Guide to Promoting Your SRP or mSRP

Started by Telex Ferra, August 27, 2013, 05:16:22 PM

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Telex Ferra

Below are some tips to promoting an SRP and mSRP (collectively referred to as SRPs from here) from my experience. These are for SRP or mSRP runners looking for some tips on how to get started.This list contains things you can do OUT OF GAME to ensure people are aware of your SRP and come back for more. Please contribute to the guide if you'd like (Grizz, Griff, Klaw, Martin :P )

Pick a Timeslot and Keep It
Nobody has time for an SRP that constantly shifts its timeslot, especially before it airs its first episode. DO NOT post a thread or a poll asking for general timeslot suggestions. Instead, you should tell people when YOU are free to run the SRP, and allow them to pick a time in that window. I've seen plenty of SRPs where everyone picks a time that the CO cannot make, generating timeslot confusion and SRP dropouts. Only allow people to pick from an assortment of times that ALL work for you (and any co-producers) and then stick to it.

Keep the Forums Simple
The less time people need to spend digging through your forums, the more likely they are to browse them. Some people create huge networks of subforums where important information gets lost seven layers below the forum home. Subforums are for places where you expect A LOT of threads that themselves should not be posts in a single thread. A subforum is for things like Crew Bios or Logs, but you don['t need a subforum for applications when a single Application and Roster thread will do just fine. You should keep all important information in the highest forum so people don't need to dig it out. In essence, try to create as few subforums as possible and keep your information centralized.

Use the vSlider and the shoutbox
The vSlider is for anyone that wants to advertise something related to the group. Asteroid Field, Beyond Infinity, and First Steps have all used the vSlider for promotion and YOU CAN TOO. Send a message to Veritas on skype for more information. The image you create will remain up throughout the time leading to your episode.

The shoutbox can be a great tool for getting interest in your SRP as long as you use it correctly. I'm not saying call people to the server every fifteen seconds, but you can use it to inform people that applications are open or that a new episode info is up. People are not as good as you are at checking your SRP boards, and sometimes need to be nudged, even to read your episode info.

Assume Nobody Downloaded the Files
All SRPs have files; maps, music, models, unfortunately people aren't very good at remembering to download them. Always check to make sure in the days leading up to your episode that everyone has downloaded the necessary map, otherwise half your crew will disconnect when you switch maps. Check multiple times before the episode starts starting a few days before all the way up to just 15-30 minutes before start time.

Post Reminders
Posting a reminder in your SRP forum can make the difference between running an episode and post-poning it. One reminder the day before and one reminder the day of should be sufficient, just make sure that everybody knows the time and server before each episode.

If anyone has anything to add, please post and I'll put it up.