Bluff Magazine Feedback

[pdparv19 0]

Ok, So in the past I have been pretty beat up in the forums, but after talking with an FCPer I decided to give it another shot. I am going to try to be more active on the forum. I am curious, what do you like and dislike about BLUFF, or any of the poker magazines? What can we do better? What are some things that would create more interest in the magazine. I hope this can start a friendly conversation, and we can improve our product to better suit your needs. I look forward to hearing everyone's thoughts.Best, MPMatthew ParvisEditor in ChiefBluff Magazine

[dna4ever 2]

Outside of hiring back Absolute I got nothing (sw). I enjoy the magazine.

[WhatArunAA 0]

I love bluff:)

[gobears 0]

I've never seen your magazine - I've been to Bay101 and the Grand Sierra Resort (formerly Reno Hilton) and I've picked up the Cardplayer issues that they have lying around but have never seen Bluff around.As for Cardplayer, I find it sort of boring with the same articles so I tend not to even pick it up anymore. For current poker news outside of this forum, I typically read wickedchops, tao of poker, Bill Rini and Iggy consistently. I'll also stop by P5 and 2+2 every so often.

[WhatArunAA 0]

I love online zone.. I think you should enhance it though because more and more people are playing online daily.

[king1305 0]

Sure Matt, I'll take a complementary subscription to Bluff!Please PM me so I can give you my mailing information!

[Royal_Tour 0]

Hmm... hire me?I'm grinding in LV and have plenty of free time. I can become the new director of awesome operations.Basically U wanna steam roll cardplayer right? Obv your biggest competition.Plenty of things you need to consider. You guys arent as popular with the online community as cardplayer is. You need to add a few changes to your website and really start aiming at picking up more people from the online world.Only real readers who get live are the ones who pick up the free casino edition magazines at the cardrooms. Perhaps Bluff might need to think about some video aspect for the website. (I can help in that department ; )edit: what do u know, I noticed you do have some video apps on the site.. But not until 15 mins of browsing.. U really need to pump that up moreMaybe try some different articles that are more geared to the youth market of online poker. They are the ones spending hours and hours online playing, chatting and browsing. so Get them interested in the site and eventually in the Mag itself.cheersMitch

[WhatArunAA 0]

I've never seen your magazine - I've been to Bay101 and the Grand Sierra Resort (formerly Reno Hilton) and I've picked up the Cardplayer issues that they have lying around but have never seen Bluff around.As for Cardplayer, I find it sort of boring with the same articles so I tend not to even pick it up anymore. For current poker news outside of this forum, I typically read wickedchops, tao of poker, Bill Rini and Iggy consistently. I'll also stop by P5 and 2+2 every so often.

I agree completely.. I think you guys should send magazines to the major cardrooms around the country.. Ive seen a new magazine called " rounder" in some casinos lately.. Also.. I never read the Jennifer Tilly articles because it because of that hand she played on Poker after dark..if you start putting magazines in casinos I bet your website would get a huge increase in traffic.

[Royal_Tour 0]

There is sooo many things on that site that I find better than cardplayer, but I didnt even know about them until browsing.honestly.. U need to be the name of poker to really get the response you're looking for. Bluff Mag has a great name, and is usually the first thing to pop in my mind when i think poker mag.but cardplayer just does such a good job at getting everyhting u want in your face that you really forget about bluff sometimes.

[HollywoodAFD 0]

I like BLUFF...although I haven't gotten the latest issue.... maybe it's lost.I actually read almost all of the articles...good stuff in there.Maybe...if you paid my entry into the WSOP this Summer...I would like it even more. Hell..I'd even wear a BLUFF T-shirt.

[pt special 0]

I like BLUFF...although I haven't gotten the latest issue.... maybe it's lost.I actually read almost all of the articles...good stuff in there.Maybe...if you paid my entry into the WSOP this Summer...I would like it even more. Hell..I'd even wear a BLUFF T-shirt.

if you can make me a bluff condom i would tell every girl i have sex with that "bluff magazine prevented babies".....dont think to many people will get the messege, but its a shot

[radmanjeff 0]

From what I've read it seems like your biggest problem is the distribution of your product. You are definitely going to have to arrange some marketing deals with casinos around the world in order to compete with card player. As for what you can do better, I would say your main target market would be males who, like myself, love women and beer. Try to create some sexy ad campaigns appealing to that particular group. For example: have a topless chick holding a pair of aces in her hands in a way that she is covering herself but at the same time seducing us....OH YEAH!!! Or perhaps have a girl sitting backwards in her chair at a card table and having the camera angle behind her so that it is showing her sweet ass thong and have a tag reading Nice hand!!! "****, I'm good! How do I get these ideas? It's like a gift, you know? It's like I can't control it". Yes I am indeed a pervert!

[Royal_Tour 0]

"****, I'm good! How do I get these ideas? It's like a gift, you know? It's like I can't control it".

Nice hand girl next door. nh indeed. I love that movie. for obvious reasons.

