How Do We Attract A New Young Audience?

[Dandelion]

I think as a young person, if there was a speedway game, a bit like football manager, made (PROPERLY) by a reasonable company and then the game got pushed, maybe kids would see it, buy it and then come to their local track!! I remember the first time I saw speedway, was a grand prix on the tv and then a few weeks later, my uncle bought me one of the grand prix games and I was hooked on speedway, and their not even particularly good games, if a decent one was made, maybe it might attract kids

ALSO!! Why not do activities during the meeting, like the mini basketball used to be at Newcastle, stop trying to rush the meeting for all of the cold and old people to be happy and slow it down and make it more interesting for the kids, prizes and such, I know a bunch of old people won't like this suggestion but we need to attract the kids somehow Speedway meetings are pretty boring just getting the heats done and then going home (For a kid)

"How to attract younger people", 1000s of posts later a load of old people have still not cracked it, shocking that.

[yoda]

I thought the new Chairman and vice-Chairman had that sorted

[uk_martin]

I think as a young person, if there was a speedway game, a bit like football manager, ..

 

Or how about if the BSPA put up it's 3 prime promoters to front-up a "Speedway Apprentice" type competition, with real life speedway management problems like arranging sponsorship, dealing with a rider who's got tooth ache, someone stealing the water bowser from the track on the day of the meeting, etc etc... see how people get on, and see who gets the Dick Dastardly finger pointing at him at the end with those immortal words, "you're fired"?

 

I think that the prototype game should feature prime wags off BSF, just to iron out any bugs in the system, and then unleash the game nationwide.

[dukes]

It is so easy and simple it is beyond belief that publishing new material both in The Speedway Star and Associated Speedway websites would actually bring with it the desire to look at them, by a new audience.

 

If a new rider/novice/youth is doing well then the extended families take a interest, problem is the old stick in the mud attitude of we know which audience we cater for attitude.

 

Halifax `Golden Fleece` Dukes have just won The Northern Junior League in 2016, World No.6 at 125cc level, British 125cc 3,4 and 5 finishers, British Youth Grass Track Champion, 1,2 and 3 in Northern Junior League Riders 125cc Championship and which one of the above has cared to mention it, cover it or even published a photograph?

 

It is great that The Evening Courier in Halifax does give great coverage still even after a 30 year absence of the sport in the Town and people want to watch it and know where they can go to watch the Dukes.

 

Take a look at the web page of the Dukes to see over 3500 hits over consecutive weeks to see who can do it right.

[ytsejam]

I think as a young person, if there was a speedway game, a bit like football manager, made (PROPERLY) by a reasonable company and then the game got pushed, maybe kids would see it, buy it and then come to their local track!! I remember the first time I saw speedway, was a grand prix on the tv and then a few weeks later, my uncle bought me one of the grand prix games and I was hooked on speedway, and their not even particularly good games, if a decent one was made, maybe it might attract kids

ALSO!! Why not do activities during the meeting, like the mini basketball used to be at Newcastle, stop trying to rush the meeting for all of the cold and old people to be happy and slow it down and make it more interesting for the kids, prizes and such, I know a bunch of old people won't like this suggestion but we need to attract the kids somehow Speedway meetings are pretty boring just getting the heats done and then going home (For a kid)

 

Uhmmmm!!!!.......not usually a problem I associate with MOST speedway meetings!!

[Joe Beevers]

Another few ideas that I have had is too give free tickets to the following people:

 

Simon Cowell

Kim Kardashian

A member of One Direction

Jordan

Some unknown off one of those terrible Essex reality programmes.

Someone dressed up as a Pokemon playing Pokemon Go.

Some Youtube star with a stupid amount of views preferably American.

Cheryl Cole or whatever her name is now.

Wayne Rooney or David Beckham.

 

I would think young people would flood in too see these people just to get a picture or autograph. Some of them, only God knows why?

