Recruitment Over Retention

[Gaikoku-hito 2,134]

This might be a hot take or rather simple viewed from a different point of view but I think the league as whole might be going about league growth the wrong way. While I am not one to point the finger since I don`t have the answers I can see the numbers once they are presented to me and I am surprised no one as of yet has actually said anything.

 

 

Where to start and I guess the logical place to start will be when I started going wow!! Which started with this article below:

 

 

https://vhlforum.com/topic/133222-activeinactive-users-update/#comment-973390

 

 

The number of accounts created during the period of 2013 to the end of the data trail is clearly amazing with 4910 new accounts created meaning the recruitment crew did either a fantastic job getting new members to create new players or they mislead a lot of the new members into thing the league was something else. Reason I mention this is when I first joined the league from a Youtube sponsorship ad; I was given the impression from the influencer that this was more like be a pro in any of the EA NHL games. To quickly learn that nope this was nothing like be a pro since I had very little control over my players ability to perform and I would be set down this rabbit hole of having to work for TPE. I remember starting my player then think nope this is too much like work for me but a few days later I came back and actually started learning how to earn TPE.

 

 

What I am trying to say is great job recruitment team at getting members into the league but when we look at the numbers season on seasons, we as a league have clearly failed.

 

 

We have a 92% failure rate when it comes to keeping players active and at first I thought this was going to fluctuate a lot between season but this wasn`t really the case with the worse season being at the time of writing this 2015 with 97.37% of the user going inactive but also sort of make sense since it is also one of the further removed from present day and that fact that numbers are slightly moving in the right direction means what? We are doing a slightly better job at retaining new members? Or is it just a reflection of time not claiming those few more to bring the percentage higher. Either way 92% failure rate is only a 8% success rate!!

 

 

But here we are just half week removed from this numbers being presented and we are once again going to kick off a recruitment drive with huge awards for members to bring in new member or returning members and while I am all for increasing our numbers and strengthening the league. Sadly, the numbers don`t lie!! This isn`t going to work as we still haven`t dealt with the main issue; which is clearly retention of the members that have joined the league.

 

 

We have 387 active members of 4910 that have joined the league. Imagine how much stronger the league would be if we could retain 10% (491) , 15% (736) or even 25% (1227) of those members. This is where I think we need to place more focus rather than rewarding members for bring new members or returning members just to watch 92% of them leave the league.

 

 

Like I said I don`t have the answer on how to retain new members but it is clear we are failing as league!!

Edited February 21, 2023 by Gaikoku-hito

[jacobcarson877 2,561]

I think you're right, but I also know that we can't retroactively retain players from before. I think the infrastructure and organization of the league, while imperfect, is the best it has ever been to retain players. The VHLM has resources unlike ever before, and discussion has been had on how to address the new member experience and organize our league structure to best handle the TPE/experience demographics we have, and address the TPE ranges where we lose the most of our players. With the membership size we have today, recruitment is more about maintaining the influx of players to match the natural and inevitable departure of members over time. With a brand new draft class to fill now that the 9 season rotation has begun instead of the old 8 season one, the push for recruitment makes sense, but obviously the goal needs to be to keep as many of those members around, so that we can maintain stability in our cycles and have a healthy recreate to first gen balance going forward.

[Beketov 9,100]

7 hours ago, Gaikoku-hito said:

I was given the impression from the influencer that this was more like be a pro in any of the EA NHL games.

Historically we’ve given the YouTubers too much freedom with the scripts I think and it has led to a lot of them making that comparison because it’s the easiest to explain. Problem is that easy to explain and accurate are two very different things. You certainly aren’t the only one given that wrong impression.

 

7 hours ago, Gaikoku-hito said:

fact that numbers are slightly moving in the right direction means what? We are doing a slightly better job at retaining new members?

Yes but also time = member loss. It’s an inevitable thing, the longer people are here for the more likely they are to leave. The data points from more than a few years ago are more of “well that’s interesting” than they are valid to a discussion like this because ultimately people get tired over time and leave for various reasons we can’t control.

 

7 hours ago, Gaikoku-hito said:

But here we are just half week removed from this numbers being presented and we are once again going to kick off a recruitment drive with huge awards for members to bring in new member or returning members and while I am all for increasing our numbers and strengthening the league. Sadly, the numbers don`t lie!! This isn`t going to work as we still haven`t dealt with the main issue; which is clearly retention of the members that have joined the league.

I mean the immediate mindset that it’s going to fail doesn’t help much but yes, you are right: why focus on recruitment when retaining seems like more of the concern? Because we have to, at least at this stage. Because of the gap created by S80 players not being forced to retire the usual influx of recreates doesn’t exist this season which means we need to basically build a draft class from the ground up and hope our efforts that have gone towards retention have helped. That or we brute force so many members that even an 8% success rate is a decent amount, the old Beaviss recruiting method from covid times.

[thadthrasher 1,692]

Another thing we must consider in this discussion is the medium by which the VHL functions primarily. Allow me to elaborate.

