welcome to Uncle Gary's world

Facebook is just controlled advertisment to them.....they are not using its networking potential.

Kim Jong Stern says that's a Bozo no-no!!

Yeah, you can only complement Stern on facebook or it gets deleted. Stern even banned me on their YouTube lol.

Stern has horrible marketing. They're lucky they have so many dedicated fans without any other real choice because otherwise the company would fail pretty quick.

Wow. I have read about people getting blocks asking about code release dates but never asking when a machine was being released.

Especially when the guy has one on order.

OP - Cancel your LE order and send Gary an e-mail with your order number and the cancellation telling him why you just CLed the order. Only way to effectively change this behavior is for it to hit the pocket book. Hard part would be the CL if you are super excited about a pin though.

P.S. - Since you work for Amazon. Can you let us know when those lightening deals will happen on pinball machines?

If they don't want comments, screw 'em. I go on their page just to see if there are any updates. Usually there's not, so I log off. They obviously don't want to hear from any customers...unless you're gushing about their product.

Unfortunately they don't give a s@&t, as long as they are makin the cash. The only way to make them listen is if you hit em right in the wallet. Don't buy incomplete games.

I have been blocked and banned from their facebook page for years now from my very first post. I tried to email them about a year later to get unblocked so I could enter their contests...no luck.

Stern facebook is an advertisement tool not a communication tool. They are not looking to spark conversation. They could care less what people think they know about the industry and what stern should or should not be doing. If you want to contact them via email or the phone go ahead. They could careless what your thoughts or comments on pinball is. That's just the way it is. If you don't like it, don't buy from them or visit their facebook page.

It's their page, they can do whatever they want with it. The page isn't there for you to communicate your thoughts with them, or other people looking at the page. I am always amazed people have a hard time grasping this. It's a company, they are showing off their products, not putting a place for people to rate them.
For example, they don't want to hear aboot how someone bought a game from them knowing the code wouldn't be done forever, but now they want to bitch aboot how the code isn't done....or whatever the issue, is. Amazon is a zillion dollar business and couldn;t care less aboot returning things and losing monies...doesn't matter to them. Stern is a small private company with, to be very kind, a 42% weirdo costumer rating That's why there isn;t a review section like Amazon...apples and raisins.

That wouldn't affect Sterns bottom line whatsoever. I think most people have this misunderstanding that you purchase your games from your distributor not from Stern. Given that most distributors are fighting over LE allowances, I highly doubt it would even bother your distributor if you canceled.

Welcome to pinball JJP does the same

Stern is Stern

I love stern's games, but won't ever buy NIB again, unless it's a VE game where code is complete. I'd love to have a ST or TWD, but held off after avengers and xmen coding. Once those two are complete, I'll take another look at them.

I've been emailing them about fixing the h target in avengers, Chas responded that it was forwarded to their engineering dept, never heard back. Tech support is the best part of the company.

hah

NIB doesn't mean "at release." I waited a year till MET code was "done" and got my NIB and was happy. But agreed I wouldn't buy right away...although I never would have so there's that. These code issues are nothing new.

if your hardware works then the avengers H target works just fine and does not need different code. Perhaps you need to make the target drop more sensitive?

Proud member of the 42%!

Avengers is just a huge turd. Should have never left the factory. I think Stern should apologize to everyone who bought it.

I banned Stern from my news feed.

Don't want to derail this, but disagree. Same issue was fixed with code on tspp I&S targets that get dropped before ball ejects. The ball in avengers fires at the target and the target doesn't go down, it's not the sensitivity.

Facebook sucks anyways...

This is what happens when old people run a company's online marketing

Except they aren't old.

LTG : )™

How old are they?

It's irrelevant. I'm sick of myself and others having to repeat ourselves. Facebook is not two way communication tool for most companies. This has been discussed way too much. It's facwbook and although I own plenty of stock in fb, it sucks and who cares. Please stop creating posts about the same old crap.

