blonde Progress Report

[tikay]

Well, it's been about a week since we announced some changes at blonde, & I thought I'd give you a brief Update on where we are.

All the Staff have pledged their ongoing support, as have all the Shareholders.

We have prioritised the Cardroom as being in need of some work, as Revenues, whilst covering costs, were stagnant. An Action Plan was devised, & targets were set. Aaron & Kev are working hard to implement the Action Plan. We need to strike a balance here, as we must not over-spam the Forum, but so far I think it's been about right  Perhaps by coincidence, it's too early to tell, but the Cardroom Revenues have improved dramatically, & we have set records every day this week.

We shall be changing the name & URL of the Cardroom shortly to something eminently more appropriate, & much easier to navigate to from blondepoker.

Our Freeroll last Sunday attracted a record number of runners for a blonde comp. A modest number by industry standards, but lets move forward one step at a time.

A small Marketing Budget was given to Aaron & Kev to spend as they saw fit. I promised to increase it monthly if the results proved they used it cost-effectively. So far, it looks like they have, so the Marketing spend will increase next month. By "Marketing spend", I don't mean adverts or the like, I hope they use it for Freerolls & the like.

We intend to focus mainly on the smaller limit players, but at the same time, look after our Big Boys. We will not be entering any Deep Rakeback contests.

Plans to revamp the Main Site are well in hand.

The Forum remains vibrant, & we will continue to Moderate it tightly.

Steps are in hand to appoint additional Mods.

We shall persevere with blonde being a three-legged animal - Main Site, with fresh content daily, Forum, & Cardroom.

We have sold more advertising for September, October & November.

We have been approached by no less than 7 different parties or individuals, all of whom have expresed an interest in buying all or part of blonde. I am in discussions with, & meeting, all of them. The Shareholders have been kept informed of these discussions. It is not my intention to allow blonde to be taken over, but we could use additional Management expertise in some areas, so it's not improbable that one or two investors will come on board. No decision has been taken, nor will it until we have reviewed all offers.

We have reviewed our Financial Position thoroughly, & all is well. We have only one debt of note, & we have agreed payment terms with the creditor. ((except for unpaid Salary & Exs to myself, & unpaid salary to Dave, & these are being treated as a long-term investment). We have no Bank Overdraft or borrowings, nor will we ever have one. Our Cash-Flow is positive.

Live Updates will continue, we start our EPT Season shortly. These will remain free-to-view.

Discussions continue with several parties who want to use blonde for commercial tie-ups.

Our relationship wth Poker 425, (owned by William Hill) who currently sponsor our Forum, remain excellent.

It has been recognized that we need to sweat our assets harder, & we are on with that.

The Mods are continuing to work hard, & are a good Team.

An individual, with huge experience & wisdom in Commerce, has offered to assist us for, in the first instance, a medium term period, at no cost. It is probable that we will accept this offer.

I'll happily answer any questions you may have, & I thank all of you for your encouragement & support.

[Gamblor21]

I think it looks good for the future...

And on the cardroom front SPAM away for me, i for one always forget the comps available! And any good ideas kev had come from me 

[suzanne]

Tony as im sure you know this forum is loved by many of us.

I have come to know so many people who have become my friends online and i so looking forward to meeting many of them this weekend.

I am one of the small time donaters on blonde and I am proud to be one.

PS any chance of maybe 1% being split between us skint guys just so we can belong?

[LPM Champ]

Hi Tikay,

Been coming on this forum ever since our Heads Up @ The Gutshot nearly a year ago.  Not a big poster of threads but love reading them and your UK tourney updates.  Think the updates are excellent.

Great site, great guy, really hope things go go for you.

All the Best

John Curtis

[vegaslover]

I think that yourselves should continue with the freerolls and maybe small added tourneys for blonde members only.
As you mentioned, last weeks freeroll was a success in terms of numbers, and the fun of it being blonde only.
By continuing these I think you may well get more cross-over from the forum to the cardroom, I for one have opened an account with blonde since, and hope many others have.

Advertising comps in the forums/by email wouldn't bother me either. More likely make me more aware of whats happening.

I look forward to the changes.

[suzanne]

Just my tuppence worth.

I am a small time $5 stt player mostly (but im known for hitting the cash when
pssd)

I would rather give my rake to blonde.

[Nem]

I think it looks good for the future...

And on the cardroom front SPAM away for me, i for one always forget the comps available!

I agree

[leighton_87]

Looks like the Blonde empire is moving forward nicely, just don't let it be taken over or we might lose the forum we love.

I agree with the idea of bllonde only freerolls or added tournaments which should be advertised on the forum as well as in the cardroom.  This will get people who post on the forum and get the benefit of that to give you some money in the cardroom.

Thanks for keeping us informed

Andrew

[Claw75]

sounds good - thanks for the update Tikay

[Sark79]

Tikay, I have noticed on many online sites where Internet Poker Rooms are reviewed and advertised, Blonde Poker doesn't feature. Even on one of the sites reviewing tribeca rooms there is no mention of Blonde.  If Blonde was given a mention maybe this would help playing numbers at the site.  Just an idea  , I am not a PR expert though so I may be way off the mark

[byronkincaid]

no mention of Blonde

http://www.tribecatables.com/current_brands.html

[AndrewT]

Tikay, I have noticed on many online sites where Internet Poker Rooms are reviewed and advertised, Blonde Poker doesn't feature. Even on one of the sites reviewing tribeca rooms there is no mention of Blonde.  If Blonde was given a mention maybe this would help playing numbers at the site.  Just an idea  , I am not a PR expert though so I may be way off the mark

An awful lot of these 'reviews' are nothing of the sort - they're adverts dressed up as independent editorial, which the poker rooms pay for. Blonde should not (and almost certainly will not, judging from Tikay's comments) get involved in pissing-money-up-the-wall contests with the big boys.

Blonde's USPs are 1) the sense of community which already exists on here and 2) the renown which the Live Updates have - utilising these are the most effective ways of increasing business.

It has been recognized that we need to sweat our assets harder, & we are on with that.

I assume this means Tikay's already on the case with these things, though it could be referring to all sorts of perverted stuff that goes on in the Secret Room...

[turny]

just one question tikay.

i saw kev leaving the butchers with 3 dozen pies please tell me this isnt where he used the marketing budget!!!!!!!! 

[Sark79]

no mention of Blonde

http://www.tribecatables.com/current_brands.html

  ,  I may be getting old, but I can't see it anywhere on there.   I spoke to a friend the other day and he said blonde is clearly shown on the above site.   Where? 

[Sark79]

Tikay, I have noticed on many online sites where Internet Poker Rooms are reviewed and advertised, Blonde Poker doesn't feature. Even on one of the sites reviewing tribeca rooms there is no mention of Blonde.  If Blonde was given a mention maybe this would help playing numbers at the site.  Just an idea  , I am not a PR expert though so I may be way off the mark

An awful lot of these 'reviews' are nothing of the sort - they're adverts dressed up as independent editorial, which the poker rooms pay for. Blonde should not (and almost certainly will not, judging from Tikay's comments) get involved in pissing-money-up-the-wall contests with the big boys.

Blonde's USPs are 1) the sense of community which already exists on here and 2) the renown which the Live Updates have - utilising these are the most effective ways of increasing business.

It has been recognized that we need to sweat our assets harder, & we are on with that.

I assume this means Tikay's already on the case with these things, though it could be referring to all sorts of perverted stuff that goes on in the Secret Room...

ok, it was just a suggestion  .  I will go back to moving hay bails and digging out ditches