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VOIPoTim
07-04-2008, 05:21 AM
We are officially ready for a launch countdown.

If all goes as planned, here's what we're looking at...

Launch Timeline

We're wrapping up odds and ends and addressing staffing for CS and Level 1 support through the end of the month. There really is nothing major left to do outside of more hiring.

The first week of August, we'll be doing a limited softlaunch. At this point, we'll be taking orders from our VIP Launch Group, select groups of HostGator customers, and from referrals generated by existing customers. This primarily is time to get some real CS scenarios covered and have some "practice" in that area before the traffic starts coming in.

The first week of September, we'll be opening things up publicly and will be accepting signups directly.

We are expecting substantial volume from HostGator. Even though we will purposely not be active pushing the service initially via HostGator, there will be a lot of passive volume just due to numbers. Remember, we host over 1.2 million domains and are adding tens of thousands of customers monthly. HostGator also carries a lot of clout in the hosting industry which will lead to high-profile launch at least within the web hosting industry. We may or may not need to place limitations on orders, but depending on volume, if we need to stop accepting orders briefly we may do so at that point. It's a great problem to have, but getting 50K signups during the first month in production is NOT a good situation.

Once we're past the initial rush, we'll be slowly adding various partners to the mix....we've had a lot of time to work out some pretty decent deals in this area. As an example, VOIPo ATAs are going to be offered on Amazon.com.

From that point on, we'll slow ramp up marketing and introduce the reseller program. We expect to signup 100-200K customers from HostGator within the first 12 months based on projections.

Immediate Future

Next week, you'll see a new teaser site up.

We'll also be sending an e-mail to the VIP Launch Group list and posting various public information including plans, pricing, launch promotions, availability info, policies, and FAQs.

Founder's Club Plan

Currently we have over 1,000 phone numbers active. With that being said, some are HostGator employee accounts and many are in inactive accounts. Some are active, but the account holders have never even registered and posted.

We expect to clean up all accounts in July and will be contacting all account holders with options for keeping the accounts at launch.

We appreciate the feedback and encouragement that we've received from those of you that did post and participate. With that being said, we are going to offer a Founder's Club Plan. Anyone with an existing residential account in the beta will be able to convert it to this plan at launch.

The plan offers the same functionality as our standard residential plans, but will be priced at a flat $10 monthly or $99 yearly.

We're not making any money at all on that, so it will only be available for a limited time at launch primarily to thank those who are active and participated. This rate would remain in effect for the life of the account.

We also plan to still maintain a private beta group for you guys (and likely some new people as well) where we can get ideas and feedback for improving future versions of the service.


Of course this is subject to change, but we're feeling very good about launching within these timeframes. Thanks again to all of you for your help as we've prepared for this.

usa2k
07-04-2008, 06:06 AM
This is all exciting news Tim. I'll happily pay $99 for a year! :)
I'm sure I would have paid what you will offer at launch.

The beta testing has not really been at all negative on WAF (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_acceptance_factor). So beta testing as I have experienced, could even be my main home phone number. If beta has to be a separate account, call forwarding to beta is possible - does that really offer good enough feedback? In any case I'm either Stockholm'd (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome) or simply 100% sold on your vision. Having a 2-line phone makes outgoing 99% the 1st line on the phone as default, so outgoing was what I started testing the most here.

It sounds like you will be ready full tilt for a Back to School Special. :rolleyes:

burris
07-04-2008, 06:20 AM
All I can say is...."WOW"

I can only wish you/VOIPo the very best of luck.

Brian
07-04-2008, 06:21 AM
This is great news! Just curious, are you planning on launching with just residential service at this time?

Also, how will pricing be for the "founder's" group on features like virtual numbers, faxing, etc?

usa2k
07-04-2008, 06:33 AM
That is a good point! Businesses may want to try VOIPo and might be forced to pick Residential.
OR: Will there really be a difference between Residential and Business?

I am sure that some business won't want 5 Residential lines with 5 login numbers
and 5 different passwords and 5 phone books to maintain.

The vPanel/Billing system will need a unified interface sooner or later.
Perhaps even extension numbers separate from programming outbound routing.

Montano
07-04-2008, 06:42 AM
Is that $99 a year + fees, or is it all inclusive ?

