Thoughts about show after our debrief & how to move forward

[TerraHawk]

To use an illustration. Its like having three roast dinners in one sitting…causes integestion, and stomach pain.

 

I'd say it was more an all you could eat buffet. I got 3 writers, about 40 graphic novel autographs about 15 paid autographs - and half of those from one person. ButI wouldn't have done the weekend for just the writers or comic people.

[Geekchic]

Having had time to sit back and think I perceive the problem was basically you had 3 cons in one. The YALC stuff should have been its own con, the stan lee and comicbook area could have been a con on its own. Then you had all the other guests signing and photos and stalls which was your third con.

So next time don't cram everything into one weekend. Spread it out a bit. To use an illustration. Its like having three roast dinners in one sitting…causes integestion, and stomach pain.

Quite right, three roast dinners but the dining room table wasn't big enough and the cutlery was plastic.

[farmer]

Some people are on here saying that these new packages will only be for the super rich, but that is not what I took from Jason's comment. It sounded to me that it would be something like £50 for a VIP ticket for a guest that gets you a photo and auto. Ok, i made up that figure but it'll probably be a bit more than the cost of both if you bought on the day, which seems right for the guarantee that you'll get them. I can't see it being too expensive and as long as they limit the amount it should still be possible for people to buy tickets the normal way. Personally I think it's a good idea.

 

Buuuuuuut some people don't want a photoshoot, and some don't want an autograph.

 

So in effect, you're forcing the photoshoot collectors to take an autograph, and the autograph collectors to take a photograph.

 

There are only so many autograph slots a day. Why waste them on people who don't want them?

[phillycheesesteak]

 

Some people on here are nuts....simply nuts - why argue with each other over something you will not decide upon and have neither the experience nor industry knowledge to say who is right or wrong.

We are all fans and the last thing we should do is turn on each other.

 

FYI - American cons are far - FAR more expensive....I should know I attend at least 5 a year in the states. We are lucky at the prices we get here....very lucky.

 

VIP individual guest passes work....simple as that and they always sell out in the states so clearly there are enough people willing to pay to guarantee the experience they want - as with everything in life / you get what you pay for. No one is entitled to see the guests for free etc or to still pay cheap prices. The only way you control numbers is simply price people out of the market - seems harsh but I think it's at least a way of not giving false hope and people will know where they stand.

I feel for anyone who can't get everything they want in life - but there are plenty of things I can't get and I never ever begrudge people who can.

As far as cons go I have a large budget and would be able to finance more expensive experiences so I am in favour of restricted ticket packages with auto/photo/meet and greet.

Please don't think I'm being a smug fellow here I am just being honest.

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

 

Just to be clear only on the most prestigious guests such as Stan Lee or other A/B list actors......there is only a limited amount of time and if say 5000 people want to meet person 'X' and there will only be enough time for 1000 to do so - then I simply would put the price of 'X' higher to limit the amount .....its called supply and demand. In effect this is exactly what happened with Stan Lee, Dealers, Gold Pass and Silver who pay a premium to be there got all they needed. So that's what was done for this event it just wasn't taken on board by attendees (despite SM warnings that the higher passes would give you the chance). Then at least people would know if you turn up on the day you would have virtually no chance of getting guest 'X'

 

So not putting the entry price up, not putting the regular guest price up.....just the top few guests. This has been done at many events.....I paid £250 auto and £255 photo for Stallone.....many more wanted it, but there was not enough time, so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

[Wrong Name]

 

 

Some people are on here saying that these new packages will only be for the super rich, but that is not what I took from Jason's comment. It sounded to me that it would be something like £50 for a VIP ticket for a guest that gets you a photo and auto. Ok, i made up that figure but it'll probably be a bit more than the cost of both if you bought on the day, which seems right for the guarantee that you'll get them. I can't see it being too expensive and as long as they limit the amount it should still be possible for people to buy tickets the normal way. Personally I think it's a good idea.

Buuuuuuut some people don't want a photoshoot, and some don't want an autograph.

 

So in effect, you're forcing the photoshoot collectors to take an autograph, and the autograph collectors to take a photograph.

 

There are only so many autograph slots a day. Why waste them on people who don't want them?

Maybe continue to do pre sold photos and start doing pre sold autos as well? Then people can buy separate or both together.

