PredatrHuntr
Master Member
Yup...sorry Andrew...forgive me? 
Predatorium The Future of the Lair - New management and update on the update! :)
- Thread starter Faken
- Start date
Kithunter
Well-Known Member
Since we are talking about the future....and as a suit builder,
one thing i think that would help the those 27,000 people looking for costumes and most of the folks here is to have good affiliations with with companies and vendors that actually cater to what we need and use here. Just like the sideshow banner that is under the header.
such as smooth on, chavant and companies that produce elements that are used by all the artists and collectors here.
As a side note on the con issue lets face it the seed for a "predacon" has been planted...it will never go away, and thats a good thing...however now that the lair is going under the umbrella of movie prop sites.
In my opinion it becomes more legit in a way that broadens the possibility of it happening, not only be a niche sort of con or event which i tried to make happen, but a more inclusive event. The old saying of strength in numbers truly applies here.
THE RPF, THE DENTED HELMET, THE HUNTERS LAIR presents PROPACON...
embrace the future and the journey....
AM
one thing i think that would help the those 27,000 people looking for costumes and most of the folks here is to have good affiliations with with companies and vendors that actually cater to what we need and use here. Just like the sideshow banner that is under the header.
such as smooth on, chavant and companies that produce elements that are used by all the artists and collectors here.
As a side note on the con issue lets face it the seed for a "predacon" has been planted...it will never go away, and thats a good thing...however now that the lair is going under the umbrella of movie prop sites.
In my opinion it becomes more legit in a way that broadens the possibility of it happening, not only be a niche sort of con or event which i tried to make happen, but a more inclusive event. The old saying of strength in numbers truly applies here.
THE RPF, THE DENTED HELMET, THE HUNTERS LAIR presents PROPACON...
embrace the future and the journey....
AM
Estelle
New Member
Wow, I would have thought that the Cons would have been the place to draw in the multitudes, lol! Is there a more ‘cost effective’ way to represent at major Cons without putting out excess man-hours and money? A way that would be worth the gaining of that few we would find at Cons?
Booking booth space at a con can be pricey and sitting all day can be a task, so I do see where you’re coming from pertaining to how it might not as ‘profitable’ in the gaining of new members, but none the less I'd still be game for doing it.
Which ever way you lead, I’m willing to follow and I’m excited about hearing everything you have to say.
~Estelle
Good call on increasing vendor relationships. It is something I spend considerable time on. We have a very good relationship with Sideshow and I want to see if that can be leveraged for this site, but we need to build more, such as the ones you pointed out.
I'd definitely love to see Predacon happen some year! We will see!
Art
I'd definitely love to see Predacon happen some year! We will see!
Art
Estelle
New Member
Brilliant!!!! Propacon - Hey, I like the concept, I see where you are going, all of us; TDH, Hunters Lair, RPF united - a Predacon could fall under and be hosted by Propacon. Predacon would be a part of Propacon...maybe a con within a con?
~Estelle
Giles
Well-Known Member
I'm looking forward to the new skin and want to see the finished article after the teaser picture a while ago. I only have one teeny weeny concern...... I've been here for a year now, working away and devouring everything the Lair has to offer. Once in a while during that year a newbie pops up asking for a suit for $/£100, in the run up to Halloween there's a few more. If even some of the 27,000 people a month that are looking for a predator costume on google find us then we may be deluged with people looking for a quick fix that do not fully understand the time, effort, blood sweat and tears that go into one of these outfits be it a budget or a no expense spared build. This could lead to the Mods constantly being on watch trying to keep the threads clean from pointless posts (they probably already tirelessly work behind the scenes doing this, but may have to do it even more.)
Incidently, we are towards the bottom of page 3 on google with the search term "predator costume" which is probably 2 and a half pages too far from the top of the first page for the quick-fix costume hunter. Now don't get me wrong, I would love to see the Lair grow to add to the knowledge base that exists already, but hope that it will be done in a controlled manner rather than rocket us straight to the top of the first page.
