Before I got on BigSoccer a decade ago, I was on an MLS soccer list. When the number of people on that forum declined, I moved over to BigSoccer, knowing nothing about it, but thinking it would have more participants. I am not on Facebook, Twitter, or any other kind of social media and I'll be in the 60 year old demographic in a few months instead of the 50 year old group in which I began in BigSoccer. I never saw any NASL games, but have been a STH since the MLS inaugural game at Spartan Stadium. A lot of my opinions about "what the fans think" over the years have been influenced by BigSoccer (and I have often communicated my opinions to EQ management and employees). After all of this time, and with new social media available, I am now wondering how representative of the current fanbase BigSoccer is. If I complain to the FO am I seen as part of a group that is getting smaller, older, and less relevant? As a baby boomer I am used to being the center of the universe. Is that now just a conceit? When I read BigSoccer these days, I get the impression that more posters (though diehard fans of the Quakes) may have moved out of the area, may not ever (or only seldom) buy tickets or attend games, or may have been irreversibly alienated from the franchise. I am not saying the opinions expressed here are WRONG - after all, I share most of them - but I wonder if the opinions and attitudes on this board are the majority of the current fanbase. (To be fair, the number of STH ain't that big, and "fanbase" can be open to interpretation, so this place may be as good as anywhere else!) I also wonder if there are other venues or social media or some real or virtual place any "better representative" of fan opinion. (Certainly, I expect the Quakes are also looking for the sweet spot to draw fans from). IMO Dave Kaval sees supporters clubs, SSV or BigSoccer Boards as not the only constituencies, but as some of many interest groups he must reach,and then he has to decide how much weight to give to each group in his own mind. I assume this extends beyond fans but also to ownership. I don't know if there is some kind of a poll or survey of BigSoccer members we could devise, or if it is better to just have a conversation where lurkers continue to lurk and frequent posters just post about it. I am always telling people to contact Kaval and give him your opinion - but it is a fair question to ask whether or not one's opinion is taken seriously enough to make a difference. I do not believe Dave reads BS himself, but SLO Quake does read these boards, so I have to believe that opinions here have some value. (Perhaps SLO can give us his opinion, too). Perhaps the moderators have some idea of BS demographics or size. I am interested in all opinions and even self-descriptions of people's status in terms of being an active, inactive, or even ex-fan.
I am early 30s and I think I can answer some of these questions. Bigsoccer, while imperfect, is the largest forum for discussions about the Quakes. There is almost no censoring of comments on basis of content/criticism. I think you could interpret the comments on bigsoccer as representative of sincere criticisms by the fan base. The Facebook group is managed by the FO and is not a truly open forum for unfettered discussion about the team. There are a number of people who have "liked" the Quakes Facebook group, but its not an active forum for fans. And you as a fan cant survey the people on Facebook. It is mostly a tool for the FO to send updates to fans. The Quakes FO has a list of STH and a list of people who have purchased tickets online and/or signed up for the mailing list. I know that the FO does some surveying to understand their customer base. So, that's a round about way of saying that this forum is as good as it gets for judging a representative sample of fan sentiment...short of standing outside of Buck Shaw and administering a survey yourself.
Or, to paraphrase: Well, who are you? (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?) I really wanna know (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?) Tell me, who are you? (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?) 'Cause I really wanna know (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?)
I'm 47 and have been a Quakes fan since 1974. My parents (and I) were season tickets in 1975 until NASL folded. My wife and I have been season tickets holders since 1996. Since I was eight, I have been playing soccer and continue to play soccer. I have coached for the past fifteen years and have participated as a coach or parent for recreation through USSF Development Academy. For the first year, I just lurked on BigSoccer (too busy at work). Afterwards, I became active. Most of the discussion focused on the team. After the Quakes moved, I didn't get on as much (except for USMNT). When the Quakes came back, I found most of the good posters who discussed and I enjoyed their perspective had stopped posting (and most likely attending games). For the past four years, it seems people are more interested in the game day experience rather than tallking about the team. That's fine, but I find myself less and less interest in taking part of the discussion. My wife interacts with front office. I don't have any relationship with the front office(used to when Wee Man was there). Still, I haven't found another forum to discuss the Quakes and there is still enough posters who I value there opinions to make it worth reading...
