Fantasy Sports High Stakes Magazine

Ryan E. Houston · Post by **Ryan E. Houston** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 10:14 am

We just finished the magazine and have begun taking pre-orders that will arrive before Christmas.

http://www.fanball.com/store

$7.99 and includes Free Shipping!

The 2010 Fantasy Sports Fantasy Baseball publication is geared specifically towards high-stakes players, such as those legendary owners who've won hundreds of thousands of dollars through the NFBC leagues and Fanball games. The Fantasy Sports magazine includes profiles of past high-stakes winners, lays out the 2010 NFBC locations and dates (now more than ever!), and includes strategies for NFBC formats - including draft advice from Shawn Childs.

Interested in NFBC's new Auction Championship? Todd Zola breaks down the strategy to dominate that as well.

Find out who the top money leaders are from 2007 - 2009 and hear a little bit about their thoughts on draft strategy.

Enjoy!

billywaz · Post by **billywaz** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:06 am

Ryan,

Is this not going to be free for NFFC/NFBC members like it has been in the past?

Even when I didn't play baseball, I still used to get the fantasy sports mag delivered right to my door without doing a thing.

rkulaski · Post by **rkulaski** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:30 am

Originally posted by billywaz:

Ryan,

Is this not going to be free for NFFC/NFBC members like it has been in the past?

Even when I didn't play baseball, I still used to get the fantasy sports mag delivered right to my door without doing a thing. Yes, and Greg would send us out Fantasy Sports Magazine and others too in January if we were signed up for the NFBC main.

If this is no longer the case, can you give us a promo code? Or at least give a discount to those who are in the magazine?

Ryan E. Houston · Post by **Ryan E. Houston** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 2:50 pm

We will definitely be offering subscriptions to all our fantasy baseball titles. Fanball is producing 4 Fantasy Baseball titles for 2010:

Fantasy Sports - High Stakes

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Annual

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Just CheatSheets

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Draft Issue

However, we no longer will be giving away magazines at the event. The rationale for this is based on feedback we received and the amount of packages that went unclaimed in 2009. Instead we will have other giveaways at the event including NFBC branded folios.

I understand this is a change in how things were done in the past but we felt we wanted to spend the money we save by not shipping pallets of magazines to the event on items that you can utilize all year long.

Hope this clears it up

In regards to a promo code -- we don't have any of those but do have free shipping on any orders for a limited time.

[ November 25, 2009, 09:01 PM: Message edited by: Ryan E. Houston ]

Glenneration X · Post by **Glenneration X** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 4:01 pm

Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

We will definitely be offering subscriptions to all our fantasy baseball titles. Fanball is producing 4 Fantasy Baseball titles for 2010:

Fantasy Sports - High Stakes

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Annual

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Just CheatSheets

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Draft Issue

However, we no longer will be giving away magazines at the event. The rationale for this is based on feedback we received and the amount of packages that went unclaimed in 2009. Instead we will have other giveaways at the event including NFBC branded folios.

I understand this is a change in how things were done in the past but we felt we wanted to spend the money we save by not shipping pallets of magazines to the event on items that you can utilize all year long.

Hope this clears it up

In regards to a promo code -- we don't have any of those but do have free shipping on any orders for a limited time. Good call on eliminating the magazine giveaways during the draft......

Who really reads a draft magazine after drafting?

Glenn

Walla Walla · Post by **Walla Walla** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 6:17 pm

Well Glen, They use to send the mags before the draft for $10.00. That would be all of them.

Just stating the facts. Good luck though.

Glenneration X · Post by **Glenneration X** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 1:02 am

Originally posted by Walla Walla:

Well Glen, They use to send the mags before the draft for $10.00. That would be all of them.

Just stating the facts. Good luck though. That's true....I took advantage of that offer this year for football.

I'd totally agree that was a great deal and would love to see that again.

Ryan, where do we send our $10?

Good luck to you too John,

Glenn

Gekko · Post by **Gekko** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 1:17 am

Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

lays out the 2010 NFBC locations and dates (now more than ever!), a friend of mine asked me how you could list all of this in the magazine, but not list it here on the message board. i couldn't provide an answer.