[stevie_g]

Showmasters:

 

Please don't use this weekend's issues as a springboard for getting yet more money out of people. The pricing structure is perfectly fine.

 

Most people just want better signage, ways to handle queues inside and outside like ropes and barriers, better use of space, complete honesty (if special guests aren't coming or there isn't one don't get peoples hopes up ie comic awards and GOT talk) transformers going to be huge this year etc, and less overcrowding.

 

If people are having a good time and are able to do so they will most likely spend more money anyway. Small but effective changes will pay off better than squeezing more out of people's con budget.

 

Do not forget that people travel far and wide to these things and make a big weekend of it. Chasing them off because they can't do as much may make you less money in the long run. It's loyalty and repeat custom that will keep the money coming in.

 

I love these events, I've had great experiences at them, and the same for many others. Let that continue.

Edited July 16, 2014 by stevie_g

[Starbuck17]

 

Some of the shoots were stupidly rushed this weekend. One photographer barely gave any time to get in front of the camera never mind get into a pose.

And we had crew members repeatedly telling us to get closer in the queue but any closer and in some countries that would be classed as being married.

Also one was a ghostbuster with a really cool proton pack, but sorry miss crew member, any closer and I might have had an eye put out. I kinda felt they were telling people to get closer without noticing how close we all were.

Some of the other crew were great though and really friendly, especially the cheerful brunette lady in D (I think it was) on saturday who took tickets.

Also the green screen shoots were great

 

 

I have to agree with this. I had one photo shoot with Lena Headly. I was so close to the girl in front of my i could feel the heat coming off of her. The person behind me was touching me the whole time. That doesn't sound to bad but I was right in the middle so was completely boxed in on all sides as we waited to shuffle in. It was a little like being at a cattle market and despite how close we were we kept getting told to get closer and closer. It was very uncomfortable especially in that heat. I get that a lot of people were queueing but it was seriously hard to breathe.

 

Then when I got in it felt like a sprint. There was a crew member shouting to go to Lena, a crew member shouting to leave Lena. I ran to her, looked at the camera, the picture was taken so quickly that I wasn't ready at all for it, then I was rushed away. I ended up getting a picture that I hate and to be honest am embarrised by. I won't be showing anyone that picture because I was read faced, sweaty, and not in the right position to have the picture taken. I barely had time to smile. For me £25 is A LOT of money and I wish i hadn't bothered because I was heartbroken with the results.

[farmer]

Much to what people think I have done sound professionally before and understand the issues with the super stage - believe me I tried everything to try and get it right, I have made suggestions about how the sound is set up in the future, it also doesn't help when some guests hold the mic to their mouth and others at waist height!

 

As for makig the event longer, bear in mind that most of us are volunteers and by the end of Sunday are completely burnt out, some of us work from 7am on the Thursday until late Sunday ( and some even longer than that). Maybe having a few of the bigger guests signing outside of show hours would work.

 

Cheers

 

Even when my football team were in the non-leauge they had a better sound system for their fans forums, than multimilion pound Showmasters have for paid talks - and believe it or not fans hold their microphones in various ways too.

 

With no disrispect intended. Isn't it time they employed full-time professionals to do things like this, as opposed to running it on a shoe string with volenteers.

 

It's time to get a bit more professional, and invest some money into some serious kit.

Edited July 16, 2014 by farmer

[TerraHawk]

 

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

 

 

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

 

 

Yes its always been that way, more so at events since autographs went above £25 IMO.

 

Would people have spent more on Carrie Fisher if she'd been £25 still? Probably. Easier to justify £100 on 4 autos than £130 on 2, in my case at least. Would she have seen more people? certainly not. If you don't have unlimited time you limit the queue another way.

[stevie_g]

 

Some of the shoots were stupidly rushed this weekend. One photographer barely gave any time to get in front of the camera never mind get into a pose.

 

And we had crew members repeatedly telling us to get closer in the queue but any closer and in some countries that would be classed as being married.

 

Also one was a ghostbuster with a really cool proton pack, but sorry miss crew member, any closer and I might have had an eye put out. I kinda felt they were telling people to get closer without noticing how close we all were.

 

Some of the other crew were great though and really friendly, especially the cheerful brunette lady in D (I think it was) on saturday who took tickets.

