Lets get GR going again..

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Shaggy, Dec 11, 2012.

  1. Sniper001

    Sniper001 Legen-wait for it-dary!

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    Hey Shaggy,

    If letting Gamerenders die is no option, I have a unique yet simple proposition to get this place up and running again (and I feel it will be highly effective.)

    Sure, Web 2.0 media has taken over, but there are still many successful forums still out there. Gamerenders used to be a forum for people interested in graphics primarily - that niche has essentially become obsolete and our old member base has left to (hopefully) do bigger and better things. That should no longer be the focus of this forum in my opinion (though it can be a sub-section to leverage the forum's existing resources and core competencies.)

    Leveraging our previous membership base, this forum should be a more versatile forum with several sub-divisions.. this forum doesn't have to be niche. It would represent our versatile old membership base. There could be a forum for Finance talk (stock market, etc - and these forums have done very well), a forum for Technology talk (latest smart-phones/tablets/computers), and a forum for Video Games, etc. It doesn't have to be just one thing. Gamerenders simply needs a brand overhaul to encompass a multi-theme forum. Then, do what you just did (send an email-blast) and hope that a unique layout, strong active staff team (whereby each moderator is assigned to a specific section according to their interests), and a bit of luck is enough to get this place active again. You just need a really great marketing campaign (leverage social media and Web 2.0 platforms alongside the website.) Tons of forums do this - and quite successfully too. You'd share popular threads and articles on the Facebook page, and people would click it to read it in more detail. If anything, it should be easier now more than ever to make this place popular again with the rise of Web 2.0 media.

    And finally, the comment about "try to appeal to a younger market" - that isn't going to fly and it is easier said than done. Shaggy needs to leverage its existing membership base and appeal to that market IF it wants its existing users to return.

    It would be awesome to come up with ideas on how to gather youth to Gamerenders and keep the theme the same, but I honestly believe the entire market is obsolete. Gamerenders is in the business of being a forum to entertain users - that's how broad it's vision should have been. Similar to many companies that have experienced chapter 11/bankruptcy (think Kodak or Polaroid), Gamerenders had a very narrow vision (a vision of a niche market that was losing interest quickly) and I think that's what made it fall.

    My two cents. Best of luck with the site!
     
  2. Narcotic

    Narcotic Well-Known Member

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    Wow, it has been over two years since I was logged into this forum.

    I would really hate to see this place die. Even though I am not really active in graphics anymore...this website was where I spent a lot of time with friends back in my day of doing GFX, networking with people from around the world. A lot of memories are here.

    However, many people have thrown in many truths to this discussion. Yes, there are some very active forums still around today...but they are in the cycle still of keeping members joining and posting. It would definitely not be an easy task to revive this place because you will ultimately need to find a way to get a new member base.

    The harsh reality is when this site had the production of members cease, eventually all of the members that were there died off. Whether they went and found other forums to go to (of the few that are still massive--we must note that social media has indeed taken over the face of the internet) or just became busy with life, it turned this place into a desert.

    It has been mentioned to try to get a forum that would appeal to all of the old members again, and do a mass e-mail. This could work on a portion of them, but that still wouldn't be what is needed--most likely many of the old members are now occupied with families, college, work, life, etc. (considering the age range was more for the teens, as mentioned).

    Definitely you will need to change the theme of this forum--maybe not shying away from graphics per se, but getting rid of the focus of rendering. A name change would work well, too.

    Gather ideas, shut this place down, and then promo the hell out of it in all ways possible. Send out mass e-mails advertising a return quite some time before this place comes back online. Get YouTube video edits made, and try to get a lot of views on them. Invade the internet's face (social media) in order to try to gain traffic. Then only time will tell if what was such a great forum so many people gained so much skill from can be reborn again with a new look.

    Best of luck to you.
     
  3. LXSCOPE

    LXSCOPE Senior Member

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    The site died when Llamaman quit IMO.

    Pretty sure this is my first time logging in in over 3 years. My old PM's are cringe-worthy.
     
