Re: Roger Draper : Thu Oct 13, 2016 5:36 pm  

From what I've heard both parties were reasonably happy to go their separate ways. I'd assume Stuart Middleton will take over the reins.

Our Roger talked a good game but I don't think fully grasped what fans wanted. Remember that fans survey they sent out probably a year and a half ago? I can't imagine that a new logo and big balls of fire when the players walk out was top of the list. What was top of the list was probably getting rid of the Wolfs name, but that wasn't what they would have wanted to hear.

[Fantastic Mr Catpiss]

Re: Roger Draper : Thu Oct 13, 2016 6:00 pm  

Seems like he Was The least #hardwired of them all.

Re: Roger Draper : Thu Oct 13, 2016 6:28 pm  

BOBBIE_IS_SUPERMAN wrote:

Never a more true statement spoken. And the membership cards are rubbish .

We still can't get ours to work!

Re: Roger Draper : Thu Oct 13, 2016 8:30 pm  

LOngbarn Wire wrote:

We get told its the rfl that force the paper tickets for cup games etc..

It's definitely not true - other clubs with card systems (Leeds for certain) load cup and play off games onto members' cards.

Re: Roger Draper : Thu Oct 13, 2016 8:35 pm  

I enjoyed the fans forums that he hosted, very enjoyable finding out what was being done, outcomes of surveys etc.

Fan database - I remember Roger mentioning how poor the data we had was, and therefore we had a scattergun approach to marketing. Hopefully the data was cleaned up, also the member portal does solve some of this as fans can update their details, and choose how they want to be contacted. Membership isn't compulsory though, like at some football clubs you've got to be a member to purchase tickets.

Match day - The light shows and fire boxes have looked great to build a big match feel, it was also a good idea to change the dancers. I know the speaker system wasn't cheap but it was required.

Website - It does look more professional now, it was very cluttered before. It still doesn't have a lot of content/features to keep you on the website for long though.

Brand - Our old badge wasn't even ours, it had been adapted from a German police team I believe. It's good to have our own badge, and 'Wire' being included has been great. Of course the branding wasn't just about the badge.

Advertising - I do see more advertising on the buses and other places in town now, and it's nice that we've got a sign on different entry points to Warrington, but it always seems like the club could do more.

Club Shop - The old shop was a bit like a jumble sale, hard to find what you wanted, and it was very dark. The new shop has looked a lot more professional, they've just got to keep it that way.

Hospitality - I've only tried the East Stand hospitality earlier this year but it certainly looked a lot better. Hopefully the companies with a lot of money have been impressed and will come back.

Fan interaction - You certainly see a lot more emails, texts, Facebook and Twitter interaction from the club these days.

Queues - Still terrible if you want a drink at the match, at one point this year I went down a couple of minutes before half time, and got back a few minutes after the 2nd half had started. One of the concourse bars in particular is serving real ale, lager, cider, wine etc. What was wrong with having a separate real ale bar, especially as it's more popular now.

Membership cards - As mentioned by others you've still got to hand your card over for an operator to swipe. Sometimes it even takes them a few attempts. There's also been problems with adding games to flexi cards, and loyalty hasn't really worked. So yes it's got rid of paper tickets (for the most part) but it needs to be smoother.

You could even take it further by having your member card or tickets on your phone.

Re: Roger Draper : Fri Oct 14, 2016 9:38 am  

typical glory hunting MD was draper... where was he when we were at wilderspool eh?

He came in, made it rain with someone elses money, then when the going got tough, he ran off with the first person to bat their eyelashes at him.

Good riddance.

Re: Roger Draper : Fri Oct 14, 2016 10:53 am  

Fantastic Mr Catpiss wrote:

Seems like he Was The least #hardwired of them all.

Re: Roger Draper : Fri Oct 14, 2016 3:51 pm  

lister wrote:

Fan database - I remember Roger mentioning how poor the data we had was, and therefore we had a scattergun approach to marketing. Hopefully the data was cleaned up, also the member portal does solve some of this as fans can update their details, and choose how they want to be contacted. Membership isn't compulsory though, like at some football clubs you've got to be a member to purchase tickets.

It is true that the data was awful but the plans to rectify this was in place prior to Roger arriving.

Re: Roger Draper : Fri Oct 14, 2016 5:07 pm  

We've got a lovely reception area now though, and the shops been painted. What more can we ask?

Re: Roger Draper : Sun Oct 16, 2016 4:39 pm  

So, farewell then, Roger Draper.

Not too surprised at the news - we were always going to be a springboard to get his career back on track. On reflection, I think that he was a good thing for the club.

Since 2011 we had stagnated commercially and simply relied on people to turn up out of loyalty and habit. The club shop had the customer service offering of a 1960s school canteen and we were being blatantly ripped off with the most expensive ale in Super League. Communication was non-existent, or poor at best.

The badger - I didn't agree with the rebrand and still think the logo looks horrendous, but it was done to make a statement and I suppose it worked in that it caused a stir and appeased those who wanted to see 'the wire' in writing. Was it worth the cost? Probably not.

Communication - for mine, this was Draper's greatest success at the club and will be his legacy. The questionnaire gave people their chance to have a say; as paying customers you need to keep in touch with public opinion. The survey led to many 'quick fixes' which undoubtably improved our offering.

The second survey was a bit strange; it struck me as more of a back-slapping exercise. The question "is Warringron the best rugby league club in the world' was strange and ridiculous. The 'Wire Fan Club' thing backfired and insulted quite a few people who have been great servants of the club. I imagine this will be quietly dropped over the off-season and rightly so.

Match day - as others have noted, things improved dramatically at the start of the season, then it all went very quiet. I get the impression that the purse-string holders liked the idea in principle, but didn't like the subsequent invoice. The club needs to realise that Warrington has become one of the most affluent towns in the UK - a pint of Tetleys and a frozen pie is not going to attract new audiences, it simply reinforces the stereotype which has long made rugby league unfashionable.

Whoever replaces Mr Draper needs to build on the good work as the club cannot fall back into the complacency of his predecessor. He strikes me as the ideal man for Red Hall, but he and Big Nige strike me as chalk and cheese....