Thanks, Huss! Didn't want to assume it was there on purpose when I started this thread. Appreciate your response.
It's back. Majorly toned down. And with the links actually working. And not showing to Platinum ad free members. Hopefully you won't find it too bad...
Ads at the top- ads at the bottom- and ads in the middle now (well, again). Sorry mate- its not the look of them- whether they have pics or not- its just the fact they break the continuity of the posts, which I know is great for the advertisers, but not great for the site........
Not too bad? It makes for crap usability. I'm sure it does wonders for the click through rate. Not that people mean to click on it though.
The way you'll get me to buy jerseys from the Shop is not by advertising it more, but rather by lowering prices and getting authentic numbering/lettering. The new ads are less intrusive, but I doubt they'll help your business much, since everybody who posts here already knows all about the store.
Yeah this is pretty horrible. I'm prepared to tolerate any amount of ads on a page as the price I pay for free access to a great resource. These kinds of ads, however, are intrusive and actively damage the usability of the site. Putting ads in the middle of threads on a forum is as in-your-face annoying and unpleasant as you can get. This is a very bad move - BigSoccer has always had a very intelligent ad policy, but with this one you're just going to drive posters away. Previously I have always used BS Shop as my preferred overseas online retailer. If these ads remain, I will probably stop using it altogether.
The advertisers are really pissing me off now. Wrecking the format of the forum with their crappy ads that do NOT make me want to buy fron the shop any more than normal, and getting rid of my daily supply of boobage while at work....what next?
I gotta agree - the ads in the middle of the flow of posts is pretty damn obnoxious - and makes me a WHOLE lot less likely to ever buy anything from the shop.
Guys, We hear you and understand that some will find it annoying. We have worked hard to make it as small as possible. We have marketing obligations and financial needs that drive decisions like this. As noted in this thread, many forums have ads in this space, and they are usually much more annoying than a line of small text links. That doesn't diminish your criticism however. Regarding authentic lettering, we have had that for some time now, as you can see in our jersey options: Customization Options [?] Front Number [?] $1.99 Back Number [?] $7.99 Authentic Numbering [?] $1.99 Back Name [?] $7.99 Authentic Lettering [?] $2.49
But it's heat-applied printing, right? A certain competitor offers the felt-embroidered stuff that isn't nearly as apt to come off if you wash the thing often or play in it.
The letters are felt AND heat applied. I’m not sure how else you would expect us to add these to the jersey other than heat application. I’m sure the competitors are the exact same as ours. We all buy from the same company that owns the rights to manufacture these.
Agreed. I'm not willing to pay for platinum membership and go totally ad-free, so this is an acceptable compromise.
Fair enough - to be honest I've only ordered one shirt from you and that was two or three years ago, so I'll try again.
Woohoo! Yes, we have worked hard to improve the shop and our offerings. Not only are we up to 17,000 items and authentic lettering but the delivery speed is much improved and we run regular sales.
I've a question about the store that I have long wondered - not sure it ought to be public though. Mind a PM?