Donald Trump presents… WOWAY Apprentice: Game Play Thread

[TMBJon]

That makes sense. And what do you think of the pricing plan that each team came up with?

[Jigawatt]

I appreciate what Team Groovy was going for with the tiered pricing levels and that their lowest price point is far below the flat entrance fee proposed by Team Pobeda. Extra kudos on thinking of the military discount. However, what I do not like, and to me is a fatal planning error on the part of Team Groovy, is that they are offering a high-ticket VIP ticket where only the people who can shell out $100 get to have the band meet and greet experience. This doesn't seem to be in the spirit of what the convention should be about. If the con were to be graced with the presence of Al and the band, I'd much prefer the level playing ground of one-price-for-all and everyone gets the Q&A + photo/autograph session that Team Pobeda is proposing, with the Kickstarter backers getting the perk of moving to the front of the line (which still allows everyone to eventually have the experience). I get that Team Groovy might be taking inspiration from the Mandatory Czar experience that was offered on the 2015 leg of Al's tour... but I wasn't a fan of it there either! (I do understand it, but again, I don't think it's in the spirit of a fan convention to apply it here.)

Edge: TEAM POBEDA

[TMBJon]

Okay. What did you think of the advertisements each team made? Who do you think did a better job promoting the event?

[Jigawatt]

Just basing it off of the ad aesthetics, and the fact that they plan to use the promotion to prop up WOWAY...

Edge: TEAM POBEDA

[TMBJon]

That one really wasn’t close...

Okay, let’s get into the meat of this. What did you think of the booking and budgeting plans from each team?

[BullMoose]

@Jigawatt: Ha-ha, I forgot about the Czar thing completely! I had come back from Hal-Con after paying 200$ for a ticket. It included a dinner party with all the guests Saturday night, included front row seating to events at the main stage and a special lineup since they only sold 200~ of them. That's what I was referencing, and such tickets are very common for cons.

Man, I can't believe I forgot about Czar packages already!

[Jigawatt]

Okay, let’s get into the meat of this. What did you think of the booking and budgeting plans from each team?

Aside from the push I issued on Date/Location, the remaining judging might be the closest to being a toss up. I will say that since I have already penalized Team Groovy for the VIP issue in the Pricing category, I will set that part aside when making the remaining decisions so as not to set them further back a second time for the same issue.

I have to say that both conventions, in theory, sound like a lot of fun to attend! It's actually very difficult to pick apart the ideas and good intentions that went into both booking proposals... however, my role as judge is both a gift and a curse, so pick apart I must.

I also have to say that I appreciate that it seems like Team Groovy really wants to swing for the fences and have a one-hour live show put on just for the fans. It's not explicitly stated in the plan who is putting on this live show, but it seems implied that they think they can get Al and the band to perform at the con.

As someone who once lobbied to try and get Al booked for a show at his college many moons ago as part of the organization that did such things, and failed because it would have blown the budget and then some for the entire year... Al doesn't come cheap. And this was before the current era where I'm assuming his show is pricier than ever. The point is... as nice as it sounds, I don't think it's realistic. Past cons have lost money, and that's without attempting to pull something like this off. It's best to shoot for actually getting the guy to show up, say hi to everybody, maybe answer some questions and share a couple of stories, etc... expecting to put the guys to work just seems like asking too much. Also, this blurb:

"I think Al would be the easiest to reach, and we can mention that any surplus money we make can go to Nina’s education fund."

...sounds good in theory, but I'm sure Al & family have more than properly planned for Nina's education, and if such a surplus were to come about, Al might prefer that the money goes to a charity of his choice.

I'm going to withhold my judgement in this area for now, as I've already strayed into Itinerary territory here before being prompted by Mr. Trump, and I think I'll need to compose my remaining thoughts there before I issue my final decision...

[TMBJon]

Okay, fair enough, so let's hear the rest of it then: which team has a better proposed itinerary for their convention?

[Jigawatt]

Well, tying back to the previous category, I do like Team Groovy's idea of having vendors tables as a means of revenue as well as an attraction at the con, so long as such vendors are properly vetted. I also do like the idea of the viewing rooms running UHF/Weird Al Show + some notable Al appearances. One small note: the appearances selected seem heavily weighted toward recent times vs. a more "best of all time" approach.

There are a few of ideas between the two teams that are similar/the same that all sound great (karaoke, costume contest, art contest, etc.)

I feel like Team Pobeda may have some timing issues in a couple of areas in an effort to get everything in (for instance, I feel like the Game Night section might need more time to accommodate enough players). It seems like there was more time to play with within the constraints of the challenge, and it doesn't seem clear why they didn't utilize some more of that time. I also might shuffle around some of the items to try and pace the first half of the event a little better. They may also consider Team Groovy's approach to having a couple of Q&A sessions broken out vs. having one panel with every guest of honor that showed up packed into 45 minutes.

All that being said, Team Pobeda's schedule seems more realistically attainable. I love the idea of the Game Night inspired by Hollywood Game night, which is one reason why I've advocated above for it to be lengthened. I think the proposed slack key performance by Jim is a long shot, but not as much of a long shot as hoping for a full-band performance just based on what would go into making it happen, and would be worth exploring. It seems the Team Pobeda organizers realize this and haven't based the entire plan around it.

[TMBJon]

so long as such vendors are properly vetted.

This is a really good point. I think there should be some kind of registry or database set up that all vendors have to sign up for.
We must be able to keep track of all vendors that enter our convention in order to keep it secure!


Okay, thank you, Adrian! Wow. That was a really thorough analysis. I hope everyone learned a lot from your feedback.
And now, let’s hear what you’re thinking, though I think I see where this is headed...

Adrian, which team won this challenge?