I have been talking to a guy at Premium TV who is repsonsible for the nufc.co.uk site. We were discussing a link from the site to the one i've been setting up for the fans committee. He expressed surprise that one of my pages which showed various links had NUFC.COM at the top and NUFC.CO.UK second. Obviously my mistake, he said. I explained.

He was very enthusiastic about getting things better, although the rumoured 'late September' relaunch is now late 2001, strange.

What he wants is any, and all, ideas so that they can be incorporated. He knows the site isn't always up to date, seems very static, rarely mentions reserves or juniors, and he also knew about the webcast problems. (He said he had heard that there had been murmurings in Washington about taking him out).

The outcome was that he would like me to meet him and discuss ideas. He liked the idea of you lot (not having ever met you of course) being a good, and representative group of internet users.

So, kiddies, sweet shop is open, just tell me what you want, and maybe one day .....

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Answers

so McB, what you're saying is that a corporation (nufc) would like to enlist its customers (the fans) to develop its marketing and PR collateral free of charge. amazing, incredible, unbelivable.

while we're at it does anybody want to be in a kit kat commercial? just do your own thing with the camcorder and send to this address

btw. we could ask for some news and comment from the players management and business staff that doesn't insult our intelligence

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

A job!

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

I was only half-kidding with the above 'want' btw. Well, ok, not kidding at all...they have any openings? ;-)

Will have to think more on actual suggestions and get back to you, Macbeth. Excellent work on your part getting someone willing to listen! :-)

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

GB

Not sure whether you're having a go at the club for asking its customers, or just being amazed at them actually offering to listen ?

One of my suggestions when i was on to him was one made ages ago by the darling, Rik I think, about having on line interviews with players. If someone can get Neil Farrington on-line I'm sure they can do it with players.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Well, i have told them once via e-mail about the official web site and what should they do for any new improvements. As I am a little bit understand about the graphic design so I might can help about making the new look for the official web site. I think a perspective of a Toon Army would set better than someone else who just told to do some copying and pasting the image, cut here and there, put some text on it and so on.

Mail me if the official lads are interesting about this.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

bit of both mcB.

good that they've finally got round to listening to the customers, amazing that they never had the idea before incredible that they're starting from a point that suggests they've never heard of marketing PR or the internet.

preoccupied with flogging replica shirts i guess

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

mac,hola,

know i've been a bit busy of late, but the nav is crap and it looks like a bag of tarts knickers...a nav and look aand feel overhaul would be good

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Here's a couple of wishes :
How about some on-line interaction with the commentators responding to e-mail comments and questions from BBSers? We did it with the American webcast when we played one of the pre-season friendlies at DC or Columbus Crew last year, and it made a real event of it.

Also what about "Laurent Robert style" interviews on Mondays and Thursdays, like he does on his own website? They give a really good insight into what's going on.

How about a web cam of the ground, even during the matches, like Chelsea have (had? I haven't looked since last year).

And of course what we've been missing since nufc.com were told to stop, the much-needed mpegs of the goals & other highlights of each game.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Take a look at the Liverpool, Manchester etc etc sites.

It ain't rocket science guys!!!!!

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

A webcast that works,.....Kick Off time posted with the next match.....And realistic postage from the shop.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Archived match webcasts (see nearly every other PL team!) for benefit of those unable to listen live, or those who want to listen again.

Content must be updated and accurate. For example, advising the travelling Toon Army of 'friendly' pubs in Mackemland is a bad thing. A little research, and getting someone who is half-interested in the club, goes a long way.

Reserves/Juniors match reports and news.

Updated news and press releases directly from the club. Anyone with an interest in NUFC should be able to go to the official site first and get accurate news. Not have to rely on unofficial sites and dodgy 'news' sites for a crumb of rumour.

Agree about the overall look and navigation of the site being crap. Frames? Why?? Splash page....UGH! Another annoyance having no point.

