Pathfinder 1E You're the CEO of PAIZO. Now What?

[fireinthedust]

@PaizoCEO: yowza! And you're welcome. Honestly, I think the only truly enduring aspect of any book is the artwork, if only because the concepts can get rebooted with any edition, events can be retconned, etc. etc.
So good job with the art, really. It took the magazines up a notch, and really laid a good foundation for Pathfinder.

Which makes me think a comic book would be a great addition to the project list! Graphic novels, a web comic, I dunno, but if it looks great I think there's a product that won't... well, vanish per se. Anyone can just pick it up.

Take Downer, for example. That was fantastic, and a great reason to keep picking up Dungeon. The fact that it was for a setting that wasn't technically supported during the 3e era, effectively Old School, made it even better: paid attention to what the fans actually wanted, knew the scene, worked with it.

 

[Dannager]

But you are trying to disassociate the existing demand for 4e 3PP from the OGL/GSL issue. And those two issues are deeply connected.

I don't believe that they are, and I don't believe that you have any real evidence to support this idea, beyond the circumstantial "4e and the GSL happened at the same time and 3pp support dropped off!"

 

[gamerprinter]

Speaking as a newbie 3pp, I'd say that the 4e/GSL is in fact intrinsically tied and to a great degree the reason 3pp support is NOT being done - I won't support 4e due to the GSL.

3pp's who create new monsters, classes, feats, rituals, etc. cannot get them loaded into the DDi. Since many 4e users rely on the DDi to build characters, create monsters, and prep their adventures, the fact that WotC prevents 3pp's from getting their material into the DDi is another means of not support 3pp's.

I think its both the problematic GSL and the lack of 3pp support in the DDi, which kills any 3pp participation with 4e. Both problems would need fixed to gain more 3pp support. Of course, neither are likely to happen.

GP

 

[BryonD]

I don't believe that they are, and I don't believe that you have any real evidence to support this idea, beyond the circumstantial "4e and the GSL happened at the same time and 3pp support dropped off!"

You are welcome to believe or disbelieve whatever you want.

If you think that is the only evidence, then you are ill-informed.

 

[ggroy]

I don't believe that they are, and I don't believe that you have any real evidence to support this idea, beyond the circumstantial "4e and the GSL happened at the same time and 3pp support dropped off!"

If only we had a time machine to turn back the hands of time, and start over again in 2007/early 2008.

 

[physics_ninja]

If I were the CEO of Paizo I would do something about the continual ordering/shipment errors.

Ever since Paizo took over Dragon and Dungeon magazines and every (and I do not exaggerate when I say every) time I have ordered something from them there has been an error of some sort.

When it was decided to cancel Polyhedron, Paizo said everybody’s subscription would be extended – I got double issues instead.
When I renewed my subscriptions to both magazines, instead of extending the subscriptions I got double issues.

The next time I renewed I waited until the penultimate issue and then renewed – I ended up missing two (2!) issues. (I knew this was a possibility to miss 1, 2 issues?)

So I ordered the missing issues from their store and a few other items and got incomplete order. The invoice said the missing item was there, but it wasn’t.

Now, everytime there has been an problem, customer care fixed the problem without fuss and quickly.

So, trusting them I ordered from there store again because I wanted a nice hardcopy of the Savage Tide Player’s Guide and a few other things. Once again my order was missing something – the very item I made the order for in the first place. Again, fixed without a fuss but I should have got it all in the first place.

By now I find myself wishing I could get just one order without a mistake.
Then comes the end of the magazines and the start of the Rise of the Runelords. I choose the option that extends the subscription because A) I still want a monthly “magazine” to read and B)It was a pretty good deal (one that Paizo didn’t have to make and despite all of the problems I have had, I still want to support them.)

I even opt to continue the subscription after my “freebies” expire and become a charter subscriber. Then –can you guess?- I get double issues. And double charges. Since I wasn’t expecting that charge I foolishly bought lunch the previous day and was unable to cover the charges by less than a dollar. Now I have $36 in overdraft fees.

The charge happened on a Thursday and I find out on Friday morning. I send an email on Friday. I wait all weekend. I wait most of Monday. I send another email Monday Night and Wednesday Morning, and mid-afternoon on Thursday. On Friday I plan to call directly but I FINALLY get a response to my emails. They would be happy to reverse the charges AFTER I send back the extra copy.

