What would you like to see on MSH?

What about an LHS finder?  Users can submit LHS info about shops they frequent for sharpenings and services... Might be a useful tool for those that have kids in travel hockey, finding a trusted store when they're out of town.

4 minutes ago, Wolfpack_1986 said:

What about an LHS finder?  Users can submit LHS info about shops they frequent for sharpenings and services... Might be a useful tool for those that have kids in travel hockey, finding a trusted store when they're out of town.

We have one in the General Hockey Discussions.

http://modsquadhockey.com/forums/index.php?/forum/81-hockey-rink-amp-shop-locator/

Howdy,

Things about the current setup I like, but could maybe have a tweak or two (or maybe not)...

* Getting the inside scoop on hockey stuff.  New gear for sure, but other stuff too.  I think that happens already to a large extent with the initial reviews, LTRs, and some of the brand managers that are involved here, but it would be cool to see Bauer and CCM get more involved here particularly.

* Events.  SummerJam and WinterFest are super fun.  I think the format is already pretty good and has a nice "Friends getting together" vibe while still being somewhat open to new folks.

* MSH branded stuff.  It would be nice to have some more options here, but I don't know how feasible it is.  For me there needs to be a range that includes "impulse" stuff that's $30 or less (hats/mugs/t-shirts/sweatshirts/whatever) and "probably should ask my wife if its ok" stuff like gloves/jerseys/bags/whatever.

I think one thing that could maybe be a bit better is a little more acceptance of "rumor mill" discussion?  Like, perhaps have a subforum just for that, where speculation / posting a screengrab / whatever is ok?  Obviously that's out there in other places and its interesting to folks, but equally obviously, MSH can't officially comment on that stuff where there are gag orders, etc.  .  It would still be nice to have that here, vs. other places.  A camera forum I'm on that also has a bunch of industry people does this, where us peons can rumor mill away, but the "official people" don't participate.

Technology-wise, being able to directly attach images would ber nice both from ease of use as well as for "10 years from now, that imgur link won't work" perspective.  Also, for some reason on posts now, there's a huge (like seconds) delay between typing a character and having it appear.  Like I type ahead a sentence or two, and 20 seconds later that pops up on my screen in the editor window.  Chrome/Windows 7.  Seems to happen when I hit the spacebar?  Maybe?  I haven't tried to debug it.

Overall, I like what's here.  :-)

Mark

There are a couple of reasons why the "rumour mill" type section wouldn't work. First, because then the site wouldn't be honoring manufacturers' wishes; and, second, because that is how a lot of misinformation gets out which then manufacturers and JR have to work that much harder to correct.

54 minutes ago, marka said:

Howdy,

Things about the current setup I like, but could maybe have a tweak or two (or maybe not)...

* Getting the inside scoop on hockey stuff.  New gear for sure, but other stuff too.  I think that happens already to a large extent with the initial reviews, LTRs, and some of the brand managers that are involved here, but it would be cool to see Bauer and CCM get more involved here particularly.

* Events.  SummerJam and WinterFest are super fun.  I think the format is already pretty good and has a nice "Friends getting together" vibe while still being somewhat open to new folks.

* MSH branded stuff.  It would be nice to have some more options here, but I don't know how feasible it is.  For me there needs to be a range that includes "impulse" stuff that's $30 or less (hats/mugs/t-shirts/sweatshirts/whatever) and "probably should ask my wife if its ok" stuff like gloves/jerseys/bags/whatever.

I think one thing that could maybe be a bit better is a little more acceptance of "rumor mill" discussion?  Like, perhaps have a subforum just for that, where speculation / posting a screengrab / whatever is ok?  Obviously that's out there in other places and its interesting to folks, but equally obviously, MSH can't officially comment on that stuff where there are gag orders, etc.  .  It would still be nice to have that here, vs. other places.  A camera forum I'm on that also has a bunch of industry people does this, where us peons can rumor mill away, but the "official people" don't participate.

Technology-wise, being able to directly attach images would ber nice both from ease of use as well as for "10 years from now, that imgur link won't work" perspective.  Also, for some reason on posts now, there's a huge (like seconds) delay between typing a character and having it appear.  Like I type ahead a sentence or two, and 20 seconds later that pops up on my screen in the editor window.  Chrome/Windows 7.  Seems to happen when I hit the spacebar?  Maybe?  I haven't tried to debug it.

Overall, I like what's here.  :-)

Mark

The issue is that since everything has shifted up 3 months, Springtime is no longer the time that products come out.  You'll start seeing more discussions starting next month.

