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Post by boromike on May 4, 2023 11:42:24 GMT
I genuinely don’t see how it would benefit the club. Excluding those that rely on cash would surely be a negative for attendances? Doesn’t the club have to pay a transaction fee on every card transaction? If that is the case I assume the club would prefer cash payments. Two things. Both St Albans and Hampton & Richmond have gone cashless and their attendances have not been negatively impacted. The reverse if anything. Yes, electronic transactions carry a fee, however many businesses have worked out this overhead is less onerous than the cost and risks of counting, storing and paying in cash and obtaining change. For example, Barclays charge business customers between 60p and £1.20 per £100 when cash is deposited. Similarly exchanging notes and coins incurs a charge of £2.40 per £100. Hampton and St Albans are affluent areas. I don’t think cashless would improve our attendance figures in the same way. If cash was that much of a hindrance wouldn’t the club have already gone cashless? It would be interesting to see the comparison between cash fee’s and card transaction fees.
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Post by borobob on May 4, 2023 11:51:55 GMT
If a fee is charged per transaction that, in itself, produces an increase in entry fees, as I'm sure the Club(s) would not want to lose that amount if kept at the same cost!
The way round it is to make the season ticket option very reasonable to encourage a greater take up, and reduce(a) queues at turnstiles and (b) the faffing around with contactless machines.
The guy at St Albans seemed to take ages after my card was accepted, to then work out a receipt.
Also, if you don't get a receipt, what happens in the rare chance of an abandonment, and refunds are required??
Some Clubs don't even give tickets when buying your entry!! Very risky!
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Post by hawleybootboy on May 4, 2023 12:40:27 GMT
The less cash that is swimming around the club the better as (like pretty much every club that has operated on a cash basis) historically not all revenue generated by the club has managed to be banked after it has been handed over by supporters on match day. The losses to the club through transaction fees are far far less than the amounts that have been lost through theft, so the more transactions that go through the EPOS machines the better… There should always be a provision to take cash for those who choose to use it, however the less cash that is hanging around then the chances of it going walkabout are fewer and less damaging if it does happen.
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Post by borobob on May 4, 2023 13:28:37 GMT
Agree with that Hawley. It's one of the reason that Non League Clubs have attracted the sharks in recent years, the availability of cash, and the ability to launder it, for those so inclined!!
A half way situation of an extra pound on cashless tickets, and the normal price for cash tickets would seem to be a sensible option at this time!
Would mean separate turnstiles for cash only, and card only, which I think we have already?
Also, still think the idea of a decent reduction season ticket would be more attractive.
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Post by Tom Bowen on May 4, 2023 14:03:04 GMT
To answer the question "Also, if you don't get a receipt, what happens in the rare chance of an abandonment, and refunds are required??"
I know of a Step 4 club that had their game abandoned earlier in the season due to a waterlogged pitch, and then when the game was eventually put back on in March, they allowed free entry to the game. Presumably because it was easier than people claiming they were at the game, as the receipt only says "Adult" on it and no hint of a date or anything.
But regarding the cash conversation, I don't see any issue with the current hybrid of accepting both, and I think anywhere that doesn't accept card at the moment should consider it, but I can only see the world moving towards becoming cashless, unfortunately. Look at how many people use contactless payment, except that comes with the security issue of people forgetting their PIN number and such other issues!
As I say, I'm happy with the current hybrid, but if anything, it will go more towards cashless rather than cash in future.
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Post by pugh1 on May 4, 2023 14:54:22 GMT
Careful what you wish for Tom
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Admin
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Post by Admin on May 4, 2023 15:03:06 GMT
Also, if you don't get a receipt, what happens in the rare chance of an abandonment, and refunds are required?? I know of a Step 4 club that had their game abandoned earlier in the season due to a waterlogged pitch, and then when the game was eventually put back on in March, they allowed free entry to the game. Presumably because it was easier than people claiming they were at the game, as the receipt only says "Adult" on it and no hint of a date or anything. Any decently run club has a process in the event of an abandonment, however very few, if any, will ever give money refunds, so whether a club is cashless or not is never an issue. The process followed by each club should be publicly set out in its Customer Charter or Ground Regulations. Farnborough's is available at:- farnboroughfc.co.uk/ticket-refund-policy ** **Except it isn't, as the page is empty! Oops! Another job to be added to the list.
