So much so that I over-capitalise my titles – see what it drives me to?
Just a little brief rant, but I get soo many bubblemails from some groups, sometimes just too many all on different and unnecessary topics, or to say that there is 8 hours till the challenge closes… then 4 hours…. then 2 hours… then 1 hour…. then 30 minutes… then just 18 minutes!…. Okay I am exaggerating a bit here but its the kind of thing I see.
With my groups (i’m not being up myself here btw) we generally try to limit group bubblemails to one per week MAX, and it generally ends up as one a month.
The most annoying thing though is the classic ‘link didn’t work’ or picture didn’t show up in the first bubblemail scenario… That could so easily be avoided to prevent double bubblemails like that.
How?
Send the bubblemails to yourself first! So write the links into the group bubblemail window, copy it into a bubblemail to yourself and send it and check all the links etc. work, and only then send the actual bubblemail once you have checked it all works… doesn’t that make sense? The other method it to create it in a journal or as a forum thread first so you can get the links right there before sending the group bubblemail.
It’s very clear when a host hasn’t done this as they send a second bubblemail straight afterwards saying oops wrong link or oops whatever…. and then instantly, nobody can be bothered to read them. It’s the hosts loss.
And if you don’t have time to check, then unless its urgent (why would you need to do complex linking if it’s urgent i wonder?) why not wait till you DO have time to check… or ask another host to do it (no groups can function properly without 2 hosts really). Meanwhile, errors or points missed in initial bubblemails can also be avoided if hosts work together on them a bit more…
“Could you just check this bubblemail/make sure i covered everything in this bubblemail/whatever.”
The best way for hosts to work is to not rely only on the bubblemail system. instant messaging can do wonders here- take advantage of it! Get windows live messenger, and use it when necessary to sort out things and actually physically work on the group together, on featuring… whatever!
Sorry for the rant, but just had to say it… any group hosts who read this and who know they have made this mistake quite a few times…
You know it makes sense!
H M Bascom
Current Issues sends out group bubble mail once each month to announce the Featured Artist of the Month and the Challenges/Winners. Perhaps the reason you receive so much group bubble mail is that you belong to a large number of groups.
In my opinion, the host of RedBubble Groups should not have to rely on any system outside RedBubble to relay messages to members of the groups. RedBubble established groups and the group bubble mail method of communicating with all members of the group simultaneously.
Perhaps you can open a thread in Feedback & Suggestions and suggest that RedBubble offer group members the option to opt out of group bubblemail.
Jonathan Dower:
They aren’t the points I was making, Helen.
I’m saying use IM programs for inter-host communications so that you can check links and stuff and agree what you are working on and need to talk about to minimize group bubblemails.
Meanwhile, YES, i DO belong to a lot of groups but that’s not the point I was trying to make, and i thought i made that pretty clear. It’s the ones where a single group (and yes, i do look at which group each came from) sends out far too many- an unnecessary number often – and also mistakes which then result in yet another one.
I was not at all complaining about the group bubblemail system, which works exactly how I would like it to be.
Perhaps I should rewrite this whole journal entry then if somehow you got out of it the idea that i was complaining about the total number of group bubblemails i receive or the system used…
H M Bascom
Yes, I agree that group bubble mail should not contain mistakes with the links and all information should be as accurate as possible with the first draft. But, the RB environment takes a little while to master. One suggestion I would make to any person sending a long bubble mail with several links, send it to yourself first. Copy the bubblemail to notepad or other text program and then send yourself the bubblemail before sending out to the group. It fast, easy and you can see immediately if you made mistakes in the links or spelling, or information. Just a suggestion to any hosts reading this journal.
I didn’t mean to sound like I was jumping on you. I wasn’t. :-)
Jonathan Dower:
isn’t that suggestion something I put in the journal anyway?
Or have i actually completely screwed up writing it….
H M Bascom
P.S. I probably misread your journal. Oh just ignore me. LOL
Jonathan Dower:
lols dw bout it
Alice Oates
i completely agree with you there Jonny. Also, number of groups has nothing to do with the number of bms you get if one group sends out about four a day…
Remember when Loz pointed this out to a host, and therefore that host sent out ANOTHER group bm saying ‘sorry if i send too many but im going to keep on doing so’?
Jonathan Dower:
LOL yes i remember that (I wish I had put it in the journal in the first place).
tnx alice
Sam Mortimer
True… some hosts relay every detail of their personal lives/redbubble lives to all group members. I’m thinking of one group in particular here…. I can’t name them, because of the play nice policy! Also, in response to something Helen Bascom said, people who haven’t yet mastered the RB environment shouldn’t necessarily be group hosts, responsible for an important segment of the bubble… at least, that’s what I think, but there are arguments every way.