I'm looking forward to Voipo going live :)

myvoip07
07-04-2008, 08:26 AM
Excellent news and great to hear Voipo going live. Looking forward to it. $99 a year is also an excellent price and looking forward to it too..

NY Tel Guy
07-04-2008, 09:35 AM
We are officially ready for a launch countdown.

If all goes as planned, here's what we're looking at...

Founder's Club Plan

......The plan offers the same functionality as our standard residential plans, but will be priced at a flat $10 monthly or $99 yearly.

We're not making any money at all on that, so it will only be available for a limited time at launch primarily to thank those who are active and participated. This rate would remain in effect for the life of the account.

We also plan to still maintain a private beta group for you guys (and likely some new people as well) where we can get ideas and feedback for improving future versions of the service.


Of course this is subject to change, but we're feeling very good about launching within these timeframes. Thanks again to all of you for your help as we've prepared for this.
This is a great price and should keep most of us from switching to T-Mobile;) (that was a joke) landline.
Will there be any founders jackets or T-shirts?

burris
07-04-2008, 10:27 AM
We can start with this one....

NY Tel Guy
07-04-2008, 10:29 AM
We can start with this one....
I was thinking LL Bean fleece jackets so we can advertise for Tim....;)

chpalmer
07-04-2008, 10:49 AM
Good News Indeed! ;)

And great job to all!

gbh2o
07-04-2008, 01:11 PM
We are officially ready for a launch countdown.

If all goes as planned, here's what we're looking at...

Founder's Club Plan

Of course this is subject to change, but we're feeling very good about launching within these timeframes. Thanks again to all of you for your help as we've prepared for this.

;-) But you really know how to set a hook in a guy.... I guess I'll have to keep that Residential plan after all. The offer I couldn't refuse! [...subject to change :D ]

fisamo
07-04-2008, 03:34 PM
This all sounds interesting and pretty good. Question: How is the Express offering impacted? Are you launching both at the same time?

VOIPoTim
07-04-2008, 04:27 PM
I think I got all the questions here...

1) Express services will be launching at that point as well. The only exception may be the "Send Fax" feature of the fax service since it needs some work. Since the pricing is already 1/5 of the competition (like eFax) that feature may be left out until we improve it.

2) Initially our focus will be on residential customers only with the core offering. Business services will be added at a later date. Express is an exception to this as it's a hybrid solution which is for residential and business.

3) The Founder's Plan will be a flat rate with no additional fees. It will be subject to the standard TOS including softcaps and additional addons will be priced normally. Express pricing will not be discounted since it's already so low.

burris
07-04-2008, 05:08 PM
Hi, Tim..

I feel stupid, but perhaps you would explain what the Express service is all about and how it relates, if it does, to the residential VOIP service..

usa2k
07-04-2008, 05:51 PM
http://forums.voipo.com/showthread.php?t=393&highlight=express

burris
07-04-2008, 05:56 PM
http://forums.voipo.com/showthread.php?t=393&highlight=express

I thank you...Guess I didn't search too well..

fisamo
07-04-2008, 06:27 PM
I think I got all the questions here...

1) Express services will be launching at that point as well. The only exception may be the "Send Fax" feature of the fax service since it needs some work. Since the pricing is already 1/5 of the competition (like eFax) that feature may be left out until we improve it.

Thanks for the clarification on Express launch. I figured you'd be launching simultaneously, but I wanted to confirm.

Great idea to hold back the FAX feature. You're far better off leaving the feature out until it's ready for the masses than to compromise your standards to include it in a particular launch date. (After all, you look far better to add 'new' features than to pull features back because they're not working well enough.)



2) Initially our focus will be on residential customers only with the core offering. Business services will be added at a later date. Express is an exception to this as it's a hybrid solution which is for residential and business.

KISS (though the last S doesn't seem to apply here). :thumbsup:


3) The Founder's Plan will be a flat rate with no additional fees. It will be subject to the standard TOS including softcaps and additional addons will be priced normally. Express pricing will not be discounted since it's already so low.

