Make no bones about it, it is unparalleled in terms of the Premier League and is something that no other club can match at the moment. Even I’m thinking of getting one!
The question I’m posing is whether or not it makes any sense. Yes there is a rather large and lengthly recession on at the moment and people may be feeling the pinch, but my business head is still crunching the numbers and searching for the answer to what seems to be an unanswerable question.
I say unanswerable because it simply goes against everything that the club seem to be about these days. While fans may be happy, ecstatic even, that they can get to see a game for less than £15 (or less that £3 if you’re a kid) it doesn’t exactly make any business sense. And with business being one of the buzz words at Newcastle right now I have to question the motive behind this.
To make my point I need to crunch some numbers, which I like doing thanks to a history of having to do it at various jobs in my past. Believe me I was never a fan of it at school, but how things change…
Anyway, say that the price, assuming that you partake of one of these cheap season tickets, is £15 per game. Then compare that with the average ticket price (including all categories) of £27 and you can see that there is quite the difference between selling a seat for a season and selling a seat on a per game basis.
In actual fact the club could effectively have one empty seat for every full seat on per game basis and still not lose out. In fact they would actually gain should attendances surge upwards, as they are doing right now in fact as witnessed by the 48,000+ crowd against Wigan at the weekend. If Wigan fans actually travelled in numbers then we could have easily broke the 50,000 barrier.
Losing out on money does not sound like the approach of either the club or Mike Ashley. It goes against everything that the club has done over the last few years and is a mismatch when compared against the business philosophy we’ve been told the club is being run by these days.
So with the business reason all but ruled out I can only think that there is one reason why this new initiative has been started – generosity.
This is not generosity in terms of getting something for nothing. Instead it’s a deal designed to reward those fans who have already parted with their hard earned and gives them a chance to bring their mates or family along to a match at a knockdown price. Given that the club would be no worse off for not doing this I can only think that the motive behind this is to make the stadium full once more, even if it means a potential loss of revenue for the club.
I really have to doff my cap to Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias on this one. They’ve done something outside of the box that no other club has even contemplated. They may have made some shocking calls in their time, but this is a move purely designed to benefit the fans. If you don’t believe that then crunch the numbers for yourself.
Now where is the catch?
Simples.
Give them cheap season tickets and get more fans used to going every week. Hope next season they won’t be able to do without it and sign up for a full season at full price.
Negative side is a lot of fans waiting 8 games before buying on, hoping they’ll half the price again.
CHRIS11(Quote)
I’m getting mine… as soon as my mate gives me his bank account numbers to put me money into his account.
Nobby(Quote)
Its a fantastic offer and if I lived in newcastle I would take full advantge of it. Without doing the figures Im guessing they think better to have attendence 50-52000 than 40-45000 , its more burgers and cokes to sell. Could also be a big selling point to future signings. Whatever the reason I think the club need to be applauded for such a move.
Johno Toon(Quote)
Simple answer Toonsy
The board have taken advantage of our tremendous start, with the knowledge that fans will take up the offer seeing our team playing well.
However, we now have a tricky cup tie, tough away tie against Stoke, and then we play the BIG three, which means, that the buzz will probably die down a bit, within the next month. Attendances will probably drop a bit and now is the right time to ensure those seats are filled for the rest of the season.
So in actual fact, to me, it makes very good business sense.
JJ(Quote)
Question…
If the team had got off to a poor start, and attendances dropped to 40k, and we were lying around 17th now with six points or so… would you still get a season ticket???
Its perfect timing by the board. The tickets will be sold and the money will be in the bank regardless of what happens in the remainder of the season.
JJ(Quote)
Of course this makes sense.
Empty seats = no money
Half price seats= some money
He’s a businessman people. Simples !
RR(Quote)
I think I would JJ. But that is prob becasue Im not from the area and its still a complete novelity to go to a match when I do go.
Johno Toon(Quote)
Ticket sales are not the only revenue stream. They would rather have more people at the ground than fewer, as it means more merchandise and beer sales + more marketing possibilities for Ashley…..still a great offer, not matter if it’s generosity or business nous.
Jimal Fikzit(Quote)
I was thinking it might have been something to help improve the atmosphere inside the ground, which was like a morgue at times in the 1st half on saturday.
But this has been thought out before that, so think there must be something deeper behind it.