Glenneration X · Post by **Glenneration X** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 1:23 am

Originally posted by Gekko:

quote:Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

lays out the 2010 NFBC locations and dates (now more than ever!), a friend of mine asked me how you could list all of this in the magazine, but not list it here on the message board. i couldn't provide an answer. [/QUOTE]I was thinking the same exact thing when I read this last night.....

It's why I posted a followup on the East Coast thread.

Glenn

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 2:28 am

Originally posted by Gekko:

quote:Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

lays out the 2010 NFBC locations and dates (now more than ever!), a friend of mine asked me how you could list all of this in the magazine, but not list it here on the message board. i couldn't provide an answer. [/QUOTE]The answer is that legally we have to finalize one last contract before we can announce this online. We have all of the details agreed upon and now we need to officially sign it. They are very busy and need a little more time than we expected to get us an official contract and honestly that's the holdup. The magazine will be out in about two more weeks and by then we'll be good to go.

Trust me, we wanted to announce our final location this week, too. But sometimes you're at the mercy of the host sites and in this case we can't announce this until we get some legality out of the way. I sure hope we can give you the good news next week. We're all working hard to make that possible.

billywaz · Post by **billywaz** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 2:38 am

Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

We will definitely be offering subscriptions to all our fantasy baseball titles. Fanball is producing 4 Fantasy Baseball titles for 2010:

Fantasy Sports - High Stakes

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Annual

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Just CheatSheets

Fanball Fantasy Baseball Draft Issue

However, we no longer will be giving away magazines at the event. Ryan, Greg, Tom, etc.,

I fully understand why people wouldn't want magazines on draft day. If you aren't prepared by then, then you are in trouble. I agree that is a waste of time and $$$$.

However, I am talking about what Walla Walla referred to. Are we still going to be able to receive all the magazines BEFORE the draft for $10 (was added to our entry fee in the past)?

If not, could we get a detailed reason WHY?

Happy Thanksgiving to you all and your families!

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:06 am

MVP parties, $10,000 leagues, magazines with no thought of discounts.

No offense, Ryan E, but while Greg's posts seem to be genuine and about the customer, your posts are a reminder of late night tv infomercials.

I realize that you guys have different jobs and that you're Greg's boss now, and that money is the driving force in your job, but I can't begin to tell you how badly you are coming off over the Boards.

Ryan E. Houston · Post by **Ryan E. Houston** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:07 am

As much as we'd like to offer you 4 magazines for $10 -- that simply isn't financially possible.

I'm sure we will come up with a four magazine special once they are all printed and we can ship them out in one bundle.

Unfortunately -- since we do 4, we can't offer them for the previous $10 price point.

I will look at a Buy 4 Package for $20.

Regardless, the only way to get this magazine before Christmas is to pre-order it now. The other issue is -- we only printed 500 copies to pre-sell and we sold a ton last night. I don't anticipate having many of these available after the holidays.

Ryan E. Houston · Post by **Ryan E. Houston** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:11 am

Originally posted by DOUGHBOYS:

MVP parties, $10,000 leagues, magazines with no thought of discounts.

No offense, Ryan E, but while Greg's posts seem to be genuine and about the customer, your posts are a reminder of late night tv infomercials.

I realize that you guys have different jobs and that you're Greg's boss now, and that money is the driving force in your job, but I can't begin to tell you how badly you are coming off over the Boards. I realize a few of you are never going to like me -- and there is nothing I can do about that. All I can do is to try and showcase to you what we offer, how we are focusing on making this event better and continue to push forward. This magazine is all about you guys and those who play Diamond Challenge on Fanball. If my excitement is getting the best of me -- I'm not going to apologize for that, I'm truly excited about this magazine.

Calling this an infomercial is completely off-base because all I said was it was available. There are articles running all over Fanball with the same messaging.

Since this is a high stakes magazine -- I thought you guys would want to know about it.

Again, never going to make all of you happy and I'm going to keep doing whatever I can to make this event, and the products surrounding it, the best it possibly can.

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:26 am

It is not about not liking you. Trust me, I WANT to like you.