That is even better news! Given the break in price you're offering to us, I certainly wouldn't expect any additional waivers of the rules (e.g. exceeding softcaps, or further discounts on service enhancements), and I agree that your Express pricing is outstanding, and I don't see how you could discount it for anyone. You are certainly being more than fair, here (can anyone say 'understatement'?)... THANKS! :)

usa2k
07-04-2008, 06:34 PM
I thank you...Guess I didn't search too well..
I knew just where to look. :) The info/pricing could be outdated now ...

VOIPoTim
07-04-2008, 07:15 PM
I thank you...Guess I didn't search too well..

The short answer is that it's basically a call forwarding only service which offers standalone toll-free numbers and virtual local numbers.

No ATAs, no outbound calls. Incoming forwarding to another number or a SIP address only.

We're going to really be pushing standalone toll-free to our customer base at HostGator because it has a lot of universal appeal for businesses and will be a good introduction for them to VOIPo.

gbh2o
07-04-2008, 07:26 PM
I think I got all the questions here...
3) The Founder's Plan will be a flat rate with no additional fees. It will be subject to the standard TOS including softcaps and additional addons will be priced normally. Express pricing will not be discounted since it's already so low.

The Express plan is pretty explicit about 'caps'/included minutes and overage charges. I can't remember ever seeing a final determination of what the Residential will include. I know many have proposed/suggested, but I don't think anything was determined/announced, was it?

As far as the Founders Plan, it wouldn't take much for me to appreciate having all the other neat, built-in features, many of which I don't even [currently :) ] have implemented in my * systems. The Residential account will just have to become my wife-satisfied and approved main home line! Such great flexibility [that works] is hard to argue with. My family/relatives will have to continue suffering with my systems 'limited' capabilities.

N9MD
07-04-2008, 08:00 PM
Exciting news re the upcoming (and eagerly awaited) launch.

Brian
07-04-2008, 09:48 PM
Tim, this sounds great! Thanks for the clarification - I certainly don't think you'll have any trouble meeting your projections with the way things have been running so far!

tristatevoip
07-05-2008, 07:51 PM
What about voipo express for the fouders lanch. You get a deal on those also.;)

christcorp
07-06-2008, 07:58 PM
Damn, go away for a couple of days and all sorts of things happen. Had our 26th wedding anniversary, so I took the wife away for the weekend. This launch thread is definitely better than the; "Obama and clinton are having an affair"; rumor that was brought up. LOL!!!

Excellent news Tim. I'm excited. Question on the founder's club plan. Will we only be able to keep the existing number at the founder club price, or will we be able to port over our other primary carrier? I.e. Can I port my Packet8 number and make that my number at the founder's club price or would the voipo number I have currently be the only one eligible for the founder's club price?

Excellent plan for July, August, and September Tim. Looks like a solid strategy. I think between the Host Gator, Amazon, and a few other venues, that reaching the 6 figures in customers in 12 months is very doable. Please, let me (us) know if there is anything we can do to help with advertising, marketing, etc... This is definitely great news.... Later... Mike....

VOIPoTim
07-07-2008, 08:32 AM
Yes, we can port in new numbers for this. The key is the plan is just for people already in the beta, not new customers. If it's your number though, no problem.

The other question I got was about the actual accounts and whether they will be beta or production accounts. They'll be in the production system just like any other paid accounts and won't be in perpetual beta.



Damn, go away for a couple of days and all sorts of things happen. Had our 26th wedding anniversary, so I took the wife away for the weekend. This launch thread is definitely better than the; "Obama and clinton are having an affair"; rumor that was brought up. LOL!!!

Excellent news Tim. I'm excited. Question on the founder's club plan. Will we only be able to keep the existing number at the founder club price, or will we be able to port over our other primary carrier? I.e. Can I port my Packet8 number and make that my number at the founder's club price or would the voipo number I have currently be the only one eligible for the founder's club price?

