FEEDBACK: You can affect the direction of Pregame.com

A question I get sometimes on local radio is what brought me into this business. My answer is always the same: Being a bettors since the age of 14 (ahhh, that first 4 teamer winner . . . $20 paid $200!), I never could find the help I wanted.

Before the Internet it was a total joke - your choices were scammer TV shows and free pick phones (I couldn't put the long distance on my parent's phone, so I pumped the pay phones full of quarters).

The Internet improved things a ton . . . but still I dreamed of 1) bringing the sharpest people together to help each other win; 2) being able to share my ups and downs with others living the same life.

So one day I decided if I really wanted it I'd have to build it myself.

And years later (with TONS of help) here we are.

We could rest on our successes to date, but to me the dream is just beginning. All the work so far only gives us A CHANCE to take the next step.

And that's the thing: this is a dream for me. And dreams are about the vision of the dreamer. Like any smart, hard-working American, I personally have many options where to apply my energy - and I decide to apply my energy (60+ hours a week of it) to Pregame.com. And the reason for that is I have a dream - and my vision tells me there's a best way to achieve that dream:

Create a platform where AS MANY sharp bettors as possible are motivated to contribute. Pregame.com's long-term success will be most affected by our ability to provide the highest quality of information worth betting.

In the broadest sense, there are two categories of motivation for contributors.

1) The satisfaction of being part of and giving back to the community.

2) Money

For some what matters is one or the other - for others it is a combination.

I AM WILLING TO BET PREGAME.COM on the fact that a platform that allows the best handicappers in the world to make extra money from their hard work will result in the greatest collection of sports betting talent ever assembled.

Yet, to me it is A MUST that such a platform does not interfere with contributors a) whose primary focus is satisfaction of giving back to the community; b) who are not willing or able to put in the time or effort required to be a Pro.

Finding this balance is where you come in.

I think we are close, but I strongly believe that with your help and feedback I can better understand the best way to maximize the contribution and enjoyment of all.

So let's talk about it . . . And at the end of this discussion (I expect it will take at least a few days) we will formally REDEFINE the Pregame.com mission of helping bettors get ready.

The only conditions of this discussion are showing each other respect (as always), and having an open mind . . .

First question:

If I told you that tomorrow I could add TEN (10) Pregame Pros who would contribute as much free content plus the same quality pay content as Vegas Runner, would you want that?

If you say NO, please explain your reasons . . .

Quite frankly I think I can sum up the frusterations of a most of us on the forums. I dont think any of us really care how many Pros are or arent on this site, there could be 1 or 100 and it wouldnt affect the culture of the forums one bit. The issue that I think most of us have is that there is a race on in the forums to see who can sell more packages every day. On any given day there are 5 to 7 threads of nonsense promo with a token free play. What makes things worse is the constant "bumping" of threads from the pros... its always ironic how Goodfella's posts are always on the top... and when they arent he goes in and thanks somebody for wishing him good luck or posts for the 3rd or 4th time that day what he is selling or reposts his free pick.

I think for the majority of us, we are here to share picks and get the best information and discussions we can. Most of us dont want to sift through a bunch of nonsense threads to find the valuable information. When somebody new posts here they dont even get looked at because they are drowned out by all these tout threads and what not.

What I think will help re-energize the forums is by getting rid of 90% of these tout threads. If they were eliminated, the forums would be full of discussions and plays and trends and analysis without having to sift through a bunch of promo stuff. Im not sure if we know what percentage of people come to the forums to buy stuff and what percentage come for the forums themselves, but I have a good feeling almost all of the "forum traffic" is here for free information and not to be touted. However I could be wrong on that. 

I understand Pregame is a business and I agree that they should add as many cappers if that makes them the most money, but I think most of us on the forums want our forums to be as tout free as possible and filled with the best information possible.

People like Ben Burns and Marc Lawrence and Rocky Atkinson are on this site and dont come on here and tout their plays every day and they seem to be doing fine(I can only assume if they didnt sell anything Pregame would get rid of them) so why is it fair that the cappers who are touting on the forums daily get to dominate the market?