 

 

Also the green screen shoots were great

 

I have to agree with this. I had one photo shoot with Lena Headly. I was so close to the girl in front of my i could feel the heat coming off of her. The person behind me was touching me the whole time. That doesn't sound to bad but I was right in the middle so was completely boxed in on all sides as we waited to shuffle in. It was a little like being at a cattle market and despite how close we were we kept getting told to get closer and closer. It was very uncomfortable especially in that heat. I get that a lot of people were queueing but it was seriously hard to breathe.

 

Then when I got in it felt like a sprint. There was a crew member shouting to go to Lena, a crew member shouting to leave Lena. I ran to her, looked at the camera, the picture was taken so quickly that I wasn't ready at all for it, then I was rushed away. I ended up getting a picture that I hate and to be honest am embarrised by. I won't be showing anyone that picture because I was read faced, sweaty, and not in the right position to have the picture taken. I barely had time to smile. For me £25 is A LOT of money and I wish i hadn't bothered because I was heartbroken with the results.

That's a shame

[jael001]

 

Some people are on here saying that these new packages will only be for the super rich, but that is not what I took from Jason's comment. It sounded to me that it would be something like £50 for a VIP ticket for a guest that gets you a photo and auto. Ok, i made up that figure but it'll probably be a bit more than the cost of both if you bought on the day, which seems right for the guarantee that you'll get them. I can't see it being too expensive and as long as they limit the amount it should still be possible for people to buy tickets the normal way. Personally I think it's a good idea.

 

Buuuuuuut some people don't want a photoshoot, and some don't want an autograph.

 

So in effect, you're forcing the photoshoot collectors to take an autograph, and the autograph collectors to take a photograph.

 

There are only so many autograph slots a day. Why waste them on people who don't want them?

 

what a lot of nonsense, no-one will be forced to buy these packages and they'll be only for a few people, so if you still just want an autograph, you go and get your autograph as you always have done, and the same if you only want a photoshoot. It's just a guarantee for those who may want both and want to be sure they'll get it and are willing to pay a bit extra for it. I dont see the problem. Everyone's making it sound like it's the "only" option which it's clearly not.

[CiaranHayward1993]

Having a comic gold pass for the weekend, what really annoyed me wasn't that the Stan Lee meet & greet cancelled Saturday evening. It's completely understandable and having a small q&a with him was okay. But the fact that to compensate the 150(?) people there, 25 prizes were given out. How is that fair at all? Especially when the questions got so ridiculous to win prizes; If your birthday is near Stan's, have a prize! If you're wearing a Spidey shirt, have a prize!

 

I know this bit was run by Stan's agent/team but to appease 150 people, offering out 25 signed posters isn't fair.

[TonyStark78]

Nobody is blaming Stan Lee we understand he is 92! but tickets to see him were massively oversold. Why were VQ tickets (on Sunday) just handed out willy-nilly (numbers went way over 1000) when there is no way Stan could have physically signed this many in one day plus attend talks and photo sessions. I heard one member of staff (in Red) saying "if your number is up to 500 you stand a chance - a very small chance, but if you number is over this I don't fancy your chances!" if this is the case then why give our VQs way over 1000? Ticket numbers should be capped - end of !! Any pressure felt by Stan was caused by Showmaster ! Also why not have the one hall purely for Stan (i.e have his signings, photos, and talks all in one hall?) this would save Stan having to walk around from one hall to another throughout the day which I am sure would have helped him. Also we went on Sunday and didn't know which queue to join to get in when we arrived there was no signage. We asked one member of staff "do we queue in the Early Bird queue first to get in or can we queue to get into the Stan Lee Hall because we want to get a VQ ticket for an autograph" and she said "what do you want to do first?". We were under the impression before we arrived we had to go to the Early Bird queue first otherwise we wouldn't be able to get in to the Stan Lee hall but it turned out this wasn't the case. We decided to queue for the Stan Lee Hall as we didn't want to miss the opportunity for an autograph, but found when we got inside that we had to queue again for a VQ ticket and then overhear that its unlikely you will get one if your number is over 500 (ours was!!!). Health and Safety was horrendous, if there had been a fire it would certainly not have been easy to get everyone out. Also the food was way over priced over £2.00 for a 500ml bottle of water (you can buy this size of bottle from the supermarket for 50p) and to have sausage or bacon baps for sale (again over priced) only to be told when ordering that only hot dogs are available, again overpriced at nearly £4.00 - was the food pricing depicted by Showmaster or the venue?

