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SmallAnimalChannel.com Moderator
 
Group: Administrators
Last Login: 11/4/2008 10:47:28 AM
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| The March/April 2008 issue of Ferrets will soon reach subscribers. It is the final print issue of Ferrets. We're transitioning the magazine to online beginning in April when we launch www.SmallAnimalChannel.com. The new Ferrets magazine will be located at www.FerretsMagazine.com, and it will be free. We're still going to be an information resource about ferrets, only in a different format. Our plan is to offer new articles and columns every month, weekly news updates, polls, contests and more. It will be more interactive and readers will get more frequent updates than with our bimonthly print issue -- and we'll be saving trees by going digital. Subscribers will soon receive a letter/postcard from our Consumer Marketing Department that will detail what choices they have concerning the balance of their subscription. Our annual ferret magazine, Ferrets USA, will continue to be printed and new issues are available in stores every November. Please note that the current look at SmallAnimalChannel.com and FerretsMagazine.com will all change in April. For an idea of how it will look, please visit our other BowTie websites: www.DogChannel.com, www.CatChannel.com, www.ReptileChannel.com, www.BirdChannel.com, www.HorseChannel.com. - Critters Moderator
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/24/2008 8:01:31 PM
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| I hate to see you stop printing Ferret Magazine, specially since I have a subscription for an additional year and have been a subscriber since the first issue. However I will be asking for a refund on the remainder of my subscription. One question, what about the many people who have no access to a computer and can not receive your new format of Ferret Magazine on line? Also, are you also going to do this with all the other animal magazines, like dogs, cats, rabbits and etc. or have you just decided to do this to Ferret Magazine. Specially after running Modern Ferret magazine out of business. I'm just posting this to let you know one of your subscribers is very disappointed in your decision. mjo
mjo
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/27/2008 8:35:43 AM
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I too am VERY disappointed with your decision to discontinue the print version of "Ferrets" Magazine! Why are you not discontinuing the other magazines that you offer as alternatives? After all ... You say that you are discontinuing "Ferrets" to "save trees"??? Why not the others as well??
Your magazine has been my Bible and I have ENJOYED it for many years and I just renewed for another year. Since I do not have a cat, dog, horse OR Hobby farm ... I am NOT interested in an alternate magazine that you are offering and will be asking for a full refund if you go through with this decision. I am sure there will be others that will require a refund as well and not want an "alternate" magazine.
If $$$$ is the issue .. I for one would be willing to pay a slightly higher price for a PRINT subscription. Your new free format is nice ... but is NOT the same!
I WANT my PRINT version of "Ferrets" Magazine!!
Dianna ... disappointed in MA.
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SmallAnimalChannel.com Moderator
Group: Administrators
Last Login: 11/4/2008 10:47:28 AM
Posts: 97,
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Although we are emphasizing the positives to going digital with Ferrets magazine, there were also other factors that forced the transition at this time. Economic factors, such as escalating costs for paper, postage and printing, plus the trend toward people getting more and more information from websites compelled us to look at the best way to publish Ferrets. Please believe that this decision was not arbitrary and not taken lightly. I'm *very* sorry that anyone wishing to read the magazine won't be able to if they lack Internet access. I really hope those that do have access will give the website a chance in April. We're working hard to make the new face of Ferrets magazine informative and fun, just as our print edition was. *Permission is NOT given to cross-post this message anywhere.* If someone wants to read this, I'd like them to visit our site to do it. The lack of traffic on our site was yet another reason it seemed there wasn't too great an interest in our magazine. Marylou Zarbock, editor
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/25/2008 5:17:13 PM
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| I am extremely disappointed to hear about Ferrets magazine stopping their printed version. I thoroughly enjoyed each issued I received, and read it cover-to-cover the same day it arrived! I have kept every issue I've ever received, and refer back to them often. I wish Ferrets Magazine was a monthly magazine, and would have paid more in subscription fees to keep the printed version coming, too. If it is possible to reconsider, I wish you would. I am not alone in this feeling - all my ferret-loving friends are upset at this news. While I'm sure the on-line/digital version will be FANTASTIC, I still want my hard copy! :-( I do not want any of the other animal magazines to fulfill the remainder of my subscription, either. I would prefer a cash refund or voucher for future Ferrets USA issues. Sincerely, Weaslemom/Anita in KCMO
[b][i]Dooks!
