And so after a very long wait, we have finally launched (or re-launched)
PlanetFeedback ratings. Curious what people think.

I commend you for all the effort you put forth the last couple of days
trying to reinforce PFB's mission and attempting to get the commenters back
on track. If nothing else, I think you succeeded in getting everyone's
attention, hopefully causing them to rethink their commenting styles. I
think I've seen the best and worst of PFB, and I agree with you that the
potential to shine definitely exists.

Now for the bad news... I'm one of the people who thinks that even if we do
see a change, it won't last. This is not the first time the whip has been
cracked, and from experience, I honestly think it's only a temporary fix.
People will show self-discipline for awhile until the next outrageous
letter comes in. Commenting style is a hard habit to break. I think
people go on auto pilot and don't even realize what they're saying most of
the time, and for them to be constantly reminded is not very realistic.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong about this, but on the chance that I'm not, I
would like to suggest that a procedure be put in place for inappropriate
comments, such as... The commenter receives one warning, and if the
behavior continues, the next inappropriate comment is removed. If it still
continues, the person is banned.

I have always believed that words can be more effective than actions, which
is why I support your efforts. I'm trying to have faith that people will
understand and take to heart the message you are sending. I guess we'll
just have to wait and see.

So now you portray yourself as 'Shirley Temple" when infact PFB has been
hijacked by people that call them selves regulars, turning PFB into a zoo.
These self proclaimed regulars are indeed the newbies to PFB.

I have been using PFB since its inception. I can only see your involvement
for a couple of years at most.

I asked you if you had read the mission statement. Your comment wa "no, and
I doubt I ever will."

Your suggestion about "warnings" would boot you right off the site, as your
replies speak loudly who you really are.

Lately I've been spending more time on PlanetFeedback. Overall I'm very
pleased with the quality of content, but I'm still very concerned about the
innappropriate and personal attacks of many of the letter writers. I'd like
to ensure we keep the conversation constructive and forward moving. Will
be sharing more thoughts as I dive deeper into the dynamics of the site. I
do sincerely appreciate the commitment of so many on this great site. It
can certainly be better, and we're committed to that.

I recently posted the following letter to the home page of "15-Minutes of
Fame." The topic is so important I'm reposting it to my PFB blog. I will
make every possible effort to respond to any feedback you provide on this
topic:

*************************************************

I am the founder of PlanetFeedback. I'm writing to share my thoughts
regarding some of our community dynamics; especially "comments".

This site was founded in February 2000 with the goal of respecting and
empowering the consumer voice. Our mission statement makes this clear and
unapologetic:

"We will help consumers reward companies that serve them best. Consumer
feedback positive and negative is inherently productive. Consumers want
value, and they will provide loyalty in return. We are committed to making
that exchange easy,frequent and rewarding."

This remains our goal and I daresay it is more important than ever.
Embracing the consumer is hardly "anti" business. In fact, as a marketer
trained at one of the largest corporations, Procter & Gamble, I can assure
you that businesses today are embracing the consumer voice like never
before. Companies recognize that consumers have greater control and power
and they are beginning to pay attention.

Our "comments" serve the objective of expanding and enriching the
conversation around our letters for the benefit of all visitors. We're not
looking for a pipeline of "happy-grams" nor are we looking for uncritical
consensus. We welcome and encourage debate and we deeply value the power of
diverse voices entering the conversation.

We've received many letters from customer service representatives who've
noted that some of the best suggestions and solutions for how they can
better address the issue raised in the letter emerged in the comments. Some
even use the comments for call center training and brainstorming.

This leads to my request of every community member. Let's keep our great
conversation constructive and value-added - always! Let's also hold each
other accountable for the highest quality dialogue. Criticism is fine but
personal attacks or comments unrelated to the letter at hand have no place
on this site. If you feel compelled to attack because you suspect
letter-writing abuse, excessive "freeloading," or personal identity
manipulation by certain letter writers, hold your fire and just let us
know.

Recently, quite a few first-time visitors have been leaving the site in
total disgust because they've been presumed guilty before they finish
their first sentence. That's not what this site is about. Our site's
default behavior is to respect and listen to the consumer voice. If any of
you have issues with this approach, the beautiful diversity of the web
presents many other options like "CustomersSuck.com".

I absolutely love this site, and like so many of you, want it to be
something truly great -- something we can all be proud of.

Thanks so much for listening.

- Pete

If you haven't yet taken time to listen to our Consumer Podcasts, please
do. They are excellent, and the product of superb interviews by our
outstanding Mr. Helpful.

Things continue to progress here at PFB. Our "MySpace" meets PFB strategy
seems to be paying off, and I'm enjoying following all the new (and highly
creative) "profiles" that emerge across the site. Greg Brummer's (aka Mr.
Helpful) been an absolute delight to work with, and I daresay I have hard
time keeping up with him. The consumer podcasts appear to be on the right
path, and I think it adds an entirely new dimension to feedback to "feel
and hear" the actual voices. It's a whole new level of understanding.
More cool stuff to come. KEEP SENDING suggestions.

I must admit, it's pretty exciting watching this community grow and evolve.
We've had to make a ton of choices about where to start and what to
prioritize, but we've always put "building the community" front and center.
Although many of the areas are still pretty clunky, I'm proud to say that
we're generating more comments and letters today on PlanetFeedback than we
were in the dot.com heyday. That will grow even more over time. I'm really
enjoying seeing the new profiles pop up where and there. Please continue
helping us make this a greate community. -- Pete

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Pete Blackshaw I'm the
original founder of PlanetFeedback. The idea was hatched back in 1997 after
my wife Erika and I had a bad experience with an airline while traveling.
We just felt the web could help facilitate meaningful dialogue between
consumers and marketers. I'm passionate about the objectives and mission
of the site, and remain as commited as every to this core principle in the
PlanetFeedback Mission Statement:

"We will help consumers reward companies that serve them best. Consumer
feedback positive and negative is inherently productive. Consumers want
value, and they will provide loyalty in return. We are committed to making
that exchange easy, frequent and rewarding."

I sincerely hope you will not only take advantage of the various services.
I also urge you to become a resource and advisor to other consumers in
their efforts to constructively communicate with companies.