Powering Down and Treating as Beta: Updates on the New Web Site and Fall Launch

[Tracy99]

My director just sent this:

They are powering down the new Web Site and treating it as a Beta site! They should be emailing the rest of the consultants soon. P3 until they can fix the beast!

I have a consultant on the new Web. I guess ill be teaching her p3. Fall launch should be interesting. Wondering what if anything they will say

 

[pchockeymom]

Yes!! Just got the email to directors! Hallelujah!!! Now if they would put the lead system back to how it used to be!!!

 

[chefjeanine]

YIPEE:sing::thumbup::thumbup:

 

[sushimommy]

just got the regular consultant email in my inbox

 

[Amanda_RI]

Just got the email. Sheesh. I was really wondering what kind of spin they were going to put on the new web at Fall Launch. Guess this email answers my question! They're not.

 

[esavvymom]

Just got the email. Sheesh. I was really wondering what kind of spin they were going to put on the new web at Fall Launch. Guess this email answers my question! They're not.

Oh I hadnt even thought about what they would face at the Launches! Maybe even "boo"? At least they are doing something! I have a strong recruit lead I am about to call. This make me feel better about bringing her into the fold.

 

[babywings76]

And I just spent a few hours this morning learning the new web along with my new consultant as we started entering orders on her first show. Figures. Hope she doesn't mind the confusion and needing to get together again to learn P3.But overall, I'm glad they are switching back. P3 is such a good program, the new web has such potential, they just need to get it fine-tuned. I'm surprised they hadn't done a beta-test first anyway. Oh well. It'll be great when it's ready. Meanwhile, I'm glad we have P3.

 

[Brenda.the.chef]

Status quo for me, but I know plenty of consultants in my cluster that will be breathing a sigh of relief. I was worried about recruiting because my director hates the website and she would be the one that would have to help train. Now I feel more confident in recruiting. I have someone that may very well join this Friday at my fundraiser.

 

[jcsmilez]

This is so wonderful! I'm with you Bobbi, I have some strong leads but I have been so hesitant to start them off with the challenges of the new system that I don't have access to to be able to support them. Now we can focus on our businesses and they can focus on the glitches instead of walking mass quantities through the same issues and the customer care nightmare that I'm sure they have been dealing with up until this point.

 

[jcsmilez]

This news AND the 30 day consultant rewards extension AND the extra $100 in FREE product. Right now is a GREAT time to start your business - SO EXCITED!

 

[Amanda_RI]

Just wanted to say--I had been dragging my feet about setting up August shows in the new web (I've been using it since 5/3). It just took me 4 minutes to set up 5 shows, and sync to the old website. I'm SO happy to be back using a program that works and that I'm familiar with!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jcsmilez]

Don't get me wrong, I am still VERY excited about the new web. It's just so hard when you are forced to use it when it's not working properly. I wonder if the "beta" testers will be able to go back an forth? Sometimes you just need to submit a show, KWIM?

 

[Lauradorable]

As a new consultant I am VERY relieved to have the chance to use the 'old' site. I haven't had experience with P3, but the limited (2 weeks) experience that I had with the new site has left me with a sour taste in my mouth. I had a very hard time getting guests to make online orders, I personally kept getting kicked out of the site in the midst of setting up shows or looking for recipes, I found SO many broken links that just went to blank pages... I could go on and on. I'm willing to try a show now and then on the new website as it is still available and to provide feedback. But I am very happy to be able to set up some shows on the old site too knowing that it is stable and more reliable.

 

[alidafrizzell]

Just curious how everyone is going to handle the shows we have already submitted in the New Web... Suppose there will be a way to "easily" transfer them into the P3? I know we could not do it the other way around so I am thinking hmmmm a few shows in this program a few shows in that program... Oh my! But I think they are doing the right thing!

 

[babywings76]

I was helping my new consultant today learn the new web to start entering orders from her first show. She created the new PWS and entered in the show orders, guests, check marked them for the e-newsletter, etc. So does she need to re-enter those contacts into P3? I'm just curious about the e-newsletter part. Now that we are going back to the regular PWS, does she need to set up things on the PWS assistant and customer connection stuff like we used to do it? (I never was on the new PWS, so I don't have anything to reference from regarding the e-newsletter set-up.)

 

[pchockeymom]

Just curious how everyone is going to handle the shows we have already submitted in the New Web... Suppose there will be a way to "easily" transfer them into the P3? I know we could not do it the other way around so I am thinking hmmmm a few shows in this program a few shows in that program... Oh my! But I think they are doing the right thing!

