As I pointed out earlier there are not huge savings to be made

That has to be the main focus of all clubs outside SL , we either increase our support and revenue streams or we die

i think points deduction is another very good idea.

widnes sell 2500 shirts keighley sell 300 shirts the profits should be split 50/50

That's exactly what happens in the NFL.

They have a deal with Reebok and whether you're the biggest franchise or the smallest, you get the same amount. (Very uncapitalist for the US, I know)

With the League operating as one it gives them massive buying power to the point that with the volume of merchandise being sold the likes of Reebok would pay the league to be an official kit supplier. Buying in bulk also tend to make items cheaper and therefore more profitable.

This puts an onus on the kit supplier to recoup that payment which means they'll be marketed better and on sale in large chains like JJB. The likely outcome being more kit being sold and everybody benefiting.

I know the logic sounds bizarre, but in the US it really does work.

dont know mate.dont think we could sell enough shirts to weald that kind of power

You'd be surprised, if all 22 semi pro teams were involved it would create a hell of a lot of bargaining power. Admittedly it wouldn't be the NFL by any stretch of the imagination but I reckon you'd looking at around £1m worth of merchandise per year at least.

Not quite what I had/have in mind but something in between

I don't know about the merits of the shared profits idea one way or t'other, but we can't JUST have an on-line shop, surely? A retail outlet at the club is a must, I would've thought.
We do try and reach new fans, a few of us on here go around putting up flyers before the home games, but it has to be said that a bit of consistency on the fixture list would help here; you might get a person to a game, and then by the time the next home match comes around, they've lost interest due to the length of time in between. Or one's on a sunday, the next one is three weeks on thursday or whenever, and that makes it harder for those potential new supporters to remember or commit to.
Maybe as well as posters, we need an active, easily approached supporter's club, with contacts in all our various outlying areas?

The idea of the online shop was that accessible anytime and would be along side anything the club offered at games.

It would also mean fans who live far away and/or don't get to many games to still purchase something.

It will be interesting to see the new directors approach to the supporters, will they support an ISA?? If they are going to be not for profit I would expect they will need some major involvement from the fans.

My point about the easily contactable supporter's clubs is that if an individual wants to go to a game for the very first time, they have a ready-made bunch of 'mates' to tag along with. No-one wants to go to the rugby and be billy no mates, this way they'll feel part of the whole thing much sooner. Hopefully it'd add to their enjoyment of the day and convince them to come to more games.
...Well, that's MY theory...I could be talking out of my a**e, of course, it wouldn't be the first time!

If you sat in a bowl of glitter first, you could give a sparkling speech .......

A good idea.

Four ways Mick

4) Sponsorship - The ground in the 90's was covered with sponsorship boards, this did two things, brought in much needed revenue and tidied up the ground making it look a whole lot better than it does today, it pays to look good, it creates a small but meaningful part of the atmosphere that is Cougarmania, what do the fans see at the moment when they come to Cougar park? - empty spaces where boards used to be, showing that once upon a time Keighley used to be a great place to be, a part of what we need to do is offer cut price advertising boarding, any income is better than no income at all right?

Just whilst we are talking of creating the Cougarmania atmosphere, the small things mattered to the youngest fans that we are trying to encourage to come to Keighley - Paint the Cougar footprints around the ground - kids love to see these

Invite the schools we are working with to a 20 minute pre match game with one cougar player playing in each team - provide free match day tickets to the participating schools and parents, how many extra spectators would we see on these days? which would create a better atmosphere and who knows how many families will come back as paying fans! - this can only increase the revenue in the long run

All the small things add up

It seems to me that there are people on here calling fior the heads of the Directors(2001 Ltd), in my view a little unfairly, directors of a rugby club and indeed any kind of business, can only act on the information given to them.

Okay then, enlighten us.

People can only pass opinion on the information released to them, which in the case of Cougar supporters, is sp.

If you have some info which would influence people's thoughts, then let us know, because so far we have this to go on:

"we won't get in debt"

followed by:

"we are in debt"

You're right Al.

But as has been mentioned on other threads. What business is going to want associate their name and reputation with us at the moment given all the negative publicity surrounding the club?

The equation is simple , more people in the ground , the more willing businesses will be to pay for sponsoship , as for the rest , yes , but the difficulty is controlling the issuing of free adult tickets , that is the reason many BOD 's are unwilling to do it

But then again solving problems is what businessmen are supposed to be good at , unfortunatley too many seem to lack imagination when it comes to these things

I agree, more people = more business sponsorship, start it off as cheap as you like for the first season and raise it gradual as we continue in the Championship next season!.

Lets try and get a decent paying sponsor for the roof of the stand/stands for the foreseeable, lets say 4 years at £costs£ agreed but they are responsible for the sign writing and the upkeep for the set period of time, so thats no outlay, no upkeep, free roof repair and money in the bank, the deal is on the terms that the club make it! - We can use the Sky games as leverage for a better sum

The controlling of the free tickets is a tricky one I understand, last season the £5 entry tickets were issued, How may of these tickets were used?, Did the use of these tickets cause a downturn on average gate takings? i.e were the tickets being used by regular fans or new fans?, Who is collating this information to determine the best solution of using these tickets to attract new fans only?, until the information is assessed there can be no answers, it may be easier and less stressful to allow one adult free with each child from the schools concerned, this way it is only a matter of ensuring that the tickets are issued in a controlled way (whatever that may be) - Childs name, DOB, maybe just the issuers signature etc...... - so that the ticket may only be used by the child named

Lets keep positive for the sake of the club

I don't think people are "calling for their heads".... they want a truthful explanation of the current situation (then they might call for someone's head).

Let's face it, Mr Spencer did not endear himself to all the fans during his time as chairman and a few may now be adding one and one together and coming up with three.

If a Roman emperor keeps insisting that the peasants are revolting then eventually they will.

I like the idea of exchanging sponsorship for relevant services.

We could do a deal with Copper Dragon brewery for cost price ale in exchange for hoardings or for naming rights to a stand.

Willis Walker for cheap training gear, an outlet in town centre we could sell kit out of.

Wild's for pies to sell at the game.

A new digital scoreboard off a local electrical shop.

There's a lot of possibilities to be had.

Not strictly true, directors must show due diligence; part of which means ensuring the validity of the information they use to make important decisions.

Incidentally, I am not having a go at the old directors, I, like most fans, do not have enough valid information on which to form a solid opinion. I wish I had!!!

Absolutely, love the idea of the beer trading

, this could work, I wonder if the new directors will buy into this idea?, its not for profit and its low running costs meaning that any additional gate fees could go towards the ground, players etc... building our club in a unique way to be one of a kind, yet another ground breaking way forward from Keighley Cougars
(I may be getting a little carried away here

)