[marty2015]

I had a great time as I always do and I'm very grateful to Showmasters for giving me the opportunity to meet my hero Stan Lee. My Hulk poster, previously signed by Lou Ferrigno, looks amazing with both autos on it!

 

My main issue at this event on both days I attended was QUEUE JUMPERS. I queued from 2.30 PM on Friday, which is 3.5 hours before the 6pm opening. When the doors were opened, people were travelling up the escalator from the car park and walking straight in with the crowd. We all know people queue jump, but most are too polite to say anything. I also had a three hour drive to the event and it makes me quite angry when people roll up two minutes before opening and walk right in.

[Starbuck17]

 

 

Some people on here are nuts....simply nuts - why argue with each other over something you will not decide upon and have neither the experience nor industry knowledge to say who is right or wrong.

We are all fans and the last thing we should do is turn on each other.

 

FYI - American cons are far - FAR more expensive....I should know I attend at least 5 a year in the states. We are lucky at the prices we get here....very lucky.

 

VIP individual guest passes work....simple as that and they always sell out in the states so clearly there are enough people willing to pay to guarantee the experience they want - as with everything in life / you get what you pay for. No one is entitled to see the guests for free etc or to still pay cheap prices. The only way you control numbers is simply price people out of the market - seems harsh but I think it's at least a way of not giving false hope and people will know where they stand.

I feel for anyone who can't get everything they want in life - but there are plenty of things I can't get and I never ever begrudge people who can.

As far as cons go I have a large budget and would be able to finance more expensive experiences so I am in favour of restricted ticket packages with auto/photo/meet and greet.

Please don't think I'm being a smug fellow here I am just being honest.

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

 

Just to be clear only on the most prestigious guests such as Stan Lee or other A/B list actors......there is only a limited amount of time and if say 5000 people want to meet person 'X' and there will only be enough time for 1000 to do so - then I simply would put the price of 'X' higher to limit the amount .....its called supply and demand. In effect this is exactly what happened with Stan Lee, Dealers, Gold Pass and Silver who pay a premium to be there got all they needed. So that's what was done for this event it just wasn't taken on board by attendees (despite SM warnings that the higher passes would give you the chance). Then at least people would know if you turn up on the day you would have virtually no chance of getting guest 'X'

 

So not putting the entry price up, not putting the regular guest price up.....just the top few guests. This has been done at many events.....I paid £250 auto and £255 photo for Stallone.....many more wanted it, but there was not enough time, so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

 

 

 

'so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.'

 

 

Yeh people on low incomes who save through the year to go to an event like this and have as much right as anyone else to meet guests. People with families trying to get by. Students who struggle on part time jobs. People with disabilities who rely on saving part of their benefits month after month to come, people living off national pensions, people who have to consider what they are going to have to give up for a little while in order to come to comic con. People just like some of the people on this forum who have to budget and save and scrimp. People who are just as much a fan as you are.

 

I cannot believe that anyone would openly suggest that this is the right idea moving forward. At the end of the day if you cannot afford to fly first or business class you can still buy an economy seat which is a guarantee that you will be on that flight.

 

Out charging a majority of people who come to your event DOESN'T make business sense.

 

The answer here is better organisation. NOT taking away the chance for people poorer than you to meet the people they love and admire.

 

This is an experience that should be open to all NOT just the privileged few.

[benweblight]

Also the food was way over priced over £2.00 for a 500ml bottle of water (you can buy this size of bottle from the supermarket for 50p) and to have sausage or bacon baps for sale (again over priced) only to be told when ordering that only hot dogs are available, again overpriced at nearly £4.00 - was the food pricing depicted by Showmaster or the venue?

 

The food prices are set by the vendors in Earl's Court. It's the same for all events there.

[Starbuck17]

 

 

Some of the shoots were stupidly rushed this weekend. One photographer barely gave any time to get in front of the camera never mind get into a pose.

 

And we had crew members repeatedly telling us to get closer in the queue but any closer and in some countries that would be classed as being married.

 

Also one was a ghostbuster with a really cool proton pack, but sorry miss crew member, any closer and I might have had an eye put out. I kinda felt they were telling people to get closer without noticing how close we all were.

 

Some of the other crew were great though and really friendly, especially the cheerful brunette lady in D (I think it was) on saturday who took tickets.

