Accies TV - What's the Point?

[Whiskeytown]

Would you not expect a section of the club's website titled "Accies TV" to include some footage of matches, either for free or behind a paywall or even some free footage of the U20s? What do we get instead? A film about a local political issue and something called "Dart Challenge". Fortunately I have never been sufficiently bored enough to click on that.

I picked a club at random there - Arbroath - and checked out their website. They have "Lich TV", free highlights footage of their games. The one I clicked had 4 mins 14 from a recent game. Given how bad the Sportscene and BT highlights are, Sunday being a new low for the BBC, couldn't the club film their own matches and put extended highlights up? Motherwell do this behind a paywall but this is free for season ticket holders. Is it not crazy that Arbroath fans in the bottom tier can see more of their matches than we can? Of course occasionally we have Alba games, and that's great but we shouldn't have to miss out like we have the past two weeks. Even in defeat, there was plenty to want to see again, Nade's curling shot for example.

Scott Struthers told me recently that the club would need to pay for a license to show matches. Why can't we just do this? If Arbroath and other much smaller clubs can find the cash, it shouldn't be an excuse for us. He also said St Johnstone and others charge entry for U20 matches and we don't but really this is another poor excuse, we are hardly talking about significant amounts of money. The desire to make things better has to be there, and just as with the awful programme, I don't see any evidence that that desire exists. We are a diddy club still in so many ways and I don't think enough folk care enough to change that. Matters on the pitch matter above all else of course and I am genuinely grateful for where we are at the moment, and there is also the good publicity about community projects, it would only take a bit of effort and a wee tweek here and there to stop folk like me moaning, how about it Accies?

[Alfie Olek]

Whiskeytown, I don’t disagree with a single thing you say but have come to the conclusion that while the running of all things commercial are in the hand of the current regime and by that I exclude Les and Ronnie then it is a complete and utter waste of time going on about this and other issues commercial. I don’t think I am mistaken in saying that comments about the online shop were ongoing for over 5 years before it materialised and even then it has hardly been developed. We get a new website but no one to run it. We ask for debit card facilities no way, and as for Accies TV ur having laugh. You will get what they give you and like it. Just let it go

[porcupine]

Perhaps neither of you were at the meeting with Les before the St J Game??

Les spent some time responding to the question of our 'crap' web-site. Les knows the web-site falls far short of other clubs. Answer was given that we do not have any more resources to employ someone to exclusively run this. Last person employed for this has been sucked into doing other tekky things for analisying team and individual performance for GC and MC.

He also commented on sponsorship. Transpires that many potential sponsors are looking for returns that we simply cannot provide, so we have to turn them down.

The Directors would welcome any web-site volunteer. They have spent two/three years in discussion with Colleges/schools/ etc.etc. to offer someone the chance to become involved and help their own C/V, but it has all proved fruitless. No more time for this will be spent. All Directors are still running their own business's and devote such time as they can for the football, first and foremost, at Accies.

Les indicated that no matter what they try to do in and around the town, they realise that support for Accies will never be more than 1800/2000. Sadly, in my experience over 30 years, that is a true statement.

Gilbert produced a superb forum for us, and also had input for the web-site (as I understand) but with having "retired" himself, we appear to have no other competent person for the voluntary job. Unless. as you read this, you think you can do it on a regular basis. Nothing worse than irregularity of information feeds!!

So put up, or shut up.

[Whiskeytown]

There was a Q & A with Les before the St Johnstone game? First I've heard. Was this publicised at all?

I can't help here, I am not techy at all, I can just about switch my computer on and my hands are full anyway. I was just hoping our club could find somebody as other clubs with much poorer supports and resources seem to do.

[Alfie Olek]

There was a Q & A with Les before the St Johnstone game? First I've heard. Was this publicised at all?

Yep on the web site First 150 season ticket holders to apply got a free meal and Les’s state of the nation address. Like you Im no techie but I did once suggest that fans run the club shop and would have been happy to give some time behind the counter so to speak. Some anonymous smart arse from the club I assume, asked where the fans would get £10,000 from for the rent.

[RyanT]

The Directors would welcome any web-site volunteer.

I'm sure they would. It's always welcome when someone can offer professional services for free. What's next? Asking for people to volunteer their time to staff the pie shop or clean the stadium after games?

Sorry, but services should NEVER be volunteered for no compensation to for-profit entities.

The club needs to realise that it needs to make a sustained effort to engage the community in order to attract support. A properly designed website would attract regular traffic and could sell advertising space to local businesses to support itself. Furthermore a proper online shop with a broader selection would likely see better sales. It's 2015 and our website is still stuck in the late 90s.

