DN35 Jason and Andrew Interview

If you like a particular question please give it a vote, we always try and get through as many of the top rated ones as possible, with time constraints we obviously can’t get all the way down the list.

Quoted from Mikey_345

If you like a particular question please give it a vote, we always try and get through as many of the top rated ones as possible, with time constraints we obviously can’t get all the way down the list.

What about ones we don't like .Can we give them a thumbs down

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Moving them along a seat or 2, providing it's not into a restricted view, isn't going to cause any harm. Moving them to a completely different block however...

If I was asked to move I’d consider it, if I was told to move I’d consider not buying a season ticket.

I just wonder how many people who are going on about empty seats haven’t personally been able to buy tickets for a home game on a regular basis.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Genius idea… move season ticket holders so people who buy tickets on general sale can sit with their mates, sometimes 🤦‍♂️

Totally crap idea. I don't see why I should move to an inferior view just because the guy next to me wants his casual appearance mate/ relative to sit next to him. I have had the same seat, as a ST holder, for almost 20 seasons. I have seen ST holders come and go in the adjoining seats to me. Surely a casual fan comes to watch a game and if he can get the seat next to his mate then that's a bonus. It's getting like kids at school FFS - I'm not sitting at that desk because my bestie doesn't sit in the next one. I expect to be able to sit at a seat that I have paid for in advance and in the process provided funding in advance for the clubs working budget. How about somebody booking a prime seat months in advance to see a play/stage show, musical theatre etc. Then a few days before the performance to be informed that you are being moved to a lousy view at the back because your seat is being allocated to another person so they can sit next to a friend?
There is no easy answer to this situation but this is a totally unacceptable approach.

Lot of appetite for discussions on ticketing.  

Previously the club have defended not doing anything because we're not selling out. That line can't be dolled out again, as recently as last Monday we've seen on this forum alone several posters stating they couldn't get a ticket for love nor money, yet there was what...1000 empty seats dotted about?

I look forward to Jason and Andrew's response to the ticketing issue this time.

Quoted from rancido

Totally crap idea. I don't see why I should move to an inferior view just because the guy next to me wants his casual appearance mate/ relative to sit next to him. I have had the same seat, as a ST holder, for almost 20 seasons. I have seen ST holders come and go in the adjoining seats to me. Surely a casual fan comes to watch a game and if he can get the seat next to his mate then that's a bonus. It's getting like kids at school FFS - I'm not sitting at that desk because my bestie doesn't sit in the next one. I expect to be able to sit at a seat that I have paid for in advance and in the process provided funding in advance for the clubs working budget. How about somebody booking a prime seat months in advance to see a play/stage show, musical theatre etc. Then a few days before the performance to be informed that you are being moved to a lousy view at the back because your seat is being allocated to another person so they can sit next to a friend?
There is no easy answer to this situation but this is a totally unacceptable approach.

Yeah I wouldn't be in favour of moving my season ticket seat that I've nicely got my bottom groove into for the last 30 years.  But something has to be done...  At the minute it does annoy me that we're not doing anything.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Lot of appetite for discussions on ticketing.  

Previously the club have defended not doing anything because we're not selling out. That line can't be dolled out again, as recently as last Monday we've seen on this forum alone several posters stating they couldn't get a ticket for love nor money, yet there was what...1000 empty seats dotted about?

I look forward to Jason and Andrew's response to the ticketing issue this time.

Surely tickets sold( or ST's reserved) leading to unavailability and empty seats are two separate issues? The club could be quite correct in stating that there are no home seats available. People who bought tickets or are ST holders and then choose not to attend for whatever reason is an issue. But whatever system is put in place will never completely resolve this problem.
We also have the problem of restricted view seats. We can either totally take these out of availability ( and reduce capacity) or try to modify the area around those seats to make the view better.
We could try to convert the Osmond Standard so that the required percentage is made available for away supporters and the remaining seats dedicated for home supporters. Obviously this will impact in away support from certain clubs who would easily surpass the required minimum.
We then have the small groups of fans ( non ST's) who will only attend if they can sit together. It is this group who are very hard to cater for, with a situation of 'winners and losers'.
All things added up make for a very difficult situation for the club to resolve for the benefit of everybody.

