LoneGunman
Expert Member
We've been here before, bigtime - but I was thinking, we're lucky on this forum to get info and confirmation of ongoing events with IBurst - but there are x number of thousands users out there who perhaps arent aware of this forum, and thus are probably getting even less information than us.
What about reaching out to them, and stepping again into that territory the older forumites will remember all too well, and see if there're useful exploits to send a simple mass email to all IBurst users, advising them of this forums existence, and gently suggesting that they come and have a look, if they're short of information..?
So using this chaotic period of IBursts own 'weakness' as a good reason and excuse to gather up potential new forum members - as well as helping the IBurst users out there who dont know of this Forum, to stay in touch with whats occurring. Unity is strength, after all. The more IBurst customers we gather, the stronger our 'bargaining' position, in times to come.
As we've been here before, with Sentech, lemme run through a few of the things that'll probably get brought up at the mention of sending a mass mail to all Ibursters:
1) yes its spam
2) no, its actually well-meaning and potentially helpful to IBurst Users
3) yes its probably against IBursts AUP, but if done anonymously, theres nothing they can do.
4) if we ask nicely, there are probably some compatriots and like-minded individuals inside WBS who could easily slip one of us that they trust, a master list of email addresses, to use in this regard. ( Hint hint
5) Yes it'll be good for IBurst customers in general to know of this Forum, to give them an optional method of getting info that's not coming from the Company.
6) Worries about 'spam' aren't a good enough reason NOT to do it. One message to everyone, done once, is hardly a flood of spam.
7) The message makes it clear that 'the Forum' didn't send this email, so there's no blowback on the Forum owner, and the letter also states that its not official IBurst, and is only one onetime message.
8) Yes a mass email WILL irritate IBurst, and scare them, as there's nothing a Company hates more than when its customers begin to rally together in a way that they dont control. Tough. We're customers, they're our servants. If they can't wash dishes effectively, we're quite entitled to gather in the lounge and discuss their dish-washing abilities, so to speak
(Currently IBurst grit their teeth at the existence of this forum, and from a management perspective (as I personally witnessed) they started off in early December sneering at us, saying 'we're just a minority'. Now they arent quite so dismissive in their attitude (at least in public).
But they still hope (like sentech did before them) that we dont reach out and begin gathering all the many as yet non-forum individual customers as well.
Therefore its a good reason to do it, as it'll give us an even more solid wedge of united customers, all operating together, in order to demand the service we require and are paying for.
As I recall from Sentech days - a simple email along the following lines, to every IBurst customer, might be the way to go:
---------------------------SAMPLE MASS EMAIL
Dear IBurst Customer
We're sorry to send you an unsolicited email, but this is being sent to advise you of an online independent forum, filled with IBurst customers, dedicated to discussing and tracking various ongoing IBurst issues.
(The owner of the forum is unaware of the fact that this email is being sent to you, and would probably forbid it, if they knew about it.)
If you would like to find out more information about your Internet service than you are currently getting from the IBurst Helpdesk, please consider dropping by the forum and browsing through the many subjects and ongoing articles of interest to you, as an IBurst customer.
The IBurst Forum is at http://www.mybroadband.co.za/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=97
This is being sent as a public service announcement, by various IBurst customers - and is not in any way connected to any 'official' IBurst message.
As a fellow customer of IBurst, it might prove very useful for you to know that there are a number of other customers gathering online on a daily basis, to discuss aspects of IBursts service.
This is a useful independent tool for you as a customer, to ensure that you receive the best service and more importantly - honest information - about what is occurring on a daily basis, with Iburst itself.
Your email address was obtained by devious means, in order to send you this one single message. You will NOT receive any other messages, and we hope you weren't inconvenienced by this single email message.
Thank you for your time.
-------------------------------------END
Thoughts? Flames? Anonymous sends of a master list of addresses?
What about reaching out to them, and stepping again into that territory the older forumites will remember all too well, and see if there're useful exploits to send a simple mass email to all IBurst users, advising them of this forums existence, and gently suggesting that they come and have a look, if they're short of information..?
So using this chaotic period of IBursts own 'weakness' as a good reason and excuse to gather up potential new forum members - as well as helping the IBurst users out there who dont know of this Forum, to stay in touch with whats occurring. Unity is strength, after all. The more IBurst customers we gather, the stronger our 'bargaining' position, in times to come.
As we've been here before, with Sentech, lemme run through a few of the things that'll probably get brought up at the mention of sending a mass mail to all Ibursters:
1) yes its spam
2) no, its actually well-meaning and potentially helpful to IBurst Users
3) yes its probably against IBursts AUP, but if done anonymously, theres nothing they can do.
4) if we ask nicely, there are probably some compatriots and like-minded individuals inside WBS who could easily slip one of us that they trust, a master list of email addresses, to use in this regard. ( Hint hint
5) Yes it'll be good for IBurst customers in general to know of this Forum, to give them an optional method of getting info that's not coming from the Company.
6) Worries about 'spam' aren't a good enough reason NOT to do it. One message to everyone, done once, is hardly a flood of spam.
7) The message makes it clear that 'the Forum' didn't send this email, so there's no blowback on the Forum owner, and the letter also states that its not official IBurst, and is only one onetime message.
8) Yes a mass email WILL irritate IBurst, and scare them, as there's nothing a Company hates more than when its customers begin to rally together in a way that they dont control. Tough. We're customers, they're our servants. If they can't wash dishes effectively, we're quite entitled to gather in the lounge and discuss their dish-washing abilities, so to speak
(Currently IBurst grit their teeth at the existence of this forum, and from a management perspective (as I personally witnessed) they started off in early December sneering at us, saying 'we're just a minority'. Now they arent quite so dismissive in their attitude (at least in public).
But they still hope (like sentech did before them) that we dont reach out and begin gathering all the many as yet non-forum individual customers as well.
Therefore its a good reason to do it, as it'll give us an even more solid wedge of united customers, all operating together, in order to demand the service we require and are paying for.
As I recall from Sentech days - a simple email along the following lines, to every IBurst customer, might be the way to go:
---------------------------SAMPLE MASS EMAIL
Dear IBurst Customer
We're sorry to send you an unsolicited email, but this is being sent to advise you of an online independent forum, filled with IBurst customers, dedicated to discussing and tracking various ongoing IBurst issues.
(The owner of the forum is unaware of the fact that this email is being sent to you, and would probably forbid it, if they knew about it.)
If you would like to find out more information about your Internet service than you are currently getting from the IBurst Helpdesk, please consider dropping by the forum and browsing through the many subjects and ongoing articles of interest to you, as an IBurst customer.
The IBurst Forum is at http://www.mybroadband.co.za/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=97
This is being sent as a public service announcement, by various IBurst customers - and is not in any way connected to any 'official' IBurst message.
As a fellow customer of IBurst, it might prove very useful for you to know that there are a number of other customers gathering online on a daily basis, to discuss aspects of IBursts service.
This is a useful independent tool for you as a customer, to ensure that you receive the best service and more importantly - honest information - about what is occurring on a daily basis, with Iburst itself.
Your email address was obtained by devious means, in order to send you this one single message. You will NOT receive any other messages, and we hope you weren't inconvenienced by this single email message.
Thank you for your time.
-------------------------------------END
Thoughts? Flames? Anonymous sends of a master list of addresses?
)
So while I agree that having multiple sources of information helps, it may not make any real difference at the end of the day.