Buzztime Survey - What do you think...

WB TANAKA · **Joined:** Mon Jun 20, 2011 9:13 pm **Posts:** 288

-BO- wrote:

WB TANAKA wrote:

But the results of the split thus far, by metrics of player participation, seem to show that participation in Buzztime is up. That would suggest that those who advised the change were, if not right in every detail, more right than those who opposed it.

Starting premium games at 8e/7c has raised player count in those games in the east split, so far this seems to be a good move.

Airing specialty games after premiums has been a colossal failure resulting in declines in the 25% neighborhood.

Airing the specialty block later in the west feed with separate rankings has been a colossal failure with player count declining in every game.

By the way, we told them player count would crater in the west as well as with games after premiums. We didn't know player count would rise with an earlier starting time in the east, but we were too busy discussing more urgent matters.

BO

But aggregate play, by Total Score, is up pretty much across the board. That's not "colossal failure." It's overall success. Yes, some sites are down in some games. But California and Colorado are overall up, even if West Coast player counts for particular games are down. Furthermore, player counts are certainly up for Premium Games in the East.

***

I urge use of the Survey by Scaratings readers. I really expect low response rate by others...it can't hurt.

ANON · **Joined:** Sun Jan 10, 2010 8:59 pm **Posts:** 2291

Dante wrote:

AARDVK wrote:

I'm just trying to figure out why they're doing it. Obviously someone is looking for something to substantiate one or more of the decisions that made up the packet of changes. So are they suddenly worried about what they've done? They sure weren't worried at all about what they were going to do over vociferous player objections.

To quote Jesus Christ Superstar, "it seems to me a strange thing --- mystifying ...."

Brooke/AARDVK

"Every time I look at you I don't understand why you let the things you did get so out of hand. You'd have managed better if you had it planned."

Why'd they choose such a backward time for half of the land? If they'd come to play they could have reached a whole nation...

Akbar71 · **Posted:** Wed Mar 14, 2012 10:44 pm

Having read this thread, I switched dubiously over to my E-mail to check out the survey. I actually think it was well-thought and nicely put together. It is very difficult for me to be optimistic about how BT responds to whatever information they get from the survey, but I will allow for the possibility that the survey itself was sent due to the very great and continuing amount of mostly negative feedback they have received on the Faceybook, their blog and the bars with active teams. (And maybe even here - we know KK lurks sometimes!)

I know they knew in advance what some players' reactions would be to the changes. Having been through similar changes in the past (see this forum and BT's old forum), I think we are at the point in the cycle where the PTB and BT are reeling back saying, "Oh my goodness, they might have been right about some of this..." Frustrating, to be sure, but just part of the circle of life.

I am intrigued by WB TANAKA's analysis of overall play volume, especially wieghed against the volume of play in the premiums. Complete pipe dream here, but I would very much like to see the overall, coast-to-coast hourly play numbers and the overall results of the survey. Regrettably, that would require being offered a job over at BT...

BGTUNA · **Posted:** Thu Mar 15, 2012 5:16 am

-BO- wrote:

BGTUNA wrote:

I do understand what you are saying Bo, but it is the masses who are actually playing the game.

Yes, but the "masses" are going to play no matter what. If there's a 30 minute game on Namibian Ballet, the masses are going to play because they are mindless drones merely pushing buttons while they drink. The "players" aren't going to play no matter what. The west coast numbers already show this to be true.

So, catering to the masses means zilch while catering to the players means everything. That's why I state the survey means nothing, because the results will bear the masses collective opinion, which as I already stated means zilch.

That's one of the many things our small group conveyed to BT, that while we might be the minority, we're the players that will leave unlike the masses.

Quote:

At the very least, it feels good to let them know that their product is going down the crapper.

I can understand this.

BO

I guess I misrepresented what I meant by the "masses". I don't think the "masses" are the ones who are going to submit the survey...they just don't care too much. You are right, they will play no matter what crap they throw up there, such as "Namibian Ballet". I think the "players" are the ones who care enough to submit their surveys (well, those who haven't yet been jaded by Buzztime's lack of hearing us

). I guess the question I have is will Buzztime take the time to crossreference the submitted surveys with Players Plus Points to see if it is the "masses" or the "players" who have submitted their surveys.

