[Quantrill]

I read this article on TJ Slideways and thought it was a good read.

http://tjslideways.com/2015/12/31/so...ing-endeavors/

"By T.J. Buffenbarger

Recently a track in Michigan was shut down unexpectedly after being sold. One of the reasons the track owner cited selling the facility was criticism on social media outlets were to blame for the lack of success. This is a cry I have heard increasingly over the past several years, I also believe in most cases blame that is misguided.

Recently I have seen a movement of people that feel nothing critical should ever been said about a race track, and that fans and teams (customers) should just be happy they exist. This is a sport where the objective is the win and to do so is to work at getting better as a driver or race team to do so. The same has to be done from the track and series management side. If I were to go out for a hamburger and had a less that satisfactory experience should I just be happy there is a hamburger place to go to when there are 20 other places offering the same thing down the street? That holds true in the entertainment field. There are more entertainment options than ever for families. Having a business that can’t start the program on time, finish at a reasonable hour, and have less than adequate facilities and blaming social media is not getting to the reason things are not working.

When a facility cannot provide clean facilities, start remotely close to on time, or end a program at a reasonable hour on a regular basis and in turn expect paying customers to be stratified just by your existence is not a sustainable business plan. Often times these are the same facilities that don’t update information or results until days after the event. How can you build a fan base if those customers can’t find out what happened the next morning? Can you imagine your favorite sports team taking up this practice? Often times the tracks complaining about social media also are guilty of this practice as well.

For every track I see complaining about social media I see others thriving and embracing it. The ones using this to their advantage can convey their passion and what they think is great about the sport or their facility in creative ways. I’ve seen “track selfies” being encouraged during the race night and often will flood my feeds during race night of people enjoying themselves at the races. If someone is searching for a night out in their area there is a good chance they can stumble across images like this and it might intrigue them to come.

No matter how well a facility is run there will always be customers that are not happy and will use it as an outlet to complain. If the track is well run though they generally will not have a leg to stand on and their complaint will be more of anomaly.

Asking your customers just to exist is not good enough. With entertainment options springing up everywhere the racing community needs to be more creative on how we convey what is great about the sport. There are so many things we do right on the short track level. Fans can get a nights entertainment at a reasonable cost, with reasonable concessions (or bring your own cooler/food at some facilities), and meet the “heroes” at the end of the night. Social media is another way to remind people of these things.

Instead of worrying about what customers are saying about your track, series, or racing on social media they should be focused on how they can make the racing experience at their facility for the customer. If the customer experience can continue to evolve for fan and race team then the later problem with social media is self-correcting.

Instead of convincing fans they should be happy for your existence, show them with creativity and the desire to make things better each and every race night."

[BrentTFunk]

Originally Posted by Quantrill I read this article on TJ Slideways and thought it was a good read. http://tjslideways.com/2015/12/31/so...ing-endeavors/ "By T.J. Buffenbarger Recently a track in Michigan was shut down unexpectedly after being sold. One of the reasons the track owner cited selling the facility was criticism on social media outlets were to blame for the lack of success. This is a cry I have heard increasingly over the past several years, I also believe in most cases blame that is misguided. Recently I have seen a movement of people that feel nothing critical should ever been said about a race track, and that fans and teams (customers) should just be happy they exist. This is a sport where the objective is the win and to do so is to work at getting better as a driver or race team to do so. The same has to be done from the track and series management side. If I were to go out for a hamburger and had a less that satisfactory experience should I just be happy there is a hamburger place to go to when there are 20 other places offering the same thing down the street? That holds true in the entertainment field. There are more entertainment options than ever for families. Having a business that can’t start the program on time, finish at a reasonable hour, and have less than adequate facilities and blaming social media is not getting to the reason things are not working. When a facility cannot provide clean facilities, start remotely close to on time, or end a program at a reasonable hour on a regular basis and in turn expect paying customers to be stratified just by your existence is not a sustainable business plan. Often times these are the same facilities that don’t update information or results until days after the event. How can you build a fan base if those customers can’t find out what happened the next morning? Can you imagine your favorite sports team taking up this practice? Often times the tracks complaining about social media also are guilty of this practice as well. For every track I see complaining about social media I see others thriving and embracing it. The ones using this to their advantage can convey their passion and what they think is great about the sport or their facility in creative ways. I’ve seen “track selfies” being encouraged during the race night and often will flood my feeds during race night of people enjoying themselves at the races. If someone is searching for a night out in their area there is a good chance they can stumble across images like this and it might intrigue them to come. No matter how well a facility is run there will always be customers that are not happy and will use it as an outlet to complain. If the track is well run though they generally will not have a leg to stand on and their complaint will be more of anomaly. Asking your customers just to exist is not good enough. With entertainment options springing up everywhere the racing community needs to be more creative on how we convey what is great about the sport. There are so many things we do right on the short track level. Fans can get a nights entertainment at a reasonable cost, with reasonable concessions (or bring your own cooler/food at some facilities), and meet the “heroes” at the end of the night. Social media is another way to remind people of these things. Instead of worrying about what customers are saying about your track, series, or racing on social media they should be focused on how they can make the racing experience at their facility for the customer. If the customer experience can continue to evolve for fan and race team then the later problem with social media is self-correcting. Instead of convincing fans they should be happy for your existence, show them with creativity and the desire to make things better each and every race night."

