What's gone wrong with diaries this year?

[MacGanja]

On 15/10/2018 at 8:05 PM, Dodgee said:

Just a thought but it only just occurred to me you could use a similar system to admin when they run site comps.

 

Lifers get first refusal on diary seeds

Subbies next 

And only a handful of standard members like myself get a chance.

 

This would be a double edged sword as it's another good reason for people to subscribe. So helpful for joolz/the site.

 

If folks are happy to put a hand in there pockets and pay a subscription it stands to reason they're unlikely to be the kind of shmuck who cadges freebies n fucks off without delivering.  

 

I'm not suggesting you totally exclude new members but at least keep the numbers to a minimum innit.

 

Just thinking out loud really

I like this idea...maybe mix idea with few others.... Like give 5 seeds to subbies... And 3 seeds to standard members....

And then have only a few places for new members which like was said maybe requires some sort of pledge... then the already chosen members vote on who to choose.... 

Then a kind of name and shame of those who don't follow through with a diary (without a good excuse or pm to you) 

Again just a thought... Without these opportunities of diaries I don't think I would of grown some of these fantastic strains. So I am extremely grateful.. And will always do a diary... However i was new to this site and it took something like this for me to try these seeds...  So I wouldn't say exclude new comers.. I don't know its tricky... But that's my 2p

[buddy13]

maybe it was just a "bad year"?

 

[Female Seeds Team]

On 10/9/2018 at 9:33 PM, HSO-Mark said:

Hello all

 

Just a quick thread for some feedback from the UK420 community 

 

When we started on UK420 with Dinafem around 7 years ago we had around a 20% rate of seeds for diaries. So out of every 20 packets given out only 4 woukd get grown not the best imo.

 

Now, when I took over in 2014 for Dinafem and this time last year we brought HSO to UK420. It took a bit buy I managed to get that

 

20% rate up to a more respectable 80-90%. Meaning out of 20 members around 16-18 were following through. To me this is way better than 20% and acceptable 

 

Now this year something has changed and I'm not sure what.

 

With the Humboldt outdoor thread we had over 50 members that got seeds. On my 15 followed through 

 

With the pot noodle challenge over 40 members. With only 15 actually taking part.

 

Dinafem new strains. 10 members per strain. 2-4 members following through. 

 

The same with dinafem outdoors. Other years we have had a good 35 grows going outdoor. This year it's around 12-15.

 

For some reason I'm just trying to figure out what's gone wrong?

 

What do we do in the future?

 

Do we do a blacklist? (I've always said yes to everyone) as a few members have taken part in every giveaway but never done a diary? 

 

Do we limit to members with diaries completed and have followed through in the past? But then how do we let new members/growers participate? 

 

Any thought from the community welcome

 

Kind regards 

 

Mark..

 

 

 

Hey @HSO-Mark,

 

Hope you don't mind if I'm joining this conversation but as soon as I saw this thread, I immediately thought of sharing our experience with you guys too. 

I totally feel you since we had the same problem here at Female Seeds. I must say that even though things got better for us (talking about 2016-2017), this last year and half I also had quite some issues with diaries and so on. Roughly a 20%-30% rate...

 

Tbh, I always thought that the blacklist could be a valid solution and in case we really want to do it, we would definitely need some good coordination between breeders, here on UK420. 
Besides the blacklist, as many people already said, good reputation helps a lot in choosing or picking up members but honestly, this does not always work either...

 

Hopefully we will find soon a fast and definitive solution instead of chasing members in order to know what happened

 

All the best,
Mr B.

 

 

[lennyd79]

Hi Mark

I've been growing Dinafem Critical Kush and Blue cheese for a while now and very well. I would love to show how easy I grow these strains in coco without testing ph or nutrient strength.  I keep meaning to a diary. I done Cindy and Buhdda Cheese for years before these 2 and wanted to a diary as well. If I'm honest it's the hassle of photos on the uk420 site as i need to do it through my pc. Also a wee bit paranoia of all the photos. 

[Mcgarret]

21 hours ago, buddy13 said:

maybe it was just a "bad year"?

 

 

Complete opposite - it was a fantastic summer, heatwave, records broken in most UK regions. 
But if anyone planted out late in the north west, maybe it was a normal “bad” year?

 

What will happen for next season?

Will we enjoy another Mediterranean summer or have to wait another 40 years till it returns?

 

M 

[Guest theokoles]

29 minutes ago, Mcgarret said:

 

Complete opposite - it was a fantastic summer, heatwave, records broken in most UK regions. 

 

 

Ah.. this could be one of the reasons for the lack of diaries this year, everybody too busy out enjoying the sunshine?

 

On another note, i think most that have entered these promos will have had the intention of doing a diary..most will have.

I have'nt even bothered to enter the free seed giveaways as im not in a position to grow at the mo, so wont enter any competitions out of principle, that im potentially depriving someone else of growing out seeds.

[buddy13]

I didn't particularly mean the weather, it was mentioned earlier that some years ago the follow up was around 20% but has risen since.....maybe it was just a bad year for a variety of different reasons?