Half of Stern's post are to promote small arcade barcade pin museum the hobby as a whole yet you can't post boo hoo

I don't often comment on these threads, but I gotta agree with what others have said...
It's their page, they can do what they want to.

You may not agree with it, but Facebook doesn't mandate that they need to be fair. Plenty of groups there that will kick you if you aren't liked or don't follow the rules or just because they want to.

If you don't like how they run their page don't contribute to it.

Anyone know if the Stern Facebook admins are inhouse or hired out? Not trying to place blame but just wanting to understand where this could be coming from.

Regardless of whether it's internal or external, they take direction from Stern.

The better question is....why do people keep posting on their facebook?!?

I think Ghandi put it best when he said, "fool me once, shame on you...."

If it's sourced out maybe Stern wrongfully checked the box "boot anyone that questions us."
- said for humor

I know a lot of people who source out marketing to agencies and are clueless until a huge backlash happens. Due to the small and split opinion on this matter, maybe higher ups at Stern doesn't know. Not defending, just wondering.

I think Stern outsources their social media stuff. Typically those companies are heavy on moderation because they don't want their client looking at their Facebook wall and seeing anything negative.

Personally I've never understood their marketing approach. They barely hype their machines at all online where most of their customers are.

They don;t need to. Everyone round these parts is 100% on the next 4 machines

Stern does not outsource thier social media.

Again for those that have missed it in this thread a few times so far, it is a one way communication tool for them and many other companies.

Also this topic has been discussed at length, please go ahead and search and you will see other threads about this very topic, I can save you time and some reading though by concluding them for you.

Summary: Facebook is a one way communication tool for stern. They are not interested in anyway about your opinion or thoughts when it comes to them being posted on Facebook. If you have something to say call your distributor, he can pass the word along.

- personal attack removed -

It is truly a shame that Stern chooses to use it this way.
Tons of respectable companies use it as a communication tool.
Stern really has no dialog with their fan base and seemingly hides their head in the sand.

On the other hand Jersey Jack found out about an error in the Wizard of Oz code that would allow a huge scoring advantage to anyone who used it and had the code fixed and updated in 18 hrs.
Kudos to JJP.
Shame to Stern.

Stern is the reason I cancelled my Facebook account.

Stern is the reason I got a Vasectomy. They can't hurt anymore people with their banning.

Plenty of companies utilize Facebook this way. It's not out of the norm. They truly don't want to hear our innovative awesome ideas, they pay professionals for them.

Getting friendly customer service from any well established pinball business that survived the downswing and shakeup in the 90's is something I dream about. If it wasn't for the pinside community and a few friends who are passionate about the game, I'd assume most everyone was money hungry, greedy and very eager to capitalize on the newcomers. I often feel they could care less about those who support the hobby when it really comes down to it. I've had a few good experiences, but for the most part I think it's just business as usual and your voice doesn't really count. They know it all and we know nothing is the impression I get. Stern can do whatever they want, but I feel I get treated better buying something used from a collector or fan of the hobby rather than buying new from a vendor. To make matters worse, I feel like even making this type of comment could jeopardize my ability to communicate here.

Collecting pins is expensive, playing pins is pretty cheap.
50 cents, maybe a dollar.

People think Stern has a social media manager? Haha....

It's a small company... and it's the biggest of the small companies.

Stern marketing, social media, licensing, copyrights, trade shows and public relations are all handled by one dude...

And his name is Jody.

He is also responsible at least in part for the recent acquisition of many coveted licenses for Stern games which has led in part to an entire resurgence across the entire pinball industry.

With no Jody... there is no AC/DC, no Metallica, no Star Trek... none of that.

I think I may be the only pinside member here who manages facebook pages for a living professionally.

I doubt you are

Proably right.

Thousands of members here.

Frankly,
More Importantly too,
It wouldn't kill them to promote on their site where We operate Their games...