I think ST's sold and then not used (or released) is part of the wider issue of unavailability of seats.

Monday, as an example, was a case of people simply couldn't buy a ticket.  Yet in the actual ground there as a good 1000 unoccupied seats.  This has been the case pretty much all season.  Around me, again all season, there's unoccupied seats with reserved stickers on them, they're not available for purchase on a game-by-game basis.

You're right, this has always been the case to a degree.  Not all season ticket holders can make all 23 games of the league season, every season. I include myself in that.  But last season this situation was magnified.  When we were selling 3000 season tickets and only pulling gates of 5000 no-one cared.  There was very, very rarely an occasion when we came close to putting up the Sold Out signs up.

Alone, making sure unused ST's are put back into the system won't address the issue of our demand outstripping our capacity.  But it'll go towards it.  Same as the issue with restricted view seats, which I really believe needs sorting.  The views in those seats, especially the ones that more or less have the bloody goal blocked by the Police Box, is appalling.  It's embarrassing that we would charge anything near full price to sit in those seats.

Again, I agree.  We'll never resolve the problem fully.  And in some ways it's a lovely problem to have.  But long term we should be doing everything to maximise and capitalise in the interest that exists at present in the club.  This season the club made a big step by flexing that availability in the away end, that's a good and smart move.  But there's more that can be done.  Will it be easy? No.  But easy means we stay as we are, at best.

Quoted from rancido

Totally crap idea. I don't see why I should move to an inferior view just because the guy next to me wants his casual appearance mate/ relative to sit next to him. I have had the same seat, as a ST holder, for almost 20 seasons. I have seen ST holders come and go in the adjoining seats to me. Surely a casual fan comes to watch a game and if he can get the seat next to his mate then that's a bonus. It's getting like kids at school FFS - I'm not sitting at that desk because my bestie doesn't sit in the next one. I expect to be able to sit at a seat that I have paid for in advance and in the process provided funding in advance for the clubs working budget. How about somebody booking a prime seat months in advance to see a play/stage show, musical theatre etc. Then a few days before the performance to be informed that you are being moved to a lousy view at the back because your seat is being allocated to another person so they can sit next to a friend?
There is no easy answer to this situation but this is a totally unacceptable approach.

Agree completely when I said "genius idea" I was being sarcastic, it's bonkers and I'd be amazed if we took a step to p1ss off season ticket holders.

Quoted from diehardmariner

I think ST's sold and then not used (or released) is part of the wider issue of unavailability of seats.

Monday, as an example, was a case of people simply couldn't buy a ticket.  Yet in the actual ground there as a good 1000 unoccupied seats.  This has been the case pretty much all season.  Around me, again all season, there's unoccupied seats with reserved stickers on them, they're not available for purchase on a game-by-game basis.

You're right, this has always been the case to a degree.  Not all season ticket holders can make all 23 games of the league season, every season. I include myself in that.  But last season this situation was magnified.  When we were selling 3000 season tickets and only pulling gates of 5000 no-one cared.  There was very, very rarely an occasion when we came close to putting up the Sold Out signs up.

Alone, making sure unused ST's are put back into the system won't address the issue of our demand outstripping our capacity.  But it'll go towards it.  Same as the issue with restricted view seats, which I really believe needs sorting.  The views in those seats, especially the ones that more or less have the bloody goal blocked by the Police Box, is appalling.  It's embarrassing that we would charge anything near full price to sit in those seats.

Again, I agree.  We'll never resolve the problem fully.  And in some ways it's a lovely problem to have.  But long term we should be doing everything to maximise and capitalise in the interest that exists at present in the club.  This season the club made a big step by flexing that availability in the away end, that's a good and smart move.  But there's more that can be done.  Will it be easy? No.  But easy means we stay as we are, at best.

Some fair comment here, I did submit a question asking if the club had a process to measure true demand versus availability but doubt it will get asked.