This whole thing just sends chills down my spine! I dove into the new web with both feet (and unfortunately no oxygen tank). Since May I have submitted 25-30 shows (can't remember off the top of my head). None of those guests are on my enewsletter list and none are in my p3 contacts, unless they were previous guests/hosts. The idea of trying to manually transfer all that info from the new web to p3 and customer connection is overwhelming.

I am however, incredibly relieved to have a firm affirmation that I need to go back to p3. I have felt obligated to forge ahead with the new web since they need SOMEONE submitting shows, using it, and reporting back to them with problems, missing links, and suggestions for improvement. But I'm tired. I have struggled mentally with keeping my personal morale going, working my business, and focussing on recruiting. Now I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I feel my excitement for my business and pc returning. I feel I can now share my love and enthusiasm with my team, hosts, guest, and potential team members without "faking it".

So glad they finally did it!

 

[vanscootin]

This whole thing just sends chills down my spine! I dove into the new web with both feet (and unfortunately no oxygen tank). Since May I have submitted 25-30 shows (can't remember off the top of my head). None of those guests are on my enewsletter list and none are in my p3 contacts, unless they were previous guests/hosts. The idea of trying to manually transfer all that info from the new web to p3 and customer connection is overwhelming.

I am however, incredibly relieved to have a firm affirmation that I need to go back to p3. I have felt obligated to forge ahead with the new web since they need SOMEONE submitting shows, using it, and reporting back to them with problems, missing links, and suggestions for improvement. But I'm tired. I have struggled mentally with keeping my personal morale going, working my business, and focussing on recruiting. Now I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I feel my excitement for my business and pc returning. I feel I can now share my love and enthusiasm with my team, hosts, guest, and potential team members without "faking it".

So glad they finally did it!

Preach on sista!

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

Honestly have mixed feelings about this. I never got to try the new web and quite frankly, it made me afraid to recruit! The idea of my recruit and I being on 2 different systems ... I wouldn't be able to answer her questions and our director isn't the most accessible.

However, the only downside I see is that I purchased an Ipod touch just to access it ... and now kind of feel like I wasted my money. But now I look at it this way ... I've been using it 3 months and obviously, Pampered Chef isn't all I use it for. Also when I heard about the new web I thought, "I just got a laptop." Obviously, P3 isn't all I use it for!

It will be much easier to use P3 at my shows!

 

[NooraK]

Make sure you let HO know that you want an easy way to transport your New Web stuff back into P3.I'm guessing someone is going to be in BIG trouble for this. To give Marla, Jean, and the others the impression that this was going to be the best thing since the Super Swat, and lead them to believe it would work perfectly, and then have it turn out like this... someone is NOT going to keep their job.

 

[wadesgirl]

I haven't read the email from HO but I really hope people don't boo HO at Fall Launch. It's not their fault that this all went wrong, that has to do with the programing. HO wants the best for us ad the new system isn't working out as they thought it would so they finally decided the scrap it for now.

 

[esavvymom]

I haven't read the email from HO but I really hope people don't boo HO at Fall Launch. It's not their fault that this all went wrong, that has to do with the programing. HO wants the best for us ad the new system isn't working out as they thought it would so they finally decided the scrap it for now.

I agree....they don't deserve that. But you know how people can be (immature). Especially if they try to make it all 'roses'...but from experience, they just won't bring it up.

 

[heather223]

Maybe I read the email differently, but it isn't scraped at all! It is simply in beta testing! We still (those of us on it) still need to be using it some to help the bugs be fixed. We have to tell them what we want. (Yes, I will be using the new website as much as time allows for me.) Also, I don't feel someone should loose their job over this. I am speculating here, but in all likely hood the people that developed the new website are NOT consultants! They were asked to develop something that is VERY SPECIFIC to us! Honestly, these kind of issues happen all the time with technology, we just are not the ones typically dealing with them! And no, we should not BOO our company, they still worked hard on this. They are going to make it right.

 

[Amanda_RI]

This whole thing just sends chills down my spine! I dove into the new web with both feet (and unfortunately no oxygen tank). Since May I have submitted 25-30 shows (can't remember off the top of my head). None of those guests are on my enewsletter list and none are in my p3 contacts, unless they were previous guests/hosts. The idea of trying to manually transfer all that info from the new web to p3 and customer connection is overwhelming.

