930 Forums
=> GENERAL DISCUSSION => Topic started by: kosmo vinyl on June 17, 2003, 02:55:00 pm
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This was posted by Seth and then got buried in another thread... Any ideas or suggestions on what you expect out of a belonging to a 9:30 Fan club? i.e. benefits or perks
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Originally posted by kosmo:
9:30 fan club
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I like that. very succinct.
yes, that would be the goal - to reward our regular patrons without it turning into any kind of elitism.
suggestions?
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I think it's a fabulous idea, but having read the various suggestions in the previous thread, I'm not quite sure how to work it without a great deal of cost and confusion. But, I'm not fantastic about thinking outside the box (though I've obviously taken a management class or two, and redefined a paradigm here and there...) :cool:
Maybe you could have a frequent show card (but I'm thinking you'd need to have a photo on it so that it is truly reflective of one particular person attending a lot of shows...). You could have folks pay for the card -- if it means a free show or something down the line, it's worth coughing up 5 or 10 bucks to join and get a card.
Is this totally dork a rama??
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I think any kind of fan club, frequent flyer card or whatever is very un-930!
If you do go for the frequent flyer thing I say it should be based on how much you spend, not how many times you go. For example, Rhett goes to 5 $10 shows and buys not a damn thing inside and walks to the club. and I go to 3 $40 shows, park in the lot and have 3 $7 beers inside each time. I've spent $204 and he's spent $50 (ticketbastard pound of flesh not included because 930 doesn't see any of it) I think I'm more deserving of something from the club than Rhett.
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maybe a free beer night like neighbors at Velvet Lounge. But invite only.
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Pool party and barbecue at Chateau du Seth.
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Originally posted by ggw:
Pool party and barbecue at Chateau du Seth.
bbq's at chateau du evilsatan are more fun...
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Originally posted by mankie:
I think any kind of fan club, frequent flyer card or whatever is very un-930!
If you do go for the frequent flyer thing I say it should be based on how much you spend, not how many times you go. For example, Rhett goes to 5 $10 shows and buys not a damn thing inside and walks to the club. and I go to 3 $40 shows, park in the lot and have 3 $7 beers inside each time. I've spent $204 and he's spent $50 (ticketbastard pound of flesh not included because 930 doesn't see any of it) I think I'm more deserving of something from the club than Rhett.
You only have three $7 beers? Man, I thought you'd do better as an Englishman. Ah, but I guess you're a daddy too.
I have six $7 beers, but take the bus over as a good D.C. citizen....
This is beginning to sound sillier and sillier.
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Here were my thoughts from before:
Sorry man, but that's the business (in re: to a poster mentioning that the upstairs bar area is inhabited be execs not watching the show an instead yapping on thier phones). If Seth takes care of them, they'll take care of him when the next big "thing" is in town. But it is a good model to work with.
Seth's point about a 9:30 Fan Club sort of begs the question and I appreciate him thinking of taking care of us nonetheless: We all love the club, we are constant visitors and he still wants to take care of us (as opposed to most club owners who would rather try to figure out how to bring in more people to the club).
Just him thinking about us makes me think that there is more to this club than just seeing live bands. Perhaps a model like the upstairs bar for regulars is something to consider, but he surely isn't going to alienate his record execs. Is there room for two sections up there? The VIP for the Vines (off to the side) wasn't a bad gig either - although letting the radio stations grant access does nothing for us regulars. Interesting dillema.
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Originally posted by bags:
I think it's a fabulous idea, but having read the various suggestions in the previous thread, I'm not quite sure how to work it without a great deal of cost and confusion. But, I'm not fantastic about thinking outside the box (though I've obviously taken a management class or two, and redefined a paradigm here and there...) ;)
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I say we all bring our ticket stub collections to the 930. those who have the biggest collection get to see a show from seths balcony.
Actually keep your ticket stubs...... 10 ticket stubs grant you access to one not sold out show.
But I dont want to give up my ticket stubs, I guess you could punch them to stop them being reused.
That would mean a couple of free shows for me a year and be a nice reward.
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Originally posted by mankie:
I go to 3 $40 shows, park in the lot and have 3 $7 beers inside each time. I've spent $204...
all that proves is you're a wastrel
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How about rewards for people whose avg. 9:30 bar tab is over $30 per show? Surely I'm entitled to something besides a damaged liver.
I think loyal patrons deserve some sort of perk but I don't have a single good idea that won't irritate the people who believe it's their god given right to see live music for free.
For an interesting read, check out how the NORVA tackles the issue.
http://www.thenorva.com/vip.html (http://www.thenorva.com/vip.html)
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If mankie is a wastrel then Rhett is niggardly.