 

 

Also the green screen shoots were great

I have to agree with this. I had one photo shoot with Lena Headly. I was so close to the girl in front of my i could feel the heat coming off of her. The person behind me was touching me the whole time. That doesn't sound to bad but I was right in the middle so was completely boxed in on all sides as we waited to shuffle in. It was a little like being at a cattle market and despite how close we were we kept getting told to get closer and closer. It was very uncomfortable especially in that heat. I get that a lot of people were queueing but it was seriously hard to breathe.

 

Then when I got in it felt like a sprint. There was a crew member shouting to go to Lena, a crew member shouting to leave Lena. I ran to her, looked at the camera, the picture was taken so quickly that I wasn't ready at all for it, then I was rushed away. I ended up getting a picture that I hate and to be honest am embarrised by. I won't be showing anyone that picture because I was read faced, sweaty, and not in the right position to have the picture taken. I barely had time to smile. For me £25 is A LOT of money and I wish i hadn't bothered because I was heartbroken with the results.

That's a shame

 

 

It was. The picture is funny though, i shall pull it out when I need a good laugh lol

[zebredy]

Maybe they could get some of the bigger guests there a day early (or earlier on the preview day like they did with Stan Lee) just for say gold pass holders and stall holders to get their autographs, (I add dealers in here as they do pay a lot for their stalls and some of them can not easily get away from their stalls to get autos, plus the ones who want 5+ items signed would not be holding up the queue for all the other attendees)

 

One other thing I was thinking, to help with the queuing, get the gold pass holders in an hour earlier, after all the do pay extra for the gold passes so would make them even more valuable to have

Edited July 16, 2014 by zebredy

[stevie_g]

 

 

 

Some people on here are nuts....simply nuts - why argue with each other over something you will not decide upon and have neither the experience nor industry knowledge to say who is right or wrong.

We are all fans and the last thing we should do is turn on each other.

FYI - American cons are far - FAR more expensive....I should know I attend at least 5 a year in the states. We are lucky at the prices we get here....very lucky.

VIP individual guest passes work....simple as that and they always sell out in the states so clearly there are enough people willing to pay to guarantee the experience they want - as with everything in life / you get what you pay for. No one is entitled to see the guests for free etc or to still pay cheap prices. The only way you control numbers is simply price people out of the market - seems harsh but I think it's at least a way of not giving false hope and people will know where they stand.

I feel for anyone who can't get everything they want in life - but there are plenty of things I can't get and I never ever begrudge people who can.

As far as cons go I have a large budget and would be able to finance more expensive experiences so I am in favour of restricted ticket packages with auto/photo/meet and greet.

Please don't think I'm being a smug fellow here I am just being honest.

 

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

Just to be clear only on the most prestigious guests such as Stan Lee or other A/B list actors......there is only a limited amount of time and if say 5000 people want to meet person 'X' and there will only be enough time for 1000 to do so - then I simply would put the price of 'X' higher to limit the amount .....its called supply and demand. In effect this is exactly what happened with Stan Lee, Dealers, Gold Pass and Silver who pay a premium to be there got all they needed. So that's what was done for this event it just wasn't taken on board by attendees (despite SM warnings that the higher passes would give you the chance). Then at least people would know if you turn up on the day you would have virtually no chance of getting guest 'X'

 

So not putting the entry price up, not putting the regular guest price up.....just the top few guests. This has been done at many events.....I paid £250 auto and £255 photo for Stallone.....many more wanted it, but there was not enough time, so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

 

'so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.'

 

 

Yeh people on low incomes who save through the year to go to an event like this and have as much right as anyone else to meet guests. People with families trying to get by. Students who struggle on part time jobs. People with disabilities who rely on saving part of their benefits month after month to come, people living off national pensions, people who have to consider what they are going to have to give up for a little while in order to come to comic con. People just like some of the people on this forum who have to budget and save and scrimp. People who are just as much a fan as you are.

 

I cannot believe that anyone would openly suggest that this is the right idea moving forward. At the end of the day if you cannot afford to fly first or business class you can still buy an economy seat which is a guarantee that you will be on that flight.

 

Out charging a majority of people who come to your event DOESN'T make business sense.

 

The answer here is better organisation. NOT taking away the chance for people poorer than you to meet the people they love and admire.

 

This is an experience that should be open to all NOT just the privileged few.

