700 if the weather's nice. but it's good to have a target.

adult for a fiver with child free vouchers got me off by backside and brought me back last year. we both have season tickets now.

free kids drink if you pay a quid isn't a huge pull - especially if i have to queue for it.

it's all a bit chicken and egg though. if you get people in they'll come back if you win or look like you could next time. but you have to get them in first!

Micky - vids are great - keep em coming. i'd like to hear more talking up of the next game: "it's going to be a really good match. so and so visitors are strong at the moment but we're firing on all cylinders now!" that kind of stuff

to be fair, JD did do more of that in his last message

Mr Hicks, I agree to an extent. The one thing missing from Cougarmania version 1 is big name signings. Grimma, Eyres, Appleby, Hiley but to name a few. Yes, JD was a big name, but if we could somehow manage to sign a couple of big names that would help. It sometimes feels like everything is geared to next season if/when we are in the Championship, i.e. that unamed Samoan. What if we don't get there? I appreciate money is tight, but if the money was there for the Samoan could we not use this to strengthen the squad now to a) assist with the push for promotion and b) to assist with drawing the crowds back.

I feel I have to make a strong point here, Mickey since he started doing videos etc all in his own time and at his own expense has and is doing a fantastic job, for myself who cannot get to games this season due to work commitments it is a godsend.

As to freshening them up why do those mentioning it give Mickey a hand I am sure he would appreciate it.

Keep up the good work, Nigels knocks are very good he thinks he is a comedian and is done very well.

I hope the club can get to 1000.

As for big signings yes ideally good but only get players who are better than what we have not just for sake of it. The players we have are doing great hence 2nd in table.

At no point has anybody made any criticism of Mick and the fantastic work he does. I'm unsure why the defensive lines have been drawn. I too cannot make every game due to work commitments and just because I don't have the time to dedicate to Cougars every week does not mean people cannot have an opinion. The highlight video's are fantastic and viewed by many far and wide. I think people are making posts about the attendances and what the club could do to attract more fans. Some have mentioned the weekly JD video's which are a great idea. IMHO they could do with freshening up now and again, but that's just my opinion. That's nothing to do with Mick, more JD and the club to invent new initiatives etc.

I would hate to think any of the posts have caused upset to Mick. Nobody from what I have read are having a go, people are just voicing their opinion of how the attendances could improve.

In relation to new players, I think people were saying big names may help, but that's JD's domain and up to him to identify new players to improve the squad. If the players are not availale at the moment thats fine. I agree fully though, new players should improve the squad.

I just think the club need to think out of the box.

That's what the likes of Mick O'Neill and Mary Calvert did back in the original days of Cougarmania.

Remember the Keighley Camels April Fools joke? Brilliant, it got us regional TV coverage.

The recession is still biting hard, inflation is approaching 5% but pay rises don't reflect this, so disposable incomes are less. Folk are more discerning about how they spend that income, so it's hard to get them to part with it.

Which brings me to this point. Are the club, and Rugby League in general, offering value for money? As most of us here are generally loyal fans who go to most games our answer would almost certainly be yes, why would we go otherwise? But what about the folk who don't go, the folk we want to come and expand our fan base, do they think it's good value? That is the real question.

In the halcyon days of Cougarmania we were a full time professional club at the top of the 2nd tier of rugby league, adults were paying £7 to get in, now it's £11 to watch semi-pro rugby league in the 3rd tier, the argument is there to say we aren't offering the value for money in relation to the quality of the product as we used to. Is it the single reason we used to get 5 to 6 times the number of fans in the mid 90's that we get now, certainly not, but it's got to be a significant contributing factor.

Other leisure organisations, which like it or not we compete against, are coming up with increasingly innovative schemes to get folk to part with their cash. Cineworld for example allow you to go to their cinemas as many times you want for £15 a month. You've got to admit, that's cracking value for money, sneak a bag of shop bought confectionary in and a bottle of water and you're laughing.

The club has to get out there and make people want to come down, put the name around, be brash and let everyone know what they're doing and achieving. It's not good enough to say, "if we start winning games, the fans will come". It's not good enough to just expect fans to do the club's job and spread the word.

Cracking post Stealth and very well put. I don't think the kids in for a quid and get a free drink really cuts it. I'm suprised a buy one adult get one half price idea hasn't been given a go. Some who are in two minds about going may well se this as an opportunity to grab a mate and share the saving.

No one is questioning the time and effort, you put into doing these things Micky.

I like stealth comic wonder if its the right thing for the club to be doing.

I get loads of links sent to me by facebook friends. Do i watch them all, no i dont.
If i dont like the name of it i wont watch it. If i do watch it and dont like it i will not watch another link.

I really dont think this is a way of getting people to come down.

JD's cougar train and Nigel's knocks videos are great for us current fans, they give us an insight in to what's going on behind the scenes.

The match videos are great for the supporters who can't make the games for whatever reason.

They certainly have a valuable place in the club's marketing strategy. However being constructive, I think they could be promoted better by being viewable on the club website and a dedicated Keighley Cougars YouTube channel.

The approach to selling the club to the wider public, with the exception of our excellent community projects is not great. The first point of call for many is the club website, a quick look at the homepage shows an 8 day and a 10 day gap in the news section, not even an article available on our win at Doncaster. The Cougars TV link takes you to a page with a link to YouTube, it's shoddy.

We need to put the brand out more, posters, billboards, PR stunts etc.. I know these cost money but good well thought out well targeted marketing will bring in more money than it costs. Here's another simple cheap way, we play Swinton on August 4th. It looks likely that will be the SKY game. The week before the game, contact every local pub with SKY Sports (easy to do if you use rlthis nifty pub finderrl) and ask them if they'll show the game and build it up to be the possible title decider it potentially is.

Thanks for the feedback. You suggesting I should pack it in ?

Mickey stick at it you will always have folk being negative it must be part of their personality, to the knockers why not do something to help or give it a rest all rugby clubs cannot exist without volunteers giving up their free time and still get grief over what they do, as touched on before get off your backsides or give the bloke a rest from the bitching.
Keep up the good work Mickey some of us actually appreciate what you do for the fans and the club.

Here here

Absolutely, please stick with it. For those of us who cant easily get to games, its an absolute blessing

Please point out where i suggest anything like that?

No one including me, is saying what you are doing is wrong.
People are wondering, not just me, if its the right way to target new or old fans, to come down and watch.

I really hope the club can get 1000 fans. Just so long as know [idodgy[/i fans turn up thats all that counts.

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