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Lamb, I promise that I'm not slagging on The NorVa here or your reference to them, but reading that had me thinking, this is sounding more and more like that VIP crap at clubs like Dream and, well, VIP....
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Originally posted by Andrew WK:
If mankie is a wastrel then Rhett is niggardly.
well, he IS hung like --SHUT YO MOUF!
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Never been to the NORVA so I'm not defensive about it. I was just surprised to see the VIP concept at a club/smallish venue. Nissan and Merriweather have offered this for years. It's ridiculously expensive and definitely aimed at the same people who sit in climate controlled boxes at football games. Personally I'm not a fan of making the live music experience more expensive than it is. But folks like me who spend a good amount of time and $$ at 9:30 and would like to be able to hang back and see the show from a perch up in the rafters would be happy to do just that. I'm no VIP, just cranky with bad knees. More or less, I'm lazy and I show up late so I'm usually standing behind some tall skinny guy with a ball cap.
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the norva thing would be irresistable for me.....
I guess I would end up seeing a lot more shows that way.
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I think it's kind of a cool thing too. Not everyone's cup of tea, but if this were offered here, it would be tempting. I'd definitely go to more shows and that's a good thing. I'd experience acts I wouldn't normally pay much attention to. Give me a mediocre band over a great sitcom any day of the week.
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This is just my opinion but I don't like the plan for many of the reasons posted in the other thread.
Also, I don't think that Seth would want to give up his private area that often and I wouldn't blame him. Of course, only he would know the real answer to that.
If something like that went through, it would have no real affect on me whatsoever as I couldn't afford it and it wouldn't affect my concert experience otherwise.
I still think that it smacks way too much of the corporate mentality and leaves way too many true fans out of the loop. If the club is serious about doing some sort of a fan club, maybe they should experiment with something on a much smaller scale and see how that flies.
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Even if you went to 100 shows a year (an average of two a week, every week), at $4000 a year you would still be paying $20 a ticket.
Of course you would get access to the "Promised Land" and all, but it doesn't sound like a screaming bargain.
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and I guess 250 passes like that gets the club a cool $10 million upfront. Well worth finding some space at the back of the club.
I wonder how many they could actually sell? I bet 50 would be more reasonable, but hey $2 million will buy Seth a fleet of S-classes and leave enough money to patch up the entrance to the car park.
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Originally posted by Jaguär:
This is just my opinion but I don't like the plan for many of the reasons posted in the other thread.
Also, I don't think that Seth would want to give up his private area that often and I wouldn't blame him. Of course, only he would know the real answer to that.
If something like that went through, it would have no real affect on me whatsoever as I couldn't afford it and it wouldn't affect my concert experience otherwise.
I still think that it smacks way too much of the corporate mentality and leaves way too many true fans out of the loop. If the club is serious about doing some sort of a fan club, maybe they should experiment with something on a much smaller scale and see how that flies.
How does it leave the "true fans" out of the loop?
How are the "true fans" different from you, who admits that this would have no effect on your concert going experience?
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meet and greet..... well that would be nice....
Private balcony..... would be great if it was Seths, awful if it was right at the back where VIP is now.
But with two days written advance you can sign yickets to friends.....
I am sure I could sell a few shows and recover say $1000 a year.
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Who the hell said anything about a bargain? The Kennedy Center's free stage is a bargain. This is just for people who are willing to shell out some bucks for the sake of convenience. I doubt it would be uber-corporate. I mean seriously. Would Deloitte & Touche purchase a membership? Would some law firm offer their VIP tickets to Motorhead as some incentive plan? It's not like club seats for the Redskins or box seats at Nissan. 9:30 is run by and for music fans. Those corporate deals you're comparing this idea to are lunkheads who have to be force fed their tastes in entertainment.
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Originally posted by Andrew WK:
and I guess 250 passes like that gets the club a cool $10 million upfront. Well worth finding some space at the back of the club.
I wonder how many they could actually sell? I bet 50 would be more reasonable, but hey $2 million will buy Seth a fleet of S-classes and leave enough money to patch up the entrance to the car park.
He would have to add valet parking of course.
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You know, I wouldn't mind getting a free 9:30 t-shirt after so many shows. With that, the club ends up with using our bodies as billboards. Or maybe a bonus point system with every so many shows. Points that can be used for t-shirts (probably only 9:30 merch) drinks, food, or even show tickets.
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Is a private Radiohead concert at the club too much to ask? Or being happily recognized and on first name basis with the staff (staph?)? Seriously though, I like the idea. Not too sure how we could make it work fairly... We've started some kind of community already through this Forum.