Gallery of photos from matches, training, etc. Videos as well. Important to keep in mind that most people are still reliant on dial-up connections, so any video/audio must be available in a format easily digestible by 56k modems. Also having it avaliable for Real Audio/Video or Media Player is a nice thing.

Speaking of Media Player.....any chance of going back to REal Player for webcasts? People seem to be having far more problems with MP this season. Just cause it says Micro$haft, doesn't mean it's good!

For kids, or anyone with an interest, how bout a weekly/monthly column from the physios and coaches on training techniques, nutrition, fitness advice, etc.

Player/staff interviews would be great. Perhaps a diary throughout the season if one or two of the players could be encouraged in that direction. Something similar to the column Dyer used to write for that paper in Ipswich.

Also, on a personal note, I'd love to know why, if they know the site isn't always updated or accurate, aren't they doing anything about it? Do they have plans in place? HOw many staff are dedicated to this? Are they dedicated full-time to NUFC, or is this just one of many projects demanding their attention at any given time? The feeling I get from the site is that nobody has full-time responsibility and it's just a job. One Producer dedicated solely to this site would go a long way. And really, for the scale of an official club website, it is a full-time job.

Enough rant outta me for now on this topic. :-)

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Oh...and one more...Hosted chats with players/coaches. Probably on at least a monthly basis. The transcript should be made available after the chat for benefit of those unable to hook in while it's live. Worldwide audience, so not everyone is up and on the net at one given time.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Agree with all of the above. Any special consideration to O/S fans Too. Remember the webcast in the US mentioned with T shirts etc as give aways. Something for O/S fans only?

How about return tickets and match tickets to anyone in Perth who has recorded matches AND has 4 brothers and 3 sisters and was born in Shilbottle?

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Sorry Gus - I think that giveaway would only work for people in Japan......

I wonder if they have bothered to look at other websites and what they offer. Such as text updates during games (like Manchester United), or video highlights (like Leicester).

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

My request iss very simple. A webcast that works. Please, please, go back to Real and stop using that duff Microsoft rubbish.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

A nice video clip of game highlights, please. Say, like the one Ken Postie hoyed up...110% useful

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Premium TV do a number of sites including the Newcastle one. Basically every clun ntl sponsor I think, and some more.

The list of who they do includes (amusingly ?) Leicester. So the guy I spoke to yesterday is responsible for Leicester having video footage, but alos for us NOT having video footage !

From my conversation with him he is repsonsible for the football web sites. What wasn't clear was how they were structured, whether it was him and no other or whether he had a team that maintained all the sites, or whether he had individuals who were allocated to teams, or what. Our site is still the one he inherited from Planet Football and he had no love of it himself, and that was why he was asking for ideas.

Having now seen the Leicester one, and looked at the Rangers one it isn't too difficult to guess what he would be offering us if they can find a means of doing black and white as well as blue.

If we want more/better then we need to say. Ciara wins for the longest most detailed suggestions to date. I expect Rik will come screaming over the horizon soon :0)

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Can you suggest that the club site has some character about it. I think we mostly agree NUFC.com is one of the best Newcastle United web sites about and I think part of the success is that their is a sense of humour, and personality. .cock has occasionally tried to mirror this (Pulling Apart the Oppo...for crying out loud) but ends up sounding patronising, ill-informed or just plain inaccurate and wrong. I understand that corporate sites will never be the same as the unofficial ones, but if that's what the punters want...

