It's all good
@SmokeyJoe! This is no way ECF's or your fault. So I know that We don't blame you at all.
From the sounds of it, you were in the dark like us for most of this.
I know we grumbled a bit because we were "in the dark" about some stuff and we kept getting mixed information . But that's human nature I guess. Even I got caught up in the disappointment.
I know for me the disappointment wasn't "where is my free stuff?", it was "now I can't create buzz!". I dont like looking a gift horse in the mouth, but I was hoping to "ride it around town" before the "town disappeared".
Since the contest has been over for a bit now, this thread has essentially died and I can't show off the prizes to generate more buzz not only for SMOK, but for ECF as well. I mean sure, a lot of us winners are still coming here to see if there is any updates or if anyone got theirs yet, but there isn't much more than that around here.
When the packages do show up, we will be showing them off essentially "in the winners circle". Sure other may wander in, look and see that and leave, but it doesn't engage users like the disrupter giveaway. So imo, although it generated a stir, it got SMOK out there some more, and advertisement was effective, I truly believe it could of been more effective.
As a thought, it might be worth mentioning to future manufacturers that if they want to do something like this in the future it would be wise for them to:
-Engage the users. It doesn't have to be all the time or every day. But when I see a rep has come in and "chit chatted" it make think that they really wanted to do this, that we are valued, and they have pride in their product. Their work keeps us "in the loop".
This keeps the thread positive and confident. More manufacture presence means less speculation.
-Have a game plan to how they are sending out units. To some of us this may seem like a "well duh" issue, but I know that sometimes things go off "half cocked" and people don't realize the work it takes to pull something like this off. Not only does packaging and shipping all those units take time, the effects of the giveaway can/will increase sales and that in itself can cause issues (like larger/more orders to process and stock level issues)
And lastly
-Try to get "early winners" Prizes sent off before the contest ends. Although this isn't huge, I think it's in their best interest to try and get some units in winners hands before the thread dies. That way other contestants (and potential contestants) actually "see" the product and the results of the contest. This will result in more people trying to win. I would think that when people actually see winners and their prizes, they would work harder at trying to win, they would want to try and tell everyone they know about it, they get more excited and it boosts the "energy" in the thread. If I was a social media person, and I saw prizes in other users "hands" it would drive me to try harder to win and take an active part in the whole thing. It also drives people to go out and buy one. When they see a bunch of people go "oh man look at this! It's cool as heck!" They may go out and get one on their own due to all the praise and energy the winners have created. Again, just my opinion.
At the end of they day though, I don't mind what happens, win or loose, to actually receive a product or not. It has been fun here, this forum is awesome and there are a lot of awesome people here. I've made friends, had some laughs, and even learned stuff along the way. Even if I hadn't won something, that makes me feel like a winner! To me, that's more important anyways. You can always find a way to go buy a product if you really want it, but you can't buy friends and good times like these.
So in all, it's been great, it's been fun, and I'm happy to have been a part of it. Regardless of future giveaways and the actions of vendors, I know without your hard work and dedication (smokeyjoe), I wouldn't have had the honor of being a member in such a fine community. So thank you for everything you have done and will do for us. It's been one heck of a trip!