I think there is some truth to this, but I also have first hand seen social media hurt the sport. One problem is a person can say something without a hint of truth, and people will believe it. A second problem is people who stay at home and don't attend races, yet get results as quick as someone who is there. Bruce Ellis did an article in Sprint Car and Midget where he commented on this. Many of the negative comments over the years, have come from people who did not attend an event. I don't know if this is because of social media, but lets face it we have become a country of whiners and complainers, and it really shows on social media.
If any part of our day is not perfect we complain and whine like a bunch of pansy hairdressers, and someone else is always to blame. I remember the Miles family at Bloomington, some of the nicest people you could meet, saying social media complaining was one of the main reasons they were stepping away.

[Charles Nungester]

I agree with this article 100% You run a good show, treat both racers and fans right and it should thrive or out survive the ones that don't.

What I do think hurts is thin skins that can't take constructive criticism. "The bathrooms were dirty and floors were wet" becomes your bashing the track, It isn't good for the sport.

I still make all kinds of mistakes but I've also found that how you word things is EVERYTHING on how a post is taken as you cannot get tone of voice or facial expressions from a post of someone trying to convey their thoughts.

Also there is more than one side to everything and when you refuse to at least consider the others views. The problem isn't theirs..

There are other things, Like live at the track that hurt. I seen a driver at one track all three races he raced there bash the promoter each time OVER THE PA IN VICTORY LANE, and only once was the track in anything but excellent shape due to rain early in the day. I personally don't enjoy hearing this, Your not bigger than the sport.

I've also seen races described almost totally different from what I experienced. They were sitting in two and I was in the main grandstand. I had a ball. Never had a problem with dust etc. But to them it was dusty as hell, they couldn't see some of the racing etc.

You can state whats wrong or what could be better. Just be respectful about it. The tracks than care and can, Usually try to fix whats
wrong. Instead of "I'LL NEVER GO BACK AGAIN BECAUSE BLAH BLAH" Say "I sure wish BLAH, BLAH was a little less/more/better!" It would make it so much more enjoyable to visit.

[Vukie]

Social media is a easy target.Well before the internet and social media, my cousin took his two young sons to a WOO race at Santa Fe Speedway. This was in the late 1980's, they hated the entire experience. The dust storm during the races,long lines at the concession stands etc. They haven't been to a motor race since. How many people did they tell about that night? At work,at school,friends? They didn't the internet back then.

Check out forums for sports teams in the NFL, NBA,MLB or the NHL. Racing forums are child's play compare to them. Same with sports talk radio, the fans ***** about their team but they still watch and buy tickets.

[kdobson]

As a track operator, I agree with TJ's comments as they relate to our customers the fans, but I have an entirely different perspective as it relates to drivers, owners and to lesser extent crew members.

Each year when tax time rolls around, promoters get reminded that somewhere between 90-110% of all gate revenue (front and back) gets paid out to racers and help. I view the ticket - whether a grandstand ticket or pit pass as basically a conduit to pay the talent. The racers are more or less earning the money that comes through the gate far more nights than not - especially for weekly racing events.

The more people who walk through the door, the more we can pay the talent over the longer term. The fewer people who walk through the gate, the less they will earn. The racer has a vested interest in the gate. Most don't recognize it or understand it, but the racer's pay in every show is proportionally tied to gate receipts.

When a participant has an issue it is far, far more constructive for him to contact me directly to offer criticism than it is to blast it across the internet so that the customers and potential customers that directly support his racing efforts are brought into the discussion. The only time I get upset with social media criticism is when I have someone on our "team" - which includes racers who regularly race at our tracks blasting some criticism across the internet - without have made an effort to contact me or discuss it with me first.

To use the restaurant example, suppose that at the end of each shift all of the employees of a restaurant stood outside with signs saying "The food here sucks". How much longer are they going to get paid? Not because they are going to get fired, but because their actions are going to keep people from buying the cheeseburgers that pay their salary.

