Over the past year or so RAWA, along with other supporter groups, have communicated supporter concerns about a decline in "customer service" operations. Chiefly around the running of the ticket office and the approach to the Club shop. This feedback is minuted from each meeting we've raised it in, as are the Club's responses. In the last meeting on 21st July we stressed that the well documented issues must be addressed and that the Club need to fully acknowledge the clear gaps in service. We asked SAFC to provide a timeline to illustrate when and how the issues will be addressed. The Club committed to opening the ticket office phone lines today, the 15th August. We hoped this would be the beginning of a series of improvements to get to a point where supporters feel valued and can interact with the club in a way that is befitting of SAFC's stature. Sadly, since the meeting 3 weeks ago, we have been made aware of more and more issues in our emails, on message boards and on social media.
We would like to place on record that we are not laying the blame on SAFC staff. In fact, quite the opposite, we believe they're working hard, under difficult circumstances. In the last few meetings with SAFC we have expressed the view that the business side of the Club is very clearly under-resourced. This has to be addressed by those at the very top of the Club. A plan to provide a proper service to a loyal fanbase should have been in place some time ago. Instead we are now in a position where many supporters feel taken for granted. Excellent season ticket sales have not been matched by the investment and thought needed to service a large, loyal fanbase that want nothing more than to support their Club, without all the unnecessary barriers that continue to emerge.
We urge the ownership and executive staff to treat this with the urgency it requires and communicate how and when improvements will be made to supporters. We also urge that any changes to processes and services are done so by consulting with fans. Who better to help improve things than those using the services week in, week out?