Excellent plan for July, August, and September Tim. Looks like a solid strategy. I think between the Host Gator, Amazon, and a few other venues, that reaching the 6 figures in customers in 12 months is very doable. Please, let me (us) know if there is anything we can do to help with advertising, marketing, etc... This is definitely great news.... Later... Mike....

usa2k
07-09-2008, 04:24 AM
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r20445646-General-VoipO-getting-ready-for-Launch~time=1214090382#20762196 (http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r20445646-General-VoipO-getting-ready-for-Launch%7Etime=1214090382#20762196)

Wonder how many VIP signups you have so far?

fisamo
07-09-2008, 01:37 PM
Tim,

I realize that you are planning to do the soft-launch with an off-the-shelf customer management (billing, etc) software package and write your custom billing software later. When (relative to now or relative to launch) will you expect us to be able to access that system and make sure the system knows our accounts are not past due?

Also, I have a suggestion: When you sign up new users, have them pick a username that must contain at least one letter (ie. isn't a standard phone#). I suggest having unique usernames so that you have the option of allowing users to log into their account for some period of time (2 - 6 mos?) after they terminate their account with voipo. (Obviously, their account would have a status of 'terminated' at such a time, and they wouldn't be able to do anything aside from reviewing call history and contacts.) Back when I tried Vonage, I found my account to still be 'live' for several months, where I could do just that, and it seems to me a customer friendly policy. In contrast, ATT disables your login to their web portal immediately at cancellation, so if you're not smart enough to export your phone book and save whatever call logs you want to keep) before canceling your service, you're out of luck...

voxabox
07-09-2008, 01:53 PM
Tim,

I realize that you are planning to do the soft-launch with an off-the-shelf customer management (billing, etc) software package and write your custom billing software later. When (relative to now or relative to launch) will you expect us to be able to access that system and make sure the system knows our accounts are not past due?

Also, I have a suggestion: When you sign up new users, have them pick a username that must contain at least one letter (ie. isn't a standard phone#). I suggest having unique usernames so that you have the option of allowing users to log into their account for some period of time (2 - 6 mos?) after they terminate their account with voipo. (Obviously, their account would have a status of 'terminated' at such a time, and they wouldn't be able to do anything aside from reviewing call history and contacts.) Back when I tried Vonage, I found my account to still be 'live' for several months, where I could do just that, and it seems to me a customer friendly policy. In contrast, ATT disables your login to their web portal immediately at cancellation, so if you're not smart enough to export your phone book and save whatever call logs you want to keep) before canceling your service, you're out of luck...
exporting phonebook and call logs?
I did not know that VOIPo CP could do that?
please tell me how:confused:
cheers

usa2k
07-09-2008, 02:52 PM
I still have access to the 1st time and 2nd time with Vonage.

fisamo
07-09-2008, 09:03 PM
ATTCV has an Export Phonebook feature that converts your phone book into a CSV file that's immediately saved on your computer. A mechanism to import Outlook contacts to the voipo contact list would probably be pretty popular, too. :)

usa2k
07-10-2008, 03:04 PM
Tim, can you confirm if more than one Residential number will be able to exist in a single vPanel account? Most companies allow this. BroadvoxDirect never did. I They gave me a free Business add-on back then that let me map a Phone Book to both numbers I paid for ($20/month each).

Multiple primary lines/plans with a Phone Book that can customize CNAM for all numbers will likely be a necessity - especially for SOHO.

VOIPoTim
07-11-2008, 06:43 AM
Tim,

I realize that you are planning to do the soft-launch with an off-the-shelf customer management (billing, etc) software package and write your custom billing software later. When (relative to now or relative to launch) will you expect us to be able to access that system and make sure the system knows our accounts are not past due?


Yes, everyone will have access to the billing system from day 1 at launch.

While later we'll be moving to a solution we've built in house (needs some work still), this solution is good for now. It's a solid system that was designed for hosting that is widely used.

Here's how things are setup now.

Each residential account has its own individual vPanel login. You can't have multiple residential accounts in the same vPanel login.

Besides the vPanel login, you also have a login to the billing system which is where you manage billing, view and print invoices, handle support tickets, make payments, etc. Your billing account can be linked to multiple vPanel accounts.

tj008
07-11-2008, 01:07 PM
Congrats Tim and your staff!

It's nice to see one's vision become a reality. Bravo!

Thanks for letting us be part of it.


BTW,
What price will you have on the Grandstream ATA for the Founders Day Special?

Thanks!

usa2k
07-11-2008, 07:41 PM
The short answer is that it's basically a call forwarding only service which offers standalone toll-free numbers and virtual local numbers.

