David Steel & Wayne Raper | 21st October 2021
As YOURCLUB celebrates turning one year-old this month, we take a look back to why we created YOURCLUB in the first place and how far it has come in just 12 months.
YOURCLUB, Darlo fans' and Owners' interactive hub, celebrates its first birthday this month!
Launched in October 2020, just as the country was approaching a second Covid-19 lockdown, YOURCLUB has quickly become a key communication platform between the club and you, the fans. The platform has c3,500 subscribers, including the club’s 950 fan Owners.
Ownership has grown by around 20% over the last 12 months as engagement levels between the club and the fan base have further improved and expanded.
YOURCLUB allows Darlo fans and Owners to manage their personal DFC dashboard (personal details, contact information and DFC contributions), organise season/match ticketing and fundraising activities (Super 50/50 Draw, Boost The Budget, Lottery, etc), access discounts with a variety of our club partners, vote in fan polls (home/away kit, Best Fan-Owned XI, etc) and have access to the latest features on YOURCLUB Content.
To date, YOURCLUB Content has included an exclusive two-part interview with Graeme Armstrong, Steve Harland’s feature on the history of Mission Impossible, Polish journalist Maciej Slominski’s interview with Pawel Abbott, Scott Thornberry unwrapping Darlo Uncovered, Harry Pearson’s fascinating look at historical Darlo derbies and ‘My Best XI’ features from the likes of Neil Wainwright, Tony McMahon and Nathan Cartman, to name but a few.
The club’s Owners also get the opportunity to vote on DFCSG board nominations and even stand for election to the DFCSG board themselves each year via YOURCLUB, ensuring that the fans continue to help shape the strategic direction and future of the club.
Wayne Raper had the original idea for YOURCLUB back in 2019. He shares his thoughts below:
“A few years ago we had a conundrum in terms of how we engaged with both the fans and owners on Darlington FC better. A working group was set up to identify areas of improvement and YOURCLUB was born.
In an ever-growing digital world, it was important for us to have an area where we could consolidate all of the fan interactions we make; of which there are thousands a season.
By capturing and storing all of these centrally we could start to build up a database we could use to better interact with you, the fans and owners of DFC.
You’ve hopefully noticed in the last 12 months that the level of engagement in terms of communications sent out and survey feedback asked for has increased markedly - without YOURCLUB this wouldn’t have been as effective.
In addition to reviewing surveys at the time, we also have the ability to refer back to them to tailor marketing campaigns in future meaning we can send you only things you’re interested in.
That’s behind the scenes, of course. From the front end there is a host of growing content to enjoy alongside the fan services where you can easily update your personal contact details and preferences and easily find and answer to some frequently asked questions.
Let’s not forget the ability to become an Owner of the club with a few clicks either!
As we move into 2022, we plan on further developing the platform and integrating more fan services to improve the order journey when it comes to becoming an owner, buying tickets, using your discounts or consuming content. We also plan to further enhance the benefits package of being a DFC fan-owner.”
Not fully involved yet? You can subscribe to YOURCLUB for free by clicking here and entering your details.
Alternatively, for just £25 (paid annually or spread across 12 months), you can become a fan Owner and have a genuine say in how the club is run.
As part of our celebrations for YOURCLUB’s first birthday, we have set a target to get to 1,000 DFC Owners by the end of January 2022. At present we have 950 individual Owners, so we are just 50 shy.
In the coming weeks we will further enhance our marketing and messaging about what it means to be an Owner of DFC and keep you updated on the numbers as they grow towards our target.
Thank you to each and every one of you that has taken the time to engage with YOURCLUB in whatever capacity over the last 12 months and we look forward to showing you what more we can do in the coming 12 months.