A couple of times on this forum, I have asked who is an STH. I have only seen a few people reply that they were. But based on what people post, my guess is that there are only 30-50 STHs in this forum. The rest cannot buy a ticket or have moved out of town, and there is at least one troll, who does an inordinate amount of posting. I don't think you can really be a fan when you can only see 1/3 of the field via the MLS TV broadcast and have no idea what the game day experience is like. So I think NedZ's fears are correct. Regardless of whether we are conceited baby boomers or 20-somethings, this BS forum is irrelevant to the FO, because they get better info from direct marketing to the STHs who actually buy their product.
Yeah, I guess that I never address this point in my post. I have never thought that this forum that the FO really take seriously. Data point. Sure but not much more...
Here is where I disagree. I would estimate that the STHs are only about 6000 people. So, direct marketing and communication to them is merely trying to hold onto existing high-profit customers. The people who aren't STH but purchase a ticket online are important because the FO wants to convert them into STH or at least get them to attend more games. I would say that the posters on BS are a combination of the two. I don't think BS is irrelevant to the FO. I'm sure they monitor it to see what fans think. And if they see a large number of scathing comments on BS...they become concerned...and those postings are probably directly proportional to the number of negative emails that they receive directly from fans. In short, thing of bigsoccer as a forum for fans to discuss the team and vent to one another. But the most effective way to express discontent to the FO is to send them a letter/email and...if changes are not made...you will have to make an economic decision about whether the product is worth the money you spend. In short, Bigsoccer is not intended to be the means for communicating with the FO. The FO does see what is posted to BS and is concerned when it sees dissatisfied customers. Having said that, if you really want to communicate concerns with the FO...then you should contact them directly.
I would disagree with your notion that it is not possible to be considered a "fan" if you are unable to attend virtually every game. I do not live in the Bay Area. When the team reappeared, I purchased season tickets and made the commitment to attend games. Unfortunately, my season was interrupted by quintuple bypass surgery in September. That aside, I did spend the money, take the time, make the trips, etc. to support the team. Unfortunately, in my opinion anyway, there has been something missing from this organization. I had very high expectations. Perhaps too high. The cost of the tickets was only a part of the money I spent that season as a fan. Traveling costs money. I often stayed in hotels. I probably spent more $$ than I should have. I am not complaining, but I didn't do it again and am glad I did not. I have no idea about how many similar type situations there might be....older fans from the NASL, or even the early MLS days, who might have lost interest for various reasons. They might have taken a look at this team along the way and come away disappointed for any number of reasons. Perhaps the organization (either the Quakes or MLS) isn't particularly interested in those people. My personal opinion is that bridges can't continually be burned along the way, even if it is by accident.
I went to several Quakes games in the summer of 1975, should have kept that up for a number of reasons, but I went away to college and fell out of it. I rekindled my fanship in 1996 (1995 when they announced the team, actually). I went to a fair number of games from '96 to '01. I bought "season ticket" packages in '00 and '01. So not full season tickets, but partial plans. (Four of those in '01, so I could take friends to a few matches and the playoffs!) Moved to Vancouver, WA in '02. I think I went to a couple of games in '02, but I was only semi-employed. I bought season tickets again in '05 and gave them to my nephew. Clearly, I'm still far too obsessed with the team and spend way too much time on BigSoccer. I came to BigSoccer from a different forum, and the Quakes e-mail list before that. Also, there was an MLS e-mail list where I invested far too much time arguing with galactowussy fans. Yuck! Like sj_oldtimer, I find it hard to get to games. Still, I've managed a few trips to SJ for games and I went to one of the games at shittle up here. I'll make the Quakes @ Timbers games of course. Probably go to Wankouver for next year. So while I don't buy season tickets, I've been buying too many jerseys of late, sort of to make up for my lack of more direct financial support. Oh, I pay for the DirectKick package, which is money going to MLS and indirectly, OUR Quakes. I know that some of you see me as a very negative poster. The thing is, I love the team, I want the team to do well, and I get annoyed when I see us moving in the wrong direction. OK, more than annoyed. I can't play guitar and type as the same time, so I tend to boil over more here than while watching games on TV. Really. Oh, and I'm older than I wish, 53 this year. GOOOOOO QUAAAAAAAAKES!!!!!!!! Fire Frank and JD!! - Mark
