Sideshow Preordering: Yay or Nay?

[JesseVader08]

What do you guys think of how Sideshow has been running their "Priority Preordering" so far?  What changes could they make for improvements?

[jadesfire]

Hmmm.... Well, aside from the fact that their server caught on fire and it felt like eternity waiting for my order to go through, I'd say there isn't much to change. 

Positive:
1.  They give you plenty of time to become a "member" to preorder.
2.  It seems to always be up and set to order by 1:00pm (EST).
3.  They give you what the exclusive item is beforehand.
4.  You can cancel your order with relative ease if you need to.

Improvements:
1.  It would be nice to have more pictures before you order (I don't have time to review the pictures before I buy for fear of missing out).
2.  Obviously better/more servers to handle the load but it's hard to critique that one too much because I don't know that much about hardware/software and such.
3.  Turn around time for actual receipt of item.  I'm not much for ordering items six months in advance.  I know, I know...it's the nature of the beast but they know ahead of time there allocation numbers so I would prefer a two month (or less) window but that's me.

[ruiner]

Once I figured out how the whole priority pre-ordering system worked, everything was a breeze (as long as you have DSL).

The only time I had a problem ordering was the SDCC Anakin.  I probably wasted twenty minutes waiting for the page to come up.  But in the end, I got one so I guess I can't complain.

In today's world of e-commerce and overhyped collectibles, I honestly think SS has the "best" system to handle ordering.  The advantage to ordering from SS direct is knowing that your order will be filled.  Hell, they're the ones producing the darn things!   

I honestly don't mind ordering product six months in advance, it gives my CC a little break.

[Holographic Elvis]

I agree about the pre-ordering items so far in advance Beth.  I hate doing that.  I'd rather see them get all these figs ready to go and then pre-order them with actual shipping following soon after (no more than a month or 2 tops.)

[evenflow]

My only problem is that i have never gotten to pre-order online, i can never get thorugh.

[EdSolo]

It seems hit or miss.  I have always gotten through eventually, but the time varies.  I find using multiple windows helps since the connections seem so random as to what actually gets you to the log in screen.

[JesseVader08]

So far I've been pretty happy with the system too.  They've done a good job lately of upgrading their systems in order to handle the load.

From what I can remember, all of the preorder times have been on Friday mornings (for Star Wars items).  It might be nice to try different days/times so that people who have regularly scheduled on Fridays could have a chance to preorder too.

[Darth Broem]

Yep, my only quibble would be the time of day you need to order online.  My workplace really frowns upon ordering from work.  The only reason I was able to two other times was because I was on my lunch break.  One of those I called in to order.  It seems like you pretty much need to be ordering within the first hour or so or you probably won't get the item in most cases...especially for the exclusive version.