From a VIP's point of view

[Jaminos]

Please note first I did not get to stay for the Rant/Rave afterward due to living in The Dalles which is about an hour and a half from the con. This is just to put it out there from my prospective of the con.

I purchased the VIP pass after hearing a lot of good feedback from previous cons and from what I witnessed myself. So I had high hopes for the con.  Before I get to ahead of myself let me just say I have survived three Kumoricons and a few other comic conventions and took into account the feelings of my fellow Otaku so that I would not try to appear spoiled or smug.  Now back to where I was getting at, I had some hopes and some expectations.  When I arrived I ended up getting turned around several times because the line to sign in was in utter chaos and I had no idea.

After having several rather annoyed Hilton staff members point me in several directions except where I needed to go. I ended up going through the same scenario with con staff however as I said it was chaos and it was to be somewhat expected. But after about forty five minutes of being sent from one end of the con to the next we got sorted out by a helpful Samurai Yojimbo to whom I am still grateful.

Being a VIP I had to sign in at a special station. My party of seven (including myself) split off where I waited fifteen minutes as first in line to get signed in. Apparently they thought I was staff and so went on to other business. My friends ended up beating me to the punch and then some. But as I keep saying the con was very chaotic so I took it all with a grain of salt.

However as the day progressed things seemed to get more difficult. It is said on the main site VIP's are given priority seating to all events. However this was not the case. I asked someone outside the door for opening ceremonies where I go to sit and they had not the slightest inkling of what to do so I ended up standing by the door watching from a very cramped corner.

This repeated a few more times like the Bikini contest and guest dinner. I lucked out at the guest dinner by running into the Jazz who was in charge of VIP's or at least so I was told. She sorted me out there but it seemed when I wanted to use my powers as a VIP it was followed by much confusion. I had to remind a few people guarding the entrance/exit for staff and vendors for the dealer hall that VIP's were also granted access to said door. (yes I made sure before I used any such powers)

Another concern I had was the aggression some of the con staff had. I understand the working conditions and how many con goers can be very annoying. But please remember that we are all here to have fun. As I said we do not want to sound smug or act like I am a god but I did invest a lot of money to have a little more respect then being barked at for doing something by accident and there being no sign or verbal warning. 

I know this sounds like a rant and to a point it is. But I did have a blast at the con even though I was assaulted by a cold first day which is almost gone now.  I got to talk to some great people and will remember this as a positive experience. But I just want to sum this up by saying that VIP's needs some more love on what we can and cant do. It was never fully clarified and thus many staff members did not know how to handle a VIP when they got one. 

This is just my experience I can not speak for anyone but myself.  I want to thank the con staff for doing a great job and making the con so enjoyable. 

[pyronine]

After having several rather annoyed Hilton staff members point me in several directions except where I needed to go. I ended up going through the same scenario with con staff however as I said it was chaos and it was to be somewhat expected. But after about forty five minutes of being sent from one end of the con to the next we got sorted out by a helpful Samurai Yojimbo to whom I am still grateful.



 It was never fully clarified and thus many staff members did not know how to handle a VIP when they got one. 

I will let the samurai know, i became friends with him and worked a few days with him too.

When it came to the VIP's, yes, we were not giving total clarification on what to do, other than you had priority on everything. I was at the bottom of the escalators for the Masquerade Ball and had my 1 and only encounter with a VIP who was late to the sake tasting. I made sure he got in.

[superjaz]

Hello my name Is Jasmine, aka Jaz i was this years vip quartednator, And I take full reasponablitie for any short comings with the Vip program,              that said this was the first year of my position and there are always bumps , I didn't really have a space to set up shop at reg, I carved out space where i could,   you should never had to wait in line, i am very sorry to hear that was told there were maid to help get Vip s thru the line , in the beginning of the year i had high hopes where i could e mail Vip s before con to find out what events they were interested in to get them info about it, but I never received the info I requested, we did have some board changes that switched my boss that didn't help,                 did you not receive my phone number? I gave it out to Vips but i know by the time I got to con 3 people had been checked in already,  and I did not get reception at a lot of con space,                       lord the sake problem I was not given enough passes for all the Vips I escorted one specifically to the front and waited with him to make sure he got in after one of the people handling the line told me since he did not have a pass he couldnt get in since it was limited seating,    During opening events i was in the reg area checking in Vip s so i did not see the seating, I tried to be at other events to make sure there was not a problem,such as the dinner and cosplay, and sake    all i can say is over the next year i am going to be working on making the Vip program better 

[Jaminos]

Jazz I in fact did call you. As a matter of fact we ate dinner at the same table, you kinda helped cure me of the confused state the hotel staff cast on me. I really appreciate your help Jazz. You got me situated for many future things.  However the con was not nice to my phone as my cell phone company sucks but I am bound in chain for another year.  That and I when I called you probably could not hear it over the roar of otaku. I missed call that I did receive due to this.