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Just been having discussions with IT guys myself regarding setting up a St James's website...albeit an intranet site for a new building we'll be moving into in St James's, London ;-). It's actually interesting looking at the issues from another angle, hence some applicability to this thread, I hope. My initial reaction regarding an intranet site for my project has been cautious as I can see the whole thing becoming a monster that needs maintaining, constant input etc - a potential huge drain on resources away from actually doing the project. There's also a big danger, that it becomes an unwanted focus and easy target - a half-hearted attempt at keeping people informed can be worse than nothing at all, in a way. No way will I get the budget to run it properly, so do I even attempt it and lay myself open to abuse from picky, whingeing bar stewards like you lot ;-)? Hopefully at nufc they've now reached the point where they understand the marketing importance of the webite, and are prepared to adequately fund it and run it, but I can just imagine the questions a few years back when it was basically just a link to the club shop. I can almost hear Shepherd's voice booming, 'this is a business we're running here, laddy' ;-)

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Excellent point, Pete. I think that is probably at the heart of our problem. The club just don't seem to have the vision to understand the marketing necessity of an official website these days, and are being left further and further behind. Little Derby was well ahead of the rest of the league for nearly 2 seasons before other clubs began to catch on. Hell, NUFC has yet to grasp the simple concepts of PR and running a ticket office so running a website is really asking alot. ;-)

That said, if they're serious about presenting something that won't be laughed at, they've got to devote resources to it. Whether hiring a team in-house or paying someone else to do it. Doing everything in- house is probably not the most practical or cost-effective solution. Neither is turning everything over to a web production house. At the very least the club need someone to act as a contact with an outside web firm. Someone that will oversee the site, make sure accurate content is provided, and presents NUFC in a professional light. It's not a part-time job to be fitted in once or twice a month in between 'more important things'. This can be done, if they're willing to take it seriously. They need to make that decision, keep a half-@rsed site for the sake of having one, or devote the necessary resources to having a site of which everyone can be proud. Or at least not embarrassed. ;-)

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

In overall terms, the content must be - accurate, timely & informative.

From my previous discussions with the club on this matter, I would strongly reiterate ciara's concern - the updating of the content is an absolutely critical issue. It must be both timely and accurate. I believe it is extremely doubtful this can be done effectively using exclusively an outside company who aren't 'on the spot' or even in the region, will only do updates at set frequencies rather than as new information becomes available, and with the best will in the world, will not understand the Club, it's supporters, their interests and foibles, and will not be able to pick up on the mryiad of little nitty-gritty things happening around the club on a daily basis that nuts like us find fascinating.

I told David Stonehouse all this 12 months ago - but imo the editing/updating of the news section of the site needs to be carried out locally and frequently - not elswhere and infrequently. That after all is what "nufc.com" so good.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Sorry Bobby, I disagree. Please don't ask for humour - they can't do it. The reason nufc.com can be and indeed are often very funny in their observations is that they are in no way linked officially to the club so can afford to be totally subjective. All I want from .co.uk is information, accurate information, be it on ticketing, fixture changes or team news. Video clips would be great too. Other than that I'll be sticking to .com. I suppose there are similarities between buying a matchday programme and a fanzine - one gives you squad numbers, ghost written thoughts of the gaffer etc, the other gives you a bit of a giggle and the genuine thoughts of a set of nutters who'll gladly take 2 days holiday to take in a night match in Plymouth.

I know which one I'm more likely to buy.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

The official match programme, right?

I understand the dangers of an official site trying to be chummy- chummy, but it is directly competing against the likes of .com. I mean, we nearly all use .com as a primary source of club information, and the replica tops offers are genius. You are probably right about the programme vs fanzine analogy, but I expect a little more from my club

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Page 3 girls are a must.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

The main area that could enhance the official site would be a nightly chat/ questions time page. I've said it many times before, but there are 30 first team players, a similar amount of juniors ans well as coaching staff, physios, even groundsman and other club employees would be worth having a chat with.

With so many staff at NUFC, I'm sure everyone could put in an appearance for a couple of hours every 3 months or so, giving us someone to chat with EVERY NIGHT. Not too much to ask for is it?

As for other aspects of the site, what about a decent BBS?

We all like this place but would prefer more users and a better password system . The Communicata system was brilliant, why couldn't NTL buy the system from Communicata?

Not so bothered about the news from the club, there are so many news sites does replicating Newcastle stories . Does it really matter if toon news is posted half an hour before the rest publish the story?