Generosity tho? Meh 😡
just doesn’t ring true, especially as there were a few renditions of “get out of our club” being sung.
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
How does it not make sense? Buying one of these tickets for the empty seats brings in guaranteed revenue. Tickets game by game may have more of a face value but there is no guarantee that someone will buy one for every game. If someone makes the commitment and buys a season ticket they are likely to turn up every game thus then also buy programmes, pies, pints, merchandise etc. It makes total sense as as well as bringing in some extra coin it fills some of the empty seats that can only help the lads on the pitch.
Toon Stew(Quote)
RR – My point being that by selling tickets on a game by game basis there would be more money to come into the club. Essentially they could leave the seats empty and be no worse off providing the seats sold were full price tickets.
It makes no business sense whatsoever. Why sell something for half price when you’ll be no worse off selling it for full price?
To me it’s just actually a nice gesture from the club 😯
toonsy(Quote)
look at what home games we have left fkin bargain…
hitman(Quote)
Much bigger risk not tying the fans down to season tix. Who knows if the fans’ll keep coming game-by-game? What happens when we lose a few games? Makes more sense to make fans commit the full season.
Jimal Fikzit(Quote)
Plus with renewal time coming before the end of the season, there is always a chance that there will be a bigger uptake next for next season.
I’m sorry to be cynical, but there is more to this than just a nice gesture.
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
So where have you been until now Toonsy. I’d expect a fan with his own blog talking about the Toon daily with such gusto and knowledge – which reaps cash in from your advertising and constant thread-making (mostly pointless and often dramatic to get the extra hits) – to have a season ticket. Remeber you don’t see half of what is going on when weatching it on the box or internet!!!!!!!
As for the others like Nobby – why haven’t you got yours before the season started?? Those seats have been em,pty for a few years now. You come on and make comments about the toon but don’t spend your money like the rest of us? I’ve had two pay cuts and still travel down from Glasgow (for 10 years – season ticket for 19 years) doing a £100 outlay each time. If its really in your heart you’ll find the money.
Very good business sense and a good idea from the club.
As for Toonsy’s maths – I think you’ll find the club were selling half price tickets at the door on Saturday, thus increasing crowd numbers. Get your facts right before putting out your pointless ramblings.
You Amateur.
chris(Quote)
🙂
toonsy(Quote)
“which reaps cash in from your advertising and constant thread-making”
I see the clueless brigade are out in force again 🙂
They weren’t half price tickets on Saturday. They were £20 pay on the day cash tickets only available via certain turnstiles before 2pm.
toonsy(Quote)
ouch 😉
keith(Quote)
“So where have you been until now Toonsy.”
Working weekends 😕
toonsy(Quote)
I think it’s a mixture of all these things.
– Nice gesture; giving some of the spoils of success back
– Recognising the importance of the support to performances
– Recognising the importance of the support to RECRUITMENT
– A loss-leader to get season ticket sales up next season and beyond by bringing in new blood.
– A way to sell more pies. Mike likes pies.
All of the above are good reasons to me. There’s no catch; it’s a good thing for all and should be applauded. Wuddun
….As long as I can still get 4 tickets for the QPR game in January. I’m not driving over 1,000 miles to watch in a pub. 😕
Whumpie(Quote)
Think it’s actually a decent gesture, let’s face it if we have a bad run they could quite easily reduce match day tickets for non category a games then charge full price for games against manure, citeh, scousers
Some people just like to moan 🙂
stevep(Quote)
Of course it makes perfect sense not only from a sporting pov but from business point of view. Taking the extra cash generated by the tickets itself it has something like knock on effect on every aspect of the club. Someone already mentioned the increase in revenue generated by selling more food and drink. On top of that think if you negotiate with sponsers and you can say look we have currently X amount of season tickets. This will show anyone intersted in advertising at the ground that he gets more value for money than anywhere else. I think this puts the club in a very strong possition to attract new sponsors and increase revenue out of existing sponsors. Further think the increased number of Season tickets could help with new player recruitment too. 🙂
flash(Quote)
“Get your facts right before putting out your pointless ramblings.
