Keith ryder

[lozza]

using that analogy football would have been finished years ago

 

we all pay good money, the "product" Vale have sold over at least 5 years has been absolutely **** in the main

 

Football is not a product, a team becomes part of you

 

When was the last time you were in Asda and you hugged a total stranger madly jumping around because you got 3 bottles of coke for the price of 1 ?

 

In the sane instance Asda don't tell customers they've signed Dave from Aldi because he was the quickest on the till.

[Yukon]

I must be missing something because I haven't seen a single post slagging Keith Ryder but when the press describe Vale as in Limbo it does make fans wonder what the problem is!.

Yes we are no longer shareholders but when I had a shop the customer was 'king' because without them you have problems. so we really do have a right to know what is going on because it still is OUR CLUB!!!

 

No it's not! It will soon be Keith Ryder's club but it certainly isn't ours- by your thinking I own the Tower of London!

[aspins-revenge]

Tisdeano

 

Last week. Just before I was asked to leave the shop by security.

[tisdeano]

Tisdeano

 

Last week. Just before I was asked to leave the shop by security.

 

:)

 

made me laugh

[fairportnick]

Its totally correct to say we have no right to information. However I doubt whether ST sales have increased any in the last few weeks and the price goes up rather than down . It appears that a lot of fans are holding back , in fact of fans I have spoken to very few have purchased as yet. KR has trapped himself in a very viscious circle particularly as wages are capped in relation to income. If he hasnt already he will soon learn the value of good PR. I thought he was a business consultant for ****s sake!

If you want fans to purchase you have to SELL it to them , the blind faith element have purchased already.

[Timothius]

 

When was the last time you were in Asda and you hugged a total stranger madly jumping around because you got 3 bottles of coke for the price of 1 ?

 

last Wednesday, I got 4 cans of Bass for £3 :-)

[melv]

The problem is fans that try & stir it up to make themselves look important. We are no longe shareholders we have no divine right to have information any more.

 

Comments like the meeting has gone ahead?

[melv]

In terms of we are no longer shareholders we can't demand information. Particularly when there isn't any.

 

What about season ticket holders wanting to know what is happening,when new players can be signed?

 

What about the people who are holding back on buying their season ticket until they know that KR will get the green light,or what players are going to be joining the club?

[Tosh]

 

Football is not a product,

Indeed! You cannot draw any other comparisons or analogies in life, football and in particular the club you support are a one off and like nothing else, hence message boards like this!

[melv]

In short no. I have better things to occupy by time & conversation. When it happens it happens Slagging of Keith won't make it go any quicker

 

I havnt slagged him off.

[melv]

In the sane instance Asda don't tell customers they've signed Dave from Aldi because he was the quickest on the till.

 

We havnt been told we have signed anyone with the exception of renewed contracts

[Rampant Zebra]

Maybe in the light of our complaints that the previous board lied to us all the time, Keith was reluctant to make any promises that he could get shot down later for not meeting. We have to trust that it will all go ahead as planned and accept that the negative publicity over the last year has damaged the clubs reputation and it's ability to sign players and attract supporters.

[fairportnick]

People accusing posters of Slagging off Ryder for simply asking for information are beginning to sound like Oliver.

[robf]

I must be missing something because I haven't seen a single post slagging Keith Ryder but when the press describe Vale as in Limbo it does make fans wonder what the problem is!.

Yes we are no longer shareholders but when I had a shop the customer was 'king' because without them you have problems. so we really do have a right to know what is going on because it still is OUR CLUB!!!

 

Spot on Old Sage!

 

Following some people's logic on here... Bury fans had no "right" to read the club's response to the Glasgow Rangers bid (all over the press a few days ago) but nevertheless the club put a swift end to the rumours with a simple press release. They didn't need to do it, but imagine if the club have just ignored the fans and let them worry and potentially panic that their club was about to be subject to a hostile takeover. That approach would surely have made the situation worse...

 

My personal view is that I don't need to know the exact details of every club decision, that's not what I am calling for. And for that matter, I don't see too many others asking for it either. But many fans are asking for the club to just communicate more regularly with them, so surely the club should be listening to their customers? I don't know any successful companies that simply ignore their customers.