[glenthedog]

I live through in Larbert these days, and our local club Stenhousemuir has a website that would put Accies to shame. They also have good highlights of all home games on Warriors TV:

http://www.stenhousemuirfc.com/video/

They also have an excellent Twitter and Facebook setup that is updated several times daily with all the news and events at the club, and also send out regular email circulars if you subscribe. My son plays for their Young Maroons development setup at the Primary 1 to Primary 3 level, and I get almost daily updates regarding the kids training sessions, coaches news, trials that are coming up for the younger kids and other Young Maroons events etc.

As for Accies, well they do a lot of things right, but the communication to fans and the 'new' website is a bit of a joke. The twitter feed is the best bet for Accies news, but it's time they organised themselves and got the website up and running properly.

[Alexander the Great]

just what did les say ? can they not even afford a microphone, tough times indeed.

[Alfie Olek]

Well apparently Les said this -

He also commented on sponsorship. Transpires that many potential sponsors are looking for returns that we simply cannot provide, so we have to turn them down.

I have not got a clue what this mean? I assume they are looking for exposure and given the amount of coverage we get from SKY, BT Sport and BBC Alba any sponsor depending where their advert is will get a fair amount. When Reids sponsored us they got the shirt, the main stand and the dug outs. Our current sponsors (in what was described on the official site as a record breaking deal) get the shirt, adverts around the track, on the front of the stand outside, kids waving banner as the teams come onto the pitch and on the website. What more can the club do?

Of interest did he mention what the story was with the first team kit and allegations of bungs No I don’t suppose he did

[redandwhite1874]

The 'allegations' were some guy on Twitter who promised proof the next day and ....................... Hardly worth mentioning again.

Accies view on commercial engagement with the fans has been rehearsed over and over again - its rubbish but the board don't share our view on that.

[Willie Wastle]

The Directors would welcome any web-site volunteer.

I'm sure they would. It's always welcome when someone can offer professional services for free. What's next? Asking for people to volunteer their time to staff the pie shop or clean the stadium after games?

Sorry, but services should NEVER be volunteered for no compensation to for-profit entities.

The club needs to realise that it needs to make a sustained effort to engage the community in order to attract support. A properly designed website would attract regular traffic and could sell advertising space to local businesses to support itself. Furthermore a proper online shop with a broader selection would likely see better sales. It's 2015 and our website is still stuck in the late 90s.

Accies is a "for-profit entity" in name only. The club doesn't make a profit, and nobody takes a profit.

Most football clubs in this country are community organisations that just happen to be incorporated as private companies, a mistake I think the football authorities should address. I suggest clubs should actually require to be registered charities, or at least social enterprises, which de facto they already are.

The fact is, many thousands of people volunteer their services with football clubs, mainly as coaches, but in a variety of other roles too. I expect nearly every senior Scottish football club uses volunteers to run their websites.

Football clubs are good causes that people want to contribute to, freely and in all sorts of ways. And that sort of community spirit should be encouraged. It's not as if voluntary labour on a website is making money for anyone. IMO, the only way for Accies to operate a successful website is by finding a volunteer, or a group of volunteers, to do it. There must be plenty of people who post on here who have the skills.

[Alfie Olek]

The 'allegations' were some guy on Twitter who promised proof the next day and ....................... Hardly worth mentioning again.

The some guy was the UK sales manager for Cross the Line Sports who supply teamwear within the UK and Europe so clearly something happened and it is worth mentioning and when i feel like it I will

[redandwhite1874]

The 'allegations' were some guy on Twitter who promised proof the next day and ....................... Hardly worth mentioning again.

The some guy was the UK sales manager for Cross the Line Sports who supply teamwear within the UK and Europe so clearly something happened and it is worth mentioning and when i feel like it I will

Well if worth mentioning it is perhaps best done with the whole story, in as much as we know it. We don't know anything happened, that is an opinion you have chosen to go with.

This guy who 'apparently' has a senior position in an 'apparently' bone fide company decides to go to Twitter - that well known platform for sorting out business disagreements amongst well run businesses - with an allegation regarding an unnamed person (whilst not making clear if they held any position at the club); he then promises that full details will follow the next day.

And then nothing.

[Alfie Olek]

I 100 percent agree with you Red and White. I only had to put on my rose tinted glasses

[redandwhite1874]

I 100 percent agree with you Red and White. I only had to put on my rose tinted glasses

Magic

Well take them off again and feel free to point out any factual errors I have made

[Alfie Olek]

Facts are like cows. If you look them in the face hard enough they run away

[redandwhite1874]

Facts are like cows. If you look them in the face hard enough they run away

Is this true for all facts or just the ones you don't fancy?

[Alfie Olek]

No just yours No MOOve along

[redandwhite1874]

No just yours No MOOve along

You're milking it now.