 

The VHL has been operating for over 15 years now. Around the time that the VHL began, blogging was still an incredibly popular medium. In fact, in 2005 it was reported that around 32 million Americans read blogs. At this time, iPod touches weren't even a thing yet. As technology has advanced quickly over the last 23 years, the way in which people are entertained, communicate, and even learn has changed. When I was a kid I would come home from school, log into AIM (as long as my mom wasn't on the phone), and would have maybe an hour to talk with a few friends through written messages. Today, people have constant contact, and most people spend their downtime scrolling through short videos that are usually 30-120 seconds in length. The number of people who listen to audiobooks and podcasts is at an all-time high. A little under a year ago it was reported by the NAEP that only 1 in 3 thirteen-year-olds picked up a book to read for fun. This also comes with the alarming fact that mathematic and reading test scores are at an all-time low in the US. And now the question that remains is this, What does any of this have to do with the VHL?

 

I'm glad you asked. The primary content found on the VHL is written content. Everything from articles to announcements and in-between. Staff writes to one another to discuss problems and create solutions and most reports, like mine that you referenced, come with data points and charts that must be read and comprehended. The VHL, as a primarily writing-based forum, is trying to survive in an age where audio-visual is the preferred form of entertainment. Most people don't go to their blogs to write about their opinions anymore, they go to TikTok. And, if they do write something it's usually within a few hundred characters allowed on Twitter.

 

While this may not create a solution to the perceived problem, I believe it helps us to understand why retention is hard in this field. 

[Daniel Janser 2,215]

43 minutes ago, thadthrasher said:

While this may not create a solution to the perceived problem, I believe it helps us to understand why retention is hard in this field. 

What also needs to be considered, not everyone of us is a native English speaker. For my usual Media spot, it takes me the better part of two hours to create same. One of the reasons is because I have to restructure my sentences as I still think in German and have to basically re-do the MS from head to paper (okay screen, but you get the point). And I am fluent in English, read English books and work in a company whose day-to-day language is English. This is time consuming and a barrier already for a lot of people in this fast paced world. 

 

The reward is also not immediate (and I am not even referring to getting the update approved) compared to social media where a 50 character statement renders immediate response in likes etc. I am honest here (and try not to be judgemental): whoever read Gustav's magnum opus about the best players of every fucking draft year (where Janser was FISTED ANALLY BY A CIRCUS MONKEY btw) is a hero to me. So I understand that people will not read my Media spot as it is mainly about my brother and me and tends to be lengthy. So I can deal with the lack of 'reward'.

 

And finally, if I do not want to just spam written diarrhea but have a structured, well presented, reasonably acceptable styled and mostly grammatically correct piece of work, I need to put effort in it. Effort which not everybody is inclined (or able) to put in.

 

If we combine it with the perceived 'we want max earners only' attitude (which again is not necessarily the case, but can easily come across like this) the cards are stacked against retention. If we now also allow that people tend to move on from hobbies for various reasons, it is to be expected. After all how many of your Highschool Football team mates are still playing football on a regular basis? And in five years? or ten? 

[Gaikoku-hito 2,134]

On 2/21/2023 at 10:58 PM, thadthrasher said:

Around the time that the VHL began, blogging was still an incredibly popular medium. In fact, in 2005 it was reported that around 32 million Americans read blogs. At this time, iPod touches weren't even a thing yet. As technology has advanced quickly over the last 23 years, the way in which people are entertained, communicate, and even learn has changed

So if I am reading this correctly you are saying that  I am old!! LOL!!! As I was one of those individuals as not only did a I read blogs but I even tried my hand at blogging for a while!! LOL!! All jokes a side some great insight and scary to think maybe I should keep my children away from devices, TV etc... and lightly suggest that they pick up a book. I also think I used MSN dial-up and learned really quickly it was still easier to just go the few blocks and chat. Only cross country chat made any sense. 

 

On 2/21/2023 at 11:55 PM, Daniel Janser said:

After all how many of your Highschool Football team mates are still playing football on a regular basis? And in five years? or ten? 

I might be a rare one as all my friends still play hockey since High School and I am actually the only one that doesn`t play any more due to injuries but to be fair most also still have jobs around the sport as well and I am also one of the few that doesn`t due to location that I live.

 

Great insight of some of the struggles that foreign users might be facing as I know I use a Japanese Keyboard and also around media as I learned and agree that they can be lacking of reward but at the end of the day I find I write more for my own interest and TPE.

 

On 2/21/2023 at 11:55 PM, Daniel Janser said:

If we combine it with the perceived 'we want max earners only' attitude (which again is not necessarily the case, but can easily come across like this) the cards are stacked against retention

I have never really understood where this; "We want Max earner only Attitude" perception is coming from as league and a team a activity matters more then straight TPE earning. Yes, a Max TPE earner will carry more value when it comes to STHS but every "team" needs different earning levels of players to be successful. At the end of the day it is still a team sport. This is a different topic for another day but I think Max earner are becoming a bit of a problem for the league; and I will leave it at that for now.

 

 

[Beketov 9,100]

14 minutes ago, Gaikoku-hito said:

Yes, a Max TPE earner will carry more value when it comes to STHS but every "team" needs different earning levels of players to be successful.

That is actually completely true. Our salary cap is balanced around the fact that you can’t ice a team of completely top TPE guys. You can get away with a lot of max earners if they are all on ELC’s but as they age it becomes impossible and that’s by design. Lower income earners are vital depth pieces for less money.