Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Growing pains...

Collapse
X
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Growing pains...

    I find myself cringing more than smiling lately and feel something has got to be said so here it goes.

    First off, I truly appreciate all of your support. You guys and gals know who you are.

    With that said we're trying to grow a business here. Not one for fortune and fame. More to cover the bills. So there's money going out to pay for domains, web hosting, legal expenses associated with the LLC, etc. Partially offsetting that is donations from fellow members, ad click revenue, commissions from selling NRA memberships and site sponsors, who are the most important source of revenue for future growth, but also who we have not charged a dime before seeing how this goes.

    Quite frankly, if I were an outsider looking in, I would be completely turned off by some of the commentary on these threads. That's a fact plain and simple. I wouldn't blame a potential sponsor from looking elsewhere to promote their products. Why? Because like it or not nobody wants to read about anybody's preferences for new "members", giving head, just outright fowl and disturbing language, or where where and how female members choose to relive themselves. This isn't even touching on the bashing of members from other sites. C'mon peeps. If you wouldn't say it in front of your grandmother, please don't say it here. If you would say it in front of your grandmother, well, maybe you need to look for a new site.

    I've let this run its course but haven't been very happy about it. Just asking to treat one another respectfully and refrain from shock and awe language to make your point. Maybe we can start a new section in the basement for people that thrive on this stuff but I'd prefer just to leave it off the site.

    Just looking to build membership and venting a bit. Nothing personal against anybody in particular, but would appreciate if you guys and gals would treat the site as if were your own business.

    Thanks.

  • #2
    Many here escaped the other place because of all the politics. Here it is a more close-knit community, a group of friends hanging out together, shooting the you-know-what, and all the good-natured ribbing to go with it. Has some of it been raunchy? Yup, I'll be the first to admit it. Good friends, good times (even though many of us have never met), and this is where many have chosen to unwind after whatever life has thrown at them. Mischief and mayhem.

    With that said, from a business perspective, you are absolutely correct.. We really do appreciate and support what you have done, we donate one way or another to help keep the lights on, but I don't think many of us have thought too much about the Business aspect, or even as this site being a business versus a place to chill.

    Therein lies the rub.
    "I ask, Sir, what is dinner? It is the whole chicken. To pluck the chicken is the best and most effectual way to prepare them."
    Colonel Sanders

    That is a NICE looking bunch of meat!

    I can still find a use for my thumb, even though it no longer has a hole to finger.

    I could have been enjoying his nuts.

    Comment


    • #3
      I get that POP and I support it. I'm fully on board with the good natured antics and ribbing. Just need to find a balance is all I'm asking... Thanks.

      Comment


      • #4
        Sorry, I didn't realize those things bothered you. I'll refrain.

        Comment


        • #5
          The funny thing is most of the comments around here actually don't bother me all that much personally but I'm looking at the overall picture and its not pretty, lol. I pulled out a few examples from recent threads but please don't take any of it personally as it wasn't meant that way. I don't have a problem with anybody in particular and you are certainly on my list of favorite members

          Comment


          • #6
            Agreed and im an offender.
            I belong to FTE forum and they have a private locked thread like our bar. Then sponsors can't see that.

            Comment


            • #7
              BTDT. I mentioned before that I was a mod/admin at a tech site years ago. The owner left it to the mods to patrol, the mods left it to the members to behave like adults. Eventually it became a great place to hang out for the "in crowd" pretty much to the exclusion of new members and the chagrin of the site owner. The owner finally put his foot down, cleaned house, took away all the "fun" threads, and was determined to make the site a professional business resource that generated income and was self-sustaining. The result? All the people that regularly posted left for greener pastures as we were just there to hang out and enjoy the social atmosphere, the site went dormant due to no new posts, and has since dies a slow painful death.

              What I am getting at is.....you may need to make a choice here Chris: Is this going to be a social site for good peeps to hang out, talk guns and other stuff, bust chops, and hopefully bring some new folks into the fold or do you want a commercial success? It's been my experience that the two are mutually exclusive, sorry to say.
              Beer is like porn, you can buy it but it's more fun to make your own

              I have to bend over too far

              I get a boner.

              bareback every couple of days, GTG. Bareback, brokeback, same $hit!

