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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2017 17:50:52 GMT
According to the Chronicle, Game Makers are about to be unleashed on matchdays complete with "Here to Help" T-shirts and tasked with improving the matchday experience.
Can understand such people at large events e.g the Olympics or England internationals where there's loads of people wandering aimlessly around at a large venue who might need directions or guidance but at a place like ours? Where virtually everybody enters a turnstile and is in their place within 20-30 steps
At a push, carrying around CFU forms etc is no bad thing but I just sense that the regular attendees know exactly where they're going and these well meaning people will simply be ignored (in the nicest way of course)
Just don't think it's going to contribute much to the matchday experience for most But, hey, I suppose at least we're trying something.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2017 20:15:10 GMT
The only question to ask in a funny/happy way is...I've supported Chester for 45 years..Can you help me?
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Post by Frank Owen’s Paintbrush on Dec 29, 2017 20:37:29 GMT
We announced this a few weeks ago to be fair. Struggling for volunteers - Chairman Johnny Hughes and fellow director Mike Day did the task for the Solihull game.
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Post by Rio Doherty on Dec 29, 2017 22:28:56 GMT
I was stood near the main entrance on Tuesday and only seen Jim Green and Mike Day walking out wearing the t-shirts.
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Post by tarvinblue on Dec 29, 2017 22:39:30 GMT
What is the purpose of this? Game makers work at huge sporting events where you have thousands of people that need help and advice. The London Olympics and British Grand Prix are two recent examples I can think of where these have been in place and have been effective. How will games makers work at Chester FC where there will be 1,300 fans, most of whom have been attending the games for many years? What help and advice do these people need? It's little wonder there isn't a clamor to sign up and get involved. It sounds like some ill thought out idea by a group of people without any clear vision who are clinging on to some recent national fad. Surely they would be better off pouring their resources into setting up a pre-match fanzone, as has been promised on numerous occasions. I could very much see the impact of a fanzone, open two hours before kick off, with the idea of having entertainment running to get people in and create an atmosphere. Having a few blokes in t-shirts, looking awkward and pretending to be happy is hardly going to encourage the masses to return. It's on par with Bellis' idea that all we need to do is share posts on social media more often and we will have crowds of 3,000.
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Post by trev on Dec 29, 2017 22:53:03 GMT
I didn't know if to laugh or cry when I heard this. What it does demonstrate is that the brainstorming of the current board isn't working and they desperately need help with meaningful initiatives. In a way I feel sorry for Jonny and his pals because this screams that they are way out of their depth. God help us.
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Post by Frank Owen’s Paintbrush on Dec 29, 2017 23:19:05 GMT
What is the purpose of this? Game makers work at huge sporting events where you have thousands of people that need help and advice. The London Olympics and British Grand Prix are two recent examples I can think of where these have been in place and have been effective. How will games makers work at Chester FC where there will be 1,300 fans, most of whom have been attending the games for many years? What help and advice do these people need? It's little wonder there isn't a clamor to sign up and get involved. It sounds like some ill thought out idea by a group of people without any clear vision who are clinging on to some recent national fad. Surely they would be better off pouring their resources into setting up a pre-match fanzone, as has been promised on numerous occasions. I could very much see the impact of a fanzone, open two hours before kick off, with the idea of having entertainment running to get people in and create an atmosphere. Having a few blokes in t-shirts, looking awkward and pretending to be happy is hardly going to encourage the masses to return. It's on par with Bellis' idea that all we need to do is share posts on social media more often and we will have crowds of 3,000. Indeed. It may work if the Game Makers were stood outside the town hall at a stand with club/CFU paraphernalia every Saturday home game morning (would ideally be in the week to give the public ample notice but can understand issue of time commitments). A much better idea and a very simple idea any of us could've come up with without marketing being "in our blood" but hey ho.
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Post by trev on Dec 29, 2017 23:30:42 GMT
The only question to ask in a funny/happy way is...I've supported Chester for 45 years..Can you help me?
Assistance to the emergency exits and priority access from the car park after 30 minutes of play ?
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Post by jimgreen on Dec 29, 2017 23:50:40 GMT
Some very valid questions and comments on this thread so I thought it would be beneficial to respond.
This is an idea that has been around for some time, I can recall conversations regarding a 'buzz team' as far back as 2010, and the Trust & Club decided to introduce a pilot to test the water.
