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Capablanca -> RE: CollarMe has gone (5/24/2014 11:06:37 AM)
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Here's what I think:
CollarMe definitely must continue to exist. For all its quirks and issues, it's the best site to find a BDSM partner. FetLife is way too tied in with local communities (some of us just want to find a partner without having to become part of a community) and also explicitly works against being a dating site (thus why you can not profile search with any specificity). Other BDSM sites have less people, complicated, messy UIs, often require payment, and have more scammers than CM. I've found dozens of wonderful friends on CollarMe -- it takes patience but so does everything in life.
I think the move to CollarSpace is going to hurt CollarMe a lot. People who go to CollarMe and just see Tiffany's post will assume the site disappeared and is gone for good. Even if CollarMe.com does come back they might not check it ever again. Very few people will use Google Search to find the new site (as ResidentSadist suggested). A lot of people, myself included, found CollarMe from recommendations or links on other sites. All those links will still point to CollarMe.com and will now be dead. Some people will find the new site through CollarChat, but I'd say 85% of the site doesn't know about these message boards, especially younger people.
To salvage as much of the user base as possible, a few things need to be done:
-The messages about the URL change need to be more prominent. I'd suggest black text on a red background, in three spaces: the top of the page, below the search options, and in the message window. Instead of saying "if collarme becomes redirected" they should just say "collarme is moving to collarspace, please use that URL from now on."
-An e-mail should be sent out to every registered e-mail address about the change.
-The logo should be changed from CollarMe to CollarSpace.
The key here is to just make sure it looks like a run-of-the-mill administrative decision. If this site starts to get the vibe that it's on its last legs and could disappear for good any day, people will disappear in droves.
Tiffany presumably cares about the site and its users. But she also wants her story heard. That's fine. But she should put a link to CollarSpace at the bottom of her blog post so people don't get hurt because of her. Then she's still getting what she wants. Unless what she wants is to destroy the site, which won't work and is malevolent.
I've got opinions on the Tiffany-Eric feud but they're not relevant. We should be able to continue using the site without having to worry or know about what's going on behind the scenes.
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