              I joined a support group to help me deal with my social anxiety but I just can't seem to work up the nerve to go to a meeting......

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by Doc8404 View Post
                Agreed and im an offender.
                I belong to FTE forum and they have a private locked thread like our bar. Then sponsors can't see that.
                We did this at the site I mentioned in my previous post as a last ditch effort to save the site, the result was that 99.9% of content was posted in the private areas and almost nothing was posted outside of the "basement". This makes it look like a "dead" site to any potential sponsors.
                Beer is like porn, you can buy it but it's more fun to make your own

                I have to bend over too far

                I get a boner.

                bareback every couple of days, GTG. Bareback, brokeback, same $hit!

                I joined a support group to help me deal with my social anxiety but I just can't seem to work up the nerve to go to a meeting......

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by thughes View Post
                  BTDT. I mentioned before that I was a mod/admin at a tech site years ago. The owner left it to the mods to patrol, the mods left it to the members to behave like adults. Eventually it became a great place to hang out for the "in crowd" pretty much to the exclusion of new members and the chagrin of the site owner. The owner finally put his foot down, cleaned house, took away all the "fun" threads, and was determined to make the site a professional business resource that generated income and was self-sustaining. The result? All the people that regularly posted left for greener pastures as we were just there to hang out and enjoy the social atmosphere, the site went dormant due to no new posts, and has since dies a slow painful death.

                  What I am getting at is.....you may need to make a choice here Chris: Is this going to be a social site for good peeps to hang out, talk guns and other stuff, bust chops, and hopefully bring some new folks into the fold or do you want a commercial success? It's been my experience that the two are mutually exclusive, sorry to say.
                  Guns Mischief Mayhem brother. Just leave the raunch at the ranch lol. I've already defined commercial success as making enough to cover the bills and give some back to the community. Nobody's looking to retire off this site but it is still primarily a gun forum and there should be some discussion that would appeal to the firearms community. Trust me I'm all about making this place fun but there needs to be a balance.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Gotcha. Really hoping we can find that balance.....
                    Beer is like porn, you can buy it but it's more fun to make your own

                    I have to bend over too far

                    I get a boner.

                    bareback every couple of days, GTG. Bareback, brokeback, same $hit!

                    I joined a support group to help me deal with my social anxiety but I just can't seem to work up the nerve to go to a meeting......

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Well POP covered my thoughts about it being a closer knitted family of "friends" joking around and having alittle fun. Tis one of the reasons you broke away any made this place I thought..now thughes covers the other thoughts about how commercial pleasing or member happiness are going to be separate entities, personally i never thought you'd post a thread like this withthe concept of GMM no way no how does GMM fit with rules of content or language because of fear of corporate dislike or Ad pulling, cause b4 you dipped into Ad placement there was never a thought about pleasing a higher up but only to please us in the banned and others looking for freedom. Im sure the few here that expect MM and freedom are gonna speak it anyhoo. I'd rather donate to your paypal account then to be under the white gloves of a "sponsor" anyday..I respect you Chris for all you do and be but this request seems like it was written from a mod over yonder i will do as you ask until it seems to fake and not my real personality then after that, i guess il be banned cause i kinda enjoy making peeps laugh by my real personality. I do hope you find your happy balance here, cause it must bother you enough that you made the thread.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Guys don't read too much into anything I post. I've said it 1000 times i all I really want is for everybody to treat each other respectfully, have a good time and get along. I'm not saying no curse words etc. I just seems to me that the threads have been taking on a new level of raunch lately. Some of it I personally think is very funny. Some of it seems outright disgusting but to each his own. I've never asked anybody to censor or delete threads and don't intend to. I can also see how some things can be viewed extremely offensive. We're trying to build meaningful and relevant content, attract new members and vendors. Like it or not its the vendors who carry the bulk of the weight sustaining the site. Carry on...

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I say that if being crass, cussing and acting up is your thing, go to one of the sites like AR15 or Pirate and go nutz. If the behavior is unwanted here then just don't do it.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Perhaps "mischief" and "mayhem" mean different things to different people. But I kinda agree, some of the humor toward our female membership is starting to cross the line.
                            The rest of you guys can blow me.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              What line can be crossed when it's the lady saying it?? Lol. Your chauvinistic

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X