I am and will always probably count myself as a "newbie" as I seem to learn something your each post I read but just wanted to say how I felt. I have complete faith in everyone here, and trust that the Lair is in safe hands even though I have never spoken or seen any one of the 10,000 odd members that make it up. Just remember "with great power, comes great responsibility"
That's my tuppence worth.
Incidently, we are towards the bottom of page 3 on google with the search term "predator costume" which is probably 2 and a half pages too far from the top of the first page for the quick-fix costume hunter. Now don't get me wrong, I would love to see the Lair grow to add to the knowledge base that exists already, but hope that it will be done in a controlled manner rather than rocket us straight to the top of the first page.
I am and will always probably count myself as a "newbie" as I seem to learn something your each post I read but just wanted to say how I felt. I have complete faith in everyone here, and trust that the Lair is in safe hands even though I have never spoken or seen any one of the 10,000 odd members that make it up. Just remember "with great power, comes great responsibility"
That's my tuppence worth.
Estelle,
I agree. You would think a Con would be THE place to promote oneself, and don't get me wrong, it never hurts to promote a site at a con... but it all comes down to the effort and resources you put in vs the result, and my experience has shown that marketing your site/community online is MUCH more effective than doing it at a con. I would liken it to selling at a flea market vs selling on eBay.
In my opinion, most of us go to Cons to have fun and a good time. If we gain a few members along the way, all the better. The best way I have found to market at a Con in a cost effective way is to wear your costume and have business cards on hand for people who are interested or wear a shirt promoting the site and have business cards on hand. That may seem cheap and silly, but instead of you standing at a booth all day and people taking cards or pamphlets who are just going to throw them away, YOU are the marketing tool. There is no better person to champion the site than a passionate member and you can light someone's fire for what we do better than a big banner or trifold.
Please don't misunderstand. I am not saying that we should never have a table at a Con... only that it isn't the #1 thing we should push for in order to bring more people to the site.
Let me give you another example.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1W1p9PL1WY
This was uploaded almost two years ago... Now think about the effort put into this video... it is pretty minimal compared to paying for a table and manning it. But the effect? 62,000 people have viewed this video over the past two years!!! That is 1.5 times as many people as attend Dragon Con!!! The best part is, the convention is LONG over, yet the video continues to promote the Hunter's Lair long after the event. This is the kind of thing that is PERFECT for the site and is exactly the kind of effort we need to focus on as it is so much more effective than sitting at a table and handing out paper!
I can tell you, unequivocally, yes, there will be more of that... Any time you make yourself more well known that happens. The thing to do is be aware of it and provide an outlet to funnel those people to that benefits the site. Already working on that part.
We won't do anything that would cause Google to sandbox us. White hat SEO only, for those who know what that means. But yes, we need to be in the top 2-3 slots on page 1 and I am absolutely confident that with the help of the membership we can easily get there.
JehdinThwei
New Member
One simple request from one simple member; PLEASE no mouse over ads. They are not on here now, but I've seen the almighty dollar ruin some community sites due to excessive advertising. I am not talking about header and footer banners, but there should be a limit for the quality and load time on the site. IMO
They are not on here now, but I've seen the almighty dollar ruin some community sites due to excessive advertising. I am not talking about header and footer banners, but there should be a limit for the quality and load time on the site. IMO
One simple request from one simple member; PLEASE no mouse over ads.
Good call. You will never see any popup ads here and are unlikely to see mouseovers as they annoy me as much as anyone else. I don't expect to see any serious changes in ads for members. What you are likely to see is more ads for non-members since they aren't contributing content to the site. We aren't looking to come here and load up the site with ads. I am not saying you won't see any, but we are very sensitive to member's willingness to participate on a site that is a billion ads stacked on top of one another.
Estelle
New Member
No worries, I follow what you are saying. I was honestly thinking along the same line as you concerning Lair promotions at Cons, in that each of us can represent in a sense. A fully suited person will draw Con attendees from yards and thus be given a chance to tell others about the lair, the same goes for the support/ wranglers donning their Lair staff shirts.