The other major problem I see with these daily tout threads is that they all include the one "token free pick". Lets dont kid ourselves, most pros only put them in because they have to or else by rule they cannot promote. Goodfella has done a few blog write ups that were previewing games, and it was filled with great analysis and info and stats. Information like that is invluable to the forum, but putting a daily token free pick is just useless in my opinion. As a pro on this site you should only give out plays you are betting yourself, and I highly doubt many pros here are playing their free plays... most release plays that "just missed" their cards. Giving free picks should be done like Evan Altemus and VR and GF who give away free 'premium' plays.

So we can all kid ourselves and think that these pros are contributing "more info after they become pros" but all bullshit aside that is not true. Not too many of them ever go "above and beyond" and contribute something more than a free pick they dont even play. 

In conclusion of my last post, these are the action points that I believe will make the FORUMS a better place for the regulars.

- Less touting threads

- Requiring that pros actually provide free content that is usable to the every day handicappernot just token non premium free plays

I think if those 2 things were implemented, the forums will become more "old school" and will draw a bigger crowd over time... Thoughts... ideas?

You make some really thought provoking points, Apathy . . .

But, let's make sure we rely on facts when talking about the evolution of the Forums:

In the last 24 hours we've had 550 posts of contribution.
Last year, during the first two weeks of July, we averaged 270 posts a day.
MORE THAN DOUBLE.

We are up over 50% in page views.

Pregame.com and the Forums are growing - that's a fact . . . the question is can we improve the direction even more.

Apathyxnext:

In conclusion of my last post, these are the action points that I believe will make the FORUMS a better place for the regulars.

- Less touting threads

- Requiring that pros actually provide free content that is usable to the every day handicappernot just token non premium free plays

I think if those 2 things were implemented, the forums will become more "old school" and will draw a bigger crowd over time... Thoughts... ideas?

Apathy, I guess I see some of this differently than you.  So you're saying you don't want my free pick threads because I also post a sentence or two promoting a pick for sale?

As I've said many times, I keep track of ALL of my plays on an Excel spreadsheet and that includes my freebies. I only release one (sometimes two, but rarely) premium play per day, so I can't give it out for free. But my freebies are still plays. And my freebies have hit for 57% in my five months as a Pro here. So you don't want those winners?

Maybe you weren't even referring to me, but just in case you were including me, I wanted to ask.  I would think you'd have more of a problem with the Pros that NEVER come into the forum to give out free picks (not mentioning any names, as everyone knows who they are).

I think we need to add 10 more.

I'm looking at the right side of the screen, below news wire, to the left of pro picks and above the forums link. Isn't free pick belong in the free pick link.

One suggestion that I have is to eliminate all the Good Luck, it is really necessary? how is a "good luck" contributing anything? I would rather see a reply as to why you like the pick or dislike it, rather than a lazy good luck. I guess one person wishing good luck is not enough. 

RJ,

I think the pregame community would most appreciate the listings of each and every Pregame Pro's long term track record.  I know this has been a hot topic for quite sometime now.  And i'm not sure if it is in the works, but I would definitely say Pregame would be the first to do this.  I hear it often, "stick with the Pro long term and in the end, you will win."  "The only way you lose is if you stop betting a Pro's plays when he's cold".  Of course, it's true, "it's a marathon...not a sprint". 

But in all honesty, I think a consumer would want to see a Pro's long term record before he commits to a long term package.  Wouldn't you agree.  There is alot of Short Term "What I have done lately" advertising....and I know it's part of promoting yourself....but why is it that Pregame has not come to an answer to providing a long term track record.  Sifting through the previous nights package of each pro would be too much time consuming.  I know there's the Sports Monitor, but I believe not all of the Pregame Pros are monitored there. 

Once again, I know this topic has already been touched upon, and I am sorry if I am just kicking a dead horse, but if I was asked how I would change or add something to Pregame that stuck out amongst other sports betting websites, I would add a feature or link that would list each Pregame Pro's long term track record.  And not just an overall record, but one in each sport. 

After all, why wouldn't I want to showcase my elite team of Pregame Pro's production over the long haul

Hope this helps RJ.

Marquez

 The problem with that is, well, it would hurt sales.