You said it perfectly

[martincan]

 

 

 

 

Some people on here are nuts....simply nuts - why argue with each other over something you will not decide upon and have neither the experience nor industry knowledge to say who is right or wrong.

We are all fans and the last thing we should do is turn on each other.

FYI - American cons are far - FAR more expensive....I should know I attend at least 5 a year in the states. We are lucky at the prices we get here....very lucky.

VIP individual guest passes work....simple as that and they always sell out in the states so clearly there are enough people willing to pay to guarantee the experience they want - as with everything in life / you get what you pay for. No one is entitled to see the guests for free etc or to still pay cheap prices. The only way you control numbers is simply price people out of the market - seems harsh but I think it's at least a way of not giving false hope and people will know where they stand.

I feel for anyone who can't get everything they want in life - but there are plenty of things I can't get and I never ever begrudge people who can.

As far as cons go I have a large budget and would be able to finance more expensive experiences so I am in favour of restricted ticket packages with auto/photo/meet and greet.

Please don't think I'm being a smug fellow here I am just being honest.

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

Just to be clear only on the most prestigious guests such as Stan Lee or other A/B list actors......there is only a limited amount of time and if say 5000 people want to meet person 'X' and there will only be enough time for 1000 to do so - then I simply would put the price of 'X' higher to limit the amount .....its called supply and demand. In effect this is exactly what happened with Stan Lee, Dealers, Gold Pass and Silver who pay a premium to be there got all they needed. So that's what was done for this event it just wasn't taken on board by attendees (despite SM warnings that the higher passes would give you the chance). Then at least people would know if you turn up on the day you would have virtually no chance of getting guest 'X'

 

So not putting the entry price up, not putting the regular guest price up.....just the top few guests. This has been done at many events.....I paid £250 auto and £255 photo for Stallone.....many more wanted it, but there was not enough time, so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

'so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.'

 

 

Yeh people on low incomes who save through the year to go to an event like this and have as much right as anyone else to meet guests. People with families trying to get by. Students who struggle on part time jobs. People with disabilities who rely on saving part of their benefits month after month to come, people living off national pensions, people who have to consider what they are going to have to give up for a little while in order to come to comic con. People just like some of the people on this forum who have to budget and save and scrimp. People who are just as much a fan as you are.

 

I cannot believe that anyone would openly suggest that this is the right idea moving forward. At the end of the day if you cannot afford to fly first or business class you can still buy an economy seat which is a guarantee that you will be on that flight.

 

Out charging a majority of people who come to your event DOESN'T make business sense.

 

The answer here is better organisation. NOT taking away the chance for people poorer than you to meet the people they love and admire.

 

This is an experience that should be open to all NOT just the privileged few.

You said it perfectly

I agree. And as for the "300 economy" seats that the "not being smug realist" mentioned... they would only sell 300 tickets... not 800 pre-booked and tell people there would still be loads available on the day.

[Steve Green]

 

I've much preferred Olympia to EC2, not sure if that's considered too small now, but it at least has the balconies to retreat to.

You could probably get more people in at Olympia, but you would probably need to take 3 venues looking at this. I suspect that the logistics (and cost) of that would be too problemmatical. (The same considerations probably also rule out them hiring the conference centre there for decently-staged talks).

 

Hi,

 

Looking at the capacity, the National hall has about 3800 more than Brompton Hall, and Olympia Grand about 750 less than EC2. So even 2 would still offer more than the combination this weekend. (Olympia also seems a bit airier and doesn't have the awful yellow tinged lights)

 

Having a separate area for talks is just a personal bugbear, my main take would be to concentrate on making the guest photos/autos a pleasant experience. If that is a miserable experience because of crowding, then they should rein back on arcade machines/stalls/cardboard standees etc.

 

Yes, these extras are nice to have - but the guests are the priority.

[Kuato_Lives]

The way forward is more 80's film star guests & horror icons, well at least for me anyway

 

Maybe do away with photoshoots for some of the more minor guests that only sell enough tickets to fill a 5-10 minute slot, most of those types are happy to do over the table photos anyway. Then maybe the photoshoots will be less rushy rushy, totally been noticing a drop in the standard of them over the past year as I mentioned in another thread that I'm seeing photos (And also have one myself) that aren't lined up properly.

[Geekchic]

 

 

Some people on here are nuts....simply nuts - why argue with each other over something you will not decide upon and have neither the experience nor industry knowledge to say who is right or wrong.