I guess what I meant by being a spokes/pr persons ( and maybe that wasn’t precisely the correct term to use) was that I wouldn’t mind taking one day out to maybe go out on the hunt at the Cons dressed/looking a bit more ‘professional’ with a group of suited hunters, just incase there were media out and about and they ( media) decided to feature the Lair. I would like to be able to handle questions pertaining to the Lair. The Hunters and or their wranglers can deal with the usual “How’d you make your suit’ and “How long have you been doing this?” question. I would like to be there to handle anything pertaining to the Lair itself.
I’m very familiar with the awesome video, that is actually the video responsible for me joining the Lair LOL!
~Estelle
oneuglymf
New Member
Can I just ask Why the RPF ppl for the site takeover? I registered to be a member there over a year ago and they still haven't "Approved" my membership. Are we assured the lair will not end up the same way? Seems like they are either backlogged with registration, or they are not interested in increasing the number of reg. users.
either way, it could have a negative impact on new pred driven members. My $0.02
either way, it could have a negative impact on new pred driven members. My $0.02
oneuglymf,
Not sure what issue you had registering at the RPF. Before I took the helm they had limited registration windows but I changed that and we now have registeration open continually. Even during the limited registration windows, the RPF never manually approved membership. Now, if you didn't fully activate your membership that is a different matter entirely. If you would like to PM me the email address you signed up with at the RPF, I'd be glad to check it for you.
Time will tell whether our involvement has a negative or positive impact, but I would be willing to believe if you come back to this site 1 year from now, you are going to see essentially the same community spirit but a much bigger and better site. Hope you are willing to wait it out and see without passing prejudgement.
Not sure what issue you had registering at the RPF. Before I took the helm they had limited registration windows but I changed that and we now have registeration open continually. Even during the limited registration windows, the RPF never manually approved membership. Now, if you didn't fully activate your membership that is a different matter entirely. If you would like to PM me the email address you signed up with at the RPF, I'd be glad to check it for you.
Time will tell whether our involvement has a negative or positive impact, but I would be willing to believe if you come back to this site 1 year from now, you are going to see essentially the same community spirit but a much bigger and better site. Hope you are willing to wait it out and see without passing prejudgement.
Thanks! As with any success, it takes a team and a community and it is never one person who makes or breaks a site. I am looking forward to working with you guys!
Mr Fett
Sr Member
You're a good guy who definately knows his computer stuff, so if this move is a forward motion in some way for our board, you're a prime choice to head it up.
You've already said not much will change with how the board operates and the members here can breathe a sigh of relief at that. This board is different than a lot of other costume boards, maybe it's the whole hard core Predator thing attracting some biker looking type dudes (*ahem Bovine and the UK guys* -love 'em), but this is really the only costume board I'm on where people drop f-bombs and any other curse word they want to say and it's not edited out.
You've already said not much will change with how the board operates and the members here can breathe a sigh of relief at that. This board is different than a lot of other costume boards, maybe it's the whole hard core Predator thing attracting some biker looking type dudes (*ahem Bovine and the UK guys* -love 'em), but this is really the only costume board I'm on where people drop f-bombs and any other curse word they want to say and it's not edited out.
oneuglymf
New Member
Sure thing I'll fire off a PM with it. I know I'm not the only one who has experienced what I've mentioned, maybe it was resolved.
You're a good guy who definately knows his computer stuff, so if this move is a forward motion in some way for our board, you're a prime choice to head it up.
You've already said not much will change with how the board operates and the members here can breathe a sigh of relief at that. This board is different than a lot of other costume boards, maybe it's the whole hard core Predator thing attracting some biker looking type dudes (*ahem Scott and the UK guys* -love 'em), but this is really the only costume board I'm on where people drop f-bombs and any other curse word they want to say and it's not edited out.
Andy, I have been scouring the IPS official website all day long but can't find an add-on that will insta-ban you each morning and bring you back each night.... SO FRUSTRATING...
