GW’s re-launch of their website and rumour control

[Dosadi]

So I was in my local GW store today and all the staff were wearing new t-shirts that had the slogan “Everything you have heard is a lie”. When I inquired as what this meant, I was told that GW was re-launching their web site with its own rumour section. After laughing hysterically for a few minutes I asked them to expand on what this meant. Is it merely the return of the sneak peeks or the dreaded GW message board? The staff didn’t really know much.

So what have any of you heard? What do you expect from yet another “new” GW website? How is GW going to “leak” their own rumours? Is this just another corporate attempt at viral marketing? I mean hobby rumours are pretty much just that.


Dosadi

[Bigred]

Interesting. I heard that at another store the staff was told those shirts had something to do with the "Mystery box"...Which seemed to make no sense whatsoever.

So GW already have an advanced order section, and have a daily post up. Perhaps this is just a fancy way of rolling back of the 3-month window to a slightly longer one. Maybe 6?

[Darkseer]

In a press release this week, GW announced massive profits while paying off 9 of their 10 million GBP debt.
I can't remember the exact figures, because I threw the paper out, but the profits were 7 times what they were last year.

GW has cash to burn and nothing burns cash like a flamboyant marketing campaign.
I can imagine that GW is going to embrace all the concepts of Web 2.0 or whatever else a web marketing agency sells them.

They may even look at Bell of Lost Souls as an example of how to connect with their community.

On a side note, I find it quite funny that nowadays GW staff are told nothing about anything in the hobby. Often they find out about something after we do!

[CrusherJoe]

It all kind of reeks of Orwellian double-speak. "Everything you have heard is a lie," coupled with a GW website complete with it's own rumors section sounds like the perfect mouthpiece for GW to...tell lies.

I can think of many reasons for GW to NOT lie to their customers, but the way they've done things in the past doesn't lead me to believe that they wouldn't embark on a disinformation campaign (though I can't for the life of me figure out what purpose that would serve).

I know it's not their business model (or whatever) but if they were REALLY interested in generating some long-term interest they'd publish their road map for the next 12 months. Keeping things so secret doesn't accomplish anything in the long run but fueling the rumor mill.

But hey, as long as I'm dreaming I might as well wish for them to actually do open "beta" testing for codexes before they come out and listen to customer feedback and publish FAQs that address the issues their customers have.

Oh, and I want a Rending Pony, too.

[crazyredpraetorian]

It all kind of reeks of Orwellian double-speak. "Everything you have heard is a lie," coupled with a GW website complete with it's own rumors section sounds like the perfect mouthpiece for GW to...tell lies.

I can think of many reasons for GW to NOT lie to their customers, but the way they've done things in the past doesn't lead me to believe that they wouldn't embark on a disinformation campaign (though I can't for the life of me figure out what purpose that would serve).

I know it's not their business model (or whatever) but if they were REALLY interested in generating some long-term interest they'd publish their road map for the next 12 months. Keeping things so secret doesn't accomplish anything in the long run but fueling the rumor mill.

But hey, as long as I'm dreaming I might as well wish for them to actually do open "beta" testing for codexes before they come out and listen to customer feedback and publish FAQs that address the issues their customers have.

Oh, and I want a Rending Pony, too.

Joe, are you sleep typing again? Because you sure are dreaming.

[CrusherJoe]

Oh, I know I'm dreaming -- but that doesn't stop me from doing it. :)

[RealGenius]

They may even look at Bell of Lost Souls as an example of how to connect with their community.


Who do you think paid for the Lounge?




Oooh, rumormongering at its best.

[Faultie]

Interesting.

It's a "rumors" section, but from GW. How is that possible?

A rumor is an unsubstantiated (or mostly) suggestion of things to come. I should think that if GW put something out, it would be ever so substantiated.

[ChaosLord127]

[QUOTE=CrusherJoe;555]I know it's not their business model (or whatever) but if they were REALLY interested in generating some long-term interest they'd publish their road map for the next 12 months. Keeping things so secret doesn't accomplish anything in the long run but fueling the rumor mill.

QUOTE]

Oh yes, knowing what is coming would be much more exciting than guessing. I always love seeing the "coming in two months" leaflet (if that is what you call it) in white dwarf, as I know what to look forward to. When I see a rumour, I get excited (too excited probably) and they end up not fulfilling the rumour until about a year later (ie Planetstrike, in which case the excitement had died quite a bit, as I wondered whether they would do it at all).

In response to the website change, it would be nice if they would go back to the previous format, as I thought it was a lot faster of a website, and a lot easier to navigate.

If I want rumours though, I would still rather use BoLS, as they haven't failed us!