No ATAs, no outbound calls. Incoming forwarding to another number or a SIP address only.

With CNAM, right?

Montano
07-11-2008, 09:12 PM
With CNAM, right?


CNAM is dependent on where you forward the number to. For example, if I forward one of my Express numbers to Callcentric (who does not pass CNAM info), I get number only. If I forward the same number to CallWithUs, I do get CNAM info.

usa2k
07-11-2008, 09:16 PM
I wonder about FreeWorldDialup SIP URL?
If CNAM could be passed ...

I see what you are saying though.

Brian
07-13-2008, 02:14 PM
I know how everyone generally feels about dates, but do we know when the new site/pricing, etc will be up publicly?

VOIPoTim
07-13-2008, 02:23 PM
I know how everyone generally feels about dates, but do we know when the new site/pricing, etc will be up publicly?

New teaser site in about a week. The full site won't go up until we're taking public orders.

VOIPoTim
07-15-2008, 11:58 AM
If anyone here knows you're going to order the the Founders plan at launch and would be interested in ordering now and getting setup in the billing system to look for any bugs we missed there and to make sure invoices are generating correctly, etc, please PM me and I'll send you a link. We'll change your renewal date to the August launch vs today.

usa2k
07-15-2008, 02:37 PM
PM is sent.

VOIPoTim
07-15-2008, 03:38 PM
OK, one big thing..

Ignore the "Start" and "Issue" dates for the credit card information. This does not apply to cards issued in the US. We need to remove these fields. If you fill them in, that's fine, they'll be ignored. They are not required though.

For those of you in, please look around and let me know what you find. This is a solid system that works well but is geared towards hosting so just changing templates some.

You'll also notice that all your tickets are there and it's fully synced with helpdesk.

Please let us know if you see issues.

-Tim

usa2k
07-15-2008, 04:32 PM
Nice work.

Switching to $99 caused an error because the phone number was not entered yet.

You only allow 5 attachments.

usa2k
07-15-2008, 04:40 PM
The fist two emails state what you owe
The third is a welcome email
The forth says your payment was accepted. :)

quattrohead
07-15-2008, 06:23 PM
So far so good. I filled in my info with a CC and then thought I could have done it with Paypal. I assume someone will do that soon, but if not Tim, refund my CC and I will PP instead.
Or I can PP and then you can refund that instead, either way a chance to try refunds if you want.

You might want to replace the WHM logo with yours on the PDF and not send the UNPAID receipt !!!
Looks good......and works better than the HG billing system that can only send me blank emails for each billing cycle :p

VOIPoTim
07-15-2008, 06:51 PM
So far so good. I filled in my info with a CC and then thought I could have done it with Paypal. I assume someone will do that soon, but if not Tim, refund my CC and I will PP instead.
Or I can PP and then you can refund that instead, either way a chance to try refunds if you want.

You might want to replace the WHM logo with yours on the PDF and not send the UNPAID receipt !!!
Looks good......and works better than the HG billing system that can only send me blank emails for each billing cycle :p

I voided the CC payment and you can pay the invoice with PayPal by logging in now.

Brian
07-15-2008, 06:59 PM
Trying to log back into the billing site, and I can't get past the login page - no error, it just doesn't log me in. I know I have the right info - I double-checked against the email it sent when I registered (BTW, I'm personally not crazy about passwords being emailed to me).

ETA - Even the password reminder thing isn't letting me log back in.

VOIPoTim
07-15-2008, 07:01 PM
Trying to log back into the billing site, and I can't get past the login page - no error, it just doesn't log me in. I know I have the right info - I double-checked against the email it sent when I registered (BTW, I'm personally not crazy about passwords being emailed to me).

ETA - Even the password reminder thing isn't letting me log back in.

Yes, I see an error where the homepage template is not logging in. Looks like some bad form validation.

The direct URL will be work: https://billing.voipo.com/clientarea.php

Going to get homepage fixed along with a batch of things tomorrow.

Brian
07-15-2008, 07:16 PM
Thanks - works perfect.

