Wessex Wanderer 148 Posted September 7, 2016 (edited) Made my last visit of the season to the island last night and once again was treated to a thoroughly entertaining meeting. It has been a real pleasure to attend Speedway meetings where those attending are treated as valued customers who should be involved in the proceedings as much as possible. This applies especially to the children. Too many promoters seem to think that their "customer care" ends immediately their entrance money has been taken. Barry Bishop and his team have restored my faith that Speedway does actually have a future in the UK. The meeting itself was another good one despite the depletion of the Kings Lynn team both before and during the match. Particularly liked the naming of Layne Cupitt as the "Master Blaster". Seems absolutely appropriate. One last point, great choice of music. Well done whoever is responsible. It keeps the atmosphere upbeat between races, a not always recognised but still very important factor. Looking forward to next season already. Sorry this got posted twice. Don't know how that happened and don't know how to delete one of them. Edited September 7, 2016 by Wessex Wanderer 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Islander15 1,065 Posted September 7, 2016 Other clubs could really take note from Barry and co on how to promote the sport properly! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halifaxtiger 5,318 Posted September 7, 2016 (edited) Been saying it all season and never seen anyone else say otherwise. Truly outstanding promotion from advertising the club to saying goodbye on a race night. Edited September 7, 2016 by Halifaxtiger 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
arnieg 3,649 Posted September 7, 2016 Been saying it all season. Truly outstanding promotion from advertising the club to saying goodbye on a race night. Ditto Made my last visit of the season to the island last night and once again was treated to a thoroughly entertaining meeting. It has been a real pleasure to attend Speedway meetings where those attending are treated as valued customers who should be involved in the proceedings as much as possible. This applies especially to the children. Too many promoters seem to think that their "customer care" ends immediately their entrance money has been taken. Barry Bishop and his team have restored my faith that Speedway does actually have a future in the UK. The meeting itself was another good one despite the depletion of the Kings Lynn team both before and during the match. Particularly liked the naming of Layne Cupitt as the "Master Blaster". Seems absolutely appropriate. One last point, great choice of music. Well done whoever is responsible. It keeps the atmosphere upbeat between races, a not always recognised but still very important factor. Looking forward to next season already. Sorry this got posted twice. Don't know how that happened and don't know how to delete one of them. some things are worth saying twice Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halifaxtiger 5,318 Posted September 7, 2016 (edited) The thing is nothing they do is complex, difficult or expensive - its just the basics done very well with customer care an absolute priority. A breath of fresh air and an example to everyone else. Edited September 7, 2016 by Halifaxtiger Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topsoil 2,498 Posted September 7, 2016 Been saying it all season and never seen anyone else say otherwise. Truly outstanding promotion from advertising the club to saying goodbye on a race night. What sort of promotion / advertising do they do? What sort of entertainment have they been providing on race nights? Interesting to here what the Isle of Wight have been doing that other clubs could take notice of. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halifaxtiger 5,318 Posted September 8, 2016 (edited) What sort of promotion / advertising do they do? What sort of entertainment have they been providing on race nights? Interesting to here what the Isle of Wight have been doing that other clubs could take notice of. I posted this elsewhere : I am reluctant to bang on about Isle of Wight but they are a superb example of how to go about it. You can make a fair argument that in a holiday resort like the Island advertising is not just desirable its a necessity, simply because there are so many people who are unaware precisely of what the attractions are. They, however, take it to another level. Posters, leaflets, banners, shows, fairs, newspaper adverts, the lot. One young lady even delivered leaflets on horseback !. I took a bus trip from Sandown to Ryde (about 6 miles) and saw two posters and one banner. As I say, you might expect a holiday destination to advertise but I have never seen anything like that at Eastbourne, for example. When you get to the tidy little Stadium, the food and drink is reasonably priced and you can take your own in. The promoter, Barry Bishop, welcomes people through the gate (one poster commented that the last person to do that was Johnnie Hoskins in the 1970's) and he spends the meeting wandering around talking to people. Last Tuesday he took a number of Birmingham fans on to the centre green. They weren't sponsors, VIP's, just ordinary fans down for the day. Both he and his co-promoter Martin Widman are totally approachable, will listen to comment and constructive criticism with a careful ear and give you feedback. Children are free. For a couple and 2 children under 16, parking and a programme, the cost is £24.50. That's comparable with any other evening attraction and reasonably affordable - at nearby Poole, it could set you back £53. Even the cost of getting to the Island is discounted. There are free sweets, free temporary tattoos and a bike ride round the track for the children. Last Tuesday, they had a bike ride round the track. One young lad is slightly disabled ( I think) and Kelsey Dugard pushed him all the way (and its a big circuit). A very small gesture by a rider that may have a huge effect. The speedway itself