[StaysCrunchyInMilk]

Oh, and I want a Rending Pony, too.
I'd ask for a bionic jet powered unicorn. With bionic eye.
In all seriousness, I considered converting one using a WFB horse, 4x IG mortars (for the bionic jet legs), a SM missile launcher scope for the bionic eye, and a flying stand.
It was going to be the jetbike mount for robocop.
I feel strangly satisfied having typed that. It's like exposing your deepest, darkest desires to a bunch of strangers.
I am aware that my very first contribution to BOLS should be productive, and set a good example / show what a important contribution i'll make.
Ach, this is a rumour board about GW's internal machinations and policies. Going off topic was productive.
"strolls off and makes a cup of tea"

[Sansa]

Maybe the Inquisition is coming back in full force! Think outside the box! :p

[Modhail]

"Everything we have been told is a lie"? There is no Mystery Box?! :rolleyes: ;:p

Looking at the information crawling it's way through the grapevine, GW seems have developed a notion of enhancing their "web presence": a "Rumour Section" on their own site, a paid inhouse blogger...

What they seem to overlook is that their most vital online calling card is the company website:
Who cares that they have a rumour section or pet blogger if you can't find either in their unnavigable, slow mess of a website?
The salary paid to the pet blogger should go to an capable, sensible webdesigner.

But yeah, the "you'll see it when we release it" window of information they have now could do with some stretching...

[McNs]

@ dosadi: Did the back of the shirt have "...until you can pre-order it."? :D

Interesting, it'd be a cool concept. I'm digging the WD archive (hoping for more substance in the future) and the daily update is a nice time killer to have at work (in addition to BoLS and TGN). I'm 300% behind this idea!

[Commissar Lewis]

Huh, interesting. I hope it's either an Inquisition release or redesigning the site into an actually useable and fast site like it once was.

[OliverTwist]

I'm pretty sure the backs of those shirts say "Only the Emperor knows the truth" followed by either an aquila or the URL.

[oni]

I have a very hard time believing there will be any type of "relaunch", but I heard that GW is going to try and do news and preview articles on their site as well as a podcast in the works.

[Brass Scorpion]

I've seen the T-shirt in question. If you look at the back of the shirt it says something about "the true voice of the Emperor". Recently I've heard that there will be regular pod casts from the GW Design Studio and I suspect that these T-shirts with their provocative language on the front and back may be a promotion for those pod casts and the GW website.

[Pariah Stevo]

knowing GW i wouldn't expect anything to change regardless of hype or money spent. Just know that they will be doing a price hike to pay for it all.

[Oddball]

I am glad that the company is doing good and would like to see a website like the old one with interesting articles and not the ,,in your face" marketing thing as it is now...(n)

[Arschbombe]

GW doing podcasts should be entertaining for a while. But they're too corporate for their own good and the podcasts will simply be aural versions of white dwarf where everything is cool and a must buy. I'd bet the podcast is meant to fight the nefarious influence of 40k radio. Imagine the gall of those 40k people suggesting that $9 for a copy of white dwarf is a rip off.

[Darkwynn]

That would imply GW would have some type of sense or someone on staff who had a udnerstanding of what web 2.0 is.

They don't even have a CTO or a IT director or anything at this current time. I just can't see them getting anything off the ground or leveraging technology to their benefit.

[Erazoender]

Well it IS based on the re-launch of their website. I'm hoping they are going back to their own template... but for that we will need too much faith in them.

And what's with these ads of CGI girls with big... cleavage advertising a Medieval wargame?

[Playa]

Hey,


what's with these ads of CGI girls

Just another game company "leveraging web 2.0".


Playa

[Alpharius]

Well, there are already quite a few rumors out there about certain websites already being in the pockets, so to speak, of GW...

[Cherub]

Less enitre websites and more like 1 paticular person at HQ whos job it is to post rumors of stuff coming out......

[Redbeard]

Posting a roadmap 12 months out might seem like a way to build excitement, but in business terms, its not concrete. Once they say 'we're doing this in 12 months', the first time they had to adjust that schedule, all the internet pundits would raise hell. The three month window that they currently use is probably much easier to control. Once you hit the three month mark, your products are ready to go, nothing is going to come up and derail a release.

[Fantomex]

I have to ask, where did the relaunch of the site rumour come from?
This actually sounds like business accumen of the highest order, so naturally I am suspicious..:D
Would it herald an adjustment from "Welcome to Games [BUY STUFF! BUY STUFF!] Workshop" to an actual nice, hobby-listing site?
Or is it basically gonna be the same with podcasts?
There a date for this miracle planned?

[Lexington]

I was told that it was not only the relaunch of a rumors section, but of forums as well. But, hey, who knows, right? Everything we've been told was a lie. ;)

[oni]

knowing GW i wouldn't expect anything to change regardless of hype or money spent. Just know that they will be doing a price hike to pay for it all.

