Are the SANFL marketing to the wrong demographic?

[whufc]

Now alot of people probably won't agree with what im saying but bear with it, the SANFL and the 9 clubs put countless hours and loads of money trying to get kids into the gates at SANFL games. Now im all for getting the children involved and making them aware of the SANFL and trying to get them in early as SANFL supporters.

The last few weeks though, i have been thinking about my younger days when i was between 8-18 and who i use to go the football with. When we were 8-12 we never ever ever missed a home game, would go to the occasional away game if we had a parent to drive us. Then as we hit our teens it only became the home games never bothered with away games. As we got to 15-18 my mates then only went to irregular home games and to this day (we are now all between 25-30) they only go to finals. I have kept going to every game possible but im only 1 of what was a group of between 20-30 kids who would now go to no more than 3 games a year not including finals.

What my point is i guess is that no matter how much money or time is spent on getting these kids in at an early age it's still no guarentee that they will come to games as they get older.

Nowadays i go with a group of about 10-20 different people at various stages between the ages of 25-35 of which half these guys never went to games as kids but now see it as a great day out and attend games very regulary.

Now this is the demographic i think that does get left out alot is the 25-35 market, these are the guys that once in will probably be a fan for life. These are the same guys that will spend $50-$100 dollars every game (thats upwards of $1000 a year) they attend. These are the guys that as they get older and work their way up the industry ladder, will spend money on player sponsorship, club sponsorship, silly expensive merchandise, corporate boxes, meals in the clubrooms and the TAB.

They are the same guys that will have realised the AFL is commerical, over priced, over hyped rubbishand see the SANFL as great, less expensive day out with mates.

IMHO SANFL clubs aren't doing enough to promote themselves to this age group, make them aware of how great a day at the SANFL is because IMHO in the modern era i think these people are the future fans for years to come.

[drebin]

Some very good points there whufc and I think you are on the money.

[Adelaide Hawk]

Excellent post, couldn't agree more. I made a similar comment in Redleg Talk that if you encourage the young parents to come to the game, the kids will follow, not the other way around.

I'm older than the 25-35 demographic of which you speak, but I have got myself to the point where I rarely watch AFL any more, the game just sucks and offers me nothing. I have a lot of mates who feel the same way, and yet there is nothing luring these people back to the SANFL.

[Wedgie]

Wow, I wasn't even aware the SANFL were marketing to anyone let alone a specific demographic.
Kids don't get any awareness of the SANFL down here, only AFL.
Even as recently as 2 days ago 2 Power listed players were out at my kids school and had been conducting classes for the last month.
A couple of months before that the Crows were out.
Kids have more of an awareness about Reynella and Happy Valley than any SANFL club down here.
If they're going to market an area it should be over 30s, the below 30s were kids when the Crows came out and are mainly a lost cause. I'd give up completely on Gen Y and work on those either side of it.

[whufc]

The one option i really like is the Adelaide United "Shout a mate day"

My basic understanding of the promotion is that anyone who has Adelaide United season ticket gets one home game of the year where they can get 2(?) mates into the game for free.

I personally think it's a great concept and maybe something SANFL clubs could look at doing.

[Wedgie]

That's a good one whufc. Personally I know of dozens of more people that would come if the booze was cheaper with a better variety.
Imagine how many people they'd get for a $2 beer day, would make a heap of money!

[Dirko]

That's a good one whufc. Personally I know of dozens of more people that would come if the booze was cheaper with a better variety.
Imagine how many people they'd get for a $2 beer day, would make a heap of money!

Yeah the reason to go to the Footy. To drink. Creates a good family atmosphere that one !

[Wedgie]

That's a good one whufc. Personally I know of dozens of more people that would come if the booze was cheaper with a better variety.
Imagine how many people they'd get for a $2 beer day, would make a heap of money!

Yeah the reason to go to the Footy. To drink. Creates a good family atmosphere that one !

Agreed! More people, more atmosphere, more kids enthralled.

If people have a concern with alcohol they can sit in the family friendly area. Except for Unley Oval its not like you can't spread out. These days bars are usually covering an area about the 3rd of a ground, if that as most drunks don't like to walk.

Busiest bar days Ive seen were thoe big games at the Bay a couple of years ago and the atmosphere was fine for families, mind you a bit of common sense always tells you not to have your kids in the immediate vacinity of the bar no matter how large the crowd is. Its the idiots that go looking for trouble near the bar who bring their own that are quite often the main problems and cheaper beer would help negate that.

Perhaps we could cater for all clubs and have a crochet and creche day for your mob!

[Pseudo]

Imagine how many people they'd get for a $2 beer day, would make a heap of money!

The Magpies could follow it up with a $2 snag day

[whufc]

That's a good one whufc. Personally I know of dozens of more people that would come if the booze was cheaper with a better variety.
Imagine how many people they'd get for a $2 beer day, would make a heap of money!

Yeah the reason to go to the Footy. To drink. Creates a good family atmosphere that one !

Agreed! More people, more atmosphere, more kids enthralled.

If people have a concern with alcohol they can sit in the family friendly area. Except for Unley Oval its not like you can't spread out. These days bars are usually covering an area about the 3rd of a ground, if that as most drunks don't like to walk.

