The Writing Community On Drop.com Has Been "sunsetted"

[Theroc]

As of today, the Writing community on drop.com (formerly massdrop) is no more. There was no prior warning at all. The phasing-out of other communities had been announced but Writing was not supposed to be one of them, at least for the time being.

Members of the site will know that the Writing community is not what it used to be. Still, the manner in which this was handled shows nothing but contempt for the communities members.

[City74]

What?

[Intensity]

I noticed that too. It came following significant downsizing of active drops in that category. There’s still an Office Supplies -> Pens and Pencils category, but it’s more limited. It’s possible there were not enough orders in that category over time.

[jayKellner]

I have also noticed that, although I was getting emails for drops, the last one was Pelikan, which I didn't care, but I got some interesting deals in the past. Everything seems it has been patched up under the EDC label. Although there's a "flashlight" category...... I'm a bit confused.

[TSherbs]

Yeah, their offerings have stunk for a year now....

[mns68]

me too ... i noticed it but i did not expect that this category is to be removed

Just I don't understand they sell great !!

 

http://drop.com/buy/pelikan-souveran-m400

Edited August 24, 2019 by mns68

[noggs]

The Writing group was the poorest run group on (Mass)Drop.

 

Information was frequently wrong or missing, There were inconsistencies between the descriptions and the ordering process. Too many drops were limited in availability, color, nib size, etc. Products had become boring with the same offerings again and again, with very few new items. Collaborations between Drop and the manufacturers seemed to have stopped. The manager of the group never responded to questions, comments, or criticisms. The last item is especially galling because it represents a disdain for the customer.

 

An email or notice to group members in advance explaining what was happening seems like simple courtesy, something which Drop lacks. Simply a lack of attention to detail and lack of concern for the customer.

 

I've scored some good deals through this group and hate to see it go. Other groups such as Blades and Audiophile are run by responsible people who are passionate about their products. They try to supply complete information (though sometimes fail), attempt to solve problems, strive to find new products, and work with manufacturers to develop some great custom products. The Writing group was just a failure on the part of Drop. Recently there was just nothing I wanted to buy. Why would I want to buy the same items over and over?

 

Perhaps there weren't enough members to keep the group afloat. In my opinion Drop played the most significant part in its failure by having an irresponsible person in charge who wouldn't put out the effort to make it a success.

Edited August 24, 2019 by noggs

[DrDebG]

Truthfully, I gave up on Massdrop (now Drop) about a year ago. Everytime I wanted to put in an order, they were out of the nib size or color I wanted, even if it was within hours of the item being "dropped". Then, I made a couple of orders and they never came. When I contacted Massdrop, it took two weeks for them to respond stating that the item was no longer offered even though there had been sufficient purchasers to secure the drop. Then I saw the same items on Amazon for a much lower price. That is when I gave up.

 

When the writing section of Massdrop first started up and for a couple of years after, it was great! I loved the things that I purchased.

[SpecTP]

that is a pity.. I use MD (Drop) for many things (keyboards, audiophile, watches, pens, etc.)

[Bennett]

It takes knowledge and experience to understand the fountain pen community. If you try to manage this product line from solely an outside retailer perspective, it will eventually fail. I don't know what caused Drop to reach this sad decision. In my view, mass purchasing can work as long as you target the pens that will attract a sufficiently large number of buyers. My guess is there is an opportunity here and someone else will eventually fill the open space left by Drop's departure. Hope someone learns from this failure to create something even better.

[jayKellner]

It takes knowledge and experience to understand the fountain pen community. If you try to manage this product line from solely an outside retailer perspective, it will eventually fail. I don't know what caused Drop to reach this sad decision. In my view, mass purchasing can work as long as you target the pens that will attract a sufficiently large number of buyers. My guess is there is an opportunity here and someone else will eventually fill the open space left by Drop's departure. Hope someone learns from this failure to create something even better.

I was thinking about what you wrote and I totally agree. I tend to think that the reason for failure probably has to do with the distribution chain, (I also was in the audiophile community), where some of the drops were in tandem with the manufacturer, where prices can be better negotiated. Most pen makers are bond to distributors, specially I have seen in the USA, where most makers are either attached to Kenro or Yafa..(exception Pilot, Faber, Lamy, Visconti and Pelikan) ..that leaves you to a few brands that are free, .to me that's the reason behind. It's just an idea.....I honestly don't know if this could be the case. Maybe I'm wrong.

[TSherbs]

There are some drops I would do again... But they have never offered them again.

[sketchstack]

I took advantage of one Massdrop deal (oh sorry, "Drop") a while back. Lamy Dialog 3 for ~$250 was a good deal. Beyond that I was never swayed by their offerings.