I know you have a job to do and you probably do it well. The NFBC folks only "know" you through these Boards.

Your excitement isn't coming through as much as wanting us to buy your product. We're a captive customer, we love your product. When you take away things that we're used to or apply larger prices than in previous times, like any other customer we're going to groan.

Greg's motto is from the good boss' spectrum- 'If we're doing a good job, tell us. If not, tell me and I'll fix it'

Yours, for the most part are money driven. Understandable in your position, but yes, like an infomercial I turn the channel on your posts quickly.

Have a few posts about your favorite fantasy players, tell us about the great times we're going to have without selling something.

We're sold!

The old adage is you can't sell a used car to someone that just bought one, essentially, that is what you're doing on the Boards.

[ November 26, 2009, 09:28 AM: Message edited by: DOUGHBOYS ]

Chest Rockwell · Post by **Chest Rockwell** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:33 am

I agree 100% that Ryan has gotten off to a terrible start here. At some point he needs to realize how much better Greg is at handling the masses than he is.

However, I think being upset about paying 7 bucks for a magazine you used to get for free is just going overboard.

If they give in to every demand these boards collectively have- there will be no nfbc in 2011.

This is combination of a new business and a business trying to reinvent itself. Those are challenging things and hiccups will happen. I am sure some of you will say no need to fix what is not broken. The problem is the only thing in the old model that was broken was the profit line. If anyone besides Walla Walla begrudges these guys from making a profit then I feel bad for you.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:40 am

Good post Kent, but I think you're lying in your signature. I don't remember an Olive Garden in Las Vegas, unless you're planning to draft in St. Louis this year??

The bottom line is that if NFBC members want all four Fanball magazines mailed to them we'll figure out a fair price to get it done. Easy enough. We had 100+ members who willingly paid the $10 shipping and handling fee for all four magazines last year, so we understand the passion that our members have for these mags. We'll keep that passion going at a fair price and make sure that part doesn't change.

And instead of the mags in the goodie bags, we'll have something else for you on Draft Day. Shipping 2,800 magazines to four different locations doesn't make economical sense anymore and too few really wanted them at that point. If we can give you something else at a lesser price for us, it makes sense.

We'll figure this out. But if you just want this first magazine, take advantage of the free shipping now. If you want all four later, we'll have a price for you soon. Thanks all.

Oh, and GIVE THANKS TODAY!! It's a great day!!

Chest Rockwell · Post by **Chest Rockwell** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 3:45 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

Good post Kent, but I think you're lying in your signature. I don't remember an Olive Garden in Las Vegas, unless you're planning to draft in St. Louis this year??

The bottom line is that if NFBC members want all four Fanball magazines mailed to them we'll figure out a fair price to get it done. Easy enough. We had 100+ members who willingly paid the $10 shipping and handling fee for all four magazines last year, so we understand the passion that our members have for these mags. We'll keep that passion going at a fair price and make sure that part doesn't change.

And instead of the mags in the goodie bags, we'll have something else for you on Draft Day. Shipping 2,800 magazines to four different locations doesn't make economical sense anymore and too few really wanted them at that point. If we can give you something else at a lesser price for us, it makes sense.

We'll figure this out. But if you just want this first magazine, take advantage of the free shipping now. If you want all four later, we'll have a price for you soon. Thanks all.

Oh, and GIVE THANKS TODAY!! It's a great day!! Greg- I go to St Louis once or twice a year on business and if business "happens" to have me there that week then I may come in. I will request a dinner at Dierdorf and Hart's which if I remember correctly is a stone's throw away from the draft.

751542 · Post by **751542** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 4:05 am

doughy,

i like you alot and i think your posts are great..for the most part!! but i am getting tired of reading your slams on ryan and change. it might be much better served to address your issues with ryan or the nfbc in personal messages. i find them nauseating. move on and embrace what ryan and greg are trying to build and stick to you factoids, which are actually interserting to read. you are starting to sound like "another" conspiracy theorist on these boards. have a great day.

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 4:11 am

I'm sorry you feel that way, Rick.

billywaz · Post by **billywaz** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 4:18 am

Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

As much as we'd like to offer you 4 magazines for $10 -- that simply isn't financially possible.

