Mantisplace Vs. Mantispets?

[hibiscusmile]

Not to worry, rarely ever does Hibiscuy get mad, only once in a while, well most days with hubby, but I digress :clown: .

There is a lot to advertising that most younguns and people not in the business do not know and that is the alphabet approach. When in business you use the alphabet to list your business, you will come in, in that order. So go to a page for rentals in the yellow pages, notice how all the names are in alphabetical order, now look at the first few names, this is usually what you will see "AAA car rental company, or AA All Rental Car Co" u get the picture? If you want to be first thats how you place your ads. Now Carey started out with the name " mantispEts" notice how she comes before "mantispLace" . Get the picture? Now whether on purpose or not, the fact remains that her site comes first when searching in certain places, notice I said certain. She also started a mantis forum. Now for whatever reason, it is a little sad to think that she has a forum and on it asks for donations. Seems that one would rather make better choices so as to keep things statis quo and not upset the wagons that are already in the wagon train. Peter has a lot of forums he pays for, and has for years, he did not just start as he has been in business for years, but he did just start asking for donations and I know what we send him helps a tiny bit to pay for them, and I have tried to be a help by sending mantis and feeders to new supporters. This is in a way a two way street. I want to get the newbies addicted so they stay and help the forum out, cause u must admit, once you start talking here, and u are here a year, you see your name in green and suddenly is is plain, well u just gotta send in the funds to make it green again! I just think it is sad someone is trying to compete with him when there is little money in this economy now days to go around. So think what you will, but since the topics here have brought all this up, I felt it best to explain how some of us feels.

And for those of you who think we are mad at each other, we are to my knowledge not! :kiss:

 

[Norlin]

Rebecca, your name isn't green!!!!

 

[GreenOasis]

Cool! I hadn't heard of that magazine. Do you know if it's one that you can pick up in a store or do you need a subscription? Let us know how it goes.

it is a "trade" magazine, meaning its intended audience is those already in the trade of pets, so stores only get a copy or two for their staff & managers to peruse.

They have a website, though, you may be able to view it online.

 

[GreenOasis]

That's true, but I'd say it would be more in your favor. I had never heard of "mantid" until I found this site.

Ha, I guess that's true!

Sorry, Rebecca!

 

[yen_saw]

Hmmmm.... should I change my website to mantidspet.com? Only kidding

 

[Krissim Klaw]

Now Carey started out with the name " mantispEts" notice how she comes before "mantispLace" .

Clearly you should have gone with Mantispalace. No seriously for the longest time I kept thinking your site was palace not place.

 

[hibiscusmile]

LOL will think about that! and Yen, u stay put! Or no chicken for you!

 

[GreenOasis]

Not to worry, rarely ever does Hibiscuy get mad, only once in a while, well most days with hubby, but I digress :clown: .

There is a lot to advertising that most younguns and people not in the business do not know and that is the alphabet approach. When in business you use the alphabet to list your business, you will come in, in that order. So go to a page for rentals in the yellow pages, notice how all the names are in alphabetical order, now look at the first few names, this is usually what you will see "AAA car rental company, or AA All Rental Car Co" u get the picture? If you want to be first thats how you place your ads. Now Carey started out with the name " mantispEts" notice how she comes before "mantispLace" . Get the picture? Now whether on purpose or not, the fact remains that her site comes first when searching in certain places, notice I said certain. She also started a mantis forum. Now for whatever reason, it is a little sad to think that she has a forum and on it asks for donations. Seems that one would rather make better choices so as to keep things statis quo and not upset the wagons that are already in the wagon train. Peter has a lot of forums he pays for, and has for years, he did not just start as he has been in business for years, but he did just start asking for donations and I know what we send him helps a tiny bit to pay for them, and I have tried to be a help by sending mantis and feeders to new supporters. This is in a way a two way street. I want to get the newbies addicted so they stay and help the forum out, cause u must admit, once you start talking here, and u are here a year, you see your name in green and suddenly is is plain, well u just gotta send in the funds to make it green again! I just think it is sad someone is trying to compete with him when there is little money in this economy now days to go around. So think what you will, but since the topics here have brought all this up, I felt it best to explain how some of us feels.

And for those of you who think we are mad at each other, we are to my knowledge not! :kiss:

You know, I don't even know what "alphabet approach" you are talking about. That has nothing to do with Google rankings, to my knowledge. But, hey, whatever you like to think! I chose Mantis Pets because I thought it best suited the nature of my business; selling mantises as pets!

I ask for donations on my forum because, I had HOPED to be able to get a new (expensive) forum going, one more like a real forum with PM services, etc. Anyone & everyone has a right to do this...not just those who "did it first".

To date, I have gotten exactly TWO donations on my forum, for a total of $10, which is why I haven't gotten a better forum up. (Don't make much above operating costs, as previously mentioned.) Yet, I honor my "free mantis for new forum members", no matter WHICH forum they joined (mine or Peter's). I have no reason to support Peter's forum or the "free mantis" offer on here. Lord knows, we haven't always seen eye to eye. But, I honor this one thing because I feel it is in people's best interest (especially those new to the hobby) to get together & connect with others, learn from each other, compare notes, etc...not to make money or "win" people over.