What's missing is a deep-rooted love and passion for the game of soccer. Judging from the members of the FO that I've met, I'd say very few of them love the Quakes and love soccer. I think some love business. They love the art of the deal. They love real estate development. They love working in professional sports. However, I don't get the impression that they love the Quakes. That there is a personal investment in this franchise. I look at professional sports ownership as the stewardship of a public trust. You look at soccer fandom in other countries and ask fans how they came to support their team, and they are as likely as not to tell you that their father and grandfather supported that team and they were raised to support them as well. The fans learn to know one another and there is a sense of family between the fans and the club. There is a sense of belonging. I don't think there is much sense of that around this club. It needs to be rediscovered and nurtured. I'm not talking about some "membership" marketing ploy. This isn't the NBA where we try to put on an entertainment extravaganza every night. Soccer is about community, passion, continuity and relationships. It is about passing it from one to another. Our club has been around for a few generations as well. I'm sure there were families who made attending Quakes games a part of their shared experience. Where are those fans now? Where are their kids? Are they coming to the games, and if not, why? SSV could play a huge role in bringing those fans back into the fold. As former Quakes and Quakes fans donate memorabilia to the Legacy Project, we need to find out how to get them back in to the fold. The current stewards of this club need to make it a priority to acknowledge their existence and mine their previous love of this club. You look at lower division sides in England and you see octogenarians tearing tickets, selling programs and staying involved as ushers or what have you with a club they've loved their whole lives. I want to see those folks who were bringing their kids to the games in the 70's/80's back at Buck Shaw passing it on to their grandkids. (yes, I said at Buck Shaw; many lower division grounds make Buck Shaw look like a palace) Moreover, I want to see our club recognize the significance in that. Just my four cents.
I have a friend who grew up with the 70s Quakes and attended all the games with his father. His father doesn't go to games any more and he hadn't been to a game since he was a kid, but because we had to miss last Sat's game, I gave him our tix. Mom, dad, kids ages 10 and 13, live maybe 15-20 minutes from Buck Shaw. They had fun, but I don't think they'll be back (unless someone gives them tickets!) It's just not a very compelling event, you know? We've got a team whose players mostly act as though they would rather be cleaning toilets than playing soccer. Our kids' soccer league -- over 1600 kids, plus families -- is coming to the Chicago game next month. Last time our league ponied up for the Quakes was 2005, and everyone had a fantastic time. As I've mentioned here before, lots of families returned for the remainder of the season. Those families haven't come back to the new Quakes. And if the team doesn't do a better job of pretending they want to be out there -- and if the fans don't follow suit -- I expect this crop of families will be equally uninterested in a repeat visit. I have exactly one set of friends I've managed to convince to attend games more than once, and usually it's because they've gotten a deal on tickets somewhere.
Any of you who remember those first few years, especially 1974 to 1977, recall the dedication of the players, not only on the pitch, but in the community. There was hardly a day or two gone by when there wasn't a personal appearance somewhere around the South Bay area by one of the Quakes' players. Not just the guys on the bench either. All of the players worked hard to be part of the community. They were at schools, shopping centers, or just about any other location where potential fans might gather. They played basketball (or 1/2 game of basketball and 1/2 game indoor soccer) at high schools....I think they probably had some fun along the way, although I am sure it was a lot of work too. It was really no secret why people liked to go to Spartan Stadium to see "their" Earthquakes. Times are a lot different now and I realize much of that would not be possible. But, it seems like there still must be many methods of community involvement available for players. I know they still do it to some extent, but my guess is that the players generally don't like to do it. That's kind of the way things work these days anyway. People tend to be self-centered and I am sure that Quakes players are no different, and being pro athletes, some may be a little more so.