The St George Illawarra Dragons Membership Team recently distributed a survey to 2015 Red V Members to seek feedback and understand the opinions and perspectives of our valued Red V Members.
We had a positive response rate of 22 per cent (by industry standards, a very positive response) and would like to thank all who took the time to complete the survey and share their views.
Red V Member feedback is vital so we can continue to build, grow and shape our packages and benefits to suit Red V Members.
The demographic break-up of our respondents (detailed below) is an accurate representation of our active member demographics.
Common Insights
Below are some of the key and common insights from the survey responses provided by Red V Members:
80% of members are happy with the email news they receive from the Club
Common suggestions to improve our email news include:
Focus on “Member First” messaging and deliver this where possible
Provide as much player news as possible
Include the Red V Membership tally on the Red V Member e-newsletter
Provide Red V Member exclusive content
Provide subtitles on videos
Continue birthday emails
Regulate emails in the off-season
Our Red V Member emails are focused on providing reliable and accurate new to our members and whilst some Red V Members requested more information with respect to recruitment, as a Club we prefer not to deal with speculation, largely due to the potential impact that this may have on the current playing group and the present season.
Much of the speculation in the public domain is often driven by player managers seeking to bolster player values and as such, we are often included as a Club for players who are off contract and we don’t see this as beneficial.
At other times, it can negatively impact negotiations.
We are however committed to keeping our Members as up to date as possible, where we ensure/minimise the number of negative impacts.
Benefits That Are Most Important
We received some great feedback about what benefits are most important to Red V Members and it was noted that the most highly valued benefit is “being able to support the Club”.
Other comments in order were as follows:
tickets to home games
merchandise discounts
Red V Member benefit pack
Red V Member news first
We will focus on communicating these benefits as we move into renewals and promote memberships to new Red V Members.
Recognition
Member Recognition and Member Voice with respect to Club decisions were also identified as key comments and as a Club we have already implemented some things this season with respect to these areas such as:
2015 Red V Member Wall
Red V Members Advisory Forum
Red V Members Choice for the 2016 Member Cap
Red V Members ability to select equipment from a provided list for their funds to be spent within the football department
In addition to this, all Red V Members are encouraged to provide feedback, suggestions and submit questions to/for Dragons Management at any time via any of the following long-standing methods:
Email redv@dragons.com.au anytime with membership questions or suggestions
Submit questions online via Dragons Den for answer by Management such as CEO, Head Coach etc.
Suggestion/Feedback Box – complete a form on game day and place it in the box located at the Red V Tent at the next home game or Red V Member event
Food, Beverage, Transport
Another common request was for food and beverage discounts and offers at Dragons matches.
This is something that we have been and are continuing to actively work on with caterers at each of our home venues.
With different catering companies the process can be challenging but we were able to secure a 5% discount on food and beverage for the 2015 season for Red V Members only at Jubilee Oval, WIN Stadium, ANZ Stadium and the Sydney Cricket Ground.
We will continue to work with all of the venues caterers to provide such benefits again next year.
We will also continue to work with all venues and relevant authorities, in conjunction with the NRL with respect to transport and parking.
This year the NRL, ANZ Stadium and the Dragons were collectively able to negotiate the cost of rail transport for all Red V Members and ticket holders attending games at ANZ Stadium; something that is also on our agenda for 2016 and other venues.
Benefit Pack
The results for what Red V Members want in their benefit pack varies greatly, proving it is increasingly difficult to please everyone with all decisions.
Common suggestions ranged from beanies, scarves, blankets, calendars, drink bottles, ponchos, discount coupons and seat cushions to some less practical requests such as having a BBQ at a players house, signed merchandise (issues with the players Rugby League Players Association Collective Bargaining Agreement) to items that require a specific size such as full training kit, phone cover, jersey etc.
For 2016 we are hoping to offer a Red V Members choice for the main benefit item in the pack.
All Red V Members will receive a keyring, sticker and lanyard (as they are the most practical, popular and cost effective items) and then a choice between a Red V Member Cap, Kids Pack and two other options (still to be finalised).
For example, if you like the cap, you can choose the cap and if you don’t like the cap, you can choose something else.
We asked Red V Members to vote on what cap design they would like for 2016… and the winner was Cap B (pictured below)
Kids Pack
The majority of Red V Members were supportive of the idea of a gender neutral kids’ pack, rather than having a girls and a boys option.
As such, we intend to simplify and reduce the expense in this category for 2016.
Non-Ticketed
The delay in the delivery of our Non-Ticketed benefit pack was a common element of feedback.
We again apologise for this and can assure all Red V Members that in 2016 all Red V Member packs and cards will be sent from Australia to avoid the issues experienced with the promised "efficiency and reliability" from China.
Reciprocal Games
There was a positive response from Red V Members who chose and benefitted from “away” games as part of their Red V Membership package with the reciprocal arrangements available as a result of the Right Game Right Venue Strategy and co-operation of Clubs who play out of the same venues.
Digital Pass
The Digital Pass was noted as being of value with suggestions that this could be more widely taken up with greater promotion and awareness, something that we will take into consideration for 2016.
We currently offer this as a standalone membership “Digi Dragon” or as an add on “Digital Add On”, both of which include a 12 month subscription to the NRL Digital Pass at a discounted rate.
Member Events
With regards to Red V Member events, we noted that a large proportion of Red V Members don’t/can’t attend.
We are committed to continuing to find ways in which these can be placed at times and venues more suitable for Red V Members, noting that most events need to be scheduled around things like: NRL Training schedule and game schedules that are determined by the TV Broadcasters.
We also plan to send a separate survey with respect to Member events to seek a deeper understanding with a view to ongoing and continuous improvement.
Group Ticketing
In 2015 we went forward as a “pilot” club with the NRL to test the Fan Relationship Management Centre concept with a particular focus on Group Sales.
Some of our Red V Members may have even met or spoken already with Caleb and Charlie who worked with this particular concept as a new initiative.
Over 800 Red V Members who completed the survey indicated that they would be interested in group tickets to particular Dragons matches, so this is something that we will be looking to have more readily and widely available in 2016.
Please click here if you’d like more information on Group Tickets and associated benefits.
Management
Whilst we have only covered the most notable findings within this summary, the complete survey results have been circulated to the relevant staff as well as the Dragons Management Team for feedback and consideration for 2016 planning.
Once again, our sincere thanks to all our Red V Members who took the time to complete the survey and as a reward went in the draw to win their 2016 Membership to be renewed for free.
Congratulations to Trev Cole who was drawn as the winner from those who completed the survey, we look forward to welcoming Trevor back again in 2016 for his 11th year!