You Amateur.”……oh the irony 😆
richietoon(Quote)
SteveP – Exactly. Like they don against Wigan where they offered out cheap tickets for that game to help them sell. That’s why I’m saying it just a good gesture as it makes little financial sense, in the short term anyway, although I’ll concede that it’s better to show prospective employees/advertisers/corporate etc that we have a sold gate attendance.
toonsy(Quote)
Chris the super supporter 😆 you really do come across as a total fuking Muppet.
Is there a point your trying to make or are you just bored between class’s
Big Dave(Quote)
Clueless Brigade here…….
What, so you don’t even see the games if you work weekends then? Positioning yourself perfectly here for the author of a blog about all things Toonish…….Getting a ticket isn’t gonna make a whole load of sense.
You also seem clued up with the pricing of the tickets on saturday….apologies and good work………..hardly represented in your maths though is it, which can only work to suggest that cheaper tickets = more people = more money.
Presume from your well considered response you obviously get no advertising money either, and this aint even slightly a reason for whipping oot the threads thick and fast?
chris(Quote)
Good move by the Toon in my view and I think other clubs will follow suit as crowds at most clubs have been dropping of late. Newcastle are actually doing some positive things for the fans and yet they still get questioned, guess they can’t win.
simon(Quote)
Bog off, Chris; nobody on here wants to hear your kind of poisonous, arrogant ****. I don’t care if you sleep in a shoebox on the M1 and get up before you go to bed to lick the tarmac clean. If you can’t post better than that then there are plenty of other blogs that will welcome you.
Whumpie(Quote)
on topic I think it makes more sense to have the seats guaranteed to be taken rather than take the chance that they Might sell them.
To me its a win win situation the club gets the money for the seats and get the ground full which will help the team, and the long suffering Fans get something back in return for their continued support.
Big Dave(Quote)
A good gesture from mike and derrick he he he he, i agree with some of the views above its about making money nothing more nothing less , toon stew @9 is spot on apart from pies and pints as the caring duo have franchised the catering outlets in a deal worth 5 million as always with dodgy businessmen its about getting the cash in now and hording it away never the long term !
keith(Quote)
Chris – All the advertising is commission based and nobody really bothers with it in fairness. To date I’ve made £0 in commission 😆
As for working weekends, I don’t work every weekend but I do work enough to know that buying a season isn’t worthwhile which is why I pick and choose the games that I go to, and even if I don’t see the game due to work I stay well clear of anything to do with it and make sure another writer, who has been at the game or watched it, does all the reports and stuff 🙂
My point being why I’m considering it is that I’m fairly certain that I can get to at least five games so it makes financial sense to just buy one of the season tickets instead of buying them on an individual basis. It also helps with away tickets as it’s the away games that I go to more than anything else.
toonsy(Quote)
To be honest does it really matter, the real reasons behind it? It will enable some people to go to every home match who otherwise would have only been to go to the odd one here and there which is surely good is it not?
richietoon(Quote)
Dave – I agree with that. I’ve even said it’s a great move. But they have just capped the amount they’ll bring in through tickets to a level that is less than they could have brought in had they just left the individual seats up for sale.
Like the ten year ticket deal. Brilliant for fans. But what happens in 5, 6, 7 years times when our gate revenue is still capped at 2011 levels whilst other have increased their ticket prices?
toonsy(Quote)
is the toon match on the net 2mora night???
Army69(Quote)
Whey hey Army lad, where ya been?
richietoon(Quote)
So there is more than 1 clueless chris 😆
Toonsy why do you even waste your time explaining yersel to muppets like that, its obvious from there posts that they are only on here to have a go at you and the blog.
Big Dave(Quote)
M Ashley wont own the club then and wont care ie short term gain not long term investment .
keith(Quote)
I just like to talk to people Dave 😥
toonsy(Quote)
benny , marv , santon , elliott , lovenkrands and gosling all should start tomorrow night , keep cabaye , collo and best in for some spine!!
my team 2mora
elliott
raylor williamson collo santon
marveaux cabaye gosling ferguson
benny
best or lovenkrands
rest guitierez , obertan , ba , taylor , tiote , simpson and krul
Army69(Quote)
Army where have you been lad ?
Big Dave(Quote)
Keith – But there is no gain at all in the ten year deal. Again there will be no increase which will limit our gate income in the future so unless any new owner lifts it straight away then…..