I don't think we'll see another price hike for some time, at least I hope not anyway. They've done two back to back I think a third even within a years time would cause a major out cry.

One thing that I do appreciate is being able to actually see that the money I give them is being reinvested into the company, so to speak. I think they're doing a great job with the web site and product releases (less the blastscape). I like the new blog they're doing, thus far it's not been just another means of advertising, and the idea of a GW podcast sounds nice, again, as long as it doesn't digress into a means of advertising.

I'll tell you one of the main reasons why I feel a GW podcast would be great. If they discuss rules ambiguity it can end up working like a verbal FAQ.

[boogle]

I don't think we'll see another price hike for some time, at least I hope not anyway. They've done two back to back I think a third even within a years time would cause a major out cry.

One thing that I do appreciate is being able to actually see that the money I give them is being reinvested into the company, so to speak. I think they're doing a great job with the web site and product releases (less the blastscape). I like the new blog they're doing, thus far it's not been just another means of advertising, and the idea of a GW podcast sounds nice, again, as long as it doesn't digress into a means of advertising.

I'll tell you one of the main reasons why I feel a GW podcast would be great. If they discuss rules ambiguity it can end up working like a verbal FAQ.

There will be one in the UK by the end of the year as the VAT that was removed will go back on, not a massive rise on most items, but a rise nevertheless

[Anarchyman99]

What if Neo took both pills......it's rumor about GW leaking rumors? Or lieing about leaked rumors and how can you lie about a rumor.....how about just telling us what you plan on doing so we can KNOW when to save and drop large amounts of money? Just my 2.

[Lerra]

The smart way to release "rumors" would be to take a feather out of Blizzard's hat. They don't release any dates if they can at all help it.

All they would have to do is keep a page updated, something like this:

*On the Horizon*
Blood Angels
Tyranids
New wave of IG models

*In Progress*
Necrons
Dark Eldar
Black Templar

[BuFFo]

So instead of leaking 'rumors' to sites like Warseer, GW will have their own rumor section?

Whats next? A GW supported forum? ;)

[Miggidy Mack]

I'd ask for a bionic jet powered unicorn. With bionic eye.
In all seriousness, I considered converting one using a WFB horse, 4x IG mortars (for the bionic jet legs), a SM missile launcher scope for the bionic eye, and a flying stand.
It was going to be the jetbike mount for robocop.
I feel strangly satisfied having typed that. It's like exposing your deepest, darkest desires to a bunch of strangers.
I am aware that my very first contribution to BOLS should be productive, and set a good example / show what a important contribution i'll make.
Ach, this is a rumour board about GW's internal machinations and policies. Going off topic was productive.
"strolls off and makes a cup of tea"

It's like I've just been nerd flashed. I also need to make that model now. Like really badly.

As for them re-launching their website, I think it would be a great idea. Maybe we will get some new FAQ's and Errata that address the imbalances and give some small updates to older codex's that need it while they wait another 5 years for an update.

Can you believe I typed that WHOLE sentence without breaking down into tears?

[Dosadi]

So, upon further investigation it seems like it's less of a re-launch than a celebration of the one year anniversary of the previous re-launch. :confused:

There seems to be a real drive to getting people to register on the website and the offer of free shipping has new been extended into August. The big contest with some pretty awesome prizes is dependent upon registration on the website. Considering what their margins are on direct sales compared to retail I can understand the push on the website.

The “true voice” is probably this podcast they have been talking about. Perhaps this will be the source of GW marketing disguised as rumours?

Personally, I’ll support anything that brings more content back to the website. The WD archive sounds promising, but so far has not delivered on anything I’d consider an “archive”. I don’t see them putting up PDFs of WDs from the 80’s or anything like that, but some older articles like the 3rd edition Index Astartes would be nice to have for newer players who want more fluff for their chosen SM chapter. More hobby related stuff would be nice to have as well. However, I’d rather have nice printable versions of the articles, nit formatted for their website. C’mon guys, that’s what PDFs were made for!

I think it’s a good time to be a GW enthusiast when there is so much good content being provided on the interwebz. With sites like BoLS pushing the envelope of “fan content” and the promise of a more hobby centric GW site we are moving into a new age. Wow, that sounded very, very fanboy-ish. :o


Dosadi

[Abominable Plague Marine]

Back in the day ('98' or so), GW had an email address you could write to (something like [email protected]) where you could ask all kinds of crazy questions (not just about future product releases) and they would confirm or deny them in some way.

[RealGenius]

If they do an official, regular podcast, I wonder how much of it will be taken up with clarifying rules questions. Or even better, how long before it is only clearing up rules questions. :)

I enjoyed the earlier podcasts, but they felt a little forced sometimes, but hopefully they can get people talking naturally about what they are working on and excited to be doing since that will be something great to listen to.

