You forgot about me, didn’t you?

Do you ever get customer letters? How do you respond? Should you respond?

The following letter is one that I wrote and sent to the San Diego Padres. Since I have had no positive experiences with the Front Office I am not expecting anything back beyond a form letter or email. I share this here as an example of an unhappy customer. And it’s my blog…

Think about being a business owner and receiving a letter like this – how would\should you react?

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Dear Padres Front Office,

I am your target market.

The stats – Baseball and Padres fan (since mid-nineties), taught my wife the game and got her hooked, comfortable 2 career household with disposable income (yes, even in this market), own my home in Carlsbad, in my late-forties, like to take the train and trolley to games, enjoy spending time and money in the Gaslamp Quarter, love to watch the younger players that were just called up play their hearts out, understand that baseball is a business, respect and revere the iconic symbols of the game, buy new hats and jerseys every year, try to get to spring training every couple years, and finally became a season ticket holder when the new stadium was built.

You forgot about me, didn’t you?

In the crazy rush of running a multi-million dollar business and the growing internal office mess you created over the last couple years, you forgot about me. Me and the thousands of others like me in San Diego.

I kept the faith. I believed. I even caught the excitement. I was sad when Tony Gwynn retired and burst with pride when he was inducted. I cried when Cami died. I stood and cheered every time for Hell’s Bells even when watching on TV. I stood in the stadium with awe and respect for save number 479 and yelled myself hoarse with the crowd for an hour afterward. I laughed with the Chicken, got angry about steroids, made excuses for the losses, understood (but didn’t always agree) when favorite players were let go or traded, stayed until the end for 14+ inning games, and kept coming back.

You forgot about me, didn’t you?

This year I didn’t renew my season tickets, I was angry about being forgotten. I was disappointed that in spite of my loyalty and money over the years you forgot what was important to me and the thousands like me.

I have not been to a game this year. My friends and family can’t believe it but it’s true. I still pay attention and am still a fan. I agonize over the win\loss record but am not surprised. I get a thrill every time Adrian hits a dinger. I feel bad for Jake with 5 losses already (in early May!) that he doesn’t deserve. I have new favorite players named Jody, Scott, and David knowing they may not be around long. I know it’s a long season – a marathon, not a sprint.

You forgot about me, didn’t you?

I actually got a call from a junior sales guy a couple months after my season tickets weren’t renewed – first call from the Padres in 5 years. He wanted to know why I wasn’t renewing. I was honest and gave him 5 or 6 reasons including lack of ownership commitment, bad and expensive food, poorly run concessions, and feeling that what is important to the fans has been forgotten.

He said, “You can bring food in to the park” and “looks like we may have a new owner soon”. I kid you not, that was his entire response. His response only confirmed that I made the right decision.

I was ready to be persuaded to renew. Heck, I was already beginning to regret not renewing. I was actually happy to get the call so I could reconcile my being a fan with a team that cared about me. But during the call it became painfully clear that I was right all along.

You forgot about me didn’t you?

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Think Big, Start Small, Act Now.