Peter Quant
Member
It's been a long time since MMP last bothered to write up a decent update on the status of its products: almost as long a time as it's been for MMP to last produce a decent product. I've complained to MMP directly a few times over the years, and though I've gotten a friendly and patient reply, MMP never improved it's marketing communications.
The website's last "News" entry dates from 2016. Has really, really nothing happened worth communicating to thousands of customers who've committed to spending hundreds of dollars each on products whose development they are eager to have news of? Really?
The website is clunky, amateurish and disinviting. Browsing through the products page always feels to me like wondering through a cemetery of long-dead friends: out of 20 products on the first Products pages fully 10 cannot actually be bought, being "Currently out of stock!" or "Temporarily out of print!" - the meaning of "Temporarily" in Millersville needing to be understood on the same timescale as "News": geological.
There really can be no excuse for not communicating with one's customers regularly in this business, and in MMP's case in particular: when ASL fans regularly have to go for a year or more between product releases, and indeed have to wait for yearS - plural - for their pre-ordered products to take solid form, the very, very least MMP can do is crank out a nice email every other month or so with the latest on progress: a bit on play-testing, latest guesses on production dates, maybe a few pictures: wouldn't that be nice?
It seems to me the people at MMP have to ask themselves honestly and seriously if they really are doing the ASL hobby a service by being its custodians. I do feel they deliver good products - every now and then. But I also feel that they so lack in marketing sense, and indeed in apparent energy and enthusiasm, that I cannot but believe that others could do better - GMT, for example.
I realise that the present crew at MMP are not going to be able to fix what ails there. I would like to suggest that they consider - haven't they yet? it must have occurred to them? - joining GMT. Let GMT manage the marketing part, so that the crew of MMP can focus such energy as they have on making ASL and OCS and other products.
I post this here because I think the only way MMP can be convinced that their marketing is a crying shame, and that they should consider joining GMT, is if the community of their customers sends them the message that they agree this is a good idea. So: what do you think?
The website's last "News" entry dates from 2016. Has really, really nothing happened worth communicating to thousands of customers who've committed to spending hundreds of dollars each on products whose development they are eager to have news of? Really?
The website is clunky, amateurish and disinviting. Browsing through the products page always feels to me like wondering through a cemetery of long-dead friends: out of 20 products on the first Products pages fully 10 cannot actually be bought, being "Currently out of stock!" or "Temporarily out of print!" - the meaning of "Temporarily" in Millersville needing to be understood on the same timescale as "News": geological.
There really can be no excuse for not communicating with one's customers regularly in this business, and in MMP's case in particular: when ASL fans regularly have to go for a year or more between product releases, and indeed have to wait for yearS - plural - for their pre-ordered products to take solid form, the very, very least MMP can do is crank out a nice email every other month or so with the latest on progress: a bit on play-testing, latest guesses on production dates, maybe a few pictures: wouldn't that be nice?
It seems to me the people at MMP have to ask themselves honestly and seriously if they really are doing the ASL hobby a service by being its custodians. I do feel they deliver good products - every now and then. But I also feel that they so lack in marketing sense, and indeed in apparent energy and enthusiasm, that I cannot but believe that others could do better - GMT, for example.
I realise that the present crew at MMP are not going to be able to fix what ails there. I would like to suggest that they consider - haven't they yet? it must have occurred to them? - joining GMT. Let GMT manage the marketing part, so that the crew of MMP can focus such energy as they have on making ASL and OCS and other products.
I post this here because I think the only way MMP can be convinced that their marketing is a crying shame, and that they should consider joining GMT, is if the community of their customers sends them the message that they agree this is a good idea. So: what do you think?