I Love This Story...

[Guest JohnDenver]

I can name 10 people right now who hold ASU season tickets who have either never visited The Den or do so very infrequently who regularly contact me about what is happening with the program. There are another handful of people who I don't know who they are who reposting stuff on Facebook and using like tags on my articles that get scrapped by an ASU fan group on facebook.

200 people can easily influence 2,000 directly and indirectly 20,000 is a piece of cake.

The is precisely my point Arkstfan. I think Capper is wrong on this one... We are a pretty good barometer, since we influence more people than the (non-existent) DMN news on UNT football.

[EagleGreen]

Capper must think he is more knowledgeable than the typical GMG poster and he seems to think "we" are whiners and moaners. Fine. I don't think RV believes the same is true because he posts on GMG.com. RV appears to use this forum as part of his barometer. No worries Capper; you will wise up with age. Keep drinking the green kool-aid folks; it's good stuff.

[Cerebus]

I am not saying that message boards are bad and that the AD shouldn't keep an eye on what is going on here, but that this is not the voice of the masses. There are around 20,000 fans who come to games and around 200 that are active here. The people who are on this board are the "true believers" and therefore more opinionated than most. You are selling a product to 20,000 and not just 200.

200? You are off by about an order of magnitude.

Now, do all those people post? No. But a lot more than 200 people come to read the forum on a regular basis.

[Cerebus]

Just wanted to add, Capper is a great guy and has always been a friend to us. Keep that in mind when you comment.

[UNTnewbie]

Capper must think he is more knowledgeable than the typical GMG poster and he seems to think "we" are whiners and moaners. Fine. I don't think RV believes the same is true because he posts on GMG.com. RV appears to use this forum as part of his barometer. No worries Capper; you will wise up with age. Keep drinking the green kool-aid folks; it's good stuff.

Don't know that Capper thinks he is more knowledgeable, in general, but I'm sure he's a lot closer to "those that are" than the vast majority of us here!

[Guest JohnDenver]

Just wanted to add, Capper is a great guy and has always been a friend to us. Keep that in mind when you comment.

This is true. He is a good friend of the GMG faithful.

[Arkstfan]

With 70 online (not all registered) as of a few minutes ago, I'd guess there are in the neighborhood of 400 that visit the site at least 3x weekly.

EagleGreen, yeah you guys are whiners, find me sports fans that aren't. I remember when the hot t-shirt in Arkansas said "Pass interference my a$$" regarding a controversial pass interference call on national tv that led to a loss to SMU at Texas Stadium. When Villanova beat Georgetown in the NCAA final you could buy bumper stickers that said "Georgetown 3 National Champs 1" regarding the fact that they had won three of four over them that year.

Want to stir up ASU fans, ask about the 5th down at Memphis, want to stir up Memphis fans ask them about the Bluff City Miracle in 2006 (I can gleefully link to the video)

[mad dog]

This board is pretty polarized. I don't know that it is representative of the people who are buying the product. Like I said, these here are the most passionate. We are going to be there no matter what happens, for the most part. So while our opinions are important, the whole story is not told here. There are a lot of other people who factor in that are not represented. The vocal minority should not tell you the best direction for a product. This board should give you a direction to look, but you should dig deeper before you make a decision.

I can go with that.

I think this is definitely an "overaching" demographic.

/fail

Just wanted to add, Capper is a great guy and has always been a friend to us. Keep that in mind when you comment.

Definitely a true professional and overall good human being.

[UNT90]

Last part of the article is so dead on. If you'll notice, the members of this board that have actually met are very civil to each other on here, even when in disagreement on a topic. I wish everyone would post like they were talking to someone face to face.

[LoveMG]

This is true. He is a good friend of the GMG faithful.

he may be a good guy but his article came across as looking down on messageboard posters. that we are somehow unknowning of what is going on or not worthy enough to complain. it is a measure of how customers are getting service good or bad like it or not.

[Guest JohnDenver]

he may be a good guy but his article came across as looking down on messageboard posters. that we are somehow unknowning of what is going on or not worthy enough to complain. it is a measure of how customers are getting service good or bad like it or not.

I can agree with that too.

He said he would rather have you guys email him directly. To me, that seems rude to fill up someone's email box with a ton of emails saying "i don't like your tone." That is what he said is a more constructive way of handling it.

We can agree to disagree with him, I suppose.

[Arkstfan]

One thing that I feel compelled to add.

I like what UNT has done with its blog. It's a nice outward communication vehicle. Arkansas State has hired a free lance writer who does feature stories regarding the athletic department (right now its all features on football players) and that too is good outward communication step.