I actually think that this is a better way of doing it than doing it through the playmakers, since the "players" take their bathroom breaks during the time when they would have their surveys; the "masses" just go during the game.

MiniYoda · **Joined:** Wed Feb 24, 2010 2:55 pm **Posts:** 733

Akbar71 wrote:

Having read this thread, I switched dubiously over to my E-mail to check out the survey. I actually think it was well-thought and nicely put together. It is very difficult for me to be optimistic about how BT responds to whatever information they get from the survey, but I will allow for the possibility that the survey itself was sent due to the very great and continuing amount of mostly negative feedback they have received on the Faceybook, their blog and the bars with active teams. (And maybe even here - we know KK lurks sometimes!)

I know they knew in advance what some players' reactions would be to the changes. Having been through similar changes in the past (see this forum and BT's old forum), I think we are at the point in the cycle where the PTB and BT are reeling back saying, "Oh my goodness, they might have been right about some of this..." Frustrating, to be sure, but just part of the circle of life.

I am intrigued by WB TANAKA's analysis of overall play volume, especially wieghed against the volume of play in the premiums. Complete pipe dream here, but I would very much like to see the overall, coast-to-coast hourly play numbers and the overall results of the survey. Regrettably, that would require being offered a job over at BT...

One of the key reasons I think the survey is not relevant, and won't change anything, is the emphasis on fluff over substance. They put questions like "what do you think of the new colors of Lunchtime" and "What do you think of the new colors of Countdown" and "what do you think of the badges". These are fluffy things that have nothing to do with true game play, content, and what matters to the overall product. Yes, they did ask about the split, and how we prefer to play (against local players, other teams, the whole country, etc), but my impression of the survey was that they were more intersted in how the changes made us feel good inside, and NOT how the changes would impact user playing.

The only thing about the change that I agreed to and liked was moving the 15 minute games to late in the evening, when the kids with short attention spans would be out and playing, and keeping 30 minute games in the afternoon for those of us with attention spans longer than a common flea. THIS alone tells me that in part they were trying to make improvements to their product. I would hope that they would publish the results of the survey, and if it leans toward anti-split, they would admit wrong and put things back the way they were.

Dante · **Posted:** Thu Mar 15, 2012 7:56 am

MiniYoda wrote:

Akbar71 wrote:

Having read this thread, I switched dubiously over to my E-mail to check out the survey. I actually think it was well-thought and nicely put together. It is very difficult for me to be optimistic about how BT responds to whatever information they get from the survey, but I will allow for the possibility that the survey itself was sent due to the very great and continuing amount of mostly negative feedback they have received on the Faceybook, their blog and the bars with active teams. (And maybe even here - we know KK lurks sometimes!)

I know they knew in advance what some players' reactions would be to the changes. Having been through similar changes in the past (see this forum and BT's old forum), I think we are at the point in the cycle where the PTB and BT are reeling back saying, "Oh my goodness, they might have been right about some of this..." Frustrating, to be sure, but just part of the circle of life.

I am intrigued by WB TANAKA's analysis of overall play volume, especially wieghed against the volume of play in the premiums. Complete pipe dream here, but I would very much like to see the overall, coast-to-coast hourly play numbers and the overall results of the survey. Regrettably, that would require being offered a job over at BT...

One of the key reasons I think the survey is not relevant, and won't change anything, is the emphasis on fluff over substance. They put questions like "what do you think of the new colors of Lunchtime" and "What do you think of the new colors of Countdown" and "what do you think of the badges". These are fluffy things that have nothing to do with true game play, content, and what matters to the overall product. Yes, they did ask about the split, and how we prefer to play (against local players, other teams, the whole country, etc), but my impression of the survey was that they were more intersted in how the changes made us feel good inside, and NOT how the changes would impact user playing.