I am however, incredibly relieved to have a firm affirmation that I need to go back to p3. I have felt obligated to forge ahead with the new web since they need SOMEONE submitting shows, using it, and reporting back to them with problems, missing links, and suggestions for improvement. But I'm tired. I have struggled mentally with keeping my personal morale going, working my business, and focussing on recruiting. Now I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I feel my excitement for my business and pc returning. I feel I can now share my love and enthusiasm with my team, hosts, guest, and potential team members without "faking it".

So glad they finally did it!

I didn't submit anywhere near that # of shows, but you described how I feel perfectly!

 

[Amanda_RI]

Make sure you let HO know that you want an easy way to transport your New Web stuff back into P3.

I'm guessing someone is going to be in BIG trouble for this. To give Marla, Jean, and the others the impression that this was going to be the best thing since the Super Swat, and lead them to believe it would work perfectly, and then have it turn out like this... someone is NOT going to keep their job.

Noora, I practically spit out my water at your Super Swat comment! *love*

 

[BethCooks4U]

Maybe I read the email differently, but it isn't scraped at all! It is simply in beta testing! We still (those of us on it) still need to be using it some to help the bugs be fixed. We have to tell them what we want. (Yes, I will be using the new website as much as time allows for me.)

Also, I don't feel someone should loose their job over this. I am speculating here, but in all likely hood the people that developed the new website are NOT consultants! They were asked to develop something that is VERY SPECIFIC to us! Honestly, these kind of issues happen all the time with technology, we just are not the ones typically dealing with them! And no, we should not BOO our company, they still worked hard on this. They are going to make it right.

These things happen but this was way beyond normal. My husband works in the field and, first, $2 million is nothing for what PC is trying to do and, second, even when things fail miserably it should never take months to fix. The developers didn't understand how our business works and worse of all they skipped the beta step. Stepping back will allow the issues to be fixed in a beta atmosphere, impacting fewer people. I am grateful that they decided to do this. I am sure it was a difficult decision.

Booing is never productive. They want it to work as much as we do.

 

[jcsmilez]

I will definitely not boo. I will cheer. I just might bring roses to throw at their feet!

 

[esavvymom]

Just to be clear...I myself was NOT condoning "booing". I wouldn't do it either, no matter how frustrated. Just so ya'll know....

 

[NooraK]

Maybe I read the email differently, but it isn't scraped at all! It is simply in beta testing! We still (those of us on it) still need to be using it some to help the bugs be fixed. We have to tell them what we want. (Yes, I will be using the new website as much as time allows for me.)

Also, I don't feel someone should loose their job over this. I am speculating here, but in all likely hood the people that developed the new website are NOT consultants! They were asked to develop something that is VERY SPECIFIC to us! Honestly, these kind of issues happen all the time with technology, we just are not the ones typically dealing with them! And no, we should not BOO our company, they still worked hard on this. They are going to make it right.

I don't WANT anyone to lose their job, but I think they will (if they haven't already). Like Beth said, this is way beyond the scale of expected hiccups that might happen. It's one thing if we discover a few things here and there that might not have been expected by the initial testers, it's another thing for the system to practically not work at all for basic things as soon as it's launched.

The way it was announced last year made it seem like it was almost ready to go. HO would never had given us that impression if they didn't believe it. Whatever the reason for why things turned out the way they did almost seems irrelevant. Someone led the top people at HO to believe this launch would be a piece of cake and loved by everyone, and now HO is having to eat crow.

Noora, I practically spit out my water at your Super Swat comment! *love*

I was about to type "sliced bread" but thought that was more appropriate.

 

[wadesgirl]

Just to be clear...I myself was NOT condoning "booing". I wouldn't do it either, no matter how frustrated. Just so ya'll know....

I know what you meant! But after hearing some of the stuff that went around it wouldn't surprise me if some people would boo.

Just like seeing a gal on PC's FB page threaten to quit her business because she didn't like how the FB page was ran! Seriously - why not just quit looking at the FB page!!

 

[alidafrizzell]

This whole thing just sends chills down my spine! I dove into the new web with both feet (and unfortunately no oxygen tank). Since May I have submitted 25-30 shows (can't remember off the top of my head). None of those guests are on my enewsletter list and none are in my p3 contacts, unless they were previous guests/hosts. The idea of trying to manually transfer all that info from the new web to p3 and customer connection is overwhelming.