[BFMDan]

Hey Hey . . . I'm your man!! LOL

 

HB

Perhaps get some young U.S noboby to trash talk, speak rubbish and commentate on speedway on Youtube like all young people seem to like watching.

[Haza]

The best way is more weekend fixtures - as simple as that , may not solve all speedways problems but it would certainly help attract more fans .

[BFMDan]

My own personal reaction to this is probably something none of us want to admit . . . I'm a racer, fan, owner, media rep, and speedway announcer . . . so this bothers me just as much as any one.

 

But, when you strip away every single piece of decoration from the sport (speedway, flattrack, even stock cars) . . . all it really boils down to is some competitors going around in circles - week after week. Not much "new-ness" to that - at the very basest of levels.

 

So, why is there some attention . . . ever?

 

Well, it's the very human desire to experience something different. "I haven't been to the races in a while; let's go check it out." Then the thrill hooks them for a while until they realize what I posted above. And then they fade away again.

 

So, the sport (in reality, ANY sport) is pressed with the goal of introducing variety to the "casual fan". You know the hard-core fans will return . . . my father used to compare motorsports to a disease, "once it's in your blood, there's no cure!" (LOL).

 

So, again, to hook the "casual fan" the promoter needs to find a way to introduce the "unexpected" . . . but, on a regular basis! (figure that out, and you're a promotional zillion-aire!)

 

The concept of "not really knowing what to expect" is what pulls the "casual fan" to a speedway. Possible tumble/wreck, sure. But, also,

• different winners,
• different grandstand entertainment,
• different prizes,
• different confrontation between a the "fan favorite" and a "black hat bad guy" (I'm not a fan of this, but it DEFINATELY creates 'water cooler talk'),
• different food,
• different style of competition,
• different pages/photos in the weekly program,
• different front gate promotion,
• etc.

Sure, advertising and education is some of it . . . but, think of it this way, would you return to the local cinema week after week, if they were only showing the same movie over and over? Nope. But, what if you didn't know from week to week if they were:

• selling beer or wine at the concession stand,
• picking 10 random people out of the crowd and giving them free admission to the following week,
• the movie suddenly had a completely different ending than last week,
• putting an intermission into the middle of the movie - during which a clown would come out and juggle flaming chain saws! LOL

Again, those aren't suggestions to cure Speedway . . . just silly examples. But, examples for a reason.

 

"Casual Fans" won't pay hard earned cash (for ever) for "sameness". It becomes blasé, predictable, and not exciting.

 

The thing that brings them back is the POTENTIAL to experience something different.

 

Just my humble opinion . . .

 

 

P.S. - I don't have the answers either.

 

 

HB

 

. . . just look at towns where they re-open tracks after years of being without the sport. Weymouth opened and for the first couple of years pulled very good crowds indeed but over the years they gradually dwindled away to the stage where there weren't enough there to pay the bills most weeks. They had a lot of people helping out and promoting the sport but gradually the crowd dwindled down to a hardcore of regular support.

 

The same pattern is repeated throughout the history of the sport, new track opens and draws good crowds which slowly reduce year on year. I think weekly Speedway is too much for many people and fortnightly meetings would probably do better, . . .

Edited October 6, 2016 by Haybails

[fatface]

 

Hello Rob,

 

I've not read all the detail on this thread so apologies if I am repeating another's comments. I have years of experience in this sport as well as running a very, very successful business now whilst that doesn't make me Golden Borrocks it does hopefully allow me to relate some of my experiences.

 

Having exhibited at shows, events, schools, conferences, clubs, pubs, hotels and businesses with riders, bikes, videos, merchandise, free or concessionary admission - even going through the probation service and local authority to provide activity free of charge for under privileged and the naughty boys and girls - I feel confident that I can tell you all that the problem isn't attracting the newbie, it's retaining them. In my experience the one thing that has brought them back is the spills but beyond that there is nothing to hold them. I like the WiFi suggestion, it's free in all of my businesses and we give access to the neighbours to soften any inconvenience we may cause. Retention is the sport's global responsibility and many clubs have worked very hard to attract new clientele, my most recent memory will probably cite Rick Frost and Julie Mahony who invested immeasurable sums into marketing and putting Peterborough on the map yet failed to retain a viable attendance. They're not mugs and like me prove themselves with sound business principles in the commercial world.