But if any new owner does, what will the fans make of that one? Imagine if the cost of a season ticket went up by 20/30% in one hit? 😕
toonsy(Quote)
alreeeet richie haha , havent been well with me dodgy stomach lad , on the mend now tho!! hope yous are all kepping mint!! unbeaten eh!! didnt play that good on sat but who im soooooo impressed with this season is gutierez , he is **** hot!!
Army69(Quote)
hallow dave lad , hows things ?? kids and health has kept me away 😆
Army69(Quote)
Army – People have been asking where you’ve been! How is the nipper? All good and well yeah?
toonsy(Quote)
Glad ya on the mend mate, did ya not want Jonas to be subbed every game then? 😉 😆
richietoon(Quote)
Even Clueless Chris did support the move by the club. I think that’s unanimous!
😯
Hat’s off to ’em – whatever the motives, it’s a good thing.
Whumpie(Quote)
Isn’t is crazy how a blg can make a person so angry that they decide they HAVE to post total vitriol about it BEFORE asking questions – instead criticizing before they are even in possession of ANY of the facts… If you dont like it that much, breeze on by and move on to soemthing more suited to your own tastes. This like (like EVERY other) is not going to please everybody, but it pleases enough to ensure a large number of readers make this site their FIRST stop when turning their computers on…. So fook off!
Shamrock(Quote)
haha i didnt think any1 would have noticed i had been 😆 , aye the nipper is mint toonsy hes 20 weeks now , getting massive!! just took him to get his injections , poor sod screamed 😯
Army69(Quote)
richietoon
October 25, 2011 at 13:59
Glad ya on the mend mate, did ya not want Jonas to be subbed every game then?
hahaha …. hands up in the air i was wrong , bluddy drop it haha 😆
Army69(Quote)
ARMY – Williamson is out for a couple of months yet, butKadar is going strong in the reserves. Be worth giving him a game I reckon so he can show what he can do… 🙂
Shamrock(Quote)
shamrock , kadar should defo have a chance like , hope benny and marv get a full run out with santon
Army69(Quote)
Toonsy 😆 I bet your the type that bring’s stray dogs and all home 😀 keep ye company.
Army never mind rair weather supporter, we were starting to think you were a transfer window supporter 😉
Big Dave(Quote)
hahaha ner ner i bleed black and white bud , have we signed any1 yet?? oh **** thats for january 😎
Army69(Quote)
Its probably protected through change of undertakings so if someone else came in i dont think they could change it and that is a bad thing for the club because if mike sells he is forcing the new owner to keep the prices at an unrealistic price for many years , my point is over the last few years gates have dropped and season ticket numbers have declined so a 10 year fixed offer was to good to turn down for many people as was the 3 year deal ( which i picked ) these deals are large amounts of money in one go in the bank wheras the walk in tickets are a trickle of money over the season and are more dependent on us continuing our good form which is a financial risk . All of this leads me into seeing only short term investment for immediate financial gain , same as the Carroll money which has dissapeared and that is why january is huge to see if he cashes in on tiote colo krul etc and the money again dissapears , all of the evidence points to short term not long term 😈
keith(Quote)
Having a guaranteed fixed income, over an unguaranteed variable income, provides a better cash-flow which is generally the preferred indicator for evaluating how valuable (and loan-worthy) any given business is by lenders/investors. MA is a trader, he makes money by buying in bulk and turning over commodities – in our case, players / sausages / beer etc etc. With better cash flow gives better ability to borrow money gives ability to buy more product and achieve better prices buying in bulk and turn bigger profits. Having supporters guarantee cash-flow and then be in house to buy product is very valuable. Furthermore, the more people who see SPORTS DIRECT signs, the better figures in terms of market exposure that we can give to other potential sponsors.
TOONPIPES(Quote)
If people want a really profitable club then we have the right owner .(but we are not shareholders we dont get the money !!! )
If peaple want a stable team that looks towards the long term then i dont think we have , but january will tell us a lot . 😯
keith(Quote)
TP what about Pies ? 😆
Big Dave(Quote)
Another plus – having 10000 extra fans eternally grateful plus 5000 season ticket holders grateful as they could help out friends and family. A win win in turning the whole stadium positive and a fortress again.
Stardust(Quote)
Keith, it depends what fans expect to see in January. Personally I’d be happy to keep hold of our key players and maybe add one or two faces if available at the right place who fit our current profile.