[jmbreslin 0]

Just started my subscription recently and so far I am pleased. Here are a couple of suggestions based on my interests:1) I love the articles on poker strategy and I don't mind the player profiles, but I could do without the trip report type of articles. I don't care much about reading a 3-page story on a particular player's vacation experience somewhere.2) I find some of the strategy articles are a bit on the vague, broad overview side of things that are good for beginners. I would really like to read more in-depth, advanced strategy articles. How about a column where you have two poker players offering their perspective on a particular hand, or offering different viewpoints on how to approach a particular type of situation?

[Freddec 0]

How about a column where you have two poker players offering their perspective on a particular hand, or offering different viewpoints on how to approach a particular type of situation?

I really like this idea JM.......They should get 2 or 3 online/live pros and give them a certain situation and have each of them write up how they would play it and the thought behind it.....so yeahAlso, I notice you guys are based out of Atlanta which I always thought was kind of random. I'm in the audio/video/lighting entertainment industry myself on the freelance end. You guys ever looking for any kind of freelance gigs shoot me a PM......fred

[Waffles2003 1]

I get your magazine. In my mind, there are too many small worthless articles written by poker players that actually dont know how to write. You probably need to weed out some of those and maybe expend your online coverage. I got the mag through the WSOP deal you had but I probably wont be renewing.

[Naked_Cowboy 0]

I just read the January issue online - it's tough love time:- you have some great talent in phil galfond, rizen, brandon adams, bonomo and wasicka. these guys can all articulate important concepts well and their articles are very pertenent to the moderate and advanced player. This is all content I would gladly pay for, and i honestly hadn't picked up a bluff in over a year to see that you have some of these great players writing for you.- having spoken at length with joe navarro myself, and backed up by his columns and books, his contribution is invaluable.- You are setting every dollar you pay jennifer tilly on fire and wasting every drop of ink or scrap of paper on which you print her innane drivel. fire her and give the above more money / space. The same goes for beth shak to a very slightly lesser degree.- Do you think actual poker players who pay for a magazine want to read about antonio esfandiari talk about how he got free stuff at a party?

[WhatArunAA 0]

I just read the January issue online - it's tough love time:- you have some great talent in phil galfond, rizen, brandon adams, bonomo and wasicka. these guys can all articulate important concepts well and their articles are very pertenent to the moderate and advanced player. This is all content I would gladly pay for, and i honestly hadn't picked up a bluff in over a year to see that you have some of these great players writing for you.- having spoken at length with joe navarro myself, and backed up by his columns and books, his contribution is invaluable.- You are setting every dollar you pay jennifer tilly on fire and wasting every drop of ink or scrap of paper on which you print her innane drivel. fire her and give the above more money / space. The same goes for beth shak to a very slightly lesser degree.- Do you think actual poker players who pay for a magazine want to read about antonio esfandiari talk about how he got free stuff at a party?

its so true.. I dont really care to read about Phil Laak and Tillys exotic get away in ( enter exotic place here) .. its just redundant and annoying. .but we are more serious players.. to the casual player they probably like reading stuff like that.

[dna4ever 2]

I just read the January issue online - it's tough love time:- you have some great talent in phil galfond, rizen, brandon adams, bonomo and wasicka. these guys can all articulate important concepts well and their articles are very pertenent to the moderate and advanced player. This is all content I would gladly pay for, and i honestly hadn't picked up a bluff in over a year to see that you have some of these great players writing for you.- having spoken at length with joe navarro myself, and backed up by his columns and books, his contribution is invaluable.- You are setting every dollar you pay jennifer tilly on fire and wasting every drop of ink or scrap of paper on which you print her innane drivel. fire her and give the above more money / space. The same goes for beth shak to a very slightly lesser degree.- Do you think actual poker players who pay for a magazine want to read about antonio esfandiari talk about how he got free stuff at a party?

I agree with a lot of this man, but you have to think mainstream, that is where the money is; the people who pretty much think Chris Moneymaker IS Poker.Using made up numbers I bet 99.9% of the world does not know who Galfond, Rizen, Adams, etc are. I'm also willing to bet that over 75% of Bluff's current subscriber base does. If you want to make it mainstream you have to appeal to everyone from the novice player that only knows Doyle Brunson and the movie Rounders to the very advanced player that can rattle off every detail you could ever want to know about poker.What originally attracted me to the magazine was the covers of 'famous PEOPLE' not necessarily famous 'poker players'. There is no way to please everyone here. My guess is Bluff wants to gain all the hardcore poker player subscription base, but also feels the need to 'dumb things down' and provide 'entertainment stories' for the every day Average Joe/Jane reader.

[Sheiky 0]

How many Phil Galfond articles have you featured?I've seen his article of G-bucks, but apart from that i couldn't find anymore on the website.I agree with Cowboy that Galfond,Wasicka, Bonomo, Rizen etc. are all awesome writers and should be featured as much as possible imo.

