Possible Video Ad Campaign

[ActRaiser]

Dave, why don't you try viewing the mobile site on your own personal phone and post a response back to the forum. See what you think?

In my humble opinion this needs a bit more QA before it launches. It's not ready for primetime yet.

[MSR1701]

This morning on the PC, the vid box appears on each page, not just the home.

On the bright side, funds fornsite maintenance and more games to review!

[MSR1701]

Having lost count how many of the vid ad windows I have closed this morning alone, I realize I spend a LOT of time on this site...

[txsizzler]

I agree with Actraiser on their original comment, especially with regards to the mobile/tablet viewing: it sucks horse balls. I can understand when you first enter the site that you might see this kind of ad, but for EVERY PAGE, RELOAD, and even REPLYING TO FORUM POSTS?!! Not good. Imagine what a new visitor will think when coming on this site.

Make a subscription model with no ads. Free model with the ads. Problem solved.

[Retro STrife]

I'm using mobile on my tablet. The popup appears every new page, but I don't close it. I get to where I want to read, then close that screens popup. The popup window is like 1/10 the size of my screen.

This has become me too. After a bit, you start realizing that closing the pop-up is more annoying than just letting it play. In fact, while typing this, I'm watching an ad for Brawny paper towels... Since the ad takes up 25% of my mobile screen, and about 10% of my desktop screen, I can just ignore it to some degree. Not ideal, but I've started doing this instead of closing them.

This morning on the PC, the vid box appears on each page, not just the home.

Yeah I notice this now too. Yesterday I thought it was just one video on the desktop home page, with the constant pop-ups only happening on mobile. Now it's doing the same on desktop too, popping up with each new page.

Make a subscription model with no ads. Free model with the ads. Problem solved.

The VGC has had a Patreon page for years now allowing a donation of $1 or more per month, but it hasn't generated a big turnout. I usually see about 20 subscribers there, adding up to about $20 per month. I think that's a gauge of how a subscription model would work out. I like that Patreon approach of voluntary pitch-ins over trying to add a fee to the site. I assume more turnout on Patreon would help alleviate the need for ads, but it's never gained enough steam.

Imagine what a new visitor will think when coming on this site.

That'd be my biggest concern. Most of us long-term users will complain for a bit and eventually get used to it. But the pop-ups could deter new users from coming onboard, not just by annoying them, but also by compromising the look/feel of the site.

[txsizzler]

Make a subscription model with no ads. Free model with the ads. Problem solved.

[quote=“Retro STrife”]
The VGC has had a Patreon page for years now allowing a donation of $1 or more per month, but it hasn't generated a big turnout. I usually see about 20 subscribers there, adding up to about $20 per month. I think that's a gauge of how a subscription model would work out. I like that Patreon approach of voluntary pitch-ins over trying to add a fee to the site. I assume more turnout on Patreon would help alleviate the need for ads, but it's never gained enough steam.
[/quote]

I understand the patreon page, but that was for inclusive content, and sneak peeks before it hit the main page, whereas this completely changes the whole format of the site. Having a sub model (paid vs free) to the main page is where David should have probably gone with this from the get go, and not done Patreon. Add a few extra perks to a sub model, and you could generate a pretty good subscription base.

[Voor]

Starting to remind me of that fly swatter game in Mario Paint.

[MSR1701]

Starting to remind me of that fly swatter game in Mario Paint.

LOL, not wrong...

[VideoGameCritic]

Great feedback guys. Rest assured this is not going to continue this way.

I'll send an email to Clean Media letting them know this is driving people away and will need to be scaled way back - particularly on the mobile side.

If they won't work with me, there is a good chance I will axe this ad campaign altogether.

Don't quite the site! Stay tuned...

[VideoGameCritic]

I sent an email to CleanMedia telling them the current ad frequency is too much and we need to scale way back - especially on the mobile and forum side of things. From talking to them I can tell you they are very decent people and do not want to adversely affect the site.

In my email I actually included a link to this thread, so feel free to express your honest but polite thoughts.