 

What really irked me was the opacity toward warranties. It was very very hard to get a straight answer as to whether the products were under warranty. And it seemed there was no single correct answer. In fact I'd see contradictory information when comparing their support documents to a product listing. Why this wasn't posted prominently on each and every product listing either demonstrates laziness or worse, dishonesty.

[MuddyWaters]

Their prices weren't good enough for the wait time, plus the customer service was totally absent

[Intensity]

Not completely sure of the details, but I think the drops were run by voting on proposed (and user-suggested) lists of items. The most popular ones (with a lot of community votes) would be run as group buys. It's possible the writing community was not large enough, with insufficient participation to have a lot of voting and product suggestion happening. Unlike, say, Mechanical Keyboards community, which is huge. It's also more difficult to get any exciting custom things that are massdrop/drop collaborations in the writing category. Inks? Already plenty of inks out there, and takes a lot to get the right manufacturer and hue made to appeal to enough people. It's not like collaborations with known headphone or headphone amplifier makers to customize products to specification and sell them as "massdrop x [beyer Dynamic]" or whatever. The younger and more tech-oriented communities thrive more on gear sites like that than fountain pen communities, in my opinion.

 

The only thing I got from Massdrop's writing section was a copper+titanium pen that uses Pilot G2 refills. It was an example of being able to get a good deal on a low-production custom product. Most other things could be found with some diligent searching at better prices elsewhere.

[SpecTP]

I think that was the case.. the audiophile and keyboard communities were the largest ones.

[Gloucesterman]

In agreement with many of the above sentiments. Also had limited experience with buys. Last one, the Italix Tankard, was a barely acceptable and earned a poor comment/rating from me.

 

One important thing, which I think no one (above) has yet mentioned is the fact that although some prices were good, ultimately most of the sales came out of the ones that would have gone to retailers - online and b&m. This had to have at least annoyed the retailers who, I suspect, expressed some level of dissatisfaction. And perhaps even pushed back on the manufacturers /distributors.

 

I bought several other items and rarely was really enticed to go for a drop. Of particular note was the premium charge for Pelikan extra fine nibs to the tune of $30.00 or more!

 

Well, just my two cents worth.

 

Oh, one more thing... next message I get I think I will simply cancel my "subscription". I have more than enough flashlights, don't need any audio equipment, shoes or any specialty knives!

Edited August 26, 2019 by Gloucesterman

[TSherbs]

....Oh, one more thing... next message I get I think I will simply cancel my "subscription". ...

 

same here

[DrDebG]

 

One important thing, which I think no one (above) has yet mentioned is the fact that although some prices were good, ultimately most of the sales came out of the ones that would have gone to retailers - online and b&m. This had to have at least annoyed the retailers who, I suspect, expressed some level of dissatisfaction. And perhaps even pushed back on the manufacturers /distributors.

 

 

 

One of the reasons that many of us purchase from the known online pen retailers, over Drop or even eBay vendors, is for the customer service. That is huge! Some of us are not wealthy and can not afford to purchase an expensive pen and find out that it is a complete failure. Drop's customer service left many people with problems. I have never had an unresolved issue with any of the online pen retailers that I have purchased from. I recently purchased a limited edition pen (valued at $1000.00 USD) from a online pen retailer. It was such a gorgeous pen, but the nib was a mess. I contacted the retailer. This was the last one that they had. So, I sent it back for a full refund including shipping both ways. My point is that an online pen retailer may charge a bit more, but, for me anyway, I choose to pay a little more for the customer service.

[Gloucesterman]

 

One of the reasons that many of us purchase from the known online pen retailers, over Drop or even eBay vendors, is for the customer service. That is huge! Some of us are not wealthy and can not afford to purchase an expensive pen and find out that it is a complete failure. Drop's customer service left many people with problems. I have never had an unresolved issue with any of the online pen retailers that I have purchased from. I recently purchased a limited edition pen (valued at $1000.00 USD) from a online pen retailer. It was such a gorgeous pen, but the nib was a mess. I contacted the retailer. This was the last one that they had. So, I sent it back for a full refund including shipping both ways. My point is that an online pen retailer may charge a bit more, but, for me anyway, I choose to pay a little more for the customer service.

Also agree with your sentiment. For me, my few purchases with Drop were small enough, under $50.00, that if I had to I could sell the item - with full disclosure, of course, and recoup some of my money or even walk away with a total loss. Disappointed, of course, but perhaps not worth spending lots of effort to get things straightened out.

 

As for the Pelikan M800 (brand new) I just bought online, I asked the vendor to please check out the nib and filling mechanism before they shipped it to me. They said they would and the pen writes beautifully. VERY happy with and the price was really good!!

 

I have dealt with this vendor in the past and been extremely pleased with the products and service!