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Post by betweenthesticks on May 4, 2023 17:10:20 GMT
Careful what you wish for Tom If you doubt what can be done when all your electronic event/purchase history is available to people to look at, check out the fascinating Alexei Navalny documentary from a year or two ago. It is said that in Russia all and any electronic information about anyone is available for sale on the black market. An enterprising investigative journalist and a team of tech geeks exploited this to find, track and eventually confront the individual team members of one of Putin's secret assassination squads who were tasked with murdering Alexei Navalny, Putin's most vociferous critic and political opposition, with Novichok nerve agent in Siberia. Phew! That's a bit heavy for the fans forum and I'm not suggesting Farnborough is anything like Moscow, but don't doubt what can be known about you when your life is conducted in an increasingly digital world... It's a damn fine documentary as well, by the way...!
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Post by theborowalk on May 5, 2023 13:18:50 GMT
Perhaps a point is being missed. I think this might be understatement of the decade. This thread is genuinely hilarious, thanks gents. The "sending your kids to work on a farm" got me. Brilliant. 😁 Seriously though, I'm sure Spencer and Prince will look/have already looked into the feasibility of the club going cashless. It will happen eventually, it's only a matter of time. Fully agree with Nigel, the pros outweigh the cons. Spencer already said the ticket prices were frozen this season as a thank you to the fans for last season. I'd expect basic admittance to go up to £15... hopefully they keep the incentives to get the u-16s in at a heavily reduced price though. We need to keep appealing to those priced out higher up and try to brainwash them into life at the Boro. Hopefully the pre sale situation will be resolved. I'm sure it's just a legacy COVID thing that wasn't a priority and the club will have it sorted out. You shouldn't be paying more in advance, online. End of. Final point from me, this is the most important pre season that the club have had in a long, long time in terms of potentially picking up season ticket sales. Given the current economic climate and the additional younger ages of a lot of the new intake, I agree it'd be great to see some new sales initiatives. Splitting the cost into 2/3 portions in a Klarna-esque manner, or the 10 game scrathcard or booklet idea are both solid ideas. Get people in, they'll always spend in the ground and will sometimes bring other people along! Simple. Now, if Nigel could just clarify his position on the rise of the robots....
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Post by boromike on May 5, 2023 18:43:34 GMT
Perhaps a point is being missed. I think this might be understatement of the decade. This thread is genuinely hilarious, thanks gents. The "sending your kids to work on a farm" got me. Brilliant. 😁 Seriously though, I'm sure Spencer and Prince will look/have already looked into the feasibility of the club going cashless. It will happen eventually, it's only a matter of time. Fully agree with Nigel, the pros outweigh the cons. Spencer already said the ticket prices were frozen this season as a thank you to the fans for last season. I'd expect basic admittance to go up to £15... hopefully they keep the incentives to get the u-16s in at a heavily reduced price though. We need to keep appealing to those priced out higher up and try to brainwash them into life at the Boro. Hopefully the pre sale situation will be resolved. I'm sure it's just a legacy COVID thing that wasn't a priority and the club will have it sorted out. You shouldn't be paying more in advance, online. End of. Final point from me, this is the most important pre season that the club have had in a long, long time in terms of potentially picking up season ticket sales. Given the current economic climate and the additional younger ages of a lot of the new intake, I agree it'd be great to see some new sales initiatives. Splitting the cost into 2/3 portions in a Klarna-esque manner, or the 10 game scrathcard or booklet idea are both solid ideas. Get people in, they'll always spend in the ground and will sometimes bring other people along! Simple. Now, if Nigel could just clarify his position on the rise of the robots.... I did say the words were not my own and that I had plagiarised them from elsewhere to make my point, rather than typing it all up in my own words just to make a similar point. Aside from the sending your kids to work on a farm bit (which I acknowledge isn’t realistic and with hindsight is pretty funny), it all seems completely rational, realistic and relatable to me 🤷🏻♂️ I’m not entirely sure if your post intended to try and mock me, but it did read that way. As a relatively new supporter first attracted to the club by its community feel and largely friendly fan base, I can assure you attempting to mock people for sharing a perfectly valid and reasoned opinion won’t help increase attendance. I’m not sure that the point was ever even missed? Nigel expressed his opinion that the club should go cashless and others replied expressing their opinions that it would be a step toward a cashless society to which they were opposed. Plainly, others agree with the notion that a cashless society is a hideous thought, so I’ll take solace that I’m not alone in this view and I’ll hold off having a look on Amazon for a tin foil hat just yet. P.S. don’t get me started on robots…..I could talk all night about the perils of AI 😉
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Post by theborowalk on May 5, 2023 23:18:04 GMT
Nigel raised the idea of the club going cashless.
