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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 5:36:25 GMT
We do need some communication from BF. Radio silence in the age of social media is just as damaging to the company as all the issues with the website. Customers feel left in limbo. Loyalty is being tested.
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Post by Ela on Aug 13, 2024 6:14:51 GMT
I'll admit I find the lack of further updates frustrating.
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 6,011
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Post by lidar2 on Aug 13, 2024 6:22:24 GMT
I do find it very strange they haven't restored the old website. If there's no prospect of a resolution to the problems with the new site any time soon, that would seem the best short term expedient to protect their business.
I mean I assume it hasn't been deleted, it is still there, and the need to update for newer versions of supporting software, whilst necessary and time critical, is not so urgent that they couldn't pospone a few weeks.
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 6,011
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Post by lidar2 on Aug 13, 2024 6:36:11 GMT
I think back to business strategy classes I did from 20 years ago and am reminded of the point about the importance of defining you business correctly.
If BF define themselves, ie perceive themselves, as content producers rather than distributors, then their website/app is an afterthought, not central to their core business. What this debacle* has shown is that the distribution side of their business is every bit as crucial as the creative side, and [speculation here] perhaps they didn't fully appreciate that, and consequently didn't give this side of the business the management time/ attention/ money/ due diligence it needed?
* I don't like using the term debacle as it seems harsh. There are some on this forum who appear to love nothing more than rubbishing BF and its management at every opportunity, and I am not one of them. I desperately want them to sort this out, so everyone can move on, business as usual,but that seems unlikely in tbe short term. So unfortunately in this case, debacle is exactly the right word to describe it.
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Post by theillusiveman on Aug 13, 2024 6:51:58 GMT
I do find it very strange they haven't restored the old website. If there's no prospect of a resolution to the problems with the new site any time soon, that would seem the best short term expedient to protect their business. I mean I assume it hasn't been deleted, it is still there, and the need to update for newer versions of supporting software, whilst necessary and time critical, is not so urgent that they couldn't pospone a few weeks. Three possibilities The original website is physically gone and big finish can’t go back to it Or The website security is out of date that bit finish wouldn’t want to risk people loosing their data to hackers? Or Big Finish cannot afford to go back to the original web designers and cannot use the website in the meantime for insert reason here
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Kestrel
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,718
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Post by Kestrel on Aug 13, 2024 7:11:08 GMT
I think back to business strategy classes I did from 20 years ago and am reminded of the point about the importance of defining you business correctly. If BF define themselves, ie perceive themselves, as content producers rather than distributors, then their website/app is an afterthought, not central to their core business. What this debacle* has shown is that the distribution side of their business is every bit as crucial as the creative side, and [speculation here] perhaps they didn't fully appreciate that, and consequently didn't give this side of the business the management time/ attention/ money/ due diligence it needed? * I don't like using the term debacle as it seems harsh. There are some on this forum who appear to love nothing more than rubbishing BF and its management at every opportunity, and I am not one of them. I desperately want them to sort this out, so everyone can move on, business as usual,but that seems unlikely in tbe short term. So unfortunately in this case, debacle is exactly the right word to describe it. I don't think any of us aren't desperately hoping for them to sort this out. But to your broader point of self-perception, from the comments here, it sounds like Big Finish has (or folks assume they have) outsourced all management of their website and app to third parties. And... isn't that a bit weird? Like, surely, surely they've got at least one or two people tasked with overseeing the IT end of the business. And surely, surely they'd have everything backed up, right? I dunno. I'm just having a hard time imagining Big Finish wouldn't understand the importance of distribution -- they've been at this for nearly three decades, and I have to imagine the logistics of printing everything out on CDs and then packaging and shipping those CDs overseas is a lot more complicated than simple digital distribution via an app... unless they (somehow) they're totally reliant on third-parties.
