Active Tournaments.

[skyward]

For years I have read other player complaints about not enough active tournaments or tournaments that are outdated with players in them that don't play any longer. I've also read complaints about why these tournaments cannot be removed. I have been posting for up to 3 weeks about a tournament with all active players that needs just one player to start. When I first posted we needed 3 and 2 signed on. I have also posted on my page. One signed on from my page. What's the problem that we can't get one player to join a tournament with all active players? This is ridiculous. This is one of the most discouraging things about this site. There's a whole lot of activity about a tournament that doesn't exist on Stan's pages but we can't get one player to sign on to an all active player tournament. Shame on the members of this site.

Skyward

www.stansco.com/cgi-bin/nc_t_tr.cgi?1390

[Comet]

I have empathy for your frustration, and wish you well in reaching those who are able to join the tournament you are promoting.

The reason you can't get one player to join a tournament is that you are ineffectively marketting your tournament.
You might have more luck in directly contacting those subscribers who have complained about a lack of tournaments--private message them, rather than just post here.
Also, if you look at their player page, they may well have published their e-mail address.
Given that these people have already expressed interest in a tournament such as yours, they may well take kindly to hearing from you, even if they haven't been active lately.

You will likely get best results with more personal contact than just posting here in the message board. Many of those postings you have read may be from currently inactive players.
Look at the active games of subscribers, challenge them, and tell them about the tournaments using in-game comment.
Perhaps you can suggest this to your current tournament players, that they recommend joining the tournament via in-game comment to any subscribers they are currently playing.

Remember that automated tourneys, such as yours, are available only to subscribers, and that most people who play chess at Stan's are not members of the message board.
I consider it unkind to call shame on non-subscribers who frequent the message board, as they CANNOT join your tournament.
If you wish to make a tournament available for all Stansco players, both subscribers and non-subscribers, please set up an associate tourney, rather than a site tourney.
Ihformation can be found at www.stansco.com/cgi-bin/nc_publication.cgi?associate-tourneys with specific details at www.stansco.com/cgi-bin/nc_publication.cgi?25

[skyward]

Thanks for your input. As you can see from the link, this is not my tournament. It was posted by another player. I'm trying to get the thing started by posting on my page as well as here. I signed up for this tournament so hence I'm trying help get it started. Maybe more players should eat one day less at McDonald's and purchase a cheap membership at Stan's so more tournaments can be played rather then sit for years with little to no players participating. It's a shame to have all these tournaments that will never be played because 1) not enough members and 2) not enough active players participating. My message is here is an opportunity to join an active player tournament and you've got to pull people's hair in order to get them to join. It's ridiculous and a crying shame. That's the bottom line. How often do you find a tournament at Stan's where all the players are active? Almost never. That's the point. :0)

Skyward

[Comet]

My point is that there are only 35 subscribers, Skyward www.stansco.com/cgi-bin/nc_apdir.cgi?s
You are trying to enlist more than one out of every five subscribers, and you have perhaps received 100% participation from all of those who read the message board.

Looking at the active games of the first 13 subscribers (alphabetically), I see lots of tournament activity. Given the age of the tournaments, I can understand why you frequently find tournaments with inactive players. Many people have left the site. Some of them, perhaps, are those that, in the past, complained about not having enough tournaments. If you look at the poster, and compare it with the small list of current subscribers, you will probably understand why responding here, at this time, is ineffective.

Your call to purchase a subscription is a good one, as it helps pay the hosting fees. :-)
But realistically, many people such as myself would never be a user of this site if it were to cost money. [Heck, I don't pay for any online service, not even a cellphone--I don't believe in shopping online--how can I bite the gold doubloons to be sure I ain't being cheated? Use a bitcoin??] Now I am atypical, so let's look at people who actually pay to be a subscriber. Note that the absence of them from activity in the subscriber-only tournaments means tha these people are EX-SUBSCRIBERS. It is apparent that even though people have paid money, their participation in an active tournament was insufficient incentive for them to stay active here, even though they can still play in the tournament after their subscription expired.

Perhaps you can drum up participation in a tournament by going to the player page of these ex-subscribers, and then e-mailing them directly, asking them to come back to Stan's. Some of the players also have their home page listed, so you may still be able to reach at least a portion of these players. Perhaps you can even convince them to resubscribe, or at least, you could find out why they stopped subscribing.

