Quote: Alan "Back in the day when Widnes had returned to SL (2011/12?) and Mike Callaghan was our Commercial/General manager, I gave him a copy of an interview with Widnes's then Commercial manager. In that interview, he stated that the biggest mistake Widnes made on returning to SL, was to assume there was no need to get out and about in the town to make sure everyone know that they were in SL. He reckoned that the club just short-sightedly sat back and assumed the people would come to them.
It's always been a source of amazement that RL clubs - ours just as much as any other - are happy to splash the cash on players (and granted, they are obviously needed) but not on promoting the product they are trying to sell. Surely, every business promotes its product - why not RL clubs?'"
The challenge is, where do you invest your cash to maximise ROI? The differential being, rugby league isn't a physical product (want or need), it isn't a service (solve a 'problem'), I guess it comes under the 'entertainment' category and it isn't (the first match is obviously) a one-off event such as a concert, festival, musical or other such experience. I'm sure most fans were hooked as kids as a result of what Gubrats describes, the senses being overloaded with euphoria and the 'addiction' being born. How do you sell that experience (with a rugby ball) to an adult who has the challenges of life to contend with? Do you let them in for free as a loss leader so to speak? The issue with that is, most regulars (who pay on the gate) would jump on it which negates the profit potential.
I'm sure most rugby league clubs would love to hear some new ideas on the subject. Any takers?