Weaslemom[/i][/b]
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/28/2008 4:42:04 PM
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| Weird, must be a mistake, my posts seems to have been deleted or something - hm, I guess I will repost it. Yes, I am the one who cross posted it. Just like everyone else, I think the way it was done wasn't right. It is poor customer service to say 'oh hey guys, one more issue and then we're done!' Lack of traffic on the web site means there is little interest in the magazine? So you move the magazine to the web site? Does that make as much sense to everyone else as it does me...?? 1) Lack of interest in a web site does NOT mean there is a lack of interest in the magazine. Just as pretty much everyone who has posted here says, there will now most likely be a lack of interest in the magazine because it was moved online, not the other way around. 2) Economic factors - ok, I understand this one, the price of EVERYTHING is going up, believe me, I know this - I work in the oil industry. HOWEVER, why not give us a warning and say something to the effect of 'hey guys, prices are going up, here are the options - we stop printing the magazine and go online or we raise subscription prices'. I would have paid more and I'm not the only one who (in private conversation with me) has agreed with that. Sure, you may have lost a few people but now you're losing A LOT of people and you're going to be refunding a lot of money. 3) People get information from web sites, yes. But do you get the FML? When the new issues come out, do you see how much conversation is generated from the actual hard copies of FM and how much information we get from it and then share online? I understand that you guys all probably takled about all of this for a very long time, as busines decisions like this are not made overnight. However, the way you sprung it on us makes it seem like someone just woke up one day and said 'oh, hey, let's stop printing FM' I'm sorry and I am repeating myself but this just screams poor customer service. I called and was given a refund of my money. I was given a phone number, I still don't know where this person found it but I called it and will get my money. I think it should have been printed on the letters that were sent out that if we weren't interested in any of the other magazines, we could get a refund. Did you want that kept secret too, so you wouldn't be losing as much money? *tsk tsk tsk* FatherNature, I'm really sorry to hear about what happened with you guys. Do you get the FML? Maybe you could post on there and get some donations or something to help you with your surgeries? I know quite a few shelters have raffles on the FML and I guess they raise pretty good money through that. In closing, I guess this explains why you weren't at the York show in Dec. It's funny I didn't put 2 & 2 together when you weren't there - The Ferret Store wasn't at the last show they could have attended right before Fosters & Smith bought them out. Fool me once, shame on you - fool me twice, shame on me. I guess not realizing that was my bad. By the way, aside from 'more frequent updates than a bi-monthly print issue', what are the positives of going online, again? A bunch of angry ferret owners?
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/30/2008 6:05:04 PM
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Yesterday in the mail I received, the letter from ferrets mag. I think you should refund people there money. Not offer to get another mag. I really looked forward to getting my ferret mag. in the mail. Not very happy with you guys right now.
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Starting Member
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Last Login: 1/26/2008 5:01:22 PM
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| This is of absolutely NO benefit to the *actual* general public. Real people do *not* all have computers nor go "online. In point of actual fact, only about 1-4th of the American population has computers in the household and can also afford to go "online". Some of these real people have noticed the Ferrets Magazine in the pet store racks, while they were in them. Now that you are literally buried in no-where-land, UNseen, UNheard-of and about as completely out of sight as you can possibly be, as far as the Actual general public is concerned, you have just done the pets of millions who do NOT have "their own" computers no access to any online situations a severe dis-service. Last year we produced a short commercial asking for help for our little shelter. We still get calls about it or from folks asking about adoptions...MOST of the folks who call and ask either have not been able to or are otherwise susipcious of and afraid of going "online" for any reason...all they know is what they'd seen on the television and called the phone number on the screen. Only thanks to that publicly aired commercial have we been making most of our adoptions since last year. The "online" resources for adoptions, such as "petfinder" has only brought out two adoptors in three years... Which goes further to show that the general PUBLIC does NOT pay heed to online sources or resources. The public looks at their newspapers, watches their local television stations....and reads magazines.
Ferret & Dove Sanctuary, Inc.
http://ferretanddovesanctuary.petfinder.com
http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/ferret_rescuer/index.html
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