- Joined
- Jun 9, 2010
- Messages
- 2,652
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Yes, yes...I know. "We have to read ANOTHER one of these? C'mon Slaz....you posted one back in February."
This is true. And now seven months later, it's time for a refresher that every single one of us could use!
Obviously I'd prefer it if you read the entire post, but if you don't have the willpower for that, do me the favor and at least read all of the sections that pique your interest.
And remember, this is constructive advice that I think we should all be aware of. I'm not posting this specifically because things have been happening that warrant discussion.
Thanks!
--Slaz
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Server Filling And Its Importance
As I write this post, at 6-7pm Eastern....four of our servers are full, the only exception being Normal Mixed (which is empty). This is good but having all five full is what we really need. Through the good graces of Council, dedication of our members, and the interest from the pubbers, we have been given five Bad Company 2 servers. It makes sense that the success of our current servers determines whether we keep/drop/add servers. When we are able to fill five servers, we have 160 players that are getting exposure to eGO's punk-free gaming.
Maybe even more importantly, our success at keeping our BC2 servers full will have a direct impact on how many servers/how many slots we are able to dedicate to BF3. I realize that many of us are burnt out on BC2, so take a few days off....and then come back. I know it sure helps me. Organize server filling parties, work together, and get the servers full/keep them full! If we can get to the point where our servers are all full every day we will be golden. As a division, we need to be able to show that we deserve the servers we have and that we can fill them.
Battlefield 3
As most of you know, eGO's Battlefield division will be supporting Battlefield 3. At this time, the number of servers, number of slots, how many BC2 servers we will keep, and so on is still under discussion. These are council-level decisions and not something that we have direct influence over. That being said, as I mentioned before...do your part. If we're keeping our servers full now, we'll do better when we come into BF3. Preorder your game, tell your friends, and be sure to show your support for the game on front-page polls.
Another key aspect of our success now and for the future is recruiting. The more dedicated members we have in our division -- the better off we will be.
Recruiting
As many of you know, I'm passionate about recruiting. It helps our divisions, it allows us to make more friends, and gives more gamers a taste of eGO-style gaming. There are many ways to go about it, anyone can do it, and it doesn't take much time.
I'm echoing something I say in every divisional meeting, but if every active member of the division got one or two recruits, we'd easily have 150 new recruits each month.
There are many benefits to having new recruits and it keeps gaming fun/interesting. To top it off, if our division is larger, we will be able to put more weight to our efforts to get involved with BF3. More members = more activity = more servers.
April was our largest month for recruiting ever with 80 recruits. Since then, we've been pulling in around 40 per month. That's not bad! It adds up to quite a few new faces. The most discouraging thing is how some of our new recruits don't feel welcomed. I realize we all have our own groups of friends that we tend to stick to and play with, but try including someone new. Introduce yourself, offer to give them help. This will improve retention of new recruits and make the community as inclusive and welcoming as possible.
For some of you that might be wondering, this is how I recruit:
- Keep an eye out for individuals on the server who follow rules, seem friendly (maybe talkative), and good sports.
- Join their squad, play with them, and communicate with them.
- Once you have a good feel for whether they would fit in with eGO, ask them if they have Steam or Ventrilo. This is the best way to be able to get in touch with them, especially if something happens and one of you has to get off the server.
- Let them know that you think they would fit in and that you like their attitude, etc.
- Show them around the community, tell them about our tournaments, events, scrim, the other games eGO supports...show them what we have to offer.
- Help them through the application process if they show interest. If they don't... keep playing with them, have fun with them, and respect their decision to not join.
- If they apply and are accepted, stick with them for a few days. Include them when you go to fill a server, introduce them to your friends, and make them feel at home.
Ventrilo
Being on Ventrilo is essential. We use it to hold conversations while playing, communicate about admin actions as they occur, simply get to know one another, and to just chit-chat. It's one of the easiest ways to get in touch with a leadership member if something is occurring too. Activity on Ventrilo is also one of the easiest ways for leadership to see whether you are active and contributing.
Use it and love it. I know at times it's loud...maybe even annoying. Politely ask for everyone in the channel to tone it down some and you'll find that they will most likely do so. We have seven channels that are open for you use (nevermind every other channel in the Ventrilo server), so don't hesitate to move to a quiet channel if that's what you feel you need.
With no admin only chat ingame, Ventrilo is really the only way you can coordinate your actions ingame with other admins online. Try to be in a channel together.
Events
Our Event Coordinating team is working hard to put weekly events together. Our division has attempted to do this in the past, and only had mediocre attendance. Make an effort to show up and have some fun with your fellow community members!
We also hold monthly tournaments. These are always a blast. Depending on the settings, you will team up in squads of four or teams of eight and fight it out round-robin style. It's a great way to get to know other members of the community and have a ton of fun in your favorite game!
Another event that we like to do is scrim against other communities and clans. We do these as they come, so there isn't a set schedule, but we like to have one at least every other week, often more frequently. These can be anywhere from 8v8 to 16v16. We choose maps, modes, and settings and then blow things up! Sign-ups are almost always first come, first served and are always posted in the division discussion subforum. Try one out! You certainly don't need to be great at the game, just come with a good attitude.
The Dropbox
As many of you know, at the bottom of the forums is the Dropbox subforum. This is where you are able to bring up concerns, comments, and suggestions in a place where only leadership can see it. Your posts there are completely private from the rest of the community. Some of the best uses for the dropbox: Suggesting a promotion, suggesting an award for a member, bringing up concerns with players/members, and suggesting changes to the division.
We have not been seeing many threads posted in the dropbox lately. It would be tremendously helpful if we got more promotion/award recommendations and more feedback from the division through the dropbox! Don't be timid, all suggestions are appreciated.
Promotions
I know many of you are curious what Leadership looks for when we consider promotions. Here is a short list:
- Server Activity
- Ventrilo Activity
- Forums Activity
- Participation in Events
- Ability to assist in keeping servers administrated (even as e's...give out warnings and find admins when needed)
- Sharing your thoughts and opinions
- Being mature and respectful
- Making friends
- Participates in recruiting
Steam Group
If you use Steam, please join the Battlefield Division Steam Group by clicking here. We use the Steam group to announce when we are filling particular servers, to announce meetings, events, etc. It's a great way to know what's going on! Be sure to invite your friends to the group as well. The more knowledge, the more success.
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I think this goes without mention. You all make this division what it is. You have a huge part in the decisions that are made regarding the division and where we head. Stay active, have fun, and share your thoughts with us. Speaking for all of leadership, I can tell you that we put our time and effort into the division because we enjoy what the Battlefield division has to offer. I love the maturity, respect, and good-nature of our members. You all make serving as a member of your leadership extremely enjoyable.
So thank you all for what you add to the division. Please do your best to keep our division strong as we transition into Battlefield 3. We will need to hit the ground running and quickly establish ourselves as one of the premier communities supporting BF3. We can do it with a little time and effort.
Don't hesitate to give me a shout if you have a question, comment, concern, suggestion, or anything else. I'm always here for you guys.
--Slaz
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