Lions to fans: "Screw Em"

[RussMan]

I finally threw in the towl this year and did not renew my 4 lower bowl seats (the actually raised the price again). I sent back the invoice for the ticket and wrote in black marker "I QUIT. FIRE MILLEN". Despite that I receieved several phone calls to my home and work and letters to try to convince me to renew... Last year the Lions narrowly avoided being blacked out for several games.... this year I think the blackouts are a certainty.

 

PUBLISHED: Friday, May 16, 2008

Does e-mail show how Lions really feel about their fans?

 

By PAT CAPUTO

Journal Register News Service

 

When Kevin Furlong received an e-mail from an employee of the Detroit Lions ticket office, he did a double take.

 

"F--- 'em until next year," it said.

 

It was an inadvertent transmission, meant to be sent from one Lions employee, Matt Schul, to another, Lance Powser, about Furlong's ordeal with the Lions ticket office. Furlong felt compelled to cancel six season tickets worth more than $5,000 for the 2008 season. The Lions were trying to convince him to renew.

 

"It was extremely disappointing," Furlong said of his reaction to the e-mail.

 

Cast aside the graphic language and examine only the meaning, and I find these words to be telling. In my opinion, they sum up the organization's attitude in its totality.

 

The Lions take their support for granted.

 

It's why owner William Clay Ford crassly, the rare times he speaks to the media these days, praises team president Matt Millen -- who has compiled a 31-81 record since being handed the keys to the franchise in 2001.

 

It's why Millen smugly passes off Lion fans as if they are a necessary evil, as he lives in what is essentially a football executive's fantasyland. He is the primary decisionmaker when it comes to the Lions' player personnel -- without culpability for a mountain of failings.

 

To believe there isn't a trickle-down effect from the top to throughout the remainder of the organization would be naive.

 

And I can't help but believe Furlong, a 49-year-old resident of Livonia, who works as a CPA in West Bloomfield, didn't feel the brunt of the Lions' attitude.

 

Lions executive vice president and chief operating officer Tom Lewand vehemently disagreed with my contention there is a correlation between the tone set by Ford and Millen -- and this incident.

 

"If you write that, it will be factually incorrect and bordering on slander," Lewand said. "And I will come after you."

 

Do I feel threatened by Lewand? No. Am I angry he said those things. No. They were said out of loyalty and emotion -- and I understand and respect that.

 

But it doesn't change my opinion. And I don't believe I'm exactly a club of one in this town when it comes to believing Lions leadership is inept and insensitive.

 

Furlong owned season tickets for three years. He had two in the club level the first year. The second year, he received two more in the lower level stands after being on a waiting list -- so he had four. The third season, they reduced the size of the club level, including a portion where his seats were located, which were on the aisle.

 

He said he wanted to keep those two seats, add two club-level seats and asked that two seats he had in the stands be combined with his seats from the club level that were moved to the stands. The Lions agreed. It gave him six season tickets.

 

But when he went to sit in his old seats, somebody else was sitting in them. He asked them to leave, but when he looked at his tickets, he noticed his seats had been moved.

 

"It was an embarrassing and awkward moment," Furlong said. "I was stunned."

 

When he contacted the Lions, he was told nothing could be done about it during the 2007 season, but he was promised aisle seats for 2008.

 

Yet, when Furlong received his season ticket invoice for 2008, it was for the same seats he had in 2007.

 

It was then that Furlong canceled his season tickets in an e-mail to Schul. Powser then e-mailed Furlong with an offer for more desirable seats, but Furlong said it was a matter of principle -- and he wouldn't accept the offer.

 

Then Furlong received the inadvertent e-mail from Schul.

 

The entire e-mail reads, "Lance...he is not talking about you here. Mark was asked to speak to these people and he said no. F... 'em until next year."

 

"Mark" is Lions ticket director Mark Graham.

 

Once he heard of the e-mail, Lewand called Furlong and invited him to a game.

 

"I did so before I heard from any media on this," he said.

 

Lewand offered no excuses for the incident, but absolved Graham from blame, although the e-mail in question indicates Graham refused to discuss the issue with season ticketholders such as Furlong, who had their seats unexpectedly moved for the 2007 season.

 

"It was an inaccurate characterization of a conversation held in 2007, not this year,'' Lewand said of Schul's e-mail.

 

Lewand said he was, "deeply disappointed with the e-mail and light it portrayed, and I have addressed it."

 

"There are a number of different levels this could have been avoided and we realize that," Lewand said. "One, with the invoice we sent out for this year. If it had been correct, none of this would have happened. We never condone our fans being discussed in that manner, whether it be in an e-mail or any type of discussion among members of our organization."

 

Furlong is not pleased with the Lions organization, but feels no animosity toward Schul. He was hesitant to make the e-mail public for fear Schul would be the fall guy for the incident.

 

"Matt was the one person who was trying to help us, and I feel for him, but it didn't sound like anybody else there cared," Furlong said.

 

His anger hit a head when the Lions started offering partial season ticket packages this week.

 

"When they came out with the partial ticket packages, I just couldn't take it anymore," Furlong said. "Evidently, the way they are treating fans isn't working out to well for them."