NY Tel Guy
07-16-2008, 04:57 PM
If anyone here knows you're going to order the the Founders plan at launch and would be interested in ordering now and getting setup in the billing system to look for any bugs we missed there and to make sure invoices are generating correctly, etc, please PM me and I'll send you a link. We'll change your renewal date to the August launch vs today.
Does not recognize my e-mail address.

VOIPoTim
07-16-2008, 05:55 PM
Does not recognize my e-mail address.

That's not clear on there, but is being changed.

It's referring to a billing account. Since you don't have a billing account, select new customer.

That's basically there so if you have multiple accounts you can consolidate their billing into one account to manage.

I'll work on a post in the next day or so with a rundown of the public billing process and I think that'll help make things make more sense.

myvoip07
07-16-2008, 09:23 PM
PM was sent last night :)

NY Tel Guy
07-17-2008, 07:12 PM
That's not clear on there, but is being changed.

It's referring to a billing account. Since you don't have a billing account, select new customer.

That's basically there so if you have multiple accounts you can consolidate their billing into one account to manage.

I'll work on a post in the next day or so with a rundown of the public billing process and I think that'll help make things make more sense.Got it, thanks.

chpalmer
07-18-2008, 10:20 AM
The billing system seems to have worked on my end flawlessly.


:):cool:

fisamo
07-21-2008, 07:26 PM
A billing question:

I notice under the "Customer Services" tab, it lists my Residential plan as a Founder's special. Underneath the plan description is my DID, which appears as a link, inconveniently linked as "ht-tp://my-did-#/". I would believe that this link is part of the billing system as configured for a hosting service, where it would link to the web page. Here's the question. Will it be possible to set that link up such that it would link to the vPanel, logged in with that DID#? Presumably, if one can get to the billing page, they'd be authorized to get to the associated vPanel for that account. Can anyone think of a reasonable situation where someone would be able to access the billing system but shouldn't access the linked vPanel?

I suppose the next-best thing would be to have that number be a link to http://secure.voipo.com and allow the customer to log in. (That would probably be easier to program in, as well.)

usa2k
07-23-2008, 05:22 PM
Hope Launch goes well, when it goes :)
I'll be out of town most of the 8/04/08 week. (Pleasure trip!)

So if it happens I will just have to catch up. (At least I am paid up.)

VOIPoTim
07-23-2008, 08:25 PM
A billing question:

I notice under the "Customer Services" tab, it lists my Residential plan as a Founder's special. Underneath the plan description is my DID, which appears as a link, inconveniently linked as "ht-tp://my-did-#/". I would believe that this link is part of the billing system as configured for a hosting service, where it would link to the web page. Here's the question. Will it be possible to set that link up such that it would link to the vPanel, logged in with that DID#? Presumably, if one can get to the billing page, they'd be authorized to get to the associated vPanel for that account. Can anyone think of a reasonable situation where someone would be able to access the billing system but shouldn't access the linked vPanel?

I suppose the next-best thing would be to have that number be a link to http://secure.voipo.com and allow the customer to log in. (That would probably be easier to program in, as well.)


Yeah, I noticed that too. We could probably easily make it link to the control panel, but integration the sessions/logins will be messy since they are two separate systems.

fisamo
07-24-2008, 05:47 AM
I completely agree that integrating the logins would be difficult at best. The main reason I suggested the integration is that ATTCV offers this feature--from your CallVantage control portal, you can access ATT's billing site, and you're automatically logged in. The chief difference, though, is that your username (phone#) and password are the same for both ATT systems, and they're linked--change it in one place, and it's changed in the other.

I think a link to secure.voipo.com would be enough, especially since you're planning to use an in-house billing platform. Save the integration for that system. :)

arth
07-31-2008, 07:52 PM
A couple of questions re billing:
1) how do I add the Express Plan to allow the billing for that and the residential to be in the same billing account?
2) I elected to pay with PayPal, but did not get presented any method to actually make the payment. The due date is tomorrow, so will the payment be automatic tomorrow? I did not get a screen to login to my PayPal account and authorize the payment.

Update ** went back to billing and saw the PayPal Subscribe link.. I had initially glossed over that thinking it was to create a new PayPal account.. all okay now.

VOIPoTim
08-11-2008, 02:38 AM
A couple of questions re billing:
1) how do I add the Express Plan to allow the billing for that and the residential to be in the same billing account?