I am however, incredibly relieved to have a firm affirmation that I need to go back to p3. I have felt obligated to forge ahead with the new web since they need SOMEONE submitting shows, using it, and reporting back to them with problems, missing links, and suggestions for improvement. But I'm tired. I have struggled mentally with keeping my personal morale going, working my business, and focussing on recruiting. Now I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I feel my excitement for my business and pc returning. I feel I can now share my love and enthusiasm with my team, hosts, guest, and potential team members without "faking it".

So glad they finally did it!

You said this perfectl! I too, put all I had into this... I love change as without change we will never grow. But this is way beyond easy to deal with. Yes, it is going to be a challenge to revert back... but relieved to be doing so. You are so right that it is difficult to share the love for something and pretend everything is AWESOME!
I will say that I am a little frustrated at the response I got to asking if there would be an "easy" fix for transfering "back" to P3...
"The only thing that is movable back to the old web is any new contacts that where added to the new web after you synced from the old web." :cry:

 

[pchockeymom]

"The only thing that is movable back to the old web is any new contacts that where added to the new web after you synced from the old web." :cry:

REALLY??! How?? Did I miss that in the email? Of course, I have the issue of the new web not saving all the contact info of the guests - apparently there was ANOTHER step to actually saving the contact's name, address, phone, email, and status (guest/host). The, "save contact" wasn't really a "save" button. Go figure!:cry: So all I have is name and email. I would still need to manually enter the other info in myself.

 

[alidafrizzell]

REALLY??! How?? Did I miss that in the email? Of course, I have the issue of the new web not saving all the contact info of the guests - apparently there was ANOTHER step to actually saving the contact's name, address, phone, email, and status (guest/host). The, "save contact" wasn't really a "save" button. Go figure!:cry: So all I have is name and email. I would still need to manually enter the other info in myself.

I wrote to them to ask if there was an "easy" way to move all out info from the new web... back to P3 and that was the response...

 

[ShellBeach]

Pointing fingers & blaming is never really productive, but it is good business practice to look at what went wrong so it can be avoided in the future.

If PC contracted this web design, I hope they had a good non-performance clause! If it was in-house.....yikes.

 

[esavvymom]

I wrote to them to ask if there was an "easy" way to move all out info from the new web... back to P3 and that was the response...

Well, in all fairness, they weren't expecting to have to go BACKWARDS...so it makes sense that they don't have any steps in place.

Having been through major roll-outs...it did seem some big steps were missing. I think they counted their "beta" test as when some of the upper-levels got a chance to look at things. There is a difference between demos and USING it in the real-world. They missed that step. And yes, $2million..I laughed when I heard that in context with what they were doing. I think they forgot a '0' on that figure to get a job done right?!

 

[katem51]

@ NooraK:

Boy I wish they would bring the Super Swat back. I used to sell a ton of those!

 

[france59]

The concept is great, but evidently they didn't test it long enough with a small group to find out all the the issues with it. I was really looking forward to being able to use the new site and the iPhone app...oh, well. I bet heads roll and they'll bring in someone who'll fix it and possibly improve on the original idea. HO does want it to work for us and make our lives easier.

 

[ShellBeach]

Well, in all fairness, they weren't expecting to have to go BACKWARDS...so it makes sense that they don't have any steps in place.

Doesn't make sense to to me! Best-practice for IT projects is to always have a rollback plan. Well, I guess they sorta had one - they are going back to P3.

One thing I am glad to see, is that all consultants got the email and they didn't just let directors know this time. A lot of us have directors who don't distribute news consistently.

 

[esavvymom]

Doesn't make sense to to me! Best-practice for IT projects is to always have a rollback plan. Well, I guess they sorta had one - they are going back to P3.

One thing I am glad to see, is that all consultants got the email and they didn't just let directors know this time. A lot of us have directors who don't distribute news consistently.

I agree....but also best practice is to make sure that you don't just go with whoever gives you the cheapest bid. I told my DH, who has been in "the biz" for 20 years, how much they said they spent on this roll-out. He just laughed and said what I did..."They forgot a Zero!" We've worked with guys who could talk the talk and sell ice to an eskimo- make promises that were unrealistic ("I can have that in 3 months, and for half the price!" kind of talk). Sounds like PC found one of those companies unfortunately, and someone didn't know any better to ask the right questions or something.

But at least we know they are going in the right direction and maybe now know what questions to ask.

 

[ChefPeg]

Seems like someone at PC didn't learn the business "rule of two's"--it's going to take twice as long and cost twice as much.