We are all fans and the last thing we should do is turn on each other.

 

FYI - American cons are far - FAR more expensive....I should know I attend at least 5 a year in the states. We are lucky at the prices we get here....very lucky.

 

VIP individual guest passes work....simple as that and they always sell out in the states so clearly there are enough people willing to pay to guarantee the experience they want - as with everything in life / you get what you pay for. No one is entitled to see the guests for free etc or to still pay cheap prices. The only way you control numbers is simply price people out of the market - seems harsh but I think it's at least a way of not giving false hope and people will know where they stand.

I feel for anyone who can't get everything they want in life - but there are plenty of things I can't get and I never ever begrudge people who can.

As far as cons go I have a large budget and would be able to finance more expensive experiences so I am in favour of restricted ticket packages with auto/photo/meet and greet.

Please don't think I'm being a smug fellow here I am just being honest.

Us fans shouldn't turn on each other but you think that SM should price some of us out? Nice, real nice!

 

Just to be clear only on the most prestigious guests such as Stan Lee or other A/B list actors......there is only a limited amount of time and if say 5000 people want to meet person 'X' and there will only be enough time for 1000 to do so - then I simply would put the price of 'X' higher to limit the amount .....its called supply and demand. In effect this is exactly what happened with Stan Lee, Dealers, Gold Pass and Silver who pay a premium to be there got all they needed. So that's what was done for this event it just wasn't taken on board by attendees (despite SM warnings that the higher passes would give you the chance). Then at least people would know if you turn up on the day you would have virtually no chance of getting guest 'X'

 

So not putting the entry price up, not putting the regular guest price up.....just the top few guests. This has been done at many events.....I paid £250 auto and £255 photo for Stallone.....many more wanted it, but there was not enough time, so higher price takes one section of the queue out of the mix.

 

This isn't a new idea....think airplane seats, 14 First, 72 Business, 40 Premium, 300 economy.........THIS IS HOW THE WORLD WORKS.......I'm just being a realist.

 

You're right, this is happening in the world, very much so in this country too but I (and many others) would argue that it isn't working!!! SM would loose a huge bulk of their custom and it would turn into a huge 'dealers only' affair. Not something anyone wants, including SM I would imagine.

 

A bigger venue is all that is needed and to some respects a limit to the amount of things going on. Quality over quantity.

 

Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of a cancer cell - Edward Abby.

[eccheetham]

Thank you Jason. I pre bought a standard entry ticket for Saturday 2 to 3 weeks before the event. i arrived at around 11:00 and got in around 11:30 so not too long a wait. it was a squeeze to get tin and there was much pushing and shoving but thankfully no injuries. i did manage to get photo opps and autographs with everyone i wanted. I highly agree with the need to only sell Saturday tickets on line as this is always the busiest day. Thankfully i was not wanting to meet Stan Lee as i predicted the queue to be a like long and knew it was futile with the sheer number of fans and though it best to let those who REALY wanted to meet him get the opportunity on the day. I'm glad out voices are being heard and this thread has been made. Thank you again Jason. i know things will be improved for next year. keep up the good work.

[Dent_1]

I am ways grateful for Jason's involvement on the forums but sometimes we could really go with some more concrete promises "for next time "

 

I would like to hear:

"We are sorry that many of you who travelled far and wide did not get to see guests they wanted.

Next time...

- We will NOT hand out several VT tickets to one person at the same time. One per person.

- We WILL take take VT tickets from you when you join the queue.

- We WILL limit every attendee to a maximum of 5 autographs, whether an attendee, a dealer, a gold pass holder, or regular ticket. If you want more autographs you will have to get another VT ticket or join if/when the guest becomes open queue."

 

Why can't we hear something reassuring like that????

 

These are simple solutions that would result in a better show for more people if Showmasters actually bothered to police it.

 

I do not have gold pass envy as I have ALWAYS got everyone and everything I have wanted on a regular or early bird ticket (including this show) but I take massive issue with a gold ticket holder being able to go straight to the front on a Stan Lee or Carrie Fisher queue to get 20 items signed meaning many others miss out. 5 is a reasonable number of autographs for anyone.

 

Capping NEEDS to be sorted so all attendees have a fair shot at meeting their heroes. I have never seen such abuse of the quantity of autos by singular attendees as at this event - it ruins the show for so many people.