 

Leward said the Lions do appreciate their fans. "We care deeply about our fans and their support," he said. "That's not to make any excuses about this. I'm as upset as Kevin is about this, but it doesn't reflect the overwhelming way we treat our ticket holders or our fans."

 

There are two ways to look at that. One is a matter of customer satisfaction. Kevin Furlong was not a satisfied customer, but it seems to me the issue is deeper than that.

 

"F... 'em until next year." Where did that attitude come from?

 

We can only hope it isn't the unofficial team slogan.

[Ursa Majoris]

I've posted this many times before but once more won't do any harm.

 

No NFL team gives two chits about it's fans other than as a source of separating them from their money. Period.

[Egret]

Sigh.

[Randall]

This isn't news is it?

[whoopazz]

Um, its the Lions

[CHISOX]

I'd swear that article is truly about the former owner of the Houston Oilers, Butt Adams (I know his name is Budd).........trust me, he's a Butt. Houston was nothing more than a cash cow for him.

 

 

 

Ford and Adams aren't the same person, are they?

[Randall]

I'd swear that article is truly about the former owner of the Houston Oilers, Butt Adams (I know his name is Budd).........trust me, he's a Butt. Houston was nothing more than a cash cow for him.

 

 

 

Ford and Adams aren't the same person, are they?

 

 

Lions fans may prefer Ford moved the team. At least then they could get a new team.

[BeeR]

 

I've posted this many times before but once more won't do any harm.

esp since nobody will read it anyway.

[Bronco Billy]

I've posted this many times before but once more won't do any harm.

 

No NFL team gives two chits about it's fans other than as a source of separating them from their money. Period.

 

 

The NFL is a business, and an extremely successful one at that. While profit is imperative for a business to function, good will is an extremely valuable intagible asset for any business, and especially so for professional sports teams.

 

I'm not sure where you absolute statement makes much sense. Despite the wild popularity of the NFL, teams like DET & AZ can still alienate their fans, which does cost them money.

Edited May 19, 2008 by Bronco Billy

[Grits and Shins]

No NFL team gives two chits about it's fans other than as a source of separating them from their money. Period.

 

No doubt.

 

Jerry Jones said the same thing to the Dallas fans when he set the ticket prices in the new stadium at a level that will cater to big business more than the standard Dallas fan.

[detlef]

First off, I'm not sure exactly what went down to lead up to the inadvertent letter. Sounds like the ticket office screwed up a somewhat convoluted ticket request and tried to make it right by offering better seats (I'm guessing for the same price as the others?). Dude refused out of principle. That begs a question. Shouldn't the purpose of complaining be to get the merchant to resolve the situation? Isn't being offered an upgrade the sort of thing that you would hope for? So, sounds to me like the ticket office was basically saying, 'Oh well, we tried to hook the guy up. He doesn't want to be hooked up, so... F' him." At some point, you turn the page. It was obviously sloppy to mistakenly send that e-mail to him and certainly a poor choice of words, but...

 

That is, assuming that the lead up is 100% accurate and the ticket holder wasn't a dick at some point while the office was trying to fix it. Considering how few times in my career someone's complaints have actually been entirely accurate, I'm guessing there's just a little BS in this.

 

"We've waited at least an hour for our food!"

"Wow, and yet you walked in the door a mere 30 minutes ago. Did you order before you got here?" (Which BTW would be something you'd like to say but don't)

 

I mean, vague dissatisfaction is not interesting or news worthy. Absolutely horrible customer service where the customer was just trying to get a fair shake and the business was insolent, rude, and incompetent is much easier to sell.

 

It is rather obvious that the Lions are a poorly run shop. However, I'd be quite surprised that one could get a position in customer relations if you were quick to take the attitude of "f'em" without the customer being a total prick. I would be hugely surprised to find this was not the case.

[T-Scorp]

Wow remind me never to complain at your establishment. I too do not know the entire conversation that took place between the customer and the ticket office, however, it sounds like the Lions screwed up his 07 season tickets. I don't care how goofy the request was, it was their job to understand their customers request and fullfill it. They started the problem by eliminating his seats. Then they screwed up again in 08? Doesn't sound like the customer was at fault.

 

Also I have met plenty of pricks in customer service who do not need to be provoked to be a complete butt head.

Edited May 22, 2008 by T-Scorp

[detlef]

Wow remind me never to complain at your establishment. I too do not know the entire conversation that took place between the customer and the ticket office, however, it sounds like the Lions screwed up his 07 season tickets. I don't care how goofy the request was, it was their job to understand their customers request and fullfill it. They started the problem by eliminating his seats. Then they screwed up again in 08? Doesn't sound like the customer was at fault.

 

Also I have met plenty of pricks in customer service who do not need to be provoked to be a complete butt head.

How you managed to come away from my post thinking that I don't take complaints seriously is beyond me.

[dmarc117]

link?

[Ursa Majoris]

esp since nobody will read it anyway.

Except you, it seems, you brain dead douusch.

[Ursa Majoris]

No doubt.

 

Jerry Jones said the same thing to the Dallas fans when he set the ticket prices in the new stadium at a level that will cater to big business more than the standard Dallas fan.

Exactly my point. "Fans" = "bums on seats". It doesn't matter whose bum it is, whether it's some bunch of corporate jerks who wouldn't recognize a football if it hit them in the face or a thirty year veteran who has never missed a game.