The only thing about the change that I agreed to and liked was moving the 15 minute games to late in the evening, when the kids with short attention spans would be out and playing, and keeping 30 minute games in the afternoon for those of us with attention spans longer than a common flea. THIS alone tells me that in part they were trying to make improvements to their product. I would hope that they would publish the results of the survey, and if it leans toward anti-split, they would admit wrong and put things back the way they were.

I thought it was a legit question. The new Countdown colors are hard for me to see on a small screen.

Rackme32 · **Joined:** Sat Jan 30, 2010 5:13 pm **Posts:** 272

One comment re: "the masses"...

I believe the survey was sent only to those who bothered to subscribe to the Playmaker Post (more likely to be regular players who care, not just drunken button-pushers) rather than all P+ account holders.

So, maybe the survey is directed more to players whose opinions might matter than everyone thinks...

I sent mine in as soon as I saw it. I also emailed the PDX-NTN Yahoo group (mostly players on my Old Barn team) to make sure they looked for the survey.

Responding, even it looks hopeless, is better than ignoring the survey. It's certainly less hopeless than voting in elections...

Akbar71 · **Posted:** Thu Mar 15, 2012 11:57 am

MiniYoda wrote:

One of the key reasons I think the survey is not relevant, and won't change anything, is the emphasis on fluff over substance. They put questions like "what do you think of the new colors of Lunchtime" and "What do you think of the new colors of Countdown" and "what do you think of the badges". These are fluffy things that have nothing to do with true game play, content, and what matters to the overall product. Yes, they did ask about the split, and how we prefer to play (against local players, other teams, the whole country, etc), but my impression of the survey was that they were more intersted in how the changes made us feel good inside, and NOT how the changes would impact user playing.

I hear you. I guess I am now so conditioned to low expectations with regard to BT that I imagined an all-fluff survey. It surprises and pleases me that they asked about substance at all, and asked appropriate questions with (pretty much) appropriate response choices.

pengwn · **Posted:** Thu Mar 15, 2012 12:40 pm

I submitted the survey, including a comment on how it sucks to wait until 8 for a repeat premium game that's ranked against a paucity of sites and at most 1000 people. Placing PENGWN in the the Top 20 has become a ho-hum expectation rather than a pleasant treat, and once I've collected all the badges and satisfied that anal-retentive need of mine, the fun of that program will probably be lost

scar · **Joined:** Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:57 pm **Posts:** 2218

1. Lunchtime Trivia now plays from 11am-2pm. What do you think about this extra hour of Lunchtime Trivia?
( )Love - The more Lunchtime Trivia, the better!
( )Like - I like having the extra hour of it
( )Neutral - Either way is fine with me
( )Dislike - I could do without an extra hour of it
( )Hate - Ugh, I won't be playing before 2pm!

2. Lunchtime Trivia has changed its colors to white with black text. How do you feel about the new color scheme?
( )Love - I don't think it could get any better!
( )Like - I think it looks good!
( )Neutral - I don't care what it looks like, as long as I can read it
( )Dislike - I don't care for this new look
( )Hate - This look is awful

3. Countdown also has a new look! What do you think about the new black text on an orange/yellow background?
( )Love - I don't think it could get any better!
( )Like - I think it looks good!
( )Neutral - I don't care what it looks like, as long as I can read it
( )Dislike - I don't care for this new look
( )Hate - This look is awful

4. We've reduced the amount of entertainment/pop culture and increased the amount of general knowledge questions in Countdown. What do you think about the new mix?
( )Love - It's much better than before. I could play it all day!
( )Like - I've noticed the difference, and I like it!
( )Neutral - I didn't even notice the change
( )Dislike - I liked it better before with the pop-culture in the mix
( )Hate - I can't stand the new Countdown content mix

5. We took the short Buzztime Trivia games out of the afternoon Countdown line-up. What do you think about solid Countdown games in the afternoon?
( )Love - It's my favorite game and I could play it all day!
( )Like - Countdown is the perfect way to spend my afternoon
( )Neutral - It doesn't really matter to me
( )Dislike - I'd like a little break in there somewhere
( )Hate - I can't stand having back-to-back Countdown

6. What do you think about the new Badges?
( )Love them - I can't wait until you release more!
( )Like - I have fun earning them!
( )Neutral - I don't mind them but I'm not really into them
( )Dislike - Meh... I'd be fine without them.
( )Hate - LAME! These things drive me crazy.