I like Jag's idea of merch, drinks, and food. I can sometimes afford the ticket price but no drinks.
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Originally posted by ggw:
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How does it leave the "true fans" out of the loop?
How are the "true fans" different from you, who admits that this would have no effect on your concert going experience? [/b][/QUOTE]
Meaning that too many true fans would not be able to take part in a fan club of sorts. I would venture to say that most could not afford this luxury and many who can would not invest in it.
My point was that it would not interfer with my concert experience but I would also not be rewarded as a regular fan. Neither would most avid club goers.
I think Seth's point was that he would like to spread the goods to as many people as possible instead disenfranchising many because of a privileged few.
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A free brownie on my birthday would be a nice touch...assuming there was a show that night. Maybe a candle too. And Norm singing Happy Birthday. I'd go for that.
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in this town it wouldn't take much to sell subscriptions like that... the whole reason the mci center and fedex field exist is to have corporate boxes and seats.
the norva also has room for 500 more people than the 9:30 club and probably doesn't have nearly as many sellouts. they are probably using the vip ticket as a way to pad the bottom line.
even if the 9:30 club sold 50 subscription like the norva that 10% of the clubs capacity. and you better believe the going rate for a subscription is going to higher than $4000.
i'm against the frequent flyer plan, can you imagine how much busier those poor bartenders would be if they had to stamp cards as well. it's not starbucks.
the idea of starting small is a good one... there have already been some free show and buy one get one free offers in the emails. the volume presale is nice step. just wish it would involve a break in the service charges. like it was in the case of the supergrass show.
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Originally posted by Andrew WK:
Private balcony..... would be great if it was Seths, awful if it was right at the back where VIP is now.
the sound behind the pa isn't always optimum... lots of bass and drums, little vocals...
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Originally posted by kosmo:
the idea of starting small is a good one... there have already been some free show and buy one get one free offers in the emails. the volume presale is nice step. just wish it would involve a break in the service charges. like it was in the case of the supergrass show.
Apparently, I don't get these emails. Yes, I'm on the list and all is well with my email address. Once in a blue moon I receive a show schedule, but I'm not receiving the 'good' stuff.
One little note about the Volume presale passwords. I've noticed that some months it seems to involve sales towards the beginning of the month. Some of our snails move a lot slower than others. A couple times I haven't even received my newsletter until after the sale.
Yeah, I agree with Kosmo about trying to control the amount of work for staff. It just gets too crazy with some ideas. Also, anything that can be stamped or punched can usually be faked too easily by the less ethical of the group.
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Yes, but I think we're ALL honest here. After all, we ARE Americans.
Originally posted by Jaguär:
Originally posted by kosmo:
the idea of starting small is a good one... there have already been some free show and buy one get one free offers in the emails. the volume presale is nice step. just wish it would involve a break in the service charges. like it was in the case of the supergrass show.
Apparently, I don't get these emails. Yes, I'm on the list and all is well with my email address. Once in a blue moon I receive a show schedule, but I'm not receiving the 'good' stuff.
One little note about the Volume presale passwords. I've noticed that some months it seems to involve sales towards the beginning of the month. Some of our snails move a lot slower than others. A couple times I haven't even received my newsletter until after the sale.
Yeah, I agree with Kosmo about trying to control the amount of work for staff. It just gets too crazy with some ideas. Also, anything that can be stamped or punched can usually be faked too easily by the less ethical of the group. [/b]
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Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
Yes, but I think we're ALL honest here. After all, we ARE Americans.
I'm not naming names but there are a couple scondrels on here whom I wouldn't trust.
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I'm not worried about coming with a method for determining who qualifies. I'll figure that one out ten times over in my sleep.
what I'm really looking for is the right reward for our loyal customers. it's really not about incentive to go to more shows. I just like the idea that people realize we care about their business.
hey, if letting people on my balcony and having everybody to my house for dinner accomplished that, then I'm there. but, trust me, I do both of those all the time and it's no big deal.
so keep going, I'm loving this. like everything else in life, we'll know it when we've found it.
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Around the turn of the year you had a raffle for free passes for charity donations. That alone was a big hit with all of us. That same deal or something like that would be a good thing to try again. Just make the entry fill-out section larger to fill out all our info!
Another option would be to raffle off a private party up in the VIP loft for the winner's select group of friends for a show of their choice (within reason based on sales, etc). Stock the room like you would for the band. You may have to set a limit as to how many friends they can bring but a fair amount could be included. If they could meet the band, that would be great, but I know how much bands often don't like formal meet and greets so I'm reluctant to push for that. Maybe just let the bands know on the night that they are welcomed to join the private party if they so choose. It could be a monthly or quartly 9:30 Winner's Circle for the evening.