    Last edited: Dec 11, 2012
  4. Red Alert

    Red Alert Senior Member

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    I actually posted on here not that long ago all of the stuffed in my resource is gone :cry: I thought I had my stuff on DVD's but I dont. The graphic scene has changed alot and the obsession with credits killed this site. I quit being a mod because I didnt like the direction the site was going. Getting more social media friendly couldn't hurt. Getting GR back to where it once was maybe impossible but getting it somewhat active would be a start. One more thing I would like to thank everyone that gave me rep over the years for my resource thread :D
     
  5. wiwar

    wiwar New Member

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    Hi, I have been a member for quite a while but wasn't sure how welcome I'd be made during the time I joined, some of the posts seemed quite aggressive towards noobs as such hence why I didn't post.

    Site's using forums are slowly fading away but the hardcore forumers will need somewhere to go!! :) I dabble in photoshop but am sadly crap at it, I have to rely on tutorials etc and generally YT vids to help me out leading me nicely to....

    A new direction perhaps? I use a lot of Sony Vegas and using photoshop alongside that is something I try to do, so perhaps a site where both photoshop and sony vegas et al could be discussed?

    Anyways, I'll go back under my rock now, I'll stick around though :)
     
  6. Friday_Night_Lights

    Friday_Night_Lights Well-Known Member

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    I think the main focus of the site should still be graphics, if you wanna do sub sections with finance and what have you, that would be fine. This was a place where I would go to get feedback on all my gfx. I stopped when the feedback stopped :p
     
  7. Zarox

    Zarox Retired IRC Mod

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    Just saw the email, some familiar faces popping in to comment.

    I'm not sure there is a place for Gamerenders these days :(

    If anyone wants to catch up, hit me up on twitter @alexpenn

    I still talk to BFTP and Brotherhood313 from time to time.

    Here are a few memories for you guys:
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  8. Justin`

    Justin` Senior Member

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    Helloooo? Don't have much to say other than it has been a long time (if anyone remembers me haha). Must say there have been some great ideas in here though, would actually be cool to get into tags again like the old days.
     
  9. Xuck

    Xuck Senior Member

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    It's been too long, I can't believe I still remember alot of the previous posters. Although I do not have a good idea to get this website to be active again, it really feels different to be back here again. Reminds me of highschool!

    And yes I remember you Justin, barely =P
     
  10. Mephisto

    Mephisto New Member

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    Hello Everyone

    Hello Everyone

    last visited: 11-17-2006 at 02:26 AM :brains:


    As most have already stated, creating signatures and creating small game art is a pretty dead field in today's age.

    Social media has transformed the way the web works and thus, most web forums have gone inactive due to these social giants.
    If you were to jump start this web forum again and give it a pulse, it will need to be reinvented.... or more specifically, re-purposed.

    Some of the most popular forms of art today are:
    -3D Cinematography
    -3D Design (Modeling, Texture & Lighting)
    -2D Illustrations and Concept art
    -Photo Editing

    I would focus on these and encourage more ORIGINAL art from your member base. There is a much larger push in creating more original art in today's society IMO.

    With the advances Adobe has made with their programs, the staff and members of this web community could create many new and inventive tutorials on creating such art.
     
  11. Red Alert

    Red Alert Senior Member

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    I forgot about those penguins
     
  12. Zarox

    Zarox Retired IRC Mod

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    i found them on my dropbox a few weeks ago, lol.
     
  13. DanTheGreat

    DanTheGreat Well-Known Member

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    wow, that got me to log-in again. i haven't really opened photoshop for a year now. yet still have it installed and still have all the tutorials, renders i've gotten from the web or made myself in an old hard drive. boy sure brings me back. made me remember my college days ;_;

    anyway, sadly social media has taken over the web. lots of apps now make it easy to tweak photos/images these days.

    EDIT: lol look at the crap below you call my sigs :D
     
  14. Jellyfish

    Jellyfish New Member

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    I know this is gonna sound super douche, but give me back my old account back, ThugRider. I don't remember the password. I asked before but no one cared. I would be more likely to post again. :)

    Apart from that, why not some chatrooms or something? You could make an invitation for a chat, you choose a cool subject. Something interesting or intriguing. And, get some contests going. Sorry that these suggestions are completley stupid! :D
     
  15. Kirz

    Kirz Well-Known Member

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    I remember lol :P

    Man, it has been a long time since I've been here. I do randomly check old sites when I'm at work and bored. I haven't been touching photoshop for a while. But I still have it somewhere around here. I wouldn't be averse to the site being more active. Not sure what could be done to get it going though.
     

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