundred and see how they sell would be minimal and would make great PR on social media.

I am sure if the club asked the fans they could form a working group to help move these sorts of enterprise's forward.

When it’s 40 quid to buy a cheap polyester replica shirt and people still buy them in their thousands you can’t blame the club for trying it on

The club claims on its website £125 is the cheapest in the championship

I think to be honest people are a bit out of touch here. I’ve randomly looked at lower level clubs - Rochdale charge more as an example. In fact I can find one - Exeter - which is cheaper (I haven’t looked at many) but they only allow a free ticket for an adult with the child ours seems 3 - and that’s £100

You can’t really compare as packages differ - Wigan is £250 I think but it seems more tickets - Rotherham in league 1 was £200 but includes a kit.

It’s unrealistic to be the only club offering it for free. I think our commercial department has under priced for a while. One suspects Doug King is going to take a more comparative pricing model if he takes over including a big increase in season ticket pricing

Grendel said:

I think to be honest people are a bit out of touch here. I’ve randomly looked at lower level clubs - Rochdale charge more as an example. In fact I can find one - Exeter - which is cheaper (I haven’t looked at many) but they only allow a free ticket for an adult with the child ours seems 3 - and that’s £100

You can’t really compare as packages differ - Wigan is £250 I think but it seems more tickets - Rotherham in league 1 was £200 but includes a kit.

It’s unrealistic to be the only club offering it for free. I think our commercial department has under priced for a while. One suspects Doug King is going to take a more comparative pricing model if he takes over including a big increase in season ticket pricing

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Which he’s quite entitled to do, but in return I’d want to see a less amateurish setup on the non footballing side of things.

Grendel said:

The club claims on its website £125 is the cheapest in the championship

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Is it wrong?

Sky Blue Pete said:

Is it wrong?

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Well I’ve not checked but it’s impossible to compare as the package is very low level compared to others

Grendel said:

Well I’ve not checked but it’s impossible to compare as the package is very low level compared to others

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I see makes sense

Sky_Blue_Dreamer said:

Does seem short-sighted when having a kid as a mascot could result in a lifetime of tickets/shirts/merch.

I understand the club wanting and needing to make more money but given shit they fail to do like the issue with the club shops (and especially not opening it after games) it feels like they need to look at maximising other areas first before doing this.

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This unfortunately is the approach that the club have taken for years - namely it should be free - we need to think like a championship club in all aspects and not to be the cheapest

Our offerings generally are just poor commercially with little add ons

this is our shirt sponsorship


Compare to Wigan

Grendel said:

This unfortunately is the approach that the club have taken for years - namely it should be free - we need to think like a championship club in all aspects and not to be the cheapest

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I do get that. My initial post was more about how we seem to make a pig's ear out of other revenue streams before we look at the long term ramifications of charging mascots and long term over short term revenue.

I also don't like the fact that by charging you're pretty much shutting of the experience for those from lower incomes. Someone above talked about it being sponsored and the mascots being chosen randomly, which I thought was an idea that could be pursued. I'd also like the experience to include stuff like you get a shirt to keep, signed by the team, a programme and a child and adult ticket.

Someone also mentioned about the club running programmes during school breaks and the mascots being chosen as prizes from those. I actually had something similar to that as a kid when I won an award at a CCFC soccer school and got a couple of tickets for a game . Also got our names and pic in the programme and got a quick walk on the pitch and a tannoy announcement either before the game or at half time. Spurs '89 I think it was.

Sky_Blue_Dreamer said:

I do get that. My initial post was more about how we seem to make a pig's ear out of other revenue streams before we look at the long term ramifications of charging mascots and long term over short term revenue.

I also don't like the fact that by charging you're pretty much shutting of the experience for those from lower incomes. Someone above talked about it being sponsored and the mascots being chosen randomly, which I thought was an idea that could be pursued. I'd also like the experience to include stuff like you get a shirt to keep, signed by the team, a programme and a child and adult ticket.

Someone also mentioned about the club running programmes during school breaks and the mascots being chosen as prizes from those. I actually had something similar to that as a kid when I won an award at a CCFC soccer school and got a couple of tickets for a game . Also got our names and pic in the programme and got a quick walk on the pitch and a tannoy announcement either before the game or at half time. Spurs '89 I think it was.

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we shouldn’t be doing things cheaply if free period - ticket promotions are different that’s standard

What does our commercial team actually do? It would take me probably a week to look at all our offerings and compare content and pricing to all league competitors

you know in this example there is something wrong when notts county are charging £275 for the privilege

Grendel said:

we shouldn’t be doing things cheaply if free period - ticket promotions are different that’s standard

What does our commercial team actually do? It would take me probably a week to look at all our offerings and compare content and pricing to all league competitors

you know in this example there is something wrong when notts county are charging £275 for the privilege

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I like tynan and mark but they need more staff

Wait so are we ripping fans off or not charging enough?

Sky Blue Pete said:

I like tynan and mark but they need more staff

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they could hire a student intern from a college to do the analysis - the colleges always are looking for opportunities- and to be honest as I say they could do it quickly themselves if they had to.

Whoever takes us over will address this and I suspect people will be in for a shock. We have set ourselves as a lower league club still in many ways

Nick said:

Wait so are we ripping fans off or not charging enough?

