I figured I should post about this and explain my thinking. Up on the navigation bar you will see “Store” has replaced Hunter macros. The macro page, according to Google Analytics didn’t generate a lot of hits, probably because many of the macros are readily available elsewhere.
I decided that before I put ads up on the site, I would try this option as well. Starting out simple, I created a simple Cafepress store to gauge any desire there might be for QQ merchandise. For now, the only design available is the QQ logo. It’s simple, it’s to the point. On any of the t-shirts, the back has the “pwn more” slogan as well as the URL.
I plan to add additional designs, but not quite yet. In the past I read about concerns about Cafepress quality. Some said it was no better than iron-ons you can do at home. And on the other side of the coin, I recall reading about Cafepress addressing those concerns and increasing the quality of their products.
As I wouldn’t have anyone pay for crappy products, my wife and I are ordering a couple of the shirts in order to see the shirt quality first hand. If it ends up the products are not at the level we were hoping for, we will explore other services.
But if you know Cafepress has increased their quality and you have the means (it’s tough times for a lot of folks) and desire to support the site, check out the new QQ store.
On WoW-related news . . . we are still trying to get a character copy to the PTR. Ever since they went up, all we ever get is the message that the character copy queue is full. :(
Thanks again for your continued support of the site! Any other thoughts, comments, etc. Post ‘em!
ADDITION: This just in. Make sure you stop by Resto4life and give your congratulations and your good-byes to one of the most outstanding members of the WoW blogging community.
If you dont find Cafepress to be good enough, you should try out Spreadshirt. I have ordered lots of stuff from there and i am very pleased with them. Scarfs, T-shirts, winter-hats etc etc..
http://www.spreadshirt.com/
Good luck on the QQ-store =)
@Sillie That is another option I was exploring. Thanks for the heads up.
You may not be aware of any branding infringement issues that could follow. QQ is a massively popular IM service used in China which has branched into other services, including e-commerce.
Just a fair warning if you’re going forward with the QQ Store.
@Lupius I did a little looking around and found out about QQ. I decided to see about moving forward with the store idea due to the implementation of the QQ logo which doesn’t resemble their logo at all, so there is no chance for brand confusion.
If worse comes to worse however, we adjust the name somewhat. Thanks for the warning though.
What’s awesome though, if you just google “qq” this site appears above theirs, at #1, in the search results. :)
I’d like to second the recommendation for Spreadshirt. While all print-on-demand services have their problems (I’ve investigated all of the big ones), Spreadshirt is generally regarded as the one that provides the best quality. They are a little less flexible than CafePress (which pretty much allows you to print anything you want), but I feel the end result is worth the headache, especially if you can learn to make vector-based designs!
Thanks very much for the kind words and send off. I wish you and your blog all the best in the years to come! =)
Phaelia’s last blog post..Resto4Life Closing Its Doors
What about condensing macros with armory links into a resources tab? Or maybe call it a reference tab?
Yeah, I’m a packrat.