[HSO-Mark]

7 hours ago, buddy13 said:

I didn't particularly mean the weather, it was mentioned earlier that some years ago the follow up was around 20% but has risen since.....maybe it was just a bad year for a variety of different reasons?

 

 

It very well could be mate. As I said when we first started in 2014 the rate was like 15-20% that would start a diary and complete it. We managed to get this upto 80-90% in 2015-17 but now it's dropped back down. Not as low as when we started but around 30-40% so roughly 50% reduction. 

 

As @Female Seeds Team are also facing this issue

On 18/10/2018 at 1:46 PM, Female Seeds Team said:

Hope you don't mind if I'm joining this conversation but as soon as I saw this thread, I immediately thought of sharing our experience with you guys too. 

I totally feel you since we had the same problem here at Female Seeds. I must say that even though things got better for us (talking about 2016-2017), this last year and half I also had quite some issues with diaries and so on. Roughly a 20%-30% rate...

 Of course I don't mind you joining in my friend as this is a community issue and will take the community working together to get back on the right path.

 

Personally on my end I think it's been a combination of things

 

1- I've been to slack with some member's. Sending pack after pack with no results. This is my fault. 

 

2- Some members started diaries but never ended. Quite a few. Now, this could be down to many issues and could just be bad luck

 

3- We have had a lot of new members and I think we need to atleast have a few basic rules. 

 

A, over 50 posts and

 

B, a completed diary

 

C, life time subbie come 1st

 

D, subbie 2nd then new members and standard members are 3rd.

 

I'm not a fan of blacklisting but if we keep a list between ourselves we can work this out

 

Thanks for doing in the conversation 

 

Kind regards 

 

Mark..

[Smokebelch]

@Dinafem-Mark That sounds like a reasonable plan to me.

[Exile420]

Only blacklist members if they don't have good reason.

[HSO-Mark]

@Exile420 Agreed mate. If a member has free seeds and does not do a diary for a valid reason this is fine

 

I think we have it down now. Just need to be a bit more selective, say no to members that have consistently received seeds but never done a diary and just be a little move vigilant with checks 

 

Definitely 

 

1- Over 50 posts and over 3 month's on UK420 

 

2- Must have 1 completed diary (For any breeder)

 

I don't want to make to many rules but we must have some.

 

With 5 new strains coming early December I'll see if my new method work's as we will need 2 growers per strain so 10 growers in total for the 5 new HSO releases. 

 

Look out for that thread all. Coming soon

 

Kind regards 

 

Mark..

[Moobman]

@HSO-Mark i haven't let you down yet mate even under my old name i got all the dinafem test grows done for you 

[HSO-Mark]

@Moobman Thanks brother

 

We will have some test grows or shall I say "early release " strains on the Dinafem account very soon. Keep a look out the Blue monster is coming

 

Kind regards..

 

Mark..

[Peregrine]

On 10/19/2018 at 5:39 PM, HSO-Mark said:

 

C, life time subbie come 1st

 

D, subbie 2nd then new members and standard members are 3rd.

 

Just come across this thread in the Humboldt section as I have 4 Choccy Mints at 4 weeks veg and was looking for some grows to see what to expect after the flip to 12/12.

So as a ‘standard’ member I’d come bottom of the selection pile. This is not the way forward at all!!! First of all I’ve never taken any free seeds for any of these diaries but if I did I can guarantee I’d get the diary done, secondly, there are a lot of honest, sincere posters who don’t subscribe to the site - the only reason I don’t subscribe is because I live in the Eurozone and don’t have any £ notes!! True! That, and the fact that I don’t trust the post when sending cash.

Freeloaders could put an end to these generous giveaways and there is no easy solution to the problem, limp excuses, multiple avatars etc., it might all end up, as it often does, with a few wankers ruining it for everyone else.

ATB with solving this problem.

Peregrine

 

 

[HSO-Mark]

1 hour ago, Peregrine said:

So as a ‘standard’ member I’d come bottom of the selection pile.

 

You would qualify as you meet the other requirements such as having a completed diary and over 50 posts in Good standing on UK420 

 

1 hour ago, Peregrine said:

This is not the way forward at all!

 

Any suggestions on the best way to move forward? All input welcome 

 

1 hour ago, Peregrine said:

Freeloaders could put an end to these generous giveaways and there is no easy solution to the problem, limp excuses, multiple avatars etc., it might all end up, as it often does, with a few wankers ruining it for everyone else.

 

 

That's the main thing we are trying to stop mate. We can't stop these due to a few members taking seeds and never following through that's why I thought 

 

1- A fully completed diary

2- over 50 posts which if you've done a diary before is easy

3- Priority will go to

 

Lifetime Subscriber's 

Subscribers

Member a in good standing (see 1+2 above)

 

Imo this should help and we have actually got back on track since this thread was started 

 

Thanks for the input buddy

 

Kind regards 

 

Mark..

Edited February 8, 2019 by HSO-Mark