Magazine Survey from WotC

[Scrivener of Doom]

Reading between the lines it seems that there is a desire for LESS content, rather than more, on the part of WotC. That's very much the opposite of what I want and, I daresay, the opposite of what most subscribers want.

What I really want is a return to two magazines full of content each month. Paizo did it well. In my response to the survey I suggested that if WotC wanted to continue to squander the goodwill associated with both mastheads then it's time to find another Paizo who will make the e-versions of these two magazines into something worthwhile again.

I do wish there had been a question posed about the worth of Ampersand.

(I realise as I type all of this, and my recent comment on another thread about the orchidectomies that WotC's leadership seemed to have had, that I have nothing but contempt for the current owners of the D&D brand. I think that's a first for me in the nearly 30 years I have been playing this silly game.)

 

[wedgeski]

Interesting. It seems to be a subscriber only survey.

Which implies that they have little or no interest in attracting new customers.

Or, of course, that they're idiots

It's a survey for readers of Dungeon and Dragon. Of *course* it's subscriber only. I'm sure if you have opinions there are feedback addresses to which you can send emails.

 

[Bagpuss]

I filled out the survey and told them I would NOT want Dungeon & Dragon to be one magazine. I don't DM so I have no interest in Dungeon at all and combining them would cut down the already dwindling Player articles in Dragon.

LOL I told them them I would NOT want Dungeon & Dragon to be one magazine.
Because combining them would cut down the already dwindling DM content and adventures in Dungeon.

Worryingly the survey didn't mention adventures at all in the types of articles.

 

[Ryltar]

It's a survey for readers of Dungeon and Dragon. Of *course* it's subscriber only. I'm sure if you have opinions there are feedback addresses to which you can send emails.

Not to legitimize anything here, but it's still a stupid decision from a business standpoint. For two reasons: piracy and customer base.

Just do a quick google search, and you will find pirated Dungeon and Dragon issues all over the internet. This means that there are people out there who are able to make an informed decision but are ignored. This is not the smart thing to do, as - regardless of them not being paying customers - these people are part of your potential customer base, and obviously know what they are talking about. Why miss an opportunity to make your product conform to your customer base more?

Even beyond that, also including the opinion of readers who are not currently subscribers could point to a reason WHY they currently aren't subscribers. Maybe the results could lead to changes that would actually make them become paying customers. So, again, not the smartest thing to do.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Interesting. It seems to be a subscriber only survey.

Which implies that they have little or no interest in attracting new customers.

Or, of course, that they're idiots

Maybe they think that only current subscribers can actually answer the question in a useful manner?

There have been non-subscribed surveys before, so I figure this is just one of those where your opinion is indeed not relevant. But there might be a time for other surveys where non-subscriber opinion is very relevant.

 

[techno]

I told them that, for me, it isn't about how they bundle or package the content, it is about the QUALITY of the content.

 

[beverson]

Maybe they think that only current subscribers can actually answer the question in a useful manner?

There have been non-subscribed surveys before, so I figure this is just one of those where your opinion is indeed not relevant. But there might be a time for other surveys where non-subscriber opinion is very relevant.

They are also leaving out those who WERE subscribers, but aren't anymore. That to me is a big mistake, as they could be finding out why those folks discontinued their subs.

 

[Ryujin]

Reading between the lines, this survey strikes me as a rather transparent attempt to justify pulling ALL content back to server-side. Print on demand? I can do that with the current PDF files. Read online? I can do that with the current PDF files, or download them for off-line reading, printing, even use Acrobat Pro to make notes on the Dungeon adventures, if I choose to make my own alterations. HTML documents? No thanks; PDF is working fine. iPad app? I don't have one, but it strikes me that I've seen "Acrobat Reader for iPad" as an available download.

 

[wedgeski]

They are also leaving out those who WERE subscribers, but aren't anymore. That to me is a big mistake, as they could be finding out why those folks discontinued their subs.

That clearly isn't the purpose of the survey. The purpose of the survey is to canvas people who have been reading the content to see what they think. There are *other* surveys for lapsed subscribers and, if some people must, those who feel they have a right to comment on the magazines despite not actually paying for them.

 

[Dice4Hire]

It's a survey for readers of Dungeon and Dragon. Of *course* it's subscriber only. I'm sure if you have opinions there are feedback addresses to which you can send emails.

And "Of Course" no one who is not currently a subscriber/reader was never and will never be one.

Makes perfect sense.