The branded stuff worries me.  I just added a $15 scarf and the reception hasn't been great.  I'd love to put more stuff out there but it doesn't seem that people are buying it.  I'm still sitting on a significant amount of hats, and those were ordered 6 years ago.

Chippa answered that question better.  Screengrabs are acceptable and normally go in the Gear Sightings threads.

As far as hosting pictures is concerned, we have a plan for that - it would be a paid option, though.  It has to be because I would have to pay for more disk space to be able to host those.  So, if that is something that the members would be interested in, we can present that option.

That must be your computer.

Howdy,

4 minutes ago, JR Boucicaut said:

The branded stuff worries me.  I just added a $15 scarf and the reception hasn't been great.  I'd love to put more stuff out there but it doesn't seem that people are buying it.  I'm still sitting on a significant amount of hats, and those were ordered 6 years ago.

I wonder if visibility could be better for that stuff?  Like maybe have one of the ads that show be an add for MSH gear?

I was on here for something like a year before I knew hats existed...

Mark

How about a Coaches Corner or a Ask the Coach thread - Essentially a dedicated thread where players of all ages can pop in and ask questions and get answers from guys who actually coach the game. I'd suggest coaches in this section would need to be vetted and mod approved.

With all the home sharpeners, maybe an updated DIY thread focused on things like sharpening and profiling might be a nice add.

A beer league section. Members can share experiences, share ideas for uniforms and problem solving.

Now I know many of these things already exist, but they are spread out in different sections and aren't pinned. Some of the threads have great info but are hard to find, like the shop locator for example.

Custom guides. There are companies with very detailed custom options, but they don't always have detailed images and descriptions of those options. Warrior custom sticks is one example; they offer a lot of stick finishes, textures and curves, but I don't see any pictures or detailed descriptions beyond the names in the customizer tool. There are threads here where members have helpfully posted pictures of grip types, but you have to search through a very long thread to find the images.

Having a walk through for various products (Warrior custom sticks, Warrior custom gloves, Base custom sticks, True custom skates) with detailed descriptions and pictures of every option would be helpful for anyone ordering a custom product. As mentioned, most of this information is available in various threads, but taking all of that out and putting it in one or two posts on one page would be great. Of course, having all of those available on the manufacturer pages would be great as well, but I think there are currently gaps. It's fantastic to have a lot of options, but it's hard to decide what to order without having full descriptions and pictures of those options. 

Long term product reviews in video form.  Written long term reviews are great, but it would be fantastic to put the visual together with the written review.

A section dedicated to Pro Shop workers would be cool where basic questions could be asked as well as opinions on things.

Completely agree with althoma1. It would be cool to get even more technical with visuals on the latest gear and older gear. A real repository of info without having to use the search function.

Would there be a way to embed the openly accessible customizers on the site? I'm saying MyBauer, Warrior etc. This is a site where people can play around on those as well.

A dedicated hockey gear/jerseys/tickets/memorbilia deal thread/section! Like RedFlagDeals in Canada (I think Slickdeals in the US is similar). A place for people to share great deals either in-store or online.

22 minutes ago, AIREAYE said:

Would there be a way to embed the openly accessible customizers on the site? I'm saying MyBauer, Warrior etc. This is a site where people can play around on those as well.

Possible, but I would have to have an agreement with a manufacturer and/or retailer to do something like that.  The benefit must be mutual.

2 hours ago, goalieman39 said:

A section dedicated to Pro Shop workers would be cool where basic questions could be asked as well as opinions on things.

We have one of those.  I'll add you.

Keep it up - there's some good ideas flowing here.

I wonder if each manufacturer could have their own channel where people could interact in a forum with them and they could post their latest offerings.  Maybe even video breakdowns of products.

 

I'd also greatly appreciate the Coaches Corner proposed by @stick9, however with a focus on coaches helping coaches. Exchange of practice plans, drills, team psych, etc - without stepping on anyones toes obviously (i.e. no re-posting of content by some other (paid) website).

Also nice would be a "ask members about their gear" feature, so that people could select their gear and you could send a question to everyone that rocks/owns that type of gear for some informed feedback. Obviously some technical issues here (inventory lists vs free text, tags, etc), but might be nice.

You touched on it with the apparel, but I agree that the "Shop" option is kind of in the background of this site. I personally would love a MSH hoodie to wear around the shop I work at.