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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 7:28:44 GMT
I think back to business strategy classes I did from 20 years ago and am reminded of the point about the importance of defining you business correctly. If BF define themselves, ie perceive themselves, as content producers rather than distributors, then their website/app is an afterthought, not central to their core business. What this debacle* has shown is that the distribution side of their business is every bit as crucial as the creative side, and [speculation here] perhaps they didn't fully appreciate that, and consequently didn't give this side of the business the management time/ attention/ money/ due diligence it needed? * I don't like using the term debacle as it seems harsh. There are some on this forum who appear to love nothing more than rubbishing BF and its management at every opportunity, and I am not one of them. I desperately want them to sort this out, so everyone can move on, business as usual,but that seems unlikely in tbe short term. So unfortunately in this case, debacle is exactly the right word to describe it. I don't think any of us aren't desperately hoping for them to sort this out. But to your broader point of self-perception, from the comments here, it sounds like Big Finish has (or folks assume they have) outsourced all management of their website and app to third parties. And... isn't that a bit weird? Like, surely, surely they've got at least one or two people tasked with overseeing the IT end of the business. And surely, surely they'd have everything backed up, right? I dunno. I'm just having a hard time imagining Big Finish wouldn't understand the importance of distribution -- they've been at this for nearly three decades, and I have to imagine the logistics of printing everything out on CDs and then packaging and shipping those CDs overseas is a lot more complicated than simple digital distribution via an app... unless they (somehow) they're totally reliant on third-parties. Yes I feel they have no staff in-house working on IT in any real sense, which is bizarre in 2024, & just outsource all that. The result? Well we are seeing it now. A disaster.
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Post by kipperserver on Aug 13, 2024 11:18:53 GMT
JHE needs to go back to Hughes media with his tail between his legs and his chequebook out I looked them up and oddly enough some of the examples of the websites they design have a sort of similar look to the original bf website www.hughesmedia.co.uk/So why the f would big finish move away from them unless they were too expensive for big finish to keep using THIS Hughes Media.? Apparently dissolved today. I think we now know why BF went elsewhere. find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/search?q=03834168
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Post by sherlock on Aug 13, 2024 11:20:18 GMT
Well that would seem to answer why the new website seems to have been rushed out minus certain features of the old one.
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Post by shallacatop on Aug 13, 2024 11:31:27 GMT
Not having in-house IT and outsourcing isn’t unusual at all. Especially for a smaller company of Big Finish’s size and in the modern world of everything being as-a-service. Transport ourselves back a few weeks with a working website, app, etc. - what value would a full, or even part-time employee have? Any queries wouldn’t be directly IT related, but would involve the quality of listings, personal information, etc. which you’d have your admin team address.
I work in IT and whilst I have a technical background, I am effectively a service owner of an outsourced managed service. But that’s for a business 2000 times the size of Big Finish in headcount.
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Post by theillusiveman on Aug 13, 2024 12:36:28 GMT
Darn it’s about the same age as big finish Well there is no going back now Let’s hope big finish doesn’t suffer the same fate
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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 13:41:57 GMT
A very tight deadline/turnaround then I would imagine.
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Post by charlesuirdhein on Aug 13, 2024 15:26:03 GMT
A very tight deadline/turnaround then I would imagine. That's definitely an "oh hell" moment.
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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 15:48:15 GMT
A very tight deadline/turnaround then I would imagine. That's definitely an "oh hell" moment. They maybe were caught unawares ?
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Post by ivinsp on Aug 13, 2024 15:57:03 GMT
That's definitely an "oh hell" moment. They maybe were caught unawares ? I'm just wondering if BF had always wanted to 'improve' on the website/app but this put the wheels in motion earlier than they would have liked, just wondering if this was the case BF should have been more transparent and so many people might have been a little more understanding. Hopefully this can be sorted soon as I'd hate to think how much it's affecting sales as I'm not buying anything until it is sorted!
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Post by mark687 on Aug 13, 2024 19:20:44 GMT
Well at least people can find the site through search engines again.
EDIT
Page links also work showing the currant layout (even if they were copied before the new site)
Regards
mark687
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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 19:47:30 GMT
Well at least people can find the site through search engines again. EDIT Page links also work showing the currant layout (even if they were copied before the new site) Regards mark687 Who would be looking for it? Nothing is happening. No new releases. No news. No nothing. A Big Finish is coming...
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Post by Ela on Aug 13, 2024 19:52:36 GMT
I guess it's progress of a sort, if that's how you find the BF website. I have it bookmarked and apparently my bookmark from the old site still works.
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Post by nardolespinoffwhen on Aug 13, 2024 20:29:08 GMT
Well at least people can find the site through search engines again. EDIT Page links also work showing the currant layout (even if they were copied before the new site) Regards mark687 Who would be looking for it? Nothing is happening. No new releases. No news. No nothing. A Big Finish is coming... Please. Have a day off.
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Post by timleschild on Aug 13, 2024 20:53:12 GMT
Who would be looking for it? Nothing is happening. No new releases. No news. No nothing. A Big Finish is coming... Please. Have a day off. Use the ignore function if its a problem...
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