MFC undertaking research into its low junior supporter base

[titan_uranus 22,289]

Got an email from the club today:

Children and Parents Wanted!

MELBOURNEfc has the lowest junior supporter base of any AFL club, and we recognise the need to take action to secure the future of our club.

In conjunction with La Trobe University, we are looking for children and parents to help us with a study into what influences children to follow particular sports and sporting teams.

On the weekend of 18-19 October, La Trobe University will be conducting a series of discussion groups for children aged 5-13, and their parents, to be held at the MCG.

REWARD

Each child who participates will receive a MELBOURNEfc merchandise pack, which includes a $20 MELBOURNEfc Megastore gift voucher.

Children will be placed into age groups to discuss the factors that influence their interest in sport and sporting teams. Separate group discussions will also take place for parents at the same time. Your time commitment to MELBOURNEfc will be about two hours, and children will be separated from parents for about one hour of that.

We understand that your time is valuable, and we are extremely grateful to any supporters who help us out with this research.

Good to see the club is doing something about our low junior supporter base. Hopefully they learn something.

[beelzebub 22,225]

Yes..read all that...sounds a great initative. Thought about taking daughter 13 along..however she's already nixed that idea..Im StKilda Now Dady !! ( has been for 3 years now..the cow..lol ) ...so all the goodies didnt interest her....did me though !! hehe.. Oh well..hopefully they get some results.

Now if it had been a generic 20 dollar voucher..then have no doubt the mercenary liitle thing would hve done it !!

kids !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

edit:

wonder if I give her 20 bucks and keep the MFC voucher she'll do it....might try that !!

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Thought about taking daughter 13 along

Do you really have thirteen kids?

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

I wrote this over at Demonology:

Based on no empircal evidence, I would have thought that most children support their the team that their family does.

That would then be followed by who their friends support and then the team that is doing well at the time.

If I can generalise even more, looking at Collingw&%$ supporters v Melbourne Supporters.

As a very general rule, Collingw&%$ supporters would be more likely to be have lower levels of education and lower income.

Compare this to Melbourne supporters who are morel likely to have gone to a private school, have a university education and higher income levels.

Now, which of these two segments is more likely to have more kids and breed more?

Note: I've just come off watching the movie "Idiocracy" which looks at this very issue and I highly recommend people see it.

[beelzebub 22,225]

Do you really have thirteen kids?

thankfully not...just 2..he's too old...she's 13 yo..

just need to clear that one up

[Kiss of Death 708]

Don't forget that a very important part of the research should be on why children are NOT supporting the dees. In my opinion this is much more important for us to correct and to get the numbers up. I'm sure they would love to talk to your daughter about why she chose the aint's over the mighty dees!

[Swampfox 190]

No doubt something positive happening with this initiative

Gardiner and Co just had NO VISION or LATERAL THINKING

Kids like winners but if we cant win then we have to do something else

[beelzebub 22,225]

Don't forget that a very important part of the research should be on why children are NOT supporting the dees. In my opinion this is much more important for us to correct and to get the numbers up. I'm sure they would love to talk to your daughter about why she chose the aint's over the mighty dees!

Chooka..I agree...but its getting the lovely little Princess to come.. !!

The WHY ???oh thats easy....to annoy me !! and it does !! Clever girl!! <_<

[Roost It 1,434]

Chooka..I agree...but its getting the lovely little Princess to come.. !!

The WHY ???oh thats easy....to annoy me !! and it does !! Clever girl!! <_<

Stick at it BB, she'll be back!!

[Suzanna 72]

No doubt something positive happening with this initiative

Gardiner and Co just had NO VISION or LATERAL THINKING

Kids like winners but if we cant win then we have to do something else

That's part of the reason behind the move to Casey, it's not just about the ground. Kids will follow a team that's seen to be LOCAL, even if they aren't in a winning phase. The team that comes to their school, that they can go and see not so far away, the players that they can access, that's how you get into their hearts and get them following your side. Casey is a high growth area with an astonomical amount of littlies, Melbourne are aiming to position themselves to appeal to those kids. It's a good plan, although it will take a while to bear fruit. But you never know, if junior is a rabid Dees fan and has good nagging skills, Mum/Dad might be pressured into taking junior along to games. Unless Mum/Dad are diehard other club supporters, they may begin to support the Dees too, because they are coming anyway and get caught up in the atmosphere.

We can only hope!

Unfortunately my two are too old for this survey, maybe I can borrow someone else's kid?

[Rogue 585]

Do you really have thirteen kids?

Haha

[Chook 14,467]

If every Melbourne supporter had thirteen kids, we'd be doing pretty well. Get cracking, 'Bub.

[beelzebub 22,225]

Actually.. many kids barrack for teams for strange reasons.. Like said daughter.. deliberately picked the opposite..literally to what I follow.. initally as a joke...but is now settled into it.. And we know what we get settled into as kids..stays with us.

I imagine its the delving into what makes kids tick that the MFC hope to do. Marvellous that they are already thinking outside the box.. Yes...kids like winners.. bit they are more likely to attach themsleves to where they fel lthey 'belong'...just like families. The world is full of Simpsons.. not all are winners. But Lisa wouldnt abandon her Dad any more than she would give up her sax ( thats SAX !! ).

If I were the MFC...Id be looking for catalysts that initiate "belonging". Belonging is where you 'feel' you ought to be.

Im glad to see the club looking at things this way.... its intelligent.. Cant say thats been the first word to jump out of my mind to describe the MFC for a long long while !!