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not charging enough and maximising the fact we are a championship club

the offers are poor as well. The player sponsor offer is really low grade

Grendel said:

they could hire a student intern from a college to do the analysis - the colleges always are looking for opportunities- and to be honest as I say they could do it quickly themselves if they had to.

Whoever takes us over will address this and I suspect people will be in for a shock. We have set ourselves as a lower league club still in many ways

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The argument is maximising money to the first team squad. It’s a real skill to recognise limitations and allow others to take things on.

Nick said:

Wait so are we ripping fans off or not charging enough?

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We need to maximise all revenue streams but there are ways to not rip people off

Sky Blue Pete said:

The argument is maximising money to the first team squad. It’s a real skill to recognise limitations and allow others to take things on.

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Do you really believe everything you get told Pete?

Brighton Sky Blue said:

Do you really believe everything you get told Pete?

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Course not

Grendel said:

we shouldn’t be doing things cheaply if free period - ticket promotions are different that’s standard

What does our commercial team actually do? It would take me probably a week to look at all our offerings and compare content and pricing to all league competitors

you know in this example there is something wrong when notts county are charging £275 for the privilege

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You talk about not doing things free or cheap, then immediately say it's ok to make one of our biggest revenue streams cheap from time to time because there are other potential advantages.

Just as there are other advantages and opportunities with mascots. A lifetime of money spent on tickets and merchandise. On the day it could lead to other ticket sales because other family members want to see the child walk out on the pitch. The kid will probably want food and drink at the game.

As I said it'd be great if it could be done via some sort of sponsorship so the club get the revenue but the experience isn't limited to those who's families have the disposable income to afford it.

Sky_Blue_Dreamer said:

You talk about not doing things free or cheap, then immediately say it's ok to make one of our biggest revenue streams cheap from time to time because there are other potential advantages.

Just as there are other advantages and opportunities with mascots. A lifetime of money spent on tickets and merchandise. On the day it could lead to other ticket sales because other family members want to see the child walk out on the pitch. The kid will probably want food and drink at the game.

As I said it'd be great if it could be done via some sort of sponsorship so the club get the revenue but the experience isn't limited to those who's families have the disposable income to afford it.

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with upside down thinking like that you should join the commercial team

Sky Blue Pete said:

The argument is maximising money to the first team squad.

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Whoever told you that is an idiot

I don’t know why your laughing as they are as obviously the idea of resourcing a commercial department is to not be a cost but an added revenue generator for more money to go on the playing side not less

Grendel said:

I don’t know why your laughing as they are as obviously the idea of resourcing a commercial department is to not be a cost but an added revenue generator for more money to go on the playing side not less

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I’m laughing at your comment not at running the department to maximise revenue

Sky Blue Pete said:

I’m laughing at your comment not at running the department to maximise revenue

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Fair enough - also if the club want a VFM offer they should look at what Burnley do. They take a different view to some clubs in that they don’t go for the corporate / sponsors as the target

They look at the JSB equivalent only and it’s a comprehensive package including a kit for £150 and they offer a “lesser” deal at £50 for those members who can’t afford the VIP route

Grendel said:

Fair enough - also if the club want a VFM offer they should look at what Burnley do. They take a different view to some clubs in that they don’t go for the corporate / sponsors as the target

They look at the JSB equivalent only and it’s a comprehensive package including a kit for £150 and they offer a “lesser” deal at £50 for those members who can’t afford the VIP route

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The target for what?

Nick said:

The target for what?

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The commercial offer. Some clubs clearly target their sponsors and businesses

So Grendel is promoting a position which focuses on its supporters, especially the younger ones, rather than commercial and sponsorship. Which would seem to be stating the bleeding obvious.

Which is what I'm suggesting, albeit in a slightly different way. I'm suggesting using the sponsorship to subsidise the offer available to younger fans so that you have a revenue stream for many years, or even generations, to come.

Sky_Blue_Dreamer said:

So Grendel is promoting a position which focuses on its supporters, especially the younger ones, rather than commercial and sponsorship. Which would seem to be stating the bleeding obvious.

Which is what I'm suggesting, albeit in a slightly different way. I'm suggesting using the sponsorship to subsidise the offer available to younger fans so that you have a revenue stream for many years, or even generations, to come.

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Actually I’m suggesting Burnley are a team that adopt that method

It’s not stating the obvious as a lot of teams change far higher with offerings including hospitality. Include national league teams

You keep talking about revenue for generations to come which is something you’ve just made up in your head anyway. The jsb offer does that - this is an entirely different thing

There is no need to subsidise the offer for this club when others don’t - why is that your focus. If people pay it means you get engagement.

we’ve already said it’s the cheapest which it is (not a great message in my view) - why are you constantly looking at ways to devalue the brand - we should either charge £150 - £170 and include a kit or put the hospitality in and charge more - I’d actually go with the latter but also perhaps a cheaper bronze package with less benefits. The whole commercial area will be majorly changed if this takeover ever actually happens

Whatever your views on the Corporate offer it does seem to be very popular and maximises the pretty decent space available in the CBS.
If you add the 4 Corporate lounges plus Boxes it’s nearly 2000 people on a good match-day. Profit margin must be good too.
Whether we will continue to get such a good deal is to be seen under new ownership. Also whether the space continues to be available matchdays.


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