[The Plastic Surgeon]

Not much point to a GW regular podcast since they will be just as informative as their seminars at GamesDay.

[RealGenius]

Except that more people will get to hear it than the seminars at GD.

[Alpharius]

Not much point to a GW regular podcast since they will be just as informative as their seminars at GamesDay.

Oh no you didn't!

[The Plastic Surgeon]

Hmmm was it something I said? :p

I'm just saying that GD seminars aren't that informative and tend to be anti-climactic. And yes sure more people will hear it, but what would our intrepid GD reporters do? ;)

[Dosadi]

GW Canada did a few podcasts last year, mostly they reviewed the latest codex or army book. While it’s always nice to hear people talk about the hobby it was clear that they were A) not allowed to talk about anything not yet released (or outside of 3 months away) B) were pretty subjective in their review in that nothing in the new book was bad, everything was better than the previous incarnation and everyone was going want to jump on this bandwagon.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with that sort of approach, especially coming from the company who produces the products in question. Anyone expecting anything else should go listen to 40k Radio, D6 Generation, World’s End Radio or one of the many other podcasts who do not have the same bias (or shouldn’t).

Now, if this podcast spends a few minutes every episode dropping cryptic hints of what might in the works then I think that’s a great way to drum up some discussion and speculation on forums as everyone tries to decipher what they might mean. We can already see their first attempt at viral marketing with the Mystery Box. Most people knew it was Space Hulk, but that didn’t stop endless threads about what it might be (it’s Space Hulk…get over it;)). If this sort of marketing helps GW sell 2% more Space Hulk sets then it will have been a success. So porting this sort of concept over to a monthly podcast will indeed be worth the investment.


Dosadi

[The Plastic Surgeon]

GW Canada did a few podcasts last year, mostly they reviewed the latest codex or army book. While it’s always nice to hear people talk about the hobby it was clear that they were A) not allowed to talk about anything not yet released (or outside of 3 months away) B) were pretty subjective in their review in that nothing in the new book was bad, everything was better than the previous incarnation and everyone was going want to jump on this bandwagon.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with that sort of approach, especially coming from the company who produces the products in question. Anyone expecting anything else should go listen to 40k Radio, D6 Generation, World’s End Radio or one of the many other podcasts who do not have the same bias (or shouldn’t).

Now, if this podcast spends a few minutes every episode dropping cryptic hints of what might in the works then I think that’s a great way to drum up some discussion and speculation on forums as everyone tries to decipher what they might mean. We can already see their first attempt at viral marketing with the Mystery Box. Most people knew it was Space Hulk, but that didn’t stop endless threads about what it might be (it’s Space Hulk…get over it;)). If this sort of marketing helps GW sell 2% more Space Hulk sets then it will have been a success. So porting this sort of concept over to a monthly podcast will indeed be worth the investment.


Dosadi

You've won me over, on with the pod casts! But it HAS to have decent dropped in tidbits like you said to make them worth while.

[Watching Paint Dry]

Talking in my local GW they were saying that corporate is cracking down big time on leaks. They were saying stupid things like no photos were allowed to be taken in the stores and stuff like that. I'm not sure how that makes any difference since all the stuff in store is already released, or at least announced.

[Bigred]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Every GW employee minute spent stopping leaks is pure waste. People talk, always have and always will. They especially talk about things they like and are excited about.

There are leaks in the goverment and defense sectors, where the penalties can be life in prison. What chance does a toy manufacturer have to really clamp down on their staff talking about the thing they do for 8 hours a day, that they are in theory excited and positive about?

Better to put in place realistic security measures and leave it at that, and intead focus on embracing 21st century marketing principles. Its a much better approach than turning your company into a low security prison and treating your customers like criminal suspects.

[Nekron99]

"Everything you heard is a lie"

GW deliberately leaked that the Mystery Box is Space Hulk, knowing everyone would run crazy with it. When it is actually the REAL CHAOS CODEX and box army deal that we all want...

"we all" meaning... me!

[imperialsavant]

[QUOTE=Dosadi;550]So I was in my local GW store today and all the staff were wearing new t-shirts that had the slogan “Everything you have heard is a lie”. When I inquired as what this meant, I was told that GW was re-launching their web site with its own rumour section.

:eek:
That T Shirt slogan is, I think a take off of a Dark Heresy comment.
I am pretty sure I saw it on one of the D/Heresy books.

[ChaosPhoenix]

Sometimes GW does actually funny things. I've had a laugh yesterday, when my Twitter client caught a tweet from "VoxCaster" which seems to be GW's own Twitter account. The funny thing was something else, they've customized their own Twitter client. It's called "Adeptus Astra Telepathic".

So the line I got was: "New Blogpost: Tanks!" from Voxcaster via Adeptus Alpha Telepathic. That was kinda fluffy and funny to read :p