NESP Forum

Because the membership kit designed to generate good will for Taylor and remind everyone he's still around.

Not everyone loves the internet as much as we do.

Tossing my 2 cents into the discussion. I am not picking the gift apart, but I do agree a slip of paper with holiday greetings "from" TH, even if it was really from his PR people would have been nice. You know.. even if it is BS.. having a current "hi folks I am thinking of you" type of thing on HQ would go a long way toward people feeling that there is an interest in the fans. I am not saying I want to be snookered, but all along I have felt there was not a lot of effort made in this area. I did not intend to complain about the gift, no matter what, but here I am. I guess this is more about the huge number of fans that seem to have drifted away because they feel there is little appreciation for their dedication. Little interest in who the people are still posting on the sites in support of TH. Some will say just admire TH and his music and love what he does for us in concert yada yada.. but I feel it would have taken very, very little effort to toss some good will around. Blast me if you want.. I won't say this "out there" .. but have had the need to say it and will do so among friends.. so there it is.

I didn't either. Maybe soon??????????

I'm not sure where (on which site) all the complaining is.
I posted once on Boogie about being happy with the kit and mentioned that a brief note would have been nice. I was in no way b*tching. IMHO a short form letter to the members of THHQ would have been not only professional but a nice jesture....it would have personalized it and made more fans who may be on the fence about renewing go ahead and renew in ' 08. I do not need a thank you from Taylor because I have been to 7 shows where he thanks us profusely and I believe he means it!
Personally I expect only news about Taylor and pre-sale concert tickets from the fan club. The messages/blogs from Taylor are awesome and the M&Gs are a huge bonus. I would happily pay $25 each year for membership and I do not expect any "kits" in the future.
That's my 2 cents ladies.....

Well.....I never expected any gift or anything from HQ, but I have heard that other fansites usually do send something like an autographed picture. Two of the items - I don't know what to do with. One of the items is adorable, even though the directions didn't work for me! The fourth item is nice.

My idea, but does anyone listen to me, noooooooooooooo
was for Taylor to make a CD with one Christmas carol on it - they maybe could have done it homemade and mass burned them. I don't think anyone would have complained about that, but maybe it was too expensive or involved and people probably would have found something to complain about anyway.

It's okay - they didn't need to send anything as far as I'm concerned and I love the one item a lot.

I think the one mistake was the constant saying it was coming and it wasn't. They shouldn't have been saying it was coming until it was in the mail. But I'm good.

I'm still waiting for mine too Amy-- don't be sad....

A fine idea, Diane. The Beatles used to send out 45 rpm records! (those are the small ones with big holes for you youngsters... )
These days you could do a "secret code" for a download.

YAY!!!
I got mine today, and it is really cute...

A download or Xmas cut would have been AWESOME!! Great ideas! I'm fine with what we got given that you get what you pay for The Meet & Greets are priceless Good seats a definite perk. I just think a little thought and creativity can go a long way and would not have to cost a lot of money. After all, right now HQ is his main voice to his fans. I agree with Diane, the build up towards the kits really built up expectations as well. Had they just not made a big deal and just sent them out early on there may have been a different reaction.

I also agree the SP can be a tough group to satisfy (except if you stick Taylor in front of our faces and then we're remarkably docile ) but like Amy said, we care. People want to see the best for him in every area of his business. It also seems like the SP is made up of many independent and creative thinkers and they have ideas-often good ones I'm guessing the powers that be at HQ are not the "fan" types and maybe don't get what would make fans happy.

Picture this HQ kit for probably the same money. A free download or holiday song as suggested. A button "Follow me to a Taylor Hicks concert" or some other cute slogan "I voted for Taylor Hicks"(they cost about 30 cents to make in bulk). A Holiday card with a fun message signed by Taylor and copied. Some Taylor stickers (June made me some that I loved ). Nothing expensive, but more personal. Maybe little promo business cards the SP could just happen
to leave around public places to promote his site/CD.

Diane,
I agree with your thought re: not saying anything at all until it was mailed and the CD would have been a cute idea - but your followup comment ties in exactly to what the deeper problem is for me because unfortunately you're right - it wouldn't have fared any better.

The card /no card and the contents are non-issues for me - - the real issue is that someone who reads on several sites predicted "whine with a smattering of superiority" as soon as they noticed the mention of the membership kits being sent.  The person bet me that within minutes of the first kits being received someone would point out a flaw and open the door for criticism because that is what Taylor's fans are known for doing.
At first it made me angry, partially due to a pointed gender bias, so I made the bet that I lost.   
Then it just made me sad because I knew it was true and it really didn't matter one bit what was in them, for some it wouldn't be quite right - or be enough - or be as good as some other something someone got sometime from somewhere/someone/something - or fit every single persons individual idea of what should be in them and so on.  Meet and Greet deja vu all over again (with apologies to Mr. Berra)
Personally I think the stuff is neat, suits a variety of tastes and ages, and as sturgess touched on at boogie - it's stuff a guy would pick out - so I also find it endearing.
I wonder if Taylor is learning that the more he does the less it is appreciated.
The old maxim for volunteers and businesses is this:  be careful what you do because
a wow becomes a wish
a wish becomes a want
a want becomes an expectation
an expectation becomes a need
a need becomes a demand
that expands and can never be satisfied

BTW don't speculate - none of you know the person who bet me - just a long time multi-artist fan who from time to time lends an outside perspective, occasionally has tidbits, enjoys serious conversations and helps keep things real for me.