Why isn't it possible???

It has been that way in the past, and you are saving a bunch of $$ by not sending magazines to the 4 cities on draft day. I imagine that those mags that weren't picked up went right in the trash, as they were obsolete to those who picked them up, or didn't pick them up on draft day.

Honestly, why would I pay for this magazine through Fanball, when I can get it at my local Barnes and Noble??

I assume that you signed Greg and Tom at Fanball because of their excellent abilities to deal with the customers. It just doesn't sit well with me that they seem "strapped" into what they do, or can't do. They built a GREAT product in the NFFC/NFBC because they CATERED TO THE CUSTOMER.....I think you have lost focus of that, Ryan.

You gotta remember that you now have some competition in the high stakes market for fantasy baseball, and TAKING AWAY THINGS from customers is probably not the best way to go about things.

Just my opinion.....Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

[ November 26, 2009, 10:19 AM: Message edited by: billywaz ]

Chest Rockwell · Post by **Chest Rockwell** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 4:36 am

Originally posted by billywaz:

quote:Originally posted by Ryan E. Houston:

As much as we'd like to offer you 4 magazines for $10 -- that simply isn't financially possible.

Why isn't it possible???

It has been that way in the past, and you are saving a bunch of $$ by not sending magazines to the 4 cities on draft day. I imagine that those mags that weren't picked up went right in the trash, as they were obsolete to those who picked them up, or didn't pick them up on draft day.

Honestly, why would I pay for this magazine through Fanball, when I can get it at my local Barnes and Noble??

I assume that you signed Greg and Tom at Fanball because of their excellent abilities to deal with the customers. It just doesn't sit well with me that they seem "strapped" into what they do, or can't do. They built a GREAT product in the NFFC/NFBC because they CATERED TO THE CUSTOMER.....I think you have lost focus of that, Ryan.

You gotta remember that you now have some competition in the high stakes market for fantasy baseball, and TAKING AWAY THINGS from customers is probably not the best way to go about things.

Just my opinion.....Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

[/QUOTE]someone in Delaware has an upset stomach after reading that

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 5:00 am

Rick, your pm box is full.

Plymouth · Post by **Plymouth** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 5:16 am

Are all the same "goodies" going to be provided to the main event phone league participants who can not attend the drafts in person since they paid the same entry fees?

Glenneration X · Post by **Glenneration X** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 5:16 am

I posted this once before and I feel the need to post it again because I personally hate to see anyone judged unfairly.....

I met Ryan in New York during the NFFC drafts and spent sometime speaking with him along with some other drafters between the Classic & Primetime. He did not strike me a money monger at all. In fact, the impression he left me was of a fantasy sports lover excited about being a part of the NFBC/NFFC and determined to make the events the best around.

Its obvious he does not come off great on these boards to a lot of you guys, but based on my conversation with him, I truly believe he has the best interests of the events at heart.

This said, let's not forget he works for Fanball. Fanball did not purchase these events to lose money.

I loved my first year with the NFBC & NFFC and think Greg & Tom are tremendous ambassadors for their contests and this hobby in general. However, let's not pretend the contests were not without any fault and were not perfect and like anything else could have been improved. All you have to do is go back a few months on the message boards to prove that not everybody was happy with everything.

Thus far most of the announcements are a tremendous positive in my mind, while others I may not be as happy with but are of lesser consequence (like a $10 discount for magazines).

I prefer to reserve judgement until all the facts are in.....until I see everything that's offered & where, until I attend the drafts & take part in the new live experiences being offered, until I see the new website, until I utilize the new back-end server....basically see everything that's being upgraded (or just changed), the costs for these upgrades (or changes), and will then determine its worth in my mind.

I am not one to rush to judgement. I will say this, I am excited about a lot of what's being offered and look forward to the baseball season. That in itself is a positive.

Let's also not forget that according to Greg (whom I assume most of us trust), the financial viability of this contest was shaky at best and the past owners were seriously considering shelving the contests due to profit concerns.

It is guaranteed that there will be an NFBC next year thanks to Fanball & Ryan. To me that's the biggest positive of all.

Glenn