 

I also appreciate we don't have the right to demand the club updates us. But that doesn't mean that it may be a good idea that the club keeps us informed and perhaps crucially - reassured. I think it's simple good public relations and good practice to give your customers updates from time-to-time.

 

After all, treating fans with contempt was surely one of the main things wrong with the previous regime(s).

 

Some may argue that press releases are "tedious" and won't tell us anything. Yes, most press releases don't tell anyone anything earth shattering but they are designed to make the consumer valued and worthy of being informed. Companies have been using press releases for many, many years now - don't you think the practice would have stopped if no-one found them useful?

 

I think with the lack of information right now, many Vale fans were feeling worried and undervalued. And I think lack of communication can lead to conspiracy theories and worse.

 

I just don't think it's too much to ask for an occasional update from the club. Even if it's simply "Matters still rest with our solicitors and the solicitors at the Football League. We are hopeful of a resolution soon. Thank you for your patience." then that, in my view is better and more reassuring than silence or second-hand communications from those who have spoken to Mr Ryder/the administrators such as the press and the SC (although I thank the SC for their efforts to keep us updated, which have been brilliant, it's still not an official PVFC statement is it?).

 

Also if the club communicates regularly then there's going to be less hysteria on forums, in pubs and on social media. If the fans know the club will post a statement when something happens they are more likely to be prepared to wait for it. If the club simply adopts silence as an approach then the fans will be far more likely to start believing rumours both on the web and off the web...

 

I don't think it's what's actually in the club statements that matters too much. After all, some will never be satisfied and want more. It's impossible to please every one, but pleasing the majority would be a good idea. It's not about the content, it's about the implicit suggestion that the club wants to keep their fans updated - so it is more to do with massaging the egos of the fans (customers), making them feel valued than actually keeping them in the loop about every single step of the takeover.

 

Why do the fans' egos need massaging, some may ask?

 

Well, simply put, for the club to be solvent they effectively have to persuade as many people as possible to either a) commit to a season ticket or b) pay on the gate. That involves getting the loyalty and trust of the fans - massaging their egos, in other words.

 

Tescos use slogans like "every litle helps" not as a policy statement but as a deliberate phrase that gives the impression that by cutting costs and offering incentives they are fighting your corner - that every little helps you, the customer. It's intention is that you can trust Tesco to have a wide range and low prices - that you'll therefore be more likely to use their stores than their rivals. Of course, the company's real bottom line is to make profit. Similarly, Abbey "because life's complicated enough" are trying to reiterate that they will make things easier to understand for you, their customers. Again it implies - trust. Don't go anywhere else, we'll help you...

 

The above are two, simple ways that companies can increase customer loyalty through trust. And as any marketeer would tell you - a loyal, engaged customer is eight times more likely to stay with a brand than a disengaged one. OK, so football fans are more loyal to their club than shop and building society customers but I still feel that Vale, with their current lack of communications to the fans, are disengaging with their audience at their peril.

 

p.s. Sorry this post doesn't half go on a bit... but I only spend the odd half an hour on the forum each day, so I wanted to get all my personal views over and then leave the forum rather than post half a dozen times.

[Jacko51]

There's wanting to know & needing to know though isn't there?

When you had your shop did the customers come in asking what your turnover was, what your staff wages were, who your solicitor was? No, because they are only interested in the product your selling. Same applies here, the product Vale/Ryder will be selling to me is football, that's all i'm interested in, what happens on the pitch, all the political stuff that goes on behind the scenes i don't need to know, or feel i have to know.

 

If Old Sage had put his shop up for sale, he would probably have expected his customers to ask him about when he was likely to sell, where was he going, did he know who was going to buy it, when they came into the shop. It is likely customers might have gossipped about it on the street outside. How is this situation any different??

 

To say that we are no longer shareholders is true. To assumes that the supporters/customers are not stakeholders in the business is wrong. The supporters are the lifeblood of any football club - without them the club would have no raison d'etre. No one is slagging off Keith Ryder. People are simply wondering when this will all come to an end and why the Football League are saying they are shy of some information they asked for. I don't see any problem with discussing this on a message board. I do have an issue with folk on here telling supporters to shut up because it's nothing to do with them.

 

I'm sure there is nothing to worry about here but after the last few years at Vale, it's hardly surprising that some supporters expect the worst - because that's what we've ususally got isn't it?!