Yes, racers are 'customers' of a race track also - but they are much more akin to paid staff than they are a fan. Like any relationship, they can express their displeasure and burn down the house across the internet, but I feel I have every right at that point to not let them come back and under the same terms as the racer who isn't setting a match to the place. His actions aren't only affecting the promoter, but they are affecting every other racer who participates over the long term.

If I ran a race track such as a kart track where the racers weren't getting paid to put on a show, I would consider them more like the fan customer and would view their social media criticism in a different light. But the racer is as much a part of the "team" that promotes an event and puts butts in the seats as the promoter. If they wish to continue to be a part of the 'team' that shares in the revenue they generate by putting on a show, then they should make reasonable efforts to avoid harming the place in public as a first resort.

Yes, I have kept racers away from our tracks or warned them that they would be racing for less money than others if they returned on account of my belief that they were negatively impacting the revenue the track was generating for the rest of the drivers and 'team'.

I could be dead wrong in my beliefs but it is because I view the participants and teams as a critical part of the operation and success of the race track.

For 40+ years racers have rightfully looked at trying to make racing more "affordable" from the cost side of the ledger - without a lot of success. While we should still do that, the easiest way for racers as a group to make it more affordable is to get directly involved in the income side of the ledger and work hard to grow the sport, build interest, and put butts in the seats. Their 90%+ share of the pie can't grow much... but you can always increase the size of the pie. Make the pie twice as big and your racing operation just got more "affordable". Shrink the size of the pie by running customers away and the reverse will happen.

[BrentTFunk]

Originally Posted by Vukie Social media is a easy target.Well before the internet and social media, my cousin took his two young sons to a WOO race at Santa Fe Speedway. This was in the late 1980's, they hated the entire experience. The dust storm during the races,long lines at the concession stands etc. They haven't been to a motor race since. How many people did they tell about that night? At work,at school,friends? They didn't the internet back then. Check out forums for sports teams in the NFL, NBA,MLB or the NHL. Racing forums are child's play compare to them. Same with sports talk radio, the fans ***** about their team but they still watch and buy tickets.

I agree they complain about the teams losing, but with no home team in racing the complaint is about the experience more than who wins and loses.

[nathans1012]

If I'm not mistaking the track that was closed was Cherry Raceway in Fife Lake, Michigan.

[RichH]

Well said!

[Bill84]

I think the real tragedy in this case is not so much the motivation for him to sell the track, which was the main point of the above article, but how it all came down. The lawyer representing the buyer approached the owner with an offer, and asked him to stay on as the promoter for a year during the transition. My understanding is that the seller was fully under the impression the track was being sold as a continuing venue. Then after the sale was complete, the new owner's true intentions were quickly made public. Even though he put the track up for sale due to bad social media publicity, had another purchase offer not materialized, or had this buyer's true intentions been presented up front, the track would still be open in 2016.

Bill

[SWScaleChassis]

I think 'scapegoat' is the perfect word for this. Have I seen my share of bashing online be it forums, Twitter, Facebook, etc? YES. We ALL have. Now, usually a reader of the bad comments can usually pick out a valid statement vs. a potshot jab with no backing. Now, I know its difficult to convey a sense of tone in typed or printed text. Some folks can do it, but some of the blowhard folks that utilize the technology to cut down a track/event/driver, dont even attempt to tactfully construct their opinion to bring their thoughts forward in a way that the reader can take their words for what their worth.

I hate to jump on my high horse, but I feel like I do a pretty good job at conveying my opinion most of the time. I had a pretty in depth analysis review of the Indy Invitational for example, that not only was constructive should the promoter read my thoughts, but also helped (I hope) shed light to those who took to the web before the heats were over with their unhelpful banter.

It's all a matter of how you use it and if you REALLY understand the effects of how far your digital word goes nowadays. It's like a drivers license. Everyone is entitiled to one, but should everyone have one?

I think Social Media is now one of the best assets in a promoter/driver/track/series arsenal. The ability to get word out, FAST, is something that cant be taken for granted. Look at all the positive examples how SM is used today. The Winged Nation folks do the #TweetYourSeat deal that gets folks engaged. Knoxville uses a hashtag to encourage folks to take pictures and they then post em on the billboard screens, the PPV feed. It's awesome.

I think more folks and more tracks should embrace it, and incorperate it into their programs. It's a way to appeal to the younger generation that cant go an hour without checking their Twitter, Facebook and Instagram feeds. You entice them with a hashtag lottery for a free hot dog at intermission, or t-shirt drawing.. The options are endless.

I hate that a track is gone. But to blame it on social media is weak. That tells me that they 1) Made enough people mad for an extended amount of time without fixing it that the SM backlash became a problem that they didn't fix. 2) Read TOO far into what exactly what was being said and not taking the time to filter the criticism/bellyaching vs. constructive critcism.