S l o update turnstiles

I always get disappointed when organizations cant see that their customers are dissatisfied and see it from that perspective, apologies first then move onto fixing whatever the issue is. Are the fans to blame? Maybe a little but the fact is if this wasn't a sport here people are loyal to the brand then they would shop elsewhere. It doesn't hurt to show humility, be apologetic and show a commitment to serving fans better. We always seem to start with the position of 'Its not my fault..... Must be yours as well'

 

The 3.15 kick-off was to accommodate miners coming off day shift, which finished at 2pm.

 

You aren't wrong. The club could recognise its failings when they happen, the only long term solution to the problem when all turnstiles are open is to get there earlier however.

Maybe for the league cup the Ponty should have been open too

 

Along the back of the east stand are 16 turnstiles, 6 at the away end are were closed, 2 in the middle were for tickets only for the lower tier. 2 in the middle were pay on the day for the lower tier.

That leaves 6 towards the ponty end and also 4 round the corner bear the corner stand. For the clubs claim of 10 pay on the day turnstiles to be correct all 8 of these turnstiles must have been open and all 8 must have been pay on the day with no tickets sold in advance for the upper tier. I know for a fact that at least 2 turnstiles were open for fans with tickets leaving a maximum possible of 6 turnstiles fr the upper tier pay n the day fans and 2 for the lower tier. This adds up to 8 not 10.

Remember that is assuming that ALL of the available turnstiles at that end of the ground were open. I find that very hard to believe though considering that at the other end they were all closed.

This begs the question of is the club deliberately lying or do they simply not know how many turnstiles are open at any given point in time? If it is the former then something needs doing, if it is the latter then it is extremely worrying.

My second point is that this excuse that keeps getting trotted out of 'tgere were more round the corner open' is absolutely rubbish. Who's job is it to know which turnstiles the club has bothered to open at any given time? Is it the job of the customer or the job of the club? Are stewards outside the turnstiles not paid to aid customers? Why are they standing by and letting customers queue for an unnecessary amount of time instead of telling them that more turnstiles are open? More importantly why is the signage so woefully inadequate (and out of date) that this information is not written clearly on a sign near the turnstiles?

A simple sign above or next to the turnstiles could state clearly 'additional turnstiles are located around the corner'. Job done.

Third point, you have said before that despite the turnstile signage being completely wrong you can actually go through both the upper and lower turnstiles and be allowed entry. If so why have the club installed false signage stating clearly upper or lower tier? Would it not be wise to change these signs so that correct information is displayed? We aren't mind reader's.

Fourth point. When the club can clearly see that queues are forming why is the decision not taken to adapt to the situation and a) open more turnstiles or b) change the usage of a turnstile from tickets (with no queue) to pay on the day to alleviate the queues outside? It is the equivalent of tesco having one turnstile open and sitting back watching one long queue snake it's way around the store. It simply would not happen, it wouldn't happen at tesco, asda aldi or link yet it happens at oakwell without anything being done.

Further point. How do I take my season ticket book with me to the turnstiles when I don't have one? I only have a season card but the sign directly above the turnstile says I may be refused entry if I do not present my season ticket book. This is exactly what I mean about inaccurate and misleading signage at oakwell.

The club appear to be complaining about the late fans turn up. Have they considered that maybe this is their fault? I've said it for years but the concourses are dull, uninspiring and frankly horrible places to spend time. The TV's in the concourses are inconsistent, one week sky sports news is on, the week after its a shot of the pitch, third week they're switched off, fourth week a game is being shown. With this level of inconsistency and apathy towards the match day experience there really is no incentive to attend matches early. Maintain the concourses, give them a lick of paint and refresh the signage which is 15 years out of date (unless admiral produce our kits again) and create a clear and consistent strategy regarding the tvs and you may have some incentive for fans to attend early and spend their money within the club.

 

1. Our fans are too keen to stay in the pub until the last minute
2. BMBC have reduced the parking in the town centre.
3. Parking at the club is (a) too expensive, and (b) time consuming to escape.

 

All these problems and then the club has the gall to announce a home crowd of 4K?

 

But in a modern society where patience levels and standards have meant queues are managed better (apart from Oakwell and Manchester Airport) there shouldn't be an excuse. Anyone who has any expertise (I have) in customer service, will know that over time people expect faster service and the wait less. People work longer and different hours. The Cup game was clearly a joke. I watched carefully as I waited in line. Turn styles were slow, limited numbers open and all because the club didn't want to open more or the Ponty end, based on a guess. We should get the self scanning through turnstyles fitted, save money and improve customer service. Although there might be 20 empty and a long queue at the 'extra help needed' lane

 

This is the lesson to be learnt and it's a simple one. Have club officials telling folk which turnstiles to go to and directing them to the empty ones. We're not ****ing psychic.

 

Never left a game early in my life. Rarely make a kick off either. One doesn't equate to the other.

 

I turn up 5 minutes late not 95 minutes late so your examples a bit Daft ...

Whats the incentive of getting to tje ground at 1450... there isnt one.

 

Yes and Agee pints before the match

 

You get to go through the turnstiles, find your seat and watch all of the game that you've paid for?

 

Maybe wanna check what happened against derby.

Informed that quite a few tickets wouldn't work and that includes season tickets.

Not seen anything in here and I refrained from posting as such.

But communication needs to be both ways

 

Do you blame them? When we have no pre match entertainment, overpriced refreshments and most of the season you are sat in cold.

 

Aye as I said season ticket failed for 4 out of 6 pretty *****.

 

Too right about Manchester Airport, icer. We very nearly missed a plane three and a half years ago there after some shambolic arrangements at security. They wanted our liquids out of the compliant clear plastic bags we'd used and into one of theirs which was identical. That was after a snaking queue which was unsupervised and which people were joining willy-nilly at various points in the 'snake'. We've used East Midlands ever since because it's a stright run down the M1 and you can walk from car park to Terminal. And no malarkey when you get there! I suppose Leeds and Donny will come into play when their new roads are built.

 

Thought the ground looked empty before kick off o Saturday - seemed to fill up quickly

 

Increase the numbers of turnstiles open and increase the price of tickets. Is that what some people or asking for?

Or are turnstile staff also paid for from the magic money tree?

 

My point is go fully electronic with supervision

 

So minimum wage x6 turnstiles x2 hours / 10,000 that would be an increase of £0.00864 per person. Yes I'd pay that... Of course the ticket turnstiles were open but the ones taking tickets weren't allowed to take cash so it's not about employing extra people just multi shilling those who are already employed.