In January, with the full support of the Board, Tonbridge Angels Supporters Association ran a survey to gain a better understanding of fans’ views about supporting the club.
Our chair Sophie Purves shared the top level findings at the recent Share With The Chair (SWTC) event and now, as promised, we are sharing those findings with the rest of the Angels fanbase.
Several hundred fans completed the survey – ranging from those who had supported the club for less than a year to one fan who had racked up an impressive 75 years as an Angel.
The average respondent had supported the Angels for 22 years, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of respondents said they attended all or most home games.
The passion of our fanbase shone through in the responses. We were delighted to see more than half of respondents shared their details in order to volunteer their time, skills or expertise to support the club. We will be following up with this in due course.
Of course, there were some frustrations. The #1 issue raised by fans was the standard of the current PA system, which was mentioned in more than a quarter of comments. Other common issues raised included the quality of toilets and the speed of service at our food and drink outlets.
Fans also shared what events they would be most interested in attending on matchdays. Post-match briefings, informal events like darts and pool competitions, live entertainment and televised sport were all popular with respondents.
And there was one more thing. Fans who completed the survey could win two free match tickets for a game of their choice, and the winner is Mr Scott Golding. Congratulations Scott, and enjoy the tickets.
How we’re responding to feedback
As revealed by Sophie Purves at February’s SWTC, the PA system is being completely replaced in the coming months. Crowborough-based business Baldwin Boxall, whose sound system is in leading stadia such as Stamford Bridge and Twickenham, has generously offered to supply a state-of-the-art new PA system for free.
Special mention must also go to John Ellis (audio consultant) who reviewed the system and supplied a report to Baldwin Boxall. John is the brother of supporter and fans’ forum contributor Ray Ellis. Ray’s offer on the forum was followed up and it proved very fruitful.
The power of a strong fan network was also demonstrated when local electrician and dedicated supporter Scott Green made himself known at SWTC. Scott has now kindly offered to do the leg work connecting up the new system. We have received an initial report from Baldwin Boxall, which Scott is digesting and will be working with them to implement. Baldwin Boxall are in the process of designing the new system.
Starting soon, we’ll be trialling post-match briefing sessions with selected management and players in the Sports Bar. This will give fans the opportunity to hear their insights on the game, regardless of the result. These events will also include time-limited discounts on drinks.
This started informally following the joyous win over Worthing when Alan Dunne and Ricky Korboa were interviewed amidst raucous celebrations. We will continue to trial this format for the remaining home matches.
Fans who were at our recent wins over Chippenham, Hampton & Richmond Borough, Gillingham and Worthing may also have noticed the new layout in the Sports Bar, intended to speed up service and reduce queues. Areas highlighted by fans will also be prioritised for improvement in the close season.
Members of the Advisory Group – again with the full support of the Board – are now liaising with the relevant club personnel to see what other improvements based on survey answers can be implemented.
This is just the start – there’s more to come, and we can’t wait to show you how we’re acting on your feedback. Keep an eye out on our website and social media channels for all the latest updates.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to complete the survey. Your feedback is invaluable.
