FOLLOW US ONLINE TWITTER . COM / RUGBYCLUBMAG MHS Group Henley RUFC follow up re . ticketing system July 2017 Henley smartens up its ticketing and gate access system
Henley RFC members have been able to enjoy all sorts of new privileges and features , thanks to the club ’ s determination to exploit online and mobile technology , described by the club ’ s membership secretary Martin Bidlake-Corser as their ‘ working smarter not harder ’ strategy .
At the beginning of last season , the club implemented a new EPoS system that used smartcards . This enabled each Henley RFC member not only to put money i . e . funds on their card , pay for drinks and receive bar discounts , but also - and uniquely - to be able to top up their membership accounts online using their mobile device , a capability that was developed by MHS Group for Henley ’ s electronic point of sale ( EPoS ) and loyalty card system from the same developer .
This ensured that the EPoS system interfaces seamlessly with the club ’ s membership database and secure membership portal . As a direct result of all the efficiencies achieved , the membership team ’ s workload has reduced significantly , an important issue as they are all volunteers .
As Martin says : “ I haven ’ t seen the end of year results yet , but I can see I ’ ve already spent a lot more at the bar using my card and topping up my account than I did last year , and I ’ m quite sure that ’ s also true of a lot of our members ! More relevantly , I also find I spend a lot less time doing paperwork , and I can optimise my time by remotely accessing the Club ’ s server and working from home .”
He continues : “ The software and the hardware from MHS Group ’ s been brilliant and very robust , but even more relevantly , as we ’ re a community club and this sort of thing doesn ’ t come cheap , the uplift in sales promises to have a positive impact on the club ’ s overall profitability . Building on this success over the past season , we felt confident to exploit the smart card ’ s functionality in assisting match day gate management ”.
Electronic ticketing and gate entry
In previous seasons , gate stewards had to visually check each and every membership card . But with the new system , season tickets will be held electronically on the membership card and will now be ‘ swiped ’ at the gate . Paper match day tickets will still be used , however they will now contain a barcode which will also be recorded by a bar code reader on entry .
This approach has a number of benefits . Both risk and cost are significantly reduced by utilising the functionality that ’ s available in MHS Group ’ s standard EPoS system . The system will now collect and store the vital ‘ metrics ’ for all categories of member and ticket types . This data , along with that collected on members buying habits in the clubhouse , can now be analysed together , giving Henley RUFC a much clearer understanding of their members ’ profiles and visiting / buying behaviour .
As Henley RFC ’ s Commercial Manager Alistair Beynon commented , “ It ’ s not just streamlining the gate entrance situation ; this development will allow Henley RFC to better understand its members and their requirements .”
“ For us , it ’ s all about creating the right environment for members and visitors to enjoy the match day experience , and having the right data is crucial in allowing the Club to refine its
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