is very decent (not in Scunthorpe's league, but better than Belle Vue and Redcar and way better than Sheffield) and my old mates Bryn Williams and Tim Allan do some of the presentation and they are excellent. They are, quite literally, doing everything right from the moment you read one of the numerous adverts to the point that you walk out the stadium and its little wonder that their gates have increased week on week. The thing is none of this is particularly difficult or expensive - indeed, Isle of Wight have sponsors to cover much of the cost. Its simply about a promotion putting every effort in to make the night a good experience for all their customers. Would that every track in the country go to the same lengths because, quite frankly, few of them do. Edited September 8, 2016 by Halifaxtiger 6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halifaxtiger 5,318 Posted September 8, 2016 One last point, great choice of music. Well done whoever is responsible. It keeps the atmosphere upbeat between races, a not always recognised but still very important factor. I think the music is supplied by a chap called Phil Lynch, a local DJ. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
auntie doris 2,342 Posted September 8, 2016 Are there remaining fixtures for this season...what size crowds are they averaging now? Good luck to the Islanders...Excellent promoting. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Reviresco 708 Posted September 8, 2016 Totally agreed with all the positive stuff that has been said before. This deserves to be a Massif success. Absolutely everyone involved is top class. I will post the image of the Island fogo at Foxhall later tonight :-) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wessex Wanderer 148 Posted September 8, 2016 What sort of promotion / advertising do they do? What sort of entertainment have they been providing on race nights? Interesting to here what the Isle of Wight have been doing that other clubs could take notice of. Topsoil What seems different is the general attitude of the promotion. They are always looking for more ways to attract customers and then keep them happy. They also appreciate that it takes multiple actions to do both and some things need time to bear to bear fruit. Too many times over the years I have heard people say something like "well, we did so and so once and it didn't make much difference". So they didn't bother again. They also seem to appreciate that the commercial side of running Speedway is just as important as what happens on track. I do appreciate that the promotion of any sporting event can be very difficult and in no way would I want to minimise the efforts of others but I do believe that the Warriors overall approach to attracting and then taking care of their customers is what is different in this case. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topsoil 2,498 Posted September 8, 2016 Topsoil What seems different is the general attitude of the promotion. They are always looking for more ways to attract customers and then keep them happy. They also appreciate that it takes multiple actions to do both and some things need time to bear to bear fruit. Too many times over the years I have heard people say something like "well, we did so and so once and it didn't make much difference". So they didn't bother again. They also seem to appreciate that the commercial side of running Speedway is just as important as what happens on track. I do appreciate that the promotion of any sporting event can be very difficult and in no way would I want to minimise the efforts of others but I do believe that the Warriors overall approach to attracting and then taking care of their customers is what is different in this case. Thanks The way I asked is that i can see many similarities in population between Isle of Wight and the track i follow Berwick. Both fairly isolated but gain a lot more population in the holiday season. I just wanted to know what sort of promotional work Isle of Wight did as I would like to suggest something similar to the Berwick promotion. I know a few years ago the Isle of Wight suffered with small crowds and this season they have been one of the good news stories for the sport and long may it continue. Hopefully a few more tracks will see the work being done and the dividends it is paying and can lead to bigger and better things for the sport. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Reviresco 708 Posted September 13, 2016 Apologies for asking this question again, but where does the car ferry go from Portsmouth and is there a car park close by, which I know sounds nuts but I am hoping to meet somebody at the car ferry who is driving tere separately and we would then take just the one car across on probably the 3pm crossing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
racers and royals 8,736 Posted September 13, 2016 (edited) Apologies for asking this question again, but where does the car ferry go from Portsmouth and is there a car park close by, which I know sounds nuts but I am hoping to meet somebody at the car ferry who is driving tere separately and we would then take just the one car across on probably the 3pm crossing. Portsmouth Car Ferry Terminal Gunwharf Road, Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 2LA, UK Car parking at the Terminal is available. The car park at our Portsmouth Car Ferry terminal on Gunwharf Road will be closed from 13 September throughout improvements works at Portsmouth Car ferry terminal, although customers with parking season tickets will be admitted. We apologise for the inconvenience Other parking http://www.welcometoportsmouth.co.uk/gunwharf_road_car_park_Portsmouth_map.html Edited September 13, 2016 by racers and royals Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
remembertheracers 171 Posted September 13, 2016 Can I ask whether the superb effort of the new promoters has been reflected in attendances at Smallbrook? Hopefully they have but I have head varying reports. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