The replies have taken us from George Orwell to Putin's war machine. That IS funny, to me.
With respect, you come across as quite paranoid. Don't worry, it'll be ok!!
If you're worried about banks knowing your every move, I almost don't want to tell you what Google and the like are up to.
My sarcastic nature isn't for everyone. Can I suggest you don't go on Twitter.😉
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Post by antz27 on May 5, 2023 23:58:03 GMT
Getting back on topic I see we have our season ticket prices up adult early is around £290 with the fulll cost being 368 if you don’t get in early so I worked out that ticket prices for us will be around the £16 mark per game.
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boro
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Post by boro on May 6, 2023 8:28:59 GMT
Getting back on topic I see we have our season ticket prices up adult early is around £290 with the fulll cost being 368 if you don’t get in early so I worked out that ticket prices for us will be around the £16 mark per game. Well if £368 is the full price which works out at £16 per game in a 23 game season then the club are either going to be charging over £16 an adult ticket at the turnstiles this coming season or haven’t put any value on a season ticket other than an early bird one! I thought the whole point of getting a season tickets (with the early bird or just standard price) was to get money early into the coffers but also so that the customer made a bit of a saving too!? Obviously we don’t know the actual details yet so let’s see. I would say yes the price will go up for next season but charging £15 for an adult is probably high enough for regional football. If going for advanced online sales then charging £14 online per match. £13.50 per game for standard season ticket (£310.50p) and £12.50 per game (£287.50p) for a early bird season ticket.
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Admin
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Post by Admin on May 6, 2023 10:46:17 GMT
That discount would not be aggressive enough, as the break even point at the early bird price would be 18 games (20 games at the full price)
The whole idea is to have as many pre-sales as possible for each home game. An aggressively priced season ticket means people are more likely to attend in poor weather and on Tuesday nights in winter which, in turn, drives additional matchday revenues from parking, bar and food sales and so on.
For example, St Albans City's matchday admission has been £16.50 this past season while the adult season ticket cost £250. In other words it made sense to buy a season ticket for those who think they will attend 16 or more home games, which is about right.
We also need to be aware of what nearby clubs are charging:- - Aldershot's early bird price for next season is £299 (rising to £320 after 31 May) - Woking's early bird price for next season is £249 (rising to £389 after 3 July) - Reading charged £319 last season for Championship football.
Our prices really should be a fair way lower than any of the above!
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Post by boromike on May 6, 2023 11:17:21 GMT
Nigel raised the idea of the club going cashless. The replies have taken us from George Orwell to Putin's war machine. That IS funny, to me. With respect, you come across as quite paranoid. Don't worry, it'll be ok!! If you're worried about banks knowing your every move, I almost don't want to tell you what Google and the like are up to. My sarcastic nature isn't for everyone. Can I suggest you don't go on Twitter.😉 With equal respect, you can’t really respectfully call someone paranoid. I’m not worried and like you said I’m sure it will be ok, but I appreciate your concern 😀 I am very aware of what Google and the like are up to, the subject however is a bit more nuanced than banks knowing what you spend your money on. I actually really enjoy your posts on Twitter and a sarcastic nature is absolutely fine with me.
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