Of course, you can start by offering it to the 9:30 board regulars. :D :D :D
Kosmo could organize the invites.
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Originally posted by Jaguär:
Around the turn of the year you had a raffle for free passes for charity donations. That alone was a big hit with all of us. That same deal or something like that would be a good thing to try again...
just no "hoop dreams" charities, right? ;)
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well. . .what i've been kicking around is what do other fan clubs do? as kosmo points out, the pearl jam fanclub allows members access to tickets before public release. . . other fan clubs send out free cds or mailers of some sorts. to me, maybe a free show once a year or so for fan club members. . .a free shirt or access to tickets before public release for "big" shows or something like that.
i don't think this has to be a big deal like having access to the balcony, while it would be cool, i don't think that's the essence of what this fan club would be. this should more about the music than about where one stands (or sits) for a show.
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Originally posted by bags:
[/qb]
You only have three $7 beers? Man, I thought you'd do better as an Englishman. Ah, but I guess you're a daddy too.
[/QB][/QUOTE]
I drive to the club, which means I have to drive home to!
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errrr.....
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Hahahaha. Nice one, Andrew WK!
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I dunno, a nightclub fan club sounds even more gay than an artist fan club.
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Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
I dunno, a nightclub fan club sounds even more gay than an artist fan club.
how about a gay nightclub fan club Rhett?
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if they were going to be a fan club, i would imagine that a t-shirt would be involved maybe a quarterly newsletter, a drink coupon, maybe a parking spot for the lot, a 930 sticker, and possibly access to vip areas only on nights that its not filled with band friends, label reps, radio people etc... possible options for this could be by email the day of the show and having to be the first to respond. Although it is rare when there are empty spots up in vip , even if it looks empty I'm sure more passes were given out. ANd last but not least a chance to meet the band in a meet and greet setting, if one has already been scheduled by whatever radio station..
with all this being said , a lot of this is overrated or just not entirely possible...the vip area , would hardly ever come up except for much smaller shows, and the meet and greets aren't that great and involve co-ordinating with radio stations, which from my expereince aren't always the best organized.
hope some of those ideas might help, although i nicked most of them from other posts
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Well I for one am looking to make some extra cash on the side, and I work in sales and customer/membership services every day. So Seth, I'm your man if you want someone to run this VIP/fan Club. I think there are a bunch of interesting ideas listed here. Many are very hard to pull off unfortunately. One idea that really makes sense is to keep the "members" informed with an e-mail update, letting them know about shows ahead of the masses(and I don't just mean a day before Pollstar has it up), perhaps giving them discounts for specially marked shows(not just Fighting Gravity), or maybe once a year having a party for the "club" which could include some performances. Of course you would need to have a special card for membership privelages, so not just anyone with a scammed password gets them. And maybe some sort of secret handshake. I am quite serious about helping you in any way that I can, if you are interested. I think my experience in dealing with our customers could be a huge benefit in this sort of situation. Anyway, enough shameless self-promotion...
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One thing I liked about being a regular at a club in LA was that through their fan club mailing list I began to receive random CD's from record companies with either a sample of songs from their label (like epitath) or a CD from one of their new bands (like an advance copy of Mike Ness's first solo album).
Before everybody freaks out about their address being shared, there would have to rules and policies, but it was pretty cool to hear new music out of the blue like that. And all the fans would sit around and chat after shows about which songs they liked and didn't like (this was before the on-line bulletin board phenomenom).
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Originally posted by mankie:
Originally posted by Rhett Miller:
I dunno, a nightclub fan club sounds even more gay than an artist fan club.
how about a gay nightclub fan club Rhett? [/b]
What about a gay fan club for nightclubs? Perhaps to make it less gay, we could not call it a "fan club".
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vansmack's idea of members getting swag from record companies or anyone else trying to reach our demographic, is something that crossed my mind. samplers, prerelease cd are always appreciated by moi. hell i'm sure the soft drink companies would love to get thier grubby mitts on 9:30 club's loyal order.
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quote:
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Originally posted by Venerable Bede:
sorry. . that's my drinking and grilling out night.
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...and there we have an idea for the fan club thingie...a barbie and boozefest with some live music in the parking lot of the club once a summer for the regulars.
Just thought I'd copy & paste a post I made on another thread that's more relative to this topic.