I'd suggest making video clips, photos and logos available for people to mash-up their own schedule wallpapers for the computer or their cell phone and promo videos, etc. Not a huge deal, but it would be a nice touch.

ASU is doing a good job on Twitter (athletics is still weak there but the main campus account has their slack).

My point of concern is handling inward and sideways communication. It would be nice to send a DM or an @ reply on Twitter and get a reply or post a question on a message board or Facebook and the school address it. Would do wonders for perception and customer relations.

The fans complaining part, wasted breath. Nothing is going to stop it but knowing the people you are complaining about are reading and responding can help reduce it.

[Keith7]

I'll tell you from experience that everyone in the media that covers North Texas athletics reads this message board, that includes the athletic department. No matter if it is the NT Daily or Brett Vito, they know that they have to follow this message board or they are not doing their jobs right. For the media this message board provides story ideas, tips, and feedback for the work they are doing.

As for the athletic department, they follow this site as much as anybody, so don't let Mr. Capper's blog post fool you. I've been to practices and games where I have seen people who work for the athletic department reading posts on here during breaks. I've also had people who work in the athletic department ask me if I'm "Keith7" on this site. Heck the athletic director has his own gmg.com account, so you can't tell me they don't care what the people on this site think.

Personally, I think a lot of you took Capper's blog post the wrong way, it wasn't an attack on the message board or its posters, but an attempt to help those of you who have complaints find a better outlet to fix your problems. You can complain on here all day long and it might get read by the athletic department, it might not, but if you go directly to the source, you will know for sure that they get your complaints and most of the time give you an answer to your problems, that is all he was saying. The fact that he offers up his e-mail address and office number is proof of that.

[gangrene]

I can name 10 people right now who hold ASU season tickets who have either never visited The Den or do so very infrequently who regularly contact me about what is happening with the program. There are another handful of people who I don't know who they are who reposting stuff on Facebook and using like tags on my articles that get scrapped by an ASU fan group on facebook.

200 people can easily influence 2,000 directly and indirectly 20,000 is a piece of cake.

And that pretty much summarizes how social networking works. I've been preaching that we need an advertising campaign (which would include internet/social networking/viral campaigns) for the last few years. Everyone (including RV) seems to dismiss all thoughts of advertising without even a second thought, as being too expensive (because they can't think outside of the TV/Radio/Outdoor box). The fact is that interactive advertising is still evolving and remains a cheap, but effective way, to accomplish marketing goals. If anyone in the Athletic Department would care to investigate, they might find out just how much they can really afford. We have some very good marketing and advertising professors that could assist in any efforts. I think a viral campaign for the stadium could be very effective.

[MeanMag]

Let's tap the brakes on that. Please do not consider this group to be a representative sample. As with any online poll or call-in poll or anything of that nature, only the most passionate people from either side of an issue actually participate. Those that have a moderate opinion usually do not participate in these kinds of activities. Look at any thread on this board and you can see this behavior in action. There are a lot of threads that do not have a response from most of the people who are active on the board. If someone does not have a strong opinion on something, they don't post. Case in point, me. I usually read threads and only post if I feel like I have something to contribute, usually a smart ass remark that is only funny to me. There are a lot of fans that do not post on this board at all and we should not consider that the representation on this board projects to the whole of the UNT fan base. This is an opt-in board, and in order to opt-in, you have to know what you are looking for.

The posting activity (number of posts)on a board can also be a good indication of how many people care about your product. Just look at the points in which records were set for this board. It's a good indication of your fan base growing/shrinking.

[aztecskin]

And that pretty much summarizes how social networking works. I've been preaching that we need an advertising campaign (which would include internet/social networking/viral campaigns) for the last few years. Everyone (including RV) seems to dismiss all thoughts of advertising without even a second thought, as being too expensive (because they can't think outside of the TV/Radio/Outdoor box). The fact is that interactive advertising is still evolving and remains a cheap, but effective way, to accomplish marketing goals. If anyone in the Athletic Department would care to investigate, they might find out just how much they can really afford. We have some very good marketing and advertising professors that could assist in any efforts. I think a viral campaign for the stadium could be very effective.

not to mention that W.O.M advertising is the most effective. And really, what is social media than word of mouth?

[Arkstfan]

Wonder what Facebook ads tied to accounts within a 20-30 mile radius of the stadium would cost.