This type of marketting activity to get people to renew is what keeps public television, radio, symphonies, operas, playhouses, etc. alive--but it takes volunteers or a marketting staff to reach out to people to ask them to renew their subscriptions. Stan doesn't have the time to do this....

Anyhow, for the edification of the readership, here's the snapshot of currently active games observed from looking at 13 subscribers, some of whom have not shown any indication that they have, or ever will, have any interest in playing in a tournament:

andy999 is playing in the following tournaments against the indicated opponents, right now:
[
Site Tourney: PLAYOFF: Advanced Player Conference Challenge
Marson

Site Tourney: PLAYOFF: World Cup 2006
Chachi

Site Tourney: Rivenburg Fall 2008
Algae
ALSKI 11
[American Dragon vs DaveDar]
biffhero
Bobby F
davedar49
DigitalDreamer
Fr8Train
mcubed
metalhead
[never again vs DaveDar]
OscarNorm
pinzer1
[pollemand49 vs Fr8train]
[Rainman vs Fr8train]
Sdr46
seagull
SHAMAEL
[shoreline83 vs Fr8train]
Snake
TERRY SPRY SR
wite rabit
yeltzruss

Site Tourney: Swiss Cheese
Swiss Cheese
[butcher4 is playing vs ALSKI 11]

Blott is playing in
Site Tourney: The French Winawer Thematic Study Tournament
vs SHAMAEL

Site Tourney: Unltimate Championship Tournament
vs Indiana Jon

Fr8train is playing in Site Tourney: 2012 a league odyssey against:
andy999
SHAMAEL
Mykland
TIGER68
pinzer1
davedar49
ketchuplover

[skyward]

I stand corrected. I did not know there was only 35 subscribers. :0)

[fllar]

Hi Skyward. Regarding your comment 'Shame on the members of this site'. Why ?? It is up to the individuals as to how they spend their time on this site. I feel no shame in 'not' participating in 'Tournaments'. My choice. I subscribe even when I am not active for one reason or another. My choice......fllar

[fllar]

Hi Comet. You have said ;- 'Now I am atypical, so let's look at people who actually pay to be a subscriber. Note that the absence of them from activity in the subscriber-only tournaments means that these people are EX-SUBSCRIBERS. It is apparent that even though people have paid money, their participation in an active tournament was insufficient incentive for them to stay active here.'
How do you see Subscribers as Ex-Subscribers if they choose as I do not to be Active in Site Tournaments or any Tournament at that. ?? I am a 'Subscriber' to this site in Support of Stans and that which he provides for us as Chess Players, paying or none paying.....fllar.

[skyward]

Hello Fllar. Thanks for your comments. When I first started the post I was frustrated that it takes forever to get a tournament going. There happens to be one tournament with all active players needing one player to start. Over the years I have read many comments or complaints if you will concerning why Stan's does not have tournaments that fill quickly with active players and also about the tournaments that have been sitting onsite that will never be filled because most of the players who originally signed up are not playing and longer or the host player is not playing any longer. I was unaware that Stan's only has 35 subscribers which is a very good reason for tournaments sitting endlessly. There must be a secret I'm unaware of because there are tournaments happening. The shame is or was directed toward all the complaining players of which I have no apologies for. Agreed, all have the right to subscribe or not subscribe and all who are subscribers have the right to not be involved in a tournament. Maybe we can all promote more subscribers instead of just players? I've been doing that for some time. Anyway, thanks for your comments and thoughts. :0)

Skyward

[Comet]

Hi fllar. There are several long-running subscriber-only tournaments, and Skyward noted that many of the original players who signed up are no longer playing. These are the ex-subscribers to which I refer--those people who used to pay for a subscription and also play in subscriber-only tournaments, but although they once used to be active in the tournament, did not find that Stan's tournament play a sufficient draw for them to continue to be active and/or renew their subscription, and hence are no longer in the pool for potential candidates to join the tournament skyward was promoting. I hope this clarifies my statements. You can see that skyward's response indicated that he didn't look at the player list of subscribers before his post, so was unaware that there are currently only 35 subscribers.

Looking at 13 subscribers, I noted some of whom have not shown any indication that they have, or ever will, have any interest in playing in a tournament.

[mickeypoll]

Why dont u offer to buy me a years subscription, then i will join the tournament !!

[skyward]

Thanks everyone. The tournament has begun. :0)