Building a New Server Campaign out of Queues

[Zuba The Mystic 0]

Launching a server is very difficult, but time is of the essence when it comes to retention of new, interested players. I suggest you start a mini-campaign across all your media forums to get one-time donations for players frustrated by massive queues (critical success by Elysium; congratulations folks) in order to open a parallel server as fast as possible.

These 'Advertisements' are essentially Calls to Action in crowd-funding form. Include in these posts or temporary modification to the homepage to all the posts you have already made about tangible costs and distribution of funds in the project. Make sure there is minimal confusion about why there isn't already a new server. Make it obvious as possible that the players have agency here, and that is what makes the difference between this project and Blizzard's.

Inform new players (older players of these private servers as well, but they are more likely to continue playing with or without a new server) that if they donate, it supports the new project in general, but it also enables you to show them that you listen directly to their ideas and can provide them with near-immediate results based on their willingness to donate; these elements are what make private servers appealing to old WoW players again. Donating will also incentivize them to stay longer and get more involved as they are then invested.

Personally, I have 3 other old players who are interested in playing, but are unwilling to deal with such immense queues. I had not heard of such an immense effort to recreate WoW in it's original state until very recently and was drawn here to test it. I want to play on a fresh start and am not likely to invest in a realm that is already mid-way in it's life-line. My friends and I are potentially part of a case study that shows that these queues could result in even more players than are attempting to play right now if the situation is handled deftly and sensationalized properly.

[westomopresto 1]

I think launching a donation drive to open a new server is a good idea. I'd donate to that.

[Zuba The Mystic 0]

Thanks westomopresto!

I definitely would too, I think that goes without saying.

In summary: Donation drive to raise 6000 euros (approximate cost for a new server for a year), and if they hit the mark, promise a new server for one year. Stipulate that continuing said server depends on continued donation. But I am extremely confident that if action similar to what I and others have suggested is taken ASAP, the player population will continue to increase and funding should be no issue. Similar donation drives (with very lucid details about how money is spent) can be embarked upon later in the year if quotas are not met.

Worst case scenario, population falls and not enough money rolls in : close the new server and enable transfers to older servers.