Saturday open thread: How would you improve the Lions fan experience?

The Lions have been watching you. They see your Twitter feed littered with all things Detroit Football. Your activity here on Pride of Detroit has not gone unnoticed. Now, it’s finally paid off. They’ve hired you as the special liaison between the fans and the team.

Your first task is to enhance the Ford Field experience. It’s no longer a new stadium, and it’s important to keep the fan base loyal. Trends will show kids are less loyal to a team or location and more loyal to individual players and other bells and whistles. What is the first move you’re making to make Ford Field a better place? I’m going to start by taking care of those that take care of me.

Photo by Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Welcome to Tiered Loyalty Rewards for season ticket holders. I bought season tickets for the 2015 year (yep the horrible start, Hail Mary game, London Massacre...great choice). But while you can’t guarantee quality of play on the field,I felt the off-the-field benefits for season ticket holders were lacking. I didn’t renew. Granted, Rod Wood took over halfway through the season and I can honestly say I’ve enjoyed the improvements he’s made. Little things like Cheerleaders or improved media access goes a long way.

Now that I have a chance to make even more strides, I’m implementing a system that will make season ticket holders feel more welcomed. For starters, I’m doing a number of cool raffles that every season ticket holder can win. The best prize will feature a dedicated loyalty seat (two) that features a great view, food vouchers for every game and parking spot. What about your original seats? Those are still yours. Let family and friends enjoy your seats for the season you’ll be back next year.

There would be other tiers stemming from a one-game seat upgrade, signed jerseys, free admission to Taste of the Lions and so forth. I’d also grant one fortunate fan every year a season ticket. I’d look for a story or circumstance of a fan that truly deserves to be there each week but can’t. For that one year they will get a great experience.

Of course it’s a business and I’m giving away free stuff. But the price of the giveaways pale in comparison to the customer loyalty and good press. I could see it increasing ticket prices also. It’s important to attract younger fans now as we can’t rely as much on someone cheering for a team because it’s local. There would also be waivers to sign etc for the bigger prizes I get it. Can’t have the Scranton Strangler being your grand prize winner and the face of Lions fans for a year. Kudos for those that get that reference.

I like the personalized seat the Lions are doing for season ticket holders this year. They’ve been headed in the right direction. But with me as the liaison to the fans we will dominate the market on fan interaction.

Your turn... what upgrade are you giving for the Ford Field or even just the overall fan experience?