 

The real reason I have posted on this thread is to try and open the eyes of those that cannot see. many in the past and maybe on this thread have hailed Barry Hearn as the potential saviour of this and maybe some other sports too. Barry is shrewd, very, very if not extremely shrewd and won't be insulted by the derisory offers of broadcasters who wish to be the exclusive partners in his success. It's tens of millions now for a deal with Barry, trust me.

 

Barry is effective on a model based and created by Mark McCormack the man who invented the rankings for Golf and Tennis, he was successful in gaining sponsorship from Sony an International sponsor hence the Sony Rankings. Both are into sports management in a big way, sadly Mark has passed away but his legacy lives on in the company that he founded and chaired- The International Media Group or in the land of acronym, IMG.

 

IMG have developed into a global sports management company and as many will now recognise diversified into Speedway some years ago, they are internationally the best Motor Sport marketing company and once there is realisation that they are not retaining the new customers they attract to Speedway then we can start to strip out wishful thinking from fact.

 

In recent times no other company has done more to market Speedway than IMG, it's at a level that members of the BSPA can only dream about but whilst the average club is content to put a poster in the local chippy with two free tickets neither is locking customers into the sport on a weekly basis.

 

I honestly don't know the answer but like many feel that significant changes in the Management of the sport will eventually match the needs of the customers we have, to continue to torch them will only lead to the inevitable.

Agree with a lot of this. Acquisition is pretty good. Actually when you talk about speedway, quite a lot of people have been or at least heard of it. Retention is dreadful. There's lots of well-meaning stuff on this thread..posters, school visits etc. All been done with no long-term effect. Now, I don;t have the answers either. But given budgets are tight, I'd suggest some really targeted marketing with weekly video clips on paid adverts via facebook, click to a much revamped GB website, insert your postcode and find your nearest track.

 

Then the key thing is customer experience at the tracks. In an ideal world, all the stadiums would be modern venues. I struggle to think of a sport that offers such rubbish facilities. Any sport that attracts a crowd in this country from football to rugby to cricket to darts, snooker and boxing, all offer much more comfortable surroundings. I accept that isn't going to change for speedway in the short-term without serious investment.

 

So, where I do think there should be some central investment is for big screens to be shared amongst tracks. To show race replays, interviews, kiss-cam, adverts, pits scenes. It's a really boring sport in between races. The show has to be kept moving and give the customers a much fuller, modern experience to give them some value.

 

Finally, and no doubt drawing the ire of several angry old men, much more needs to be made of Tai Woffinden. He's articulate, young, fashionable, edgy, exciting and gets people talking. He needs to be central to any marketing activity. Snooker, Darts, Boxing, Cricket, Athletics, even Formula One would love a guy like Tai Woffinden to market their sports. What do we do? Moan about him having tattoos and not singing God Save the Queen!? Welcome to 2016.

Edited October 6, 2016 by falcace

[cityrebel]

Ban all those over the age of 20 entering the stadiums!

[mudflaps]

Just build a McDonalds at every stadium ...

[daveallan81]

cityrebel, on 07 Oct 2016 - 1:16 PM, said:

Ban all those over the age of 20 entering the stadiums!

 

How about over 20's go free when accompanied by an under-20 paying full admission?

[cityrebel]

Sounds great to me, but I couldn't convince my kids to go!

[Trees]

I reckon it's up to us oldies (lol) to create a great atmosphere at our clubs, like the "Ipswich Massif" have started to do this year.