We used the term Games Makers (GMs) as we felt people would be familiar with this from the Olympics but the intention has always been to have a more relevant name.
In essence, there are two elements to this: matchday and non-matchday.
On a matchday the GMs are there to provide a point of contact for supporters, provide information and promote specific initiatives (for example the Christmas Raffle). It's true that the majority of people who attend home games are regulars but not all.
It has been noted that on a matchday the ticket office can be quite cramped and get very busy very quickly which means that people looking for information regarding CFU membership, Seals Lottery, Junior Blues and similar don't always get the right level of service or the answers they need. It's possible these opportunities could be missed.
The GMs have a folder containing all of these forms and will be able to answer common general questions as well as take actions for follow up.
It's envisaged the GMs become particularly valuable when we have large groups of potential new fans at matches (for example Dagenham & Redbridge) to collect data, answer questions and signpost facilities (we all know where the shop is, where the Blues Bar is, which turnstiles we use but not everyone does).
Our plan is to have 2/3 GMs on a matchday and it's true to say that they are unlikely to be inundated with questions so it is a case of quality over quantity. To give a real example, at the Guiseley match a gentleman approached us as it was his first time at the stadium. He transpired to be a Hednesford Town fan who has moved to the area and wanted to check out his local team. He was very interested in the fan owned model and took flyers for the CFU, Seals Lottery and Squadbuilder. Hopefully his interest has been piqued more than it would have been without that conversation.
The non-matchday element is exactly what is refereed to above and we hope to develop the GMs into a team that promotes the club in the community whether at events, around local businesses (posters, flyers and so on) or in the city centre. We did this really well in the first couple of seasons and with the right resources and right people it can be really effective. This is definitely the intention but we need to build and train the volunteer base to ensure it is done properly.
To pick up one of the points in a previous post, the fan zone idea hasn't gone away. This is something I think everyone at the club sees as really important and the Trust has submitted a substantial funding application to support this (including the purchase of a marquee). I do not wish to tempt fate but we are confident we have put together a really strong application and hope to have some news on this in the next 6-8 weeks.
I hope this is useful and to reiterate we want this to work but we do need more volunteers. We have had a couple of people get in touch this week which is great and the time commitment required is not huge. If you'd like to know more or have any other questions relating to this please email me at jim.green@chesterfc.com.
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Post by trev on Dec 30, 2017 0:20:03 GMT
Some very valid questions and comments on this thread so I thought it would be beneficial to respond. This is an idea that has been around for some time, I can recall conversations regarding a 'buzz team' as far back as 2010, and the Trust & Club decided to introduce a pilot to test the water. We used the term Games Makers (GMs) as we felt people would be familiar with this from the Olympics but the intention has always been to have a more relevant name. In essence, there are two elements to this: matchday and non-matchday. On a matchday the GMs are there to provide a point of contact for supporters, provide information and promote specific initiatives (for example the Christmas Raffle). It's true that the majority of people who attend home games are regulars but not all. It has been noted that on a matchday the ticket office can be quite cramped and get very busy very quickly which means that people looking for information regarding CFU membership, Seals Lottery, Junior Blues and similar don't always get the right level of service or the answers they need. It's possible these opportunities could be missed. The GMs have a folder containing all of these forms and will be able to answer common general questions as well as take actions for follow up. It's envisaged the GMs become particularly valuable when we have large groups of potential new fans at matches (for example Dagenham & Redbridge) to collect data, answer questions and signpost facilities (we all know where the shop is, where the Blues Bar is, which turnstiles we use but not everyone does). Our plan is to have 2/3 GMs on a matchday and it's true to say that they are unlikely to be inundated with questions so it is a case of quality over quantity. To give a real example, at the Guiseley match a gentleman approached us as it was his first time at the stadium. He transpired to be a Hednesford Town fan who has moved to the area and wanted to check out his local team. He was very interested in the fan owned model and took flyers for the CFU, Seals Lottery and Squadbuilder. Hopefully his interest has been piqued more than it would have been without that conversation. The non-matchday element is exactly what is refereed to above and we hope to develop the GMs into a team that promotes the club in the community whether at events, around local businesses (posters, flyers and so on) or in the city centre. We did this really well in the first couple of seasons and with the right resources and right people it can be really effective. This is definitely the intention but we need to build and train the volunteer base to ensure it is done properly. To pick up one of the points in a previous post, the fan zone idea hasn't gone away. This is something I think everyone at the club sees as really important and the Trust has submitted a substantial funding application to support this (including the purchase of a marquee). I do not wish to tempt fate but we are confident we have put together a really strong application and hope to have some news on this in the next 6-8 weeks. I hope this is useful and to reiterate we want this to work but we do need more volunteers. We have had a couple of people get in touch this week which is great and the time commitment required is not huge. If you'd like to know more or have any other questions relating to this please email me at jim.green@chesterfc.com. In all seriousness, this all sounds great Jim and I can see why "Gamesmakers” would get publicity in the Chronicle, and at least something is happening to publicise the Club particularly around the city centre. But wouldn't the presence of the covered CFU stand in the car park next to the shop and bar on every matchday be just as , if not more, effective ? Just to add, that the presence of the fanzone in the marquee at Tranmere and the benefits of something similar at the Deva were suggested over two years ago.