Typically with multiple accounts you'd just place the order for the 2nd account and when the billing portion asks "Do you have an existing account", just select yes and it'll combine into one billing account.

It's a little tricky with the existing BETA accounts since the accounts already exist. For those, you can either e-mail what you want done to sales@voipo.com and we can manually add to your billing account.

voxabox
08-22-2008, 07:35 PM
If anyone here knows you're going to order the the Founders plan at launch and would be interested in ordering now and getting setup in the billing system to look for any bugs we missed there and to make sure invoices are generating correctly, etc, please PM me and I'll send you a link. We'll change your renewal date to the August launch vs today.

while looking the link to submit a ticket I stumbled upon a minor bug
BTW, I found the link to submit a ticket after I PM'ed Tim; Perhaps the link should be somewhere prominent;)

dcshobby
08-23-2008, 05:05 PM
I just went back and read the launch announcement and I was wondering if any of the planned timelines are still in effect. Has the soft launch happened yet? I have a few people on the VIP list and they have not received any emails or launch promotion yet. As far as I know, not much has happened since the first week of august when the soft launch was supposed to occur.

So my question is, can we get an update on when the soft launch will occur, when the public launch occurs, and the date we need to sign up for the founders plan before public launch? Thanks!

VOIPoTim
08-23-2008, 07:18 PM
Yes, we're running pretty close. We are in soft launch now.

We've been accepting signups for the last 2 weeks or so and getting a handful coming in pretty consistently each day.

We haven't e-mailed the VIP Launch list yet... The main reason for this is that it's a huge list and could bring in a few thousand orders overnight with a decent conversion rate, so we've been holding off on that.

In terms of the beta to founde'sr plan conversion, I would estimate about 80% of the active beta accounts have already been converted so I haven't been pushing it too much. I'll work out some dates and do a post in the next day or so. We do want to get all the accounts cleaned up ASAP. The biggest issue is hundreds where the people don't participate on forums, etc and have little to no activity in the accounts, so we don't know if they are even in use. Those are the ones we're mainly targetting.

Our goal is basically to have all accounts converted or accounted for in some way in the next two weeks. I'm thinking something around 9/15 for a cutoff point, but want to be sure to give people amble time and announce it enough. For anyone looking to cancel, we can maintain the account slightly longer if you have a pending port out you need to wait on or something along those lines.

I'll post some concerte info and dates for conversions soon.

Again, we are accepting new signups from anyone interested. We're just not pushing that at all yet. They'd be able to order with the pricing in the "Launch Updates" public thread and during the pre-launch phase, they can lock in that pricing as a flat rate (we absorb taxes/911). If you know someone interested, here is a backdoor signup form: https://billing.voipo.com/preorder.php

We're still planning on launching the real site in September (with the nicer looking order form obviously).

gbh2o
08-24-2008, 07:36 AM
We haven't e-mailed the VIP Launch list yet... The main reason for this is that it's a huge list and could bring in a few thousand orders overnight with a decent conversion rate, so we've been holding off on that.


How about sorting the list and sending invites by sign-up date, alphabetically, the first thousand, or whatever seems to be a nice breakdown. Then publicize that you are sending invites which will be received in whatever sequence to ensure a smooth enrollment process. I think it's time to _show_ movement to the masses, so the discussions can begin. :-)

N9MD
08-27-2008, 08:13 PM
How about sorting the list and sending invites by ...My thought, too! A full scale emailing, no matter how "ready" you think you are, has a high risk of creating chaos. (Remember VT's problems in trying to absorb the SunRocket exodees .... is that a word?)

VOIPoTim
08-27-2008, 08:17 PM
My thought, too! A full scale emailing, no matter how "ready" you think you are, has a high risk of creating chaos. (Remember VT's problems in trying to absorb the SunRocket exodees .... is that a word?)

Yeah it will definitely have to be phased in.

The good thing is that we've been getting a handful of signups a day pretty consistently lately and that's helped us to find and make some changes to the order process that I think really streamlined things a lot.

We're slowly ramping up promoting the fact that we are taking signups. VIP Launch list has to come soon though and be one of the first big pushes because it is the "VIP" list afterall and there's an expectation that it'll be the first big push.