I reckon those 1 or 2 players will be very hard to come by though, as prices get pushed up in January and this club will not pay over the odds. If there are no early arrivals, I reckon there will no arrivals at all…
Key is keeping the likes of Colo, Tiote, Cabaye etc. If top sides are sniffing around them and our club turns down all offers, then it shows we are moving in the right direction in terms of future on the pitch stability.
Shamrock(Quote)
sorry Big Dave – 😛 lots of pies – there will still be pies
TOONPIPES(Quote)
By the way ladies & gents at some point tomorrow I’ll be writing another ‘fringe player focus’ article. We have covered Guthrie & Vuckic so far. Is there anybody in particular you would like to see covered sooner rather than later or are you happy to just wait and see who I pull out of the bag so to speak? 🙂
Shamrock(Quote)
Got to be a good idea it should fill the ground 😕 Toonsy you attacted them as bad as me 😉
batty(Quote)
And fergie. How about kadar?
toonsy(Quote)
Shamrock I agree “if they turn them down” but do you think they will ??
And does that mean we have written the Carroll money of ! if so that worries me as the ownership wont think twice about doing it again .
Personally id be happy if we just keep what we have but do you think we will ?
keith(Quote)
Oh yeah, forgot about him! Yes Kadar could be good timing actually seeing as he is coming to fruitition again in the reserves… 🙂
Shamrock(Quote)
army hope your well mate ,it went through my mind you had been locked up 😉
batty(Quote)
Keith – I’ve got no idea mate. After years of bad times under this board, it’s unsettling for things to finally appear to be going right for a change. On one hand it could be the ‘masterplan’ finally coming together – in which case, I’d hope to see us now begin to keep our best playersas we make strides to become a force again, but on the other hand it might just be part of a different ‘masterplan’ to make as much money as possible from players to clear the books and sell up to the highest bidder.
The reason I’m hoping that is not the case is that it would be impossible to get a new manager to buy into such a concept as it would do irreversible damage to his career and reputation. Selling top players this Jan would undoubtedly cause uproar amongst the fans on a scale not seen before I reckon – as it would appear like their trust has been slapped down to the ground and kicked in the ribs a lot harder than ever before….
It’s just a gut feeling at the moment, but I reckon the corner has been turned. Dont quote me on that at the end of the season though, because there is always that lingering doubt at the back of even the most optimistic fans’ mind! 😆
Shamrock(Quote)
batty
October 25, 2011 at 14:56
army hope your well mate ,it went through my mind you had been locked up
haha ner not this time buddy
Army69(Quote)
who thinks against stoke we should play marveaux on the right and obertan on the bench?? i rekn marv has alot more quality and his final ball cant be as bad as obertans !! i think ober is lacking a bit confidence , he needs to start bombing down the wing alot more as his pace would frighten any left back
Army69(Quote)
I think it will be marv on for Jonas and Obi still playing on the right.
Like Army says, he needs to keep playing to boost his confidence and improve his wing play.
Plus Jonas needs a rest imo.
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Army – It’s a ricky one. Obertan’s running and pace draw a lot of players out of position making space for our other lads to create chances. He has also done his bit in an unbeaten side for a long period of time now. That said, Marveaux is looking very strong and needs an opportunity to show what he can do at some point. I think Marv will definately give more to the team in a direct sense, such as shots on goals, crosses etc – but not sure he will draw players out as often as Obertan or tire them out, or do half as much defensive work…. Tough call. (I know Obertan does not make a lot of tackles by the way, but he does track back relentlessly and that pressure is enough to disrupt opposing players’ rhythm…) ❓
Shamrock(Quote)
BB – Against Stoke? Definately a good shout against Blackburn, but I would play Guti if fit against Stoke. He will be needed to track back against Pennant, who is doing very well for them…
Shamrock(Quote)
Yeah I meany against b’***.
I deffo want to see Jonas play against stoke. He has been great so far this season.
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Also ties in the clubs ‘sell one trophy player a year” strategy. As the fans want cheap seats – its the way to get them.
Aligns their strategy and fans.
Stardust(Quote)
shamrock@67
I wont quote you on that its all about opinions is it not , and im optimistic short term but long term im just not sure if your going to sell your high value players at a certain age or price then your eventually going to come unstuck .
Most importantly i just dont trust Ashley and probably never will .
keith(Quote)