[Satan 2,727]

a few general comments

I think we have one of the lowest supporter base so it makes sense that our junior base is small and therefore our membership base is small

our lack of success(flags) in the last 40 years also means our supporter base is small, you just dont get fans overnight so to speak by being unsucessful( yes i know north melb counters my argument flags in 96 and 99 did not translate into thousands of new supporters)

lies ,dam lies and statistics the mcc dilutes our supporter base

lack of positive media coverage, the last 12 years has been a disaster, the merger , salary cap problems, staff turnover, president turnover, player off field indiscretions( minimal compared to other teams but nether the less bad)

as stated earlier family influence is important, had i followed my older sister , i would still be celebrating from saturday

[H_T 2,941]

It shows great inititaive by the Mfc to undertake this research into finding out what influences kids to follow certain sports and certain sporting teams. There are a number of factors: -

1/ Parents/Relatives

2/ Friends

3/ Hero's that impress children

4/ Winning teams

5/ Local sporting organisations

There would also be factors as to why children are influenced into NOT following certain teams: -

1/ Drugs & Indescretions (Why Nisbett has said no to Cousins)

2/ Culture

3/ Pure Failure and perceived failure

4/ Lack of Popularity

5/ Peer pressure (from friends, parents and relatives)

6/ Influence of other teams and/or sports focus in local area.

These are all but a few points.

Fwiw, I have seen first hand with my kids last weekend - who are melbourne supporters (& members) mind you (of which I am most proud) - how teams playing in the Grand Final could and can influence childrens support.

My two girls painted their faces as part of the day, part of the celebration of watching the Grand Final; One in Hawk colours (6yo), the other (the youngest = 3yo) in Cats colours. Late in the 3rd quarter when the Hawks kicked 30 points clear, my youngest after being told, started to rub off the Cats colours off her face and wanted to have Hawk colours on - immediately!! (quite hilarious, but I admired her for wanting to be seen as a winner!)

After the game, questions came my way about the ladder positions of this year. My response was swift, that the Dees were only 'several wins' behind the Cats and Hawks (haha), and that the Mighty Dees would improve next year after losing some older players and getting some very good young players into the team. "Stick with the Dees, we'll be back" was the message.

The kids took it on the chin and believed their dad (fingers crossed they did).

GO DEES!

[praha 10,270]

We have a low junior supporting base because we haven't had a marquee player in 40 years. That's the main factor when it comes to attracting young supporters imo. While I didn't approve of McNamee offering Brown a 5 year contract, he had the right idea, you have to give him that at least. He acknowledged that we didn't have a marketable player on the list and he tried to get us one.

[titan_uranus 22,289]

We have a low junior supporting base because we haven't had a marquee player in 40 years. That's the main factor when it comes to attracting young supporters imo. While I didn't approve of McNamee offering Brown a 5 year contract, he had the right idea, you have to give him that at least. He acknowledged that we didn't have a marketable player on the list and he tried to get us one.

Which is why I think we need to keep Davey. Though maybe his marketing potential is waning.

[H_T 2,941]

Also why we need to draft Watts, which has been said many times before. :D

[Guest Always B a DEE]

Well how about that. Our club is going to see how to recruit junior members. Possibly the best advice I could profer would be they do exactly the opposite of what they have done here in Tassie. This state has bred some great talent for the Dees over the years as well as for many other teams. MFC have virtually totally ruled out playing down here and for the many Dees followers down here that is pretty bloody disappointing. Perhaps it is worth noting that Hawthorn are stating statistics of one in every four children in Tassie are supporting the Hawks. Pity it wasn't the Dees.

I applaud the Casey move as Casey is the second fastest growth area in Australia and most of this growth is in the young families group. Need a few less Clr Bentleys, (think that is his name), though.

[beelzebub 22,225]

well..said Daughter took the bait...I'll swap her voucher for cash...and she gets a book too. Trust me..lol. she luuuurves reading !!. Will cost me a lunch too..but hey..we're out so we're gunna eat anyways!!

I love my daughter ( today !!! ) :D .. well everyday...just a bit more today !! lol

[Chook 14,467]

On ya, 'Bub. We'll be expecting a report back.

[gOLLy 401]

well..said Daughter took the bait...I'll swap her voucher for cash...and she gets a book too. Trust me..lol. she luuuurves reading !!. Will cost me a lunch too..but hey..we're out so we're gunna eat anyways!!

I love my daughter ( today !!! ) :D .. well everyday...just a bit more today !! lol

Great work Bubs!! Taking my 17month old boy to young??

[beelzebub 22,225]

On ya, 'Bub. We'll be expecting a report back.

I'm a little intrigued as to how it will all go...how..or what they will ask etc.. I doubt any immediate results available. But shall report back as to what transpires

[QueenC 74]

Note: I've just come off watching the movie "Idiocracy" which looks at this very issue and I highly recommend people see it.

I love that movie Clint......

And actually, but probably not surprisingly, had the same conversation with my Dad recently regarding the fact that Melbourne supporters resembled childless

and over analytical couple at the beginning vs while Collingwood supporters resembled the "white trash" rapidly and indiscriminately expanding family.

So what? Great minds !!!

As for the research - it seems like another positive step in a series of positive steps towards understand what makes us tick and how to make that better.

[TonyMelb 7]

I am not impressed that the emails and site for the research do not state anywhere what times the research sessions are! Only states 18th and 19th. Have to complete registration details to proceed.

my boys have cricket commitments on the 18th and another commitment so I can not tell if anble to participate.

Pretty poor way to treat willing volunteers who would like to help the MFC.