If you think the following is a good idea, please visit the original forum post and like it. I will submit this idea to the club, if it is popular enough on here.

Whilst you lot were busy enjoying yourself at Charlton this weekend, I was busy putting in the hours researching the sale of beer in sports grounds. For this task I had to go all the way to Lyon to watch some guys run into each other a lot and throw the ball backwards, before eventually deciding kicking it forwards was a better option. I’m not one to question the wisdom of foreigners in their country, but I can assure you I was thinking “It’s just not cricket”.

My research was a success though. Whilst we, the English, are great at drinking beer, we are not great at selling it within football grounds. To underline this point, I saw more French citizens leave their seats in Lyon and get a beer at half-time, than I saw English citizens drink beer at half time in Ipswich, and indeed other away grounds.

Before I get into what they did, and how their system can be improved further, it is important to first outline a few facts that will be used as a foundation for later points.

1. Like it or not, Ipswich is a business. We buy players as cheaply as we can, and we sell them for as much as we can. However the use of the word “we” hides the common oversight that we, as fans, make. “We”, doesn’t always mean “the fans”. We “the fans” are sold goods and services for as much as we “the club” can get away with, without causing the profit to decline.

2. With this in mind we need to consider another fact. Let’s say there is toll bridge. If your toll bridge price is increased from 50p to £5, you would be disgruntled. You may be angry, but still travel across it. Or you may travel the extra distance to the free bridge 15 mins down the road. In either case, your actions would mean very little to the bridge. With the club though, it is different. The club wants people in the ground, and they want them to be happy when they are in there.

3. The pricing of beer then is not just about extracting the most amount of money from the fans, it is also about maintaining an atmosphere. If fans cannot afford beer, or resent paying for the beer, the negativity is reflected within the terraces.

4. Unfortunately, we can’t just smash the price up and annoy those who are priced out, for the greater profit. Instead we need to flood the market in the time given to maximise the profit.

5. At the moment we currently price our beers at a point where the vast majority are happy to pay the price stated, but our revenues are down because demand exceeds supply. This causes people not to leave their seats at half-time, as they cannot be bothered to compete for a beer.

6. Time then, is a very important factor. We have 15 mins to maximise the sale of beer, to maximise the revenue of the club, and facilitate the mood of the fans.

Our base facts are therefore:

1. We should be trying to extract the most amount of money from the fans, when selling beer.

2. We should try and avoid annoying the fans through too high a price, as it reflects on the terrace.

3. We should make it as easy as possible for fans to purchase beer within the small time allotted (15mins)

At Lyon rugby club they sell tokens. Tokens have the same value. They are worth about £3 and can be split in half. One token is worth one beer. They are also used for food. They can be split in half, so the base value for an item in £1.50

This has a few knock on effect.

1. Tokens and therefore beer is the value the club put on it. If they want to value all beers at £3 they can. If they feel all beers should be £3.50, then that is the starting point for tokens.

2. You cut out time. People buy tokens in advance from either machines or people. When purchasing the beer, or food, you are no longer taking time over counting cash, or waiting for card payments to go through. In other words, 15 mins is suddenly longer. You can sell more.

3. You no longer have beer sellers tending money, as therefore they can concentrate on their primary function. To us “the fans” that is to give us to beer (and food) we want, as quickly as possible. To us “the club” that is to turnover as much as possible to maximise profits.

By concentrating on their primary function, the clubs have a different outlook on managing time. Beers are pre-poured. This means they can exchange tokens very quickly. Whilst they are going and the queue is still there, pints are continuously poured. This change in attitude also speeds up the purchase of selling beer, making the process a lot slicker.

Fans are happier as the queue gets smashed through. People have more time to talk over a pint and even go back for more, as they know they won’t miss the game, due to a queue. This therefore gives the club even more.

Now, I know I just introduced the concept of tokens. But I am now going to try and improve on this idea. Lyon rugby club have barcodes on their season ticket. (I don’t have a season ticket at Ipswich, I go to away games, when time permits, so I don’t recall if season tickets have barcodes on them).

Anyway, season ticket holders should just be able to scan their season ticket, and charge it with beer tokens. They should then be able to just dab it on a pad to exchange their tokens. Think of your season ticket as an oyster cards, which allows you to get beer. This system would cut down on the amount of tokens people would by each year.

For those fans that buy tickets, such as myself, you have a few added bonuses. They will forget about tokens, lose tokens, and have to buy more. The club will gain more from the fans buying and not spending them. For away fans this is going to be even more. Maybe, as they will have excess tokens.