 

So a group of enthusiastic, big mouthed, happy fans to make loads of noise, give the away riders a hard time etc etc at every club

 

If youngsters think they are missing out on the fun they will be there ........ maybe

[Skid Sprocket]

uk martin, on 29 Sept 2016 - 6:58 PM, said:

How about this for an idea...

 

Put on a competition between local schools/colleges for who can produce the best promotional video. Allow groups of students access to the pits, the centre green and anywhere else where they need to go. Schools / colleges can enter as many teams as their arts / media dept can support. Whilst filming, their classmates can also enjoy free admission to the tracks too.

 

Teams can get top tips by having "field trips" to speedway video production studios (e.g. ReRun, Clean Cut etc etc) and maybe Tatum & Pearson can pull some strings and arrange visits to the local BBC / Sky production facilities.

 

Winning videos can be shown on speedway web sites, and maybe also the local BBC and SkySports TV and web sites too.

 

There'll be plenty there to get the educational value that the schools / colleges would want and plenty of opportunities for the students to get hooked on the sport. Most importantly also is that these students are in the age group that are a year or two from being full fare admission payers, which is what the promoters need to make the sport sustainable. A big plus compared to the usual "kids in pushchairs go free" schemes.

 

Only snag I see with this plan is that Terry Russell (Slow Speed International Ltd) will play his copyright hand, won't he, as he owns the media rights of all audio and video shot at speedway tracks? Oh well, it was good while it lasted.

 

 

 

Rather than take the "Only snag" statement at face value (which may be as you say) I contacted Gospeed and had a very encouraging prompt reply from a Wayne Russell. I very briefly outlined the above plan and he thought it a great idea and would where possible remove any obstacles to allow such a scheme.

I realise that talk is easy and promises can be wriggled out of but maybe, in this case, Gospeed should be given the benefit of doubt. He did say that he assumed it would be a national scheme but I would prefer individual clubs to do their own competition.

 

An update on the promotional poster/video idea.

 

i asked Wayne Russell if he would let me have some guidelines for what Gospeed would allow us to do. i have been promised a full reply sometime next week, he is very busy at the moment, so fingers crossed.

 

If we get workable guidelines from Gospeed are there any volunteers from enough clubs, Elite, Premier and National league to contact schools, colleges etc in that clubs area to invite them to take part in the competition? (And get the clubs permission).

[Trees]

uk martin, on 29 Sept 2016 - 6:58 PM, said:

 

 

 

 

 

An update on the promotional poster/video idea.

 

i asked Wayne Russell if he would let me have some guidelines for what Gospeed would allow us to do. i have been promised a full reply sometime next week, he is very busy at the moment, so fingers crossed.

 

If we get workable guidelines from Gospeed are there any volunteers from enough clubs, Elite, Premier and National league to contact schools, colleges etc in that clubs area to invite them to take part in the competition? (And get the clubs permission).

Yes, would certainly be interested in helping ....

[Shale Searcher]

uk martin, on 29 Sept 2016 - 6:58 PM, said:

 

An update on the promotional poster/video idea.

 

i asked Wayne Russell if he would let me have some guidelines for what Gospeed would allow us to do. i have been promised a full reply sometime next week, he is very busy at the moment, so fingers crossed.

 

If we get workable guidelines from Gospeed are there any volunteers from enough clubs, Elite, Premier and National league to contact schools, colleges etc in that clubs area to invite them to take part in the competition? (And get the clubs permission).

 

 

Think Go-Speed is a canker of British Speedway, it really holds it back media wise...

[Skid Sprocket]

Yes, would certainly be interested in helping ....

Thanks Trees I'll let you know how things progress, Which club would you cover?

[Pirate Nick]

I don't know how you attract the you attract the the kids, but once you have if you want to keep them look no further than the actions of Bomber at the ELRC tonight. He had a massive queue of starry eyed kids queueing behind his car for a Bomber goody bag, photo opportunity and autograph.