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Originally posted by da'niceguys:
if they were going to be a fan club, i would imagine that a t-shirt would be involved maybe a quarterly newsletter, a drink coupon, maybe a parking spot for the lot, a 930 sticker, and possibly access to vip areas only on nights that its not filled with band friends, label reps, radio people etc... possible options for this could be by email the day of the show and having to be the first to respond. Although it is rare when there are empty spots up in vip , even if it looks empty I'm sure more passes were given out. ANd last but not least a chance to meet the band in a meet and greet setting, if one has already been scheduled by whatever radio station..
with all this being said , a lot of this is overrated or just not entirely possible...the vip area , would hardly ever come up except for much smaller shows, and the meet and greets aren't that great and involve co-ordinating with radio stations, which from my expereince aren't always the best organized.
hope some of those ideas might help, although i nicked most of them from other posts
Although meeting rock stars is cool, a parking space garunteed, a shirt or two, and maybe a small discount on drinks or concerts would be groovy. You wouldn't have to coordinate with bands, and you wouldn't have to maintain any special areas or things like that.
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Reserved parking sounds good but I don't think that's very feasible. It's just too small to promise all members a space whenever they show up. Sure, many wouldn't even need the space but think about the nights that all the spaces are gone, especially for sold out shows. At least now, they can have a pretty good idea with the pre-ordered spaces and then 1st come 1st served from there on.
Discounted spaces would be a working possibility though.
I like Vansmack's idea about working with the record companies and other merchants. Besides, look at all the free advertising we've done already for bands and such just on this board! For certain markets, we are some of the real consumers that are often missing from whatever marketing formulas they use. Maybe if HFS would have listened to many of the 9:30 Club patrons more often they might not be in the trouble they are in now. Not all the music listening and buying public are 14 year old boys! Thank God, or we would have no 9:30 Club.
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A couple of ideas.
I imagine as a club you have all sorts of memorabilia that builds up, posters, cd samplers, stuff bands leave behind etc... Why not have a day every few months where you lay all this stuff out in the club, members of this "VIP" club could come to the club during a certain time period, maybe before a show, show their card, and choose two items (or any other number you choose)to keep. All music fans dig the rare find from a favorite band and this sort of reward would be right in line with your goals.
Alternatively, the CD sampler idea is a good one, but rather than mail them out, thus the address sharing problem, have them at the door and if you show your "VIP" card to ThatGuy he'll give you one. You could announce in advance when they are available and so people would know to ask when they come to a show.
I also like an idea of cheap drinks with the "VIP" card. Say, all VIP members get $1 Bud Bottles at the downstairs bars, or some similar type promotion. All those who don't drink Bud may disagree, but then again they are probably communists anyways.
Just my 7 cents.
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Originally posted by TheNomad:
A couple of ideas.
I imagine as a club you have all sorts of memorabilia that builds up, posters, cd samplers, stuff bands leave behind etc... Why not have a day every few months where you lay all this stuff out in the club, members of this "VIP" club could come to the club during a certain time period, maybe before a show, show their card, and choose two items (or any other number you choose)to keep. All music fans dig the rare find from a favorite band and this sort of reward would be right in line with your goals.
Alternatively, the CD sampler idea is a good one, but rather than mail them out, thus the address sharing problem, have them at the door and if you show your "VIP" card to ThatGuy he'll give you one. You could announce in advance when they are available and so people would know to ask when they come to a show.
I also like an idea of cheap drinks with the "VIP" card. Say, all VIP members get $1 Bud Bottles at the downstairs bars, or some similar type promotion. All those who don't drink Bud may disagree, but then again they are probably communists anyways.
Just my 7 cents.
I'm salivating at the thought of a rock star yard sale in the club. The club could ask for a few extra posters, pay for a couple of cds of each band comming through, and then figure out some sort of resonable way of distributing it. That would make the club less impersonal, and wouldn't require something difficult like meet'n'greet sessions.
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i like the ideas of the free tshirts, discounted drinks/food and free cds. not a lot of hassle.
now, if we get 930 tshirts, will the staph sign them for us? :D
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how about the volume thing actually working on a regular basis instead of one of us having to email everyone the passcodes because no one got the info over email or mail since volume seems to always have some random selective distribution eventhough you signed up for it 4 times.
Originally posted by kosmo:
the volume presale is nice step. just wish it would involve a break in the service charges. like it was in the case of the supergrass show.
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i also want to emphasize how much i loved the charity event you did last winter. that was a fantastic idea.
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Originally posted by lily1:
i also want to emphasize how much i loved the charity event you did last winter. that was a fantastic idea.
that was one of the best ideas ever. too bad i didn't win, i was kind of pissed. but it went to a good cause! yay!