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Post by tarvinblue on Dec 30, 2017 0:46:25 GMT
Some very valid questions and comments on this thread so I thought it would be beneficial to respond. This is an idea that has been around for some time, I can recall conversations regarding a 'buzz team' as far back as 2010, and the Trust & Club decided to introduce a pilot to test the water. We used the term Games Makers (GMs) as we felt people would be familiar with this from the Olympics but the intention has always been to have a more relevant name. In essence, there are two elements to this: matchday and non-matchday. On a matchday the GMs are there to provide a point of contact for supporters, provide information and promote specific initiatives (for example the Christmas Raffle). It's true that the majority of people who attend home games are regulars but not all. It has been noted that on a matchday the ticket office can be quite cramped and get very busy very quickly which means that people looking for information regarding CFU membership, Seals Lottery, Junior Blues and similar don't always get the right level of service or the answers they need. It's possible these opportunities could be missed. The GMs have a folder containing all of these forms and will be able to answer common general questions as well as take actions for follow up. It's envisaged the GMs become particularly valuable when we have large groups of potential new fans at matches (for example Dagenham & Redbridge) to collect data, answer questions and signpost facilities (we all know where the shop is, where the Blues Bar is, which turnstiles we use but not everyone does). Our plan is to have 2/3 GMs on a matchday and it's true to say that they are unlikely to be inundated with questions so it is a case of quality over quantity. To give a real example, at the Guiseley match a gentleman approached us as it was his first time at the stadium. He transpired to be a Hednesford Town fan who has moved to the area and wanted to check out his local team. He was very interested in the fan owned model and took flyers for the CFU, Seals Lottery and Squadbuilder. Hopefully his interest has been piqued more than it would have been without that conversation. The non-matchday element is exactly what is refereed to above and we hope to develop the GMs into a team that promotes the club in the community whether at events, around local businesses (posters, flyers and so on) or in the city centre. We did this really well in the first couple of seasons and with the right resources and right people it can be really effective. This is definitely the intention but we need to build and train the volunteer base to ensure it is done properly. To pick up one of the points in a previous post, the fan zone idea hasn't gone away. This is something I think everyone at the club sees as really important and the Trust has submitted a substantial funding application to support this (including the purchase of a marquee). I do not wish to tempt fate but we are confident we have put together a really strong application and hope to have some news on this in the next 6-8 weeks. I hope this is useful and to reiterate we want this to work but we do need more volunteers. We have had a couple of people get in touch this week which is great and the time commitment required is not huge. If you'd like to know more or have any other questions relating to this please email me at jim.green@chesterfc.com. Thanks for the response, Jim. I can see a limited purpose to this. If run correctly it may pick up a handful of people on matchday as you say but as trev also says it needs a clear visible presence - potentially a tent or something prominent. I think the fear is that fans would be met by awkward, happy people at the turnstile wanting to high five you on the way in and that this was our latest 'marketing' attempt. I look forward to hearing the outcome to the fan zone application - I think this is absolutely key to driving us forwards in terms of the matchday experience/atmosphere. All good things seem to come via the trust.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2017 1:00:46 GMT
I think the idea does get knocked because to us regulars it does seem unnecessary and pointless.
However it's harmless, it doesn't affect our own matchday experience and even if only one person walks away with relevant forms and signs up to the CFU etc and has a better first time matchday experience themselves then it serves its purpose.
It's a start, hopefully it does grow into something bigger and better, such as a regular fanzone but I really think we need to cut them some slack here.
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