I'm a member on a similar style forum but for baseball/softball players, and they sometimes do a run on exclusive model gloves but only if the demand is there. They recently did a line of custom ball gloves from Wilson with specs that are unavailable on the customizer but a minimum commitment of deposits had to be put down before the order was placed and the extras were sold in their shop. Something like that could be cool especially with some of the relationships we have with manufacturers that potentially getting special specs on gloves not available at retail or on customizers would definitely garner some interest.

 

PS I'd also love approval to the shop guys section!

JR-

Have you thought about leveraging data aggregation tools for some of the metadata fields available in our member profiles?

Of course the limitation here is that people would be required to keep their profiles up to date and accurate- but it would be cool to see what % of active MSH is using brand X or brand Y in different categories, then also by model, curve, flex, etc. - with history retention.

I could see this helping in that: 

1. Members can identify a critical mass of people who have used a certain product if they want to pick their brain(s).

2. It could help identify sub-communities of sorts, i.e., who is still a member of the Drury/heel curve cult (lol).

3. Though a small sample, manufacturers would also be able to get a pulse on what gearheads are currently leaning towards.

Happy to flesh out in more detail over PM/chat. 

 

1 hour ago, adam14 said:

I'm a member on a similar style forum but for baseball/softball players, and they sometimes do a run on exclusive model gloves but only if the demand is there. They recently did a line of custom ball gloves from Wilson with specs that are unavailable on the customizer but a minimum commitment of deposits had to be put down before the order was placed and the extras were sold in their shop.

Deposits are probably a good idea for high ticket items if that was ever going to be offered, but I'm not sure how much of a logistical nightmare that might be. Hmm. 

1 hour ago, Cavs019 said:

JR-

Have you thought about leveraging data aggregation tools for some of the metadata fields available in our member profiles?

Of course the limitation here is that people would be required to keep their profiles up to date and accurate- but it would be cool to see what % of active MSH is using brand X or brand Y in different categories, then also by model, curve, flex, etc. - with history retention.

I could see this helping in that: 

1. Members can identify a critical mass of people who have used a certain product if they want to pick their brain(s).

2. It could help identify sub-communities of sorts, i.e., who is still a member of the Drury/heel curve cult (lol).

3. Though a small sample, manufacturers would also be able to get a pulse on what gearheads are currently leaning towards.

Happy to flesh out in more detail over PM/chat. 

 

Zach -

This isn't the first time I've been asked about this.  We'll talk.

1 hour ago, adam14 said:

You touched on it with the apparel, but I agree that the "Shop" option is kind of in the background of this site. I personally would love a MSH hoodie to wear around the shop I work at.

I'm a member on a similar style forum but for baseball/softball players, and they sometimes do a run on exclusive model gloves but only if the demand is there. They recently did a line of custom ball gloves from Wilson with specs that are unavailable on the customizer but a minimum commitment of deposits had to be put down before the order was placed and the extras were sold in their shop. Something like that could be cool especially with some of the relationships we have with manufacturers that potentially getting special specs on gloves not available at retail or on customizers would definitely garner some interest.

 

PS I'd also love approval to the shop guys section!

Adam - we've done that before in the past, and even did with Winterfest this past winter.  I'd love to do more of it, but sometimes it gets tricky because it depends on the manufacturer.  If I can deal directly with them it works out. Some won't because we're not a dealer.

 

14 hours ago, gosinger said:

I'd also greatly appreciate the Coaches Corner proposed by @stick9, however with a focus on coaches helping coaches. Exchange of practice plans, drills, team psych, etc - without stepping on anyones toes obviously (i.e. no re-posting of content by some other (paid) website).

Also nice would be a "ask members about their gear" feature, so that people could select their gear and you could send a question to everyone that rocks/owns that type of gear for some informed feedback. Obviously some technical issues here (inventory lists vs free text, tags, etc), but might be nice.

Good Idea.  Could be a discussion board called the Coaches room with Topics of Coaches helping Coaches, Coaching guidelines, Coaches helping players, Coaches helping parents, etc.

59 minutes ago, JR Boucicaut said:

Adam - we've done that before in the past, and even did with Winterfest this past winter.  I'd love to do more of it, but sometimes it gets tricky because it depends on the manufacturer.  If I can deal directly with them it works out. Some won't because we're not a dealer.

Could you go through one of us shop guys who are dealers then? My rep is awesome and might be willing to do something like this.

If it's something that would require that, sure.  Chances are I wouldn't have to.

Coaches' Room created -

http://modsquadhockey.com/forums/index.php?/forum/172-coaches-room/