Busiest bar days Ive seen were thoe big games at the Bay a couple of years ago and the atmosphere was fine for families, mind you a bit of common sense always tells you not to have your kids in the immediate vacinity of the bar no matter how large the crowd is. Its the idiots that go looking for trouble near the bar who bring their own that are quite often the main problems and cheaper beer would help negate that.

Perhaps we could cater for all clubs and have a crochet and creche day for your mob!

Totally agree, Glenelg vs Central at the bay this year, they bars were packed nearly impossible to get a beer at half-time, yet IIRC not one ince of trouble and a great day was had by all the people i spoke to both Central and Glenelg supporters. Maybe if Weslo did their job properly alot of the incidents would be stopped before they got out of hand. Though i don't want to turn this topic into a bagging Weslo session.

[darley16]

Retaining the U/17/& U/19 would have (and did) go along way to grab this market. The scrapping of these grades was one of the most short sighted and simply dumb moves by the SANFL in years! This move again inspired by the AFL to mould our comp to what they want it be with 5 of the clubs (sadly including mine) voting in favour, shame shame.

[FlyingHigh]

Retaining the U/17/& U/19 would have (and did) go along way to grab this market. The scrapping of these grades was one of the most short sighted and simply dumb moves by the SANFL in years! This move again inspired by the AFL to mould our comp to what they want it be with 5 of the clubs (sadly including mine) voting in favour, shame shame.

Agree Darley - and it is fits in with the point Wedgie made about kids knowing their local amatuer/country clubs more than the SANFL. Kids know about these clubs and the AFL clubs, but their interest in the SANFL is likely to only get sparked when their mates get the chance to play at an SANFL club (unless they are absolute footy tragics), but now we are restricting that chance with fewer players required.

FWIW whufc's idea should be given a go to.

[doggies4eva]

Very interesting thread this. I am not clear what the SANFL do as far as marketing and how they coordinate with the clubs. As the push has seemed to be to market the SANFL as a "grassroots" competition, I would have thought that a high degree of coordination with the clubs would be essential.

Totally agree that the parents make the decision about whether to take their kids to the footy but as manuafacturers of toys and fast foods have shown if you target the kids then they influence the parents decision making process.

[JK]

Excellent thought provoking post Hammers!

As for the range of booze at the footy, you could offer every option under the sun and I don't think the profit would equal the $$ of the sponsorship agreement which would no doubt get lost?

[Wedgie]

Excellent thought provoking post Hammers!

As for the range of booze at the footy, you could offer every option under the sun and I don't think the profit would equal the $$ of the sponsorship agreement which would no doubt get lost?

I disagree with your point as if they offered a wider range Lion Nathan owned beers they would still receive the same amount of money they receive now in sponsorship agreement. Even as recently as last year I could purchase Tooheys New at most suburban grounds but cannot this year so just bring my own in now with the clubs losing out on the money. They even own James Squire, I could handle that. They also have the license for Heinekin.

Mind you it would be nice for a South Australian owned beer to be at every ground but that would put the sponsorship agreement at risk, noone was suggesting that.

[Cambridge Clarrie]

I thought that the current TV campaign was promoting the game to the parents and not the kids. Essentially I saw it as saying to parents; get your kids playing computer games off the couch and get them out in the fresh air watching a real game, interacting with other people and eating good old Aussie foods (like a meat pie - healthy stuff!)...

Not the best ads, but I think how they're trying to sell the SANFL is the right idea... Family entertainment, traditional, good value, etc...

I've actually been pretty impressed over the last few years at the numbers of kids I've seen at games...

The SANFL would be judging the effectiveness of their campaign on crowd numbers and crowd numbers alone. Based on this measure, has the campaign been successful (i.e. have crowds this year grown or declined?)...

[Wedgie]

The SANFL would be judging the effectiveness of their campaign on crowd numbers and crowd numbers alone. Based on this measure, has the campaign been successful (i.e. have crowds this year grown or declined?)...

My guess, and a guess alone would be a downturn this year, hopefully Phil H or Spelly might have the exact figures.

[JK]

Excellent thought provoking post Hammers!

As for the range of booze at the footy, you could offer every option under the sun and I don't think the profit would equal the $$ of the sponsorship agreement which would no doubt get lost?

I disagree with your point as if they offered a wider range Lion Nathan owned beers they would still receive the same amount of money they receive now in sponsorship agreement. Even as recently as last year I could purchase Tooheys New at most suburban grounds but cannot this year so just bring my own in now with the clubs losing out on the money. They even own James Squire, I could handle that. They also have the license for Heinekin.

Mind you it would be nice for a South Australian owned beer to be at every ground but that would put the sponsorship agreement at risk, noone was suggesting that.

Fair call, I assumed (I know, I know) you were suggesting a range spanning multiple ownerships.

[Sam_goUUUdogs]

I suppose another point is that the 25-35 year olds are likely to bring their young children to games, who would then grow up watching the SANFL, so they would probably catch just as much if not more of the younger market than if they were directly targeting it.

[Cambridge Clarrie]

I suppose another point is that the 25-35 year olds are likely to bring their young children to games, who would then grow up watching the SANFL, so they would probably catch just as much if not more of the younger market than if they were directly targeting it.

I agree. I fit this age bracket and take my two and a half year old son to every home game. He's brainwashed already... loves his Double Blues and worships Chambo!