I hope that explains some things to those who assume they know my reasons for doing certain things (like asking for donations).

 

[SilentDeviL]

I suppose it's easy to say "mantids should be cheaper" when you aren't in the business. I didn't appreciate all the work that goes into Rebecca's business until I "walked a mile in her shoes" either. I challenge anyone who thinks differently to take care of some 2000-3000+ mantids, EVERY day, for a year, and come back & say the same.

Y'all don't think about all the costs associated with taking care of, feeding, misting (distilled water), housing, cleaning, electricity, incidentals (such as excelsior for hatching ooths) and then, of course, going & buying new species or replacing lost species. The only way I can keep my prices as low as I do is by finding others (like here on the forum) whom I can trade with or buy, inexpensively, new species & species that I've lost. I only RARELY deal in ooths, and refuse to import anymore, as I've already been burned a few times and just can't afford the losses.

Now, let's think of actual PAY, like my hourly wages for taking care of all the buggers...ha...there really is none...joke's on you! I do this for love of the species & desire to get others "into" mantids as well. (i.e. Folks who would otherwise never have found the forum & gotten into them that way.) This is why I also sell them at local reptile shows. You have no idea how many people out there STILL say, "I never knew there were more than just a couple species!" & are simply fascinated...as well as all the kids who "Oooh" and "Awww!" over them! I really need to get a good vid of one of our shows sometime, but let's just say that it gives me no end of joy to introduce people to a hobby that they never would have otherwise known existed! (Peter should be thanking me, as I'm sure that his membership has steadily gone up as a result of new owners "searching" for all available info on mantids!)

Tomorrow I am going out to the great Bob Clark's (think "big snakes"/Letterman show) facility to see some of his collection, and he has also requested some mantids, as he wants to try his hand at keeping them!

I also recently did an interview with a magazine contributor about mantids & their future in the pet industry. I haven't seen it yet, but it's the newest issue of Pet Age magazine, which is a trade magazine distributed throughout pet shops nationwide.

So, REBECCA & PETER, better batten down the hatches, because I foresee a storm of "bug enthusiasts" coming! A veritable "plague" of them, you might say!

(Ha, watch. It will be my luck when the magazine arrives that there is only a one-sentence blurb from my interview!) Ah well...it'll be fun to think I've been "published" anyway! LOL

I feel you .... I'm only with 500 mantis and I'm already dieing ... I can even think about 2000-3000 mantis ... just feed them all can take 6 hrs lol ... take me 2 hr to feed my 500 lol ...

 

[SilentDeviL]

Hmmmm.... should I change my website to mantidspet.com? Only kidding

lol Yen welcome back lol ...

 

[Krissim Klaw]

I feel you .... I'm only with 500 mantis and I'm already dieing ... I can even think about 2000-3000 mantis ... just feed them all can take 6 hrs lol ... take me 2 hr to feed my 500 lol ...

It takes me 1 hour just to do my 4 each day... ;o;

 

[hibiscusmile]

you gotta stop tasting their food before you let them have it.

 

[Krissim Klaw]

you gotta stop tasting their food before you let them have it.

That or I need to stop offering the finest wine by eye dropper before each meal.

 

[happy1892]

You know, I don't even know what "alphabet approach" you are talking about. That has nothing to do with Google rankings, to my knowledge. But, hey, whatever you like to think! I chose Mantis Pets because I thought it best suited the nature of my business; selling mantises as pets!

I ask for donations on my forum because, I had HOPED to be able to get a new (expensive) forum going, one more like a real forum with PM services, etc. Anyone & everyone has a right to do this...not just those who "did it first".

To date, I have gotten exactly TWO donations on my forum, for a total of $10, which is why I haven't gotten a better forum up. (Don't make much above operating costs, as previously mentioned.) Yet, I honor my "free mantis for new forum members", no matter WHICH forum they joined (mine or Peter's). I have no reason to support Peter's forum or the "free mantis" offer on here. Lord knows, we haven't always seen eye to eye. But, I honor this one thing because I feel it is in people's best interest (especially those new to the hobby) to get together & connect with others, learn from each other, compare notes, etc...not to make money or "win" people over.

I hope that explains some things to those who assume they know my reasons for doing certain things (like asking for donations).

We must have thought it was something like that? Anyway this is a great mantis forum! There is not much of a reason to make another I think. It just costs more.

 

[Sneaky123]

Ive actually only bought one borealis ooth and some fly pupae from mantispets, everything else ive gotten from hobbyists here. The reason being that both sites are normally expensive when it comes to mantids. But considering they have so many mantids to take care of, they need to make an ample profit, otherwise not being able to support their business. Ive always actually seen it more as a service than anything.

My thoughts on which is 'better?' mantispets usually sells stuff cheaper, but mantisplace has a bigger variety on mantids

 

[PragmaticHominid]

 

[TySAAAN]

 

[brancsikia339]

QUESTION MARK

 

[hibiscusmile]

The last 3 post are off topic? fftopic: :clown:

 

[PragmaticHominid]

No, they're VERY much related to this thread.