Are manufacturers and retailers allowed to post?

[kjchronister]

I'm just curious. We talk about bachmann or mth, we talk about retailers we like and don't, we complain about things... but I never see any if these folks post to help, thank, reply, etc. Are they unwelcome? Are they just none willing to participate? Have they participated before and got flamed? What's the deal? I'd welcome their involvement myself...

 

[bnsf971]

Many manufacturers stay as far away from internet forums as they can possibly get. Somebody notices something about a train, the manufacturer's rep tries to help, he gets flamed, everybody piles on, and the manufacturer says "never again". Both Atlas and BLI no longer have forums, and that is one very big reason.

 

[kjchronister]

Yeah. It's kind of a shame though. I run an online retail website myself (not mrr related). We do monitor relevant boards, but mostly work via PM. No matter how hard you try to be helpful, the "axe grind" contingent can fan flames readily. Wish it were otherwise, because it would be very useful to have them participating at times. At least for me.

 

[James Olson]

Yeah. It's kind of a shame though. I run an online retail website myself (not mrr related). We do monitor relevant boards, but mostly work via PM. No matter how hard you try to be helpful, the "axe grind" contingent can fan flames readily. Wish it were otherwise, because it would be very useful to have them participating at times. At least for me.

I like it when the forum environment is conducive to the participation of a key person (game designer, editor, actor, etc.) because it supports the enthusiasm of those who support the PC game, magazine, TV show, hobby, etc., respectively, that is the focus of the forum.