[forevereagle]

Ok, so I never said that the AD should not keep an eye on what is going on here and 200 was just a number I threw out for the sake of having a number. Thanks for all of the feedback, but I still don't agree that this board is an indication of the opinions of the entire UNT fan base. When was the last time you heard "according to an internet message board, the President's approval rating is 56%"? You also don't use the poll from a website to gauge public opinion. It isn't smart business. That holds true here. This site can help you gauge the opinions of some of your most active fans, but not even all of those are on this site. People have to post in order for you to hear their opinions. There are a lot of lurkers on here who don't say a word. To use this site as the best indicator of the opinions of everyone, that would be a mistake. There are a lot on here who like to accuse the AD of sloppy marketing, to use this site as the crux of your market research would be extremely sloppy. The best use for a message board would be to communicate with your most die hard fans and to find direction for your deeper dive into fan opinions. This site gives direction, not indication.

[Cerebus]

Ok, so I never said that the AD should not keep an eye on what is going on here and 200 was just a number I threw out for the sake of having a number. Thanks for all of the feedback, but I still don't agree that this board is an indication of the opinions of the entire UNT fan base. When was the last time you heard "according to an internet message board, the President's approval rating is 56%"? You also don't use the poll from a website to gauge public opinion.

Of course you don't rely on some message board for the president, because there is a ton of money spent to do real polling. However, there is no one doing that for the NT fanbase, and the AD can't afford it. This is a free, real time pulse on at least part of the die hard fan base.

Also, like other have pointed out, there are many interrelations. Each person who posts is a conduit to and from others.

[forevereagle]

Of course you don't rely on some message board for the president, because there is a ton of money spent to do real polling. However, there is no one doing that for the NT fanbase, and the AD can't afford it. This is a free, real time pulse on at least part of the die hard fan base.

Also, like other have pointed out, there are many interrelations. Each person who posts is a conduit to and from others.

While they may be a conduit to others, that does not mean that their opinions are in line with those that they talk to.

[Cerebus]

While they may be a conduit to others, that does not mean that their opinions are in line with those that they talk to.

Go ahead an point out to me the better alternative.

[Stan R]

Go ahead an point out to me the better alternative.

And I object to the fact that we are all hardcore crazed fans. I'd say the majority of us - (like some have said, many just read but don't post) are pretty middle of the road fans. Some of you are acting like reading or posting on a fan board puts us on the lunatic fringe.

I will assure you this:

- I do not have any mean green tattoos

- I do not have a closet full of green clothing

- None of my children are named after Hayden Fry

- Yes, as unbelievable as it might sound, I have missed a home football game over the last 10 seasons.

let me take it a bit further - shall we define what an average NT fan would be then?

- Attends 2-3 home games a year (typically homecoming or parent's weekend)

- High probability to be a a parent of a current student.

- Will not show up for a hint of rain or bad weather.

- Leaves when the score is out of hand (defined as being down by more than 21 points)

- Complains about the restrooms and fouts and or the current shape of fouts continuously.

- Asks who we will be playing that week. When an answer is given they will say "who? why don't you play someone I know. " Makes snide comment.

- Will attend games through enrollment at NT and approximately 2 years thereafter. After that they vanish

Does that about sum it up? So we want more of that?

Edited August 11, 2009 by Stan R

[forevereagle]

Quarterly meetings?

Direct mail, email, or phone calls. Provide some sort of incentive to respond. Game day cash that is good for merchandise. There are a lot of ways to get to people and get a response. They already do these things, so why not add to them and get feedback.

[KRAM1]

I have been out of town a few days and away from GMG.com....I probably shouldn't ask if anyone noticed...but, this is an interesting thread...some pretty decent comments. It does go with what I have been saying and thinking about a few of our friendly GMG.com posters for some time. Yes, people other than GMG.com "crazies" read this board, and I do believe (being probably a wee bit older than many on the site) that what some folks post is not only disrespectful to other posters, and staff, but is just down right mean and would not happen if the statement was made "face-to-face". Maybe we should all give that a thought and "think" a bit more with our brains (yes, we all have them) before we type. I do not mean all the negative posters and the "doubting Thomas-es" have to turn to the KRAM1 school of positive thinking, but perhaps just think a bit more and re-phrase some of the messages to be a bit less "personal".

Anyway...interesting thread...and everyone will be more positive after the win at Ball State by the Mean Green! GO MEAN GREEN.

[UNTLifer]

sure bob. right now it ranks as the worst ever in north texas athletic history. how long before it's better than fry's era?

Far from the worst ever, but if that makes you feel better then go right on believing that.