Finally I would like to know if Macbeth can do anything about the broadcast on the TV screens in the ground before the game . They are hopeless, the TV's are too small, the sound is hopeless and the content is rubbish. I'm sure a decent pre match program would bring in more people for longer before the game, thus boosting beer sales. Couldn't premium TV look into this?

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Rik,

Structurally, the bbs on ".co.uk" is fine - it's the contributors that are the problem! Presumably, we could all move over there lock, stock and two smoking barrels and just take it over?

As to news content - I couldn't disagree with you more about the role of the OS. 90% of the so-called news we get elswhere is utter baloney, made up stories, half truths, and untruths, (ie. damned lies).

What I'm talking about is actual news, from the horses mouth, insight - factual and timely: not the BS we have to wade through right now, trying to interpret the truth from the morass of cr@p.

A good example of the kind of real insight we could be getting access to is the stuff we are getting from Laurent Robert's web-site - stuff that the Press are now accessing and basing a plethora of articles on.

We also have a desire for a stream of current insight into the Reserves, and the bairns etc. - stuff that the Press couldn't give a s**t about cos it doesn't sell newspapers.

I do agree about the Page 3 girls mind!

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

What about page 3 boys for us girlies? We have a pretty good looking team. I'm sure Steph wouldn't mind a part time job taking the photos. ;-))

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Regarding the football news from the horses mouth, it still wouldn't stop the speculation.

Official news ...... Gary Speed probably won't play in Sundays game.

Unnofficial news source 1....... It's likely that Gary Speed will miss Sundays' game and is likely to be out of action for many weeks

Unnofficial news source 2 ....... Newcastle United's Gary Speed is still not fully fit, but will probably take some part possibly as a sub in Sundays game.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Ciara, I used to be a male model, will I do?

Clarky about the oficial BBs, if there were 2 levels to it, the first being an open one on which anyone could post. The other one could be a password protected one, To get a password you would have to have posted for a set amount of time on the unprotected BBS. That way you wouldn't get any muppets like Super kev and Screacher on.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Page 3 boys of the BBS? Hmm.....doesn't Steph already have that page running? ;-)

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

.. actually ciara, those photos on Steph's page are all rehearsal applications for Fellini's remake of The Grim Reaper! ;o{)

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

I think most of this has probably already been mentioned, but by the time I reached the bottom of the page I had forgotten what was at the top.

No splash screen - it just annoys people and serves no purpose at all.

Proper section on the juniors and reserves - the profiles of players for first teamers is pretty good, but for the rest it is non existent.

However, more (ie some) interviews in the style of Laurent Robert are needed, possibly changing player every week. The questions need to be more thought provoking rather than which is your favourite goal and who were your influences etc. For example, maybe ask Andy Griffin what he thinks about Wozza, or ask Marcelino if his finger is better now.

Most of all though, we need proper news, as Clarky outlined above. The official site are in a fortunate position having access to basically any Newcastle news story they want, so why the hell don't they take advantage of it and publish them? It's down to laziness more than anything else.

The match previews seemed to be OK when it was done properly. However, the match reports are far too incorrect, usually getting all the facts wrong, such as who crossed the ball in for who, who was booked, the opposition team etc.

A canny thing to have would be "Ask Bobby", where fans can send in questions to BR, maybe through a website "official" or something so the offensive ones can be filtered out. Asking him a question like "What plans do you have for Diego Gavilan?" or "Do you regret letting Des Hamilton go?" could provide a real link between the fans and the club,

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001

Oooh...like that last idea, Paul. The 'Ask Bobby'. That could even be expanded to allowing site visitors to 'interview' various players/coaches/staff. Perhaps instead of a hosted chat, if that proved too difficult for them to organize.

Also, what about some kind of giveaways. Weekly or monthly. Autographed shirts, photos, programs, etc. Perhaps via a monthly trivia contest?

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001