7. Our Showdown game was shortened by 15 minutes to make it one hour long. To do this we removed every other "round scoreboard". No other changes were made. What do you think of the shorter game play experience for Showdown?
( )Love - This is WAY better than it used to be!
( )Like - I like the new 60 minute format better
( )Neutral - I doesn't matter to me how long the game lasts
( )Dislike - I liked the old 75 minute format better
( )Hate - This is way too fast for me

8. The new premium/primetime game schedule is:
( )Very convenient for me
( )Slightly more convenient for me
( )Just as convenient as it used to be
( )Slightly less convenient for me
( )Way less convenient for me

9. Would you like to vote for which trivia game plays next?
( )YES. I want to be able to vote for ALL games!
( )Yes, all games except Showdown, Six, Spotlight & Playback
( )Sure! But only for some of your (non-premium) games.
( )I don't really care one way or the other what I'm playing
( )No. We should play what's on the schedule. No voting AT ALL!

10. Who are you most interested in playing against?
( )Myself! I just want to get better.
( )My friends and other players in my location!
( )Other players in my City/State or Province
( )People on my side of the continent
( )Everyone

11. When it comes to our premium/primetime games, what is more important to you:
( )Convenient game times
( )Playing against everyone in the nation at the same time

12. What do you think about our new 15 minute late night game called The Late Shift?
( )Like - The Late Shift is fun!
( )Neutral - I don't mind it
( )Love - This game is perfect for me!
( )Dislike - I liked the schedule better without it
( )Hate - Ugh, I won't be playing after 10pm!

13. What do you think about earning PlayersPlus points for participating in Buzztime Shorts?
( )Love - I wish I could earn P+ points for everything!
( )Like - P+ points help incentivize me to participate
( )Neutral - Either way is fine with me
( )Dislike - I'd rather receive something else for participating
( )Hate - No one should get P+ points for Buzztime Shorts!

14. If you have any more feedback for us, please type it below!

scar · **Joined:** Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:57 pm **Posts:** 2218

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

whales · **Joined:** Thu Jul 14, 2011 8:57 pm **Posts:** 267

I wonder, if someone were to answer a survey question by writing three clues (two negatives, then a positive) to their answer, whether the Buzzies would even know what that is!

clark · **Joined:** Mon Mar 15, 2010 5:28 pm **Posts:** 273

scar wrote:

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

How many did questions did you get right? Maybe you'll get a bonus badge if it's over 8...

defined1 · **Joined:** Mon Jan 11, 2010 5:00 pm **Posts:** 84

scar wrote:

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

I filled it out too, answered all 14 questions but it wouldnt accept my entries

typical - they send me a survey and then dont want my answers

what else is new

THE ICEMAN · **Posted:** Fri Mar 16, 2012 12:46 am

defined1 wrote:

typical - they send me a survey and then dont want my answers

what else is new

There was a link at the bottom of the page that would send you directly to the survey. That's the way I had to do it.

lewser · **Joined:** Mon Jan 11, 2010 2:25 pm **Posts:** 1028

clark wrote:

scar wrote:

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

How many did questions did you get right? Maybe you'll get a bonus badge if it's over 8...

No, no, no he earned the participation badge just by opening his email; followed by the reading sticker; then the mouse click ribbon; finally, he received the writing placard for filling in a comment. Since 20, or 30 people get some kind of prize it is either going to be a Trapper Keeper, a backpack, or a special sash to attach all of his baubles. These are very rare so he might want to cherish his accomplishments. :lol:

poman · **Joined:** Sun Jan 17, 2010 12:05 pm **Posts:** 1514

clark wrote:

How many did questions did you get right? Maybe you'll get a bonus badge if it's over 8...

Congratulations! You Have Earned A Badge In The Category:
PAY THE MAN, SHIRLEY

....