So there it is, that is their system. Their fans are happier because of it. The club is richer because of it. I was surprised by how good it was.

commuterblue added 13:48 - Dec 2 Great idea. I think the tokens would be faster than season ticket bar codes - no need to scan, so should be faster. Also you could sell groups of tokens at a discount.
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commuterblue added 14:01 - Dec 2 PS As an aside, I note that there are some on the forum who feel it is too long winded for Town. Personally I would email Ian Milne as follows Dear Mr Milne, The use of pre-paid tokens for beverages and snacks reduces queuing time and increases revenue at other sporting and non-sporting events. I recommend you investigate using such a system at Portman Road. It would be a win win for fans and for the club. I have blogged on this subject, you can find further details here. I am sure you would wish to consult more widely before implementing such as system but it does appear to a fruitful area to investigate. .....

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IscaBlue added 14:02 - Dec 2 Or why not just use contactless card payments instead? Order beer, get beer, swipe payment card in the general direction of the beer. Drink and repeat.
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F95_ITFC added 14:18 - Dec 2 Many if not most Bundesliga clubs have a 'stadium card' system where you top your card up online or pay cash to folk who wander around the stadium with a card machine to update your card. Once this is done it's then contactless payment at the kiosks for beer and bratwursts. Some stadium cards are transferrable to other teams stadiums.
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itfctrent added 14:30 - Dec 2 I don't personally drink but I do believe that it could be a really really good effective way to do our business. However, I don't believe that we should make Beer tokens a top priority. Why would the club really bother changing it for those that come now. Perhaps we can try to put some pressure on the club on the way it prices the tickets. I'm a season ticket holder so I don't really need to worry as our season tickets are good value in my eyes, but for those who don't live in Ipswich or surrounding areas but like to watch the team a few times a year,30 quid a time isnt cheap, especially if they bring the whole family putting it well in to 3 figures for a day trip. Let's try to get support for this and put it to the club. There could be chance for greater revenue, 16k paying 30 quid, or 19/20k paying 25 quid. Imagine the boost for the boys, especially as we are sat 2nd (SECOND!) in the league in December. Then perhaps we could put this idea to the club, where there could be more fans available to watch the game, and to make some money duribg their half time pint???

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carsey added 16:19 - Dec 2 Personally I wouldn't buy a beer inside the ground simply because it is over priced, poor quality and you have to rush it down even if you get to the front of the Q. For those who do like to buy a pint they have to leave their seat 5 - 10 minutes before half time and most don't return before the 2nd half starts which to me is pointless. Having said that the idea seems to have some merits.

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blrmy added 16:25 - Dec 2 Sticking to the original topic, a nice idea. A shorter version is better as will be read hopefully in full. I would also widen it to all food and beverages without focusing on beer, as although I enjoy a beer at half time, I'm sure most punters purchase food, snacks and soft drinks. And more would if the queues weren't such a nightmare (10 mins to queue, 5 to consume/drink means not bothering). That, to me, is the big win, and of course, therefore greater income to the club as a result.

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Kropotkin123 added 21:57 - Dec 2 Yeah, in Lyon Rugby it is applied to all food and drinks. I suppose it was the beer that inspired the blog, as I've never seen such a rapid turnaround, and it was such an in your face difference. In the picture provided, you can see kids buying tokens, which will be used for their soft drinks and snacks.
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bobble added 08:10 - Dec 3 just include all the beer you can drink in the price of an adult ticket
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IamSpartacus added 11:22 - Dec 4 An interesting idea, but I'm not sure creating a whole new system to get beer is cost effective- particularly when, as someone else mentioned, contactless payments are becoming more prolific. Perhaps a more immediate cure might be if the serving staff starting pouring the beer 5-10 mins before HT? Then they only have to take cash &give change and the beer over. This would be cheap, using way too much logical thinking and ease the immediate problem? Or, perhaps, get someone else in to help serve.... revolutionary, hey?

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WindsorBlue added 20:17 - Dec 4 This has been awful for years. Derby (I'm pretty sure it was Derby) opened my eyes to a whole new possibility. They had a pump that poured 6 beers per time. We currently have to wait approx 30 seconds per pint, with Mr. Tomlinson (North Stand gag) pouring each one whilst we wait around in frustration. Lids would also be good with cardboard carriers. Ordering 10 pints at half time causes chaos passing it back, not to mention spillage...or financial slippage! Decrease transaction time, and pouring time, increase staff, boom, we all get watered. I miss 5 mins either side of half time at the moment!

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PaulyMF added 05:41 - Dec 9 Seems to me that there is good money to be made if they can get this right. Would it be so hard to get poring before half time? Maybe even have a deddedicated beer bar/trolley?
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