Season tickets next season - what will they do?

[Billy Walker]

One of the criticisms constantly thrown at the club is they don't do anything imaginative on ticket sales. They won't fill the ground next year by freezing prices. Why not give them some ideas that might keep people coming through the doors next season and that would be palatable to our worn down support?

I've had conversations in the past with both Nicky Keye and Paul Faulkener about our ticket prices. Surely the objective is to fill our ground, not just for the next game, but for the next x number of years, kids ticket prices being the key to the longer term goal.

All they throw back at you is that our prices are good compared to other clubs. That's true, but isn't really that relevant. It doesn't matter to me how much other clubs charge, I'm not going to start going elsewhere because they are £5 cheaper than Villa. This applies to all Villa fans I would assume. Ticket prices at Villa are what gets the fans through the doors, not how much our tickets are compared with Everton, Stoke, Hull etc

They really need to get the kids through the doors next season when, hopefully, we will be winning more home games. If they don't. they will lose the next generation of potential Villa fans to becoming TV fans of Man City, Utd, Chelsea etc

They need to learn from West Ham - a club that has never had higher gates than us as far as I can remember  - and see how they've managed to shift all their season tickets for a 60k seater stadium.

Like you say, it's not just about prices, it's about ambition, top level marketing and connecting with fans.  The Club has failed at such things for far too long.

[Steve67]

The selection of the new Manager will play a big part in this.  Personally, I say try to fill the ground by halving the costs of season tickets and try to get the fans back on side. Money will be made by Villa through other sources at Villa Park on matchday by keeping the ground full, selling food and merchandise etc. As long as there are enough staff available to do the selling of course!  Got to make tickets sellable.  Try selling me a Holte End ST for around £300 and I would be interested, even in the Championship.

[oswald funkletrumpet]

not sure i get it

fans telling the club how to price tickets, what next?

what team should be picked? how the grass should be be cut on the pitch? what brand of pies to sell?

What's wrong with fans having an opinion on tickets prices and letting them be known?

nothing at all but be honest do you think that the club will think hang on a minute that was going to be our pricing structure but having received a letter we will change it

nice idea but will never happen on planet earth

[Hookeysmith]

Would they close part of the ground such as the upper witton lane stand home section maybe?

I overheard an old gentleman in the Trinity Rd Lift saying they were going to shut the top tier next season.I am not so sure though, they will be the most expensive tickets with matchday revenue more important next year.

This is a serious consideration and will reduce staff costs without ruining the image on tv games. Will mean other areas will be fuller

[saunders_heroes]

not sure i get it

fans telling the club how to price tickets, what next?

what team should be picked? how the grass should be be cut on the pitch? what brand of pies to sell?

What's wrong with fans having an opinion on tickets prices and letting them be known?

nothing at all but be honest do you think that the club will think hang on a minute that was going to be our pricing structure but having received a letter we will change it

nice idea but will never happen on planet earth

Well if they want to get back on-side with the fan base they should be looking at things like this. We've suffered enough since 2010 and I'm all for the fans speaking out. The club should listen.

[Chris Harte]

Some sort of reward for continuously renewing over the last five years would be nice.

I bet it doesn't happen though.

[Chico Hamilton III]

They need to learn from West Ham - a club that has never had higher gates than us as far as I can remember  - and see how they've managed to shift all their season tickets for a 60k seater stadium.

Like you say, it's not just about prices, it's about ambition, top level marketing and connecting with fans.  The Club has failed at such things for far too long

Easy, you just get a tax-payer funded 60k stadium which cost £750m to build and pay £2m a year to rent it, sell adult season tickets from £500 - £900  and charge everyone £10 just to go on a waiting list to find out more information. With West Ham and their owners ( who I wouldn't be surprised to see sell the club next season to the highest overseas bidder) it is all about the prices and the money. Their model seems to be to squeeze every extra penny out of the affluent support base. I don't think there's much we need to learn from them, except maybe their kids' season ticket prices.