So I send it back at my expense. After another week or so the charges are reversed on my credit card. I talk to them about the overdraft charges, but I get the impression they would really not deal with that. Fortunately, my bank was understanding and reversed the charges.

In the end, I get what I am supposed to (minus UPS charges) but it takes two weeks and a lot of frustration.

Frustration that I remember every time I get the urge to order Zogonia because I get it anywhere else. Frustration that I remember every time I look at the really good fire sales for Green Ronin and Goodman Games. Frustration that I remember every time I see really cool game accessories like the flip mats.

The sad fact is that A) even though I want to be a Paizo customer (I still maintain an account and download the playtest material), and B) I’m sure Paizo wants me to be a customer and C)they do have really good customer service, despite all of that, Paizo has lost me as a customer because their upfront service sucks.

Sorry for the extended rant, I should just let it go since its been like 2 years now but its been bugging me ever since the thread began.

That’s what I would fix if I were CEO of Paizo. Like everybody else, I eventually give the job back to Lisa because she otherwise does better than anyone else I know.

 

[PaizoCEO]

The sad fact is that A) even though I want to be a Paizo customer (I still maintain an account and download the playtest material), and B) I’m sure Paizo wants me to be a customer and C)they do have really good customer service, despite all of that, Paizo has lost me as a customer because their upfront service sucks.

Sorry for the extended rant, I should just let it go since its been like 2 years now but its been bugging me ever since the thread began.

Hey there! Thanks for venting. Our systems have gotten a LOT better in the last few years. Do we still make mistakes every so often, sure. However, we have started to track our mistakes and they are less than half a percent. So that means that more than 99.5% of orders are perfect. Not bad for a bunch of humans.

So while I feel for your level of frustration for our shipping in the past, know that we have been working hard to get it better and better and that seems to be working now. So give us a try again!

-Lisa Stevens
CEO
Paizo Publishing

 

[Croesus]

Hey there! Thanks for venting. Our systems have gotten a LOT better in the last few years. Do we still make mistakes every so often, sure. However, we have started to track our mistakes and they are less than half a percent. So that means that more than 99.5% of orders are perfect. Not bad for a bunch of humans.

So while I feel for your level of frustration for our shipping in the past, know that we have been working hard to get it better and better and that seems to be working now. So give us a try again!

-Lisa Stevens
CEO
Paizo Publishing

If the bolded section above is accurate, then two items in this response impress me. First, you are measuring your errors. Second, you are measuring them correctly, on a per order basis, not per item.

I used to work for an insurance company that measured claims errors. They also claimed a 99.5% accuracy rate. However, that measurement was per item on the claim form, which could have well over a hundred discrete items (depending on the specific type of claim). So what was their error rate on a per claim basis? Close to 50%! They had a huge problem, but their choice of metric hid the problem, instead of highlighting it.

To quote someone much smarter than me: You can't manage what you don't measure. And you'll mismanage what you mis-measure.

 

[Dannager]

3pp's who create new monsters, classes, feats, rituals, etc. cannot get them loaded into the DDi. Since many 4e users rely on the DDi to build characters, create monsters, and prep their adventures, the fact that WotC prevents 3pp's from getting their material into the DDi is another means of not support 3pp's.

This is much closer to what I think stifles demand for 3pp rules supplements. The sorts of people who would normally hunt down 3pp are also the sorts of people who would subscribe to DDI. Note, however, that the DDI integration problem only rears its head when you're discussing rules supplements; adventures and setting products are another matter entirely.

 

[ggroy]

This is much closer to what I think stifles demand for 3pp rules supplements. The sorts of people who would normally hunt down 3pp are also the sorts of people who would subscribe to DDI. Note, however, that the DDI integration problem only rears its head when you're discussing rules supplements; adventures and setting products are another matter entirely.

Which 3pp adventures and setting products for 4E D&D have been selling like hotcakes?

At the nearby FLGSs, the owners mentioned the Goodman 4E modules sell around two or three copies for each new release, typically purchased by the same two or three individuals every time. (The older Goodman 4E modules typically collect dust for months at a time afterward). They also mentioned the XRP 4E modules have largely been collecting dust, and new releases sell very few copies. (The XRP 1-on-1 and OSRIC modules sell a lot better).