Call Reversed! (Too Bad Clark! :cry:

)

lewser wrote:

No, no, no he earned the participation badge just by opening his email; followed by the reading sticker; then the mouse click ribbon; finally, he received the writing placard for filling in a comment. Since 20, or 30 people get some kind of prize it is either going to be a Trapper Keeper, a backpack, or a special sash to attach all of his baubles. These are very rare so he might want to cherish his accomplishments. :lol:

Pay The Man, Shirley! :lol:

AARDVK · **Joined:** Thu Jan 14, 2010 5:30 pm **Posts:** 558

THE ICEMAN wrote:

defined1 wrote:

typical - they send me a survey and then dont want my answers

what else is new

There was a link at the bottom of the page that would send you directly to the survey. That's the way I had to do it.

I had to use the link as well. It would let me check the boxes, but when I started writing the comment, it went crazy.

I answered everything except the Lunchtime Trivia and blocks of Countdown in the afternoon questions, as normally I don't play during the day. For my comment, I linked the disenfranchisement of the non-Player Plus people to the split network/BT's need to get rid of the blatant cheating in the West, then talked about how losing the non-Player Plus scores is screwing up our team averages and that it makes it more difficult to recruit new players.

Brooke/AARDVK

MitchWolf · **Posted:** Fri Mar 16, 2012 10:45 am

AARDVK wrote:

THE ICEMAN wrote:

defined1 wrote:

typical - they send me a survey and then dont want my answers

what else is new

There was a link at the bottom of the page that would send you directly to the survey. That's the way I had to do it.

I had to use the link as well. It would let me check the boxes, but when I started writing the comment, it went crazy.

I answered everything except the Lunchtime Trivia and blocks of Countdown in the afternoon questions, as normally I don't play during the day. For my comment, I linked the disenfranchisement of the non-Player Plus people to the split network/BT's need to get rid of the blatant cheating in the West, then talked about how losing the non-Player Plus scores is screwing up our team averages and that it makes it more difficult to recruit new players.

Brooke/AARDVK

Right On....Now I hope their Survey team listens better than their FB team.

liljol · **Joined:** Sun Jan 10, 2010 8:41 pm **Posts:** 2497

MitchWolf wrote:

Right On....Now I hope their Survey team listens better than their FB team.

<--cueing up "Dream On"...

MitchWolf · **Posted:** Fri Mar 16, 2012 10:53 am

liljol wrote:

MitchWolf wrote:

Right On....Now I hope their Survey team listens better than their FB team.

<--cueing up "Dream On"...

yeah I argee....I believe when i see it.

MitchWolf · **Posted:** Fri Mar 16, 2012 9:57 pm

clark wrote:

scar wrote:

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

How many did questions did you get right? Maybe you'll get a bonus badge if it's over 8...

The FB page said on a reply they will give out random prizes to who filled it. WTFF is that??

THE ICEMAN · **Posted:** Fri Mar 16, 2012 10:14 pm

MitchWolf wrote:

clark wrote:

scar wrote:

I fiiled out the survey, answered 12 of 14.

How many did questions did you get right? Maybe you'll get a bonus badge if it's over 8...

The FB page said on a reply they will give out random prizes to who filled it. WTFF is that??

That'll be a neat trick considering that I & others here were not able to directly take the survey from the email. We had to use the link at the bottom of the page.

BGTUNA · **Posted:** Sat Mar 17, 2012 9:44 am

THE ICEMAN wrote:

That'll be a neat trick considering that I & others here were not able to directly take the survey from the email. We had to use the link at the bottom of the page.

Not being a computer geek, I was wondering if there was some kind of code in the link that says that the person who was sent the email clicked on the link to complete the survey. Is that possible? I used the link myself.

Torquemada · **Joined:** Mon May 30, 2011 7:05 pm **Posts:** 91

liljol wrote:

MitchWolf wrote:

Right On....Now I hope their Survey team listens better than their FB team.

<--cueing up "Dream On"...

From their Facebook comments, their Survey team IS their FB team.

TFM

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