[ClaretAndBlueBlood]

Some sort of reward for continuously renewing over the last five years would be nice.

I bet it doesn't happen though.

we should be rewarded with a white unremoveable jacket for that

[Chris Harte]

Some sort of reward for continuously renewing over the last five years would be nice.

I bet it doesn't happen though.

we should be rewarded with a white unremoveable jacket for that

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, isn't it?

[Billy Walker]

They need to learn from West Ham - a club that has never had higher gates than us as far as I can remember  - and see how they've managed to shift all their season tickets for a 60k seater stadium.

Like you say, it's not just about prices, it's about ambition, top level marketing and connecting with fans.  The Club has failed at such things for far too long

Easy, you just get a tax-payer funded 60k stadium which cost £750m to build and pay £2m a year to rent it, sell adult season tickets from £500 - £900  and charge everyone £10 just to go on a waiting list to find out more information. With West Ham and their owners ( who I wouldn't be surprised to see sell the club next season to the highest overseas bidder) it is all about the prices and the money. Their model seems to be to squeeze every extra penny out of the affluent support base. I don't think there's much we need to learn from them, except maybe their kids' season ticket prices.

You're quite right, obviously the excitement of having a brand new stadium helps.  However, prior to this, say five years ago, if you'd asked anyone who follows football whether they thought West Ham could fill a 60k stadium most, I reckon,  would have replied "no chance".  What West Ham have done very well is engaged with their fans and ramped up a sense of ambition around their club.  I don't know what the prices of tickets are for next season there compared to previous seasons at Upton Park/Boleyn Ground but the whole process has certainly energised their fanbase and they are snapping up tickets.  Would the same happen at Villa if we showed genuine ambition, engaged with fans  and employed top marketing strategies?  I have no doubt at all that it would. 

[ClaretAndBlueBlood]

Hamilton Accies are charging £14 for a kids season ticket next season, in honour of John Cruyff. Imaginitive

[Ad@m]

Would the same happen at Villa if we showed genuine ambition, engaged with fans  and employed top marketing strategies?  I have no doubt at all that it would. 

Probably not.  History shows that regardless of what happens the Villa fanbase tends not to move around too much.  This is part of what caught Randy out - he thought he could buy this underachieving Birmingham club, give the local populace something to get behind and the fans would come in their thousands.  What he found was that our attendances peaked the first year we finished 6th and actually fell over both the next two seasons, despite us finishing 6th again and bettering our cup performance from the previous year both times.

If we moved the club to London however...

[martin o`who??]

Well they'll probably come with a health warning for a start.

[AVH87]

Would the same happen at Villa if we showed genuine ambition, engaged with fans  and employed top marketing strategies?  I have no doubt at all that it would. 

Probably not.  History shows that regardless of what happens the Villa fanbase tends not to move around too much.  This is part of what caught Randy out - he thought he could buy this underachieving Birmingham club, give the local populace something to get behind and the fans would come in their thousands.  What he found was that our attendances peaked the first year we finished 6th and actually fell over both the next two seasons, despite us finishing 6th again and bettering our cup performance from the previous year both times.

If we moved the club to London however...

We went from 40,000 to 39,800 - that's the most tiny fall so your statement comes across as harsh, the season after that was 38,500 but could that not have been because we went pretty much all the way in both cups so people had a lot to pay for with extra home cup ties, meaning a few of the league gates suffered? I think we'd have stayed around 40k if we stayed in the top 6.

[SoccerHQ]

Would they close part of the ground such as the upper witton lane stand home section maybe?

I overheard an old gentleman in the Trinity Rd Lift saying they were going to shut the top tier next season.I am not so sure though, they will be the most expensive tickets with matchday revenue more important next year.

It's a third full for half the premier league fixtures so can't really see anyone being in there next season when you consider the usual matchday price up there is 40 quid! And I can't really see a 50% price reduction.