[Sheiky 0]

I agree with a lot of this man, but you have to think mainstream, that is where the money is; the people who pretty much think Chris Moneymaker IS Poker.Using made up numbers I bet 99.9% of the world does not know who Galfond, Rizen, Adams, etc are. I'm also willing to bet that over 75% of Bluff's current subscriber base does. If you want to make it mainstream you have to appeal to everyone from the novice player that only knows Doyle Brunson and the movie Rounders to the very advanced player that can rattle off every detail you could ever want to know about poker.What originally attracted me to the magazine was the covers of 'famous PEOPLE' not necessarily famous 'poker players'. There is no way to please everyone here. My guess is Bluff wants to gain all the hardcore poker player subscription base, but also feels the need to 'dumb things down' and provide 'entertainment stories' for the every day Average Joe/Jane reader.

But, poker isn't as mainstream as a lot of magazines are, i reckon the readerbase of Bluff and CP are far far more into poker than people who read a car magazine are into cars etc.I might be wrong in this, but i'm guessing that a poker magazine targets more people who are seriously 'into' poker compared to a normal marketing strategy.

[dna4ever 2]

But, poker isn't as mainstream as a lot of magazines are, i reckon the readerbase of Bluff and CP are far far more into poker than people who read a car magazine are into cars etc.I might be wrong in this, but i'm guessing that a poker magazine targets more people who are seriously 'into' poker compared to a normal marketing strategy.

Again, I agree with everything you are saying, but you can sure bet the reason they put people like James Woods or Toby McGuire on the cover is for 'curb appeal'. Poker is still in its boom and people are generally fascinated by it and want to read about it, but not everyone are fanatics about studying and learning the game. There are a lot of people that just like to read the stories, the lifestyles, the entertainment. If Bluff wants to thrive they must embrace this audience as well and I think they have even if it is annoying to advanced players who are looking for more information on hand strategies, etc. To sum I'm just trying to say there has to be a balance. Having an all strategy magazine will isolate a lot of potential buyers and having a completely entertainment based magazine would lose nearly all the hardcore poker players.

[Naked_Cowboy 0]

I agree with a lot of this man, but you have to think mainstream, that is where the money is; the people who pretty much think Chris Moneymaker IS Poker.Using made up numbers I bet 99.9% of the world does not know who Galfond, Rizen, Adams, etc are. I'm also willing to bet that over 75% of Bluff's current subscriber base does. If you want to make it mainstream you have to appeal to everyone from the novice player that only knows Doyle Brunson and the movie Rounders to the very advanced player that can rattle off every detail you could ever want to know about poker.What originally attracted me to the magazine was the covers of 'famous PEOPLE' not necessarily famous 'poker players'. There is no way to please everyone here. My guess is Bluff wants to gain all the hardcore poker player subscription base, but also feels the need to 'dumb things down' and provide 'entertainment stories' for the every day Average Joe/Jane reader.

The question comes down to target market. I don't think amateur players are going to subscribe to a poker magazine period, but i haven't done market research in that area. If a lot of bluffs sales come from POS transactions like barnes and noble, then the famous faces are important, as is enough fluff to convince someone who picks it up off the rack to buy it.If they think the money is to be made through getting a lot of subscriptions from the growing community of semi-serious to serious players, you have to focus on solid articles by authors like those I mentioned that will provide actual value for my/their subscription dollar.That's really a question for bluff to answer. Right now it seems like they're pointed right down the middle of that fork in the road and aren't succeeding overwhelmingly at either. Again, I don't know their financial position, so it may actually be working.

[Naked_Cowboy 0]

The question comes down to target market. I don't think amateur players are going to subscribe to a poker magazine period, but i haven't done market research in that area. If a lot of bluffs sales come from POS transactions like barnes and noble, then the famous faces are important, as is enough fluff to convince someone who picks it up off the rack to buy it.If they think the money is to be made through getting a lot of subscriptions from the growing community of semi-serious to serious players, you have to focus on solid articles by authors like those I mentioned that will provide actual value for my/their subscription dollar.That's really a question for bluff to answer. Right now it seems like they're pointed right down the middle of that fork in the road and aren't succeeding overwhelmingly at either. Again, I don't know their financial position, so it may actually be working.

quoting myself for ridiculousness:I think you can still have an informative magazine and put the intriguing / flashy / famous faces of poker on the cover and talk about them. Jennifer Tilly, beth shak, etc contribute to neither goal.

[pdparv19 0]

Guys this is all great stuff, and I cant tell you how much I appreciate every bit of the feedback, good and bad. A few things:We do offer a large number of mags in cardrooms, we are working on getting that vamped up even more, as I know from being in VEGAS, that a lot of time I dont see the mag readily available. As for the writers you enjoy, i couldnt agree more as well. Galfond, usually writes every month as does Bonomo and Paul. As for the articles from Jennifer, I do understand your point. However, you would be amazed by the number of people who have told me how much they love her writing. We do try and cater to both the mainstream audience as well as the hardcore players...I love the idea about the players comparing hand analysis, i think ill give it a try. I will keep up with this board, and keep chiming in. I find it hard to always check in and write back ASAP, but if anyone ever wants to get a hold of me, you can reach me at mparvis@bluffmedia.comThanks guys.Oh and maybe you guys can convince Daniel to think about writing for BLUFF, i know he loves his FCP support.