Lawwell’s ‘all in it together’ message: “About as genuine as the Turin Shroud”

Sometimes you get the impression Celtic truly are a huge football club and there are other times you realise just how small we are. Particularly in terms of imparting information. As the saying goes ‘communication works for those who work at it’.

Yesterday, after months of almost total silence from Celtic we’ve been hit with two statements in a week and both directed at the fans, as Peter Lawwell released a call for unity via the club’s new website yesterday.

Was it an olive branch? Sadly not. It was actually indicative of a board and particularly a CEO entirely out of touch.

The statement said nothing of note. It wasn’t passionate enough to be a rallying cry because it read like he had no real interest in speaking to the fans at all, instead it sounded like the CEO had been advised that continued radio silence was a bad look, and more importantly likely to have an adverse impact on Celtic’s future income. It looked that way because that is what it was.

Following the club’s only other direct communication from executive level to the support having been to vilify the support, Lawwell’s ‘all in it together’ message was about as genuine as the Turin shroud.

Celtic had progressed from their previous statement on Sunday to engineer a press response where a narrative of Celtic bad bhoys was to be used to divert scrutiny from Celtic’s on field failings, as well as the board’s inaction around a replacement manager, indicative of a general lack of scenario planning at so many levels throughout the club.

There was an irony in the Daily Record in particular being used to portray the support as at best entitled and at worst thuggish, when that particular publication had done the self-same thing to our players on a Christmas night out with their despicable Thugs and Thieves headline. Not a good look Peter.

That has been seen through however and Celtic fans everywhere have called it out. A board now clearly realising, that whilst fans of other clubs and the mainstream press may have been side-lined by their deflection tactics, the support of Celtic had not been. Instead, they had been robust in their views from Celtic media and blogs through social media and chatrooms. Someone somewhere had a word in Peter Lawwell’s shell-like that Christmas sales may take a nosedive and what we got yesterday – well that was his response.

The fact of the matter is Celtic don’t do communication well. This week has been a fine example. No communication as Celtic’s form fell off a cliff. Nothing from the club to officially support the manager, nor any acknowledgement even that the standards had dropped well below an acceptable level.

With a support really only able to express their valid concerns via social media and fans forums, where normally a collective voice from the stands would have been enough to vent their frustrations, a frustration had built up.

As such a relatively minor protest, by the vast majority assembled, ensued. One that was assisted to be blown out of all proportion by our own board, demonising the support as a smoke and mirrors deflection from their own mistakes, substituting their inadequacies from the front pages and being ever so opportunistic to ensure the fans were portrayed as entirely unreasonable. Some were, a tiny minority, but the media reports made it feel like we’d all been afforded the same self-entitled label and our own board did their best to push that narrative.

For that to then be weaponised by the board was the last straw for many fans. Yet some proper communication, involving the answering of challenging questions would almost certainly have avoided such a situation arising. When you add that to Resolution 12, five way agreements, complicity in a continuation myth, an unwillingness to challenge Scottish football governance, the granting of UEFA licences, Celtic fans being called racists met with silence, and much more besides, it would point to a board who couldn’t punch their way out a wet paper bag when it came to fighting Celtic’s corner, but when it comes to their own support, it seems they don’t mind landing a blow or two below the belt, if they feel their own position is under threat.

If Celtic were serious about communicating with fans, as Lawwell now wishes us to believe from his statement, rather than having concerns we’re going to stop spending our money, then they would have listened to the fans in the past. They’d limit the use of publications like the Daily Record so despised by the support to communicate with fans, and they wouldn’t have thrown the toys out the pram when the Cynics asked questions around the coaching techniques at Lennoxtown. Instead, they they’d encourage and answer constructive criticism, they’d open their doors to fans media and allow the likes of Nick Hammond, John Kennedy, Gavin Strachan, the analysts and recruitment team and other departments to talk of their visions, roles and ambitions for the club. They’d acknowledge when things were going off-track, and defend the club when it was needed. But they don’t and they probably won’t.

It’s been the case for a number of years that the Celtic fans media photographer is not allowed to cover Celtic matches at Celtic Park but when theRangers come calling their fans media photographer is welcomed with open arms.

The Cynics operate behind a paywall so have a small but dedicated audience paying around £8 per month for their content. Other sites like The Celtic Star and numerous others all cover Celtic and as they are free to view have audiences that can rival any of the mainstream media for the size their Celtic supporting readership. In fact we beat most of them. Collectively around half a dozen non complicit sites have a huge global audience covering just about the entire support and that’s before you add in the vast array of Celtic podcasts. The Celtic fans media has never been stronger nor as angry as it is now.

To communicate with the support the club should re-think it’s policy on working with fans media and that doesn’t mean allowing the CEO editorial control to push his own agenda when it suits him. You can’t control everything Peter!

We are a 2020 club with a year 2000 media outlook. In a world where communication is king, Celtic are now seeing that the sound of silence is no longer acceptable to the ‘customers’ of any business.

We know they can communicate when they want to. They reached out to all channels when they wanted fans to forego ticket refunds or when they increased season ticket prices in exchange for a Pass to Paradise. When they want something, they can do it. They now need to open that up further.

Communication however is a two-way street. A word to the wise, if you do want to sell and encourage sustained sales, the best way to do it is to engage your support, make them feel part of the process, like they have a voice and like their opinions are heard and their concerns taken seriously. Let them see to an extent what is going on at the different levels of the club and let them hear directly from those responsible.

If you make your support part of things, they will want to wear the brand, they will wish to purchase merchandise, Celtic TV subscriptions, buy season tickets and everything in between. It will also ensure the next generation who will expect communication, regular access and feedback to pick up the baton. In this day and age, you cannot treat customers with such obvious contempt and not feel the resulting pinch.

For this CEO it may be too late, the trust has gone entirely in Peter Lawwell, but if there is to be any periods of introspection for others in a position of power – and after the events of this week that would be a good starting point – then it would be a good time to look at how and why Celtic communicate with the fans and how they can modernise their approach.

If the powers that be get that right, then much of the damage done by ignoring the fan base for far too long can be repaired. Continue down the route the club is going now, then the real reason for Peter Lawwell’s statement last night will soon become a reality. People will feel entirely disengaged and that will be reflected in where they choose to spend their money.

Niall J

About Author

As a Bellshill Bhoy I was taken to my first Celtic game in the summer of 1987. It was Billy McNeill’s return to Celtic Park as manager and Celtic lost 5-1 to Arsenal . I thought I was a jinx, I think my Grandfather might have thought the same. It was the finest gift anyone ever gave me when he walked me through Parkhead's gates.

Comments are closed.