I was asked if I wanted to sign up for VIP again and the answer is yes. Even though chaos was everywhere I blame not the staff. I can not hold blame on anyone. This con is growing faster then the staff can recruit. I would love to get in contact with whoever is in charge of VIP's which I hope is still you Jazz. A good list of where we can use our powers would help. I was always hesitant on using my powers due to the fact I had no idea where it was ok and where it was not. I feel the staff was sharing in my state. However let it be said etiquette need to be stressed harder for next year. I do not like being talked down to like I am a sheep. I am also not a child.  It seemed like that was a growing concern as the con went. Staff got frustrated and it became a path to easy to follow and became almost common.  I hate making anyone look like a bad guy. I know what its like to be the face to get spit at. I want to get in contact though some time in the future.

Jaminos

[superjaz]

Jazz I in fact did call you. As a matter of fact we ate dinner at the same table, you kinda helped cure me of the confused state the hotel staff cast on me. I really appreciate your help Jazz. You got me situated for many future things.  However the con was not nice to my phone as my cell phone company sucks but I am bound in chain for another year.  That and I when I called you probably could not hear it over the roar of otaku. I missed call that I did receive due to this.

Okay i remeber you, you sat on my right right? the phone, I think i had the wrong area code because when you called and gave me your number again, you didnt say one and 503 didnt work, and i had a couple of missed vip calls that it was hard some times to place message with number and yes there was 2 messages i had that were ROAH OF OTAKU to the max
 if the board trusts me with this postition again next year I have some ideas (letter runner room meet up...smoke signal) on better comunication in that location, I knew phone reception was going to be bad but i had no idea that bad, and a list of vip contact info before con will make this go more smoothly, maybe on a vip reg form with a box to check if its okay to be contacted by me about any vip question or events vips might have and my e-mail address

[Jaminos]

Yeah sorry this is my fault I am so use to everyone having the same area code as me which is 541 (the Dalles) I was the one to the right also to answer your question.  But Jazz you were awesome!

[Animeman73]

Hello superjaz A.K.A. Jazz this is Animeman73. You know me as a certain visually impaired VIP who brought the staff coffee and some strawbery pocky to give to TomtheFanboy (How is the good fellow by the by?). My experience was very good however I was surprised VIPs weren't allowed front row seats for closing ceremonies. It would've made things easier for me to see. I didn't go to the sake tasting because well I don't have a very strong alcohol tolerance level as I found out the hard way on my trip to Paris, France a couple years back  . I sensed some underlying hostility from the Hotel staff, and I sensed the crowd, some of the Youjimbo, and staff were having temper issues. And traffic was more then a trifle unpredictable. I honestly think they were taken aback by how many people went to the convention. In my personal opinion I really think they might want to consider "hiring" some security to add to hotel and Youjimbo security. it's only a suggestion. I managed to get through the line to the merchant's hall. And the VIP Dinner was wonderful. If you could please send my compliments to the cooking staff of the Hotel for the great job they did  . Still al in all it was an excellent experience and I plan on going VIP next year. How about I bringa few more containers of coffee just for good measure (I hope you found the coffee I did bring useful by the by.) Another suggestion to you guys is see if for next year you can bring more costume sellers to the convention. As a matter of fact I know a nice costume rental place on NE Glisan if you'd ever be interested in hearing about them. Take care Jazz and I'll be seeing you  .

[superjaz]

3
1 yes tom is well, had dinner with him And  his awesome wife last night and thanks again for the coffee and Pocky It went well with the cake i put in the staff room i am told, tho i don't drink coffee i am addicted to pop yes very bad for me i know          
       2 there had been the idea that i would have a Vip t shirt of awesome that would make me visible or a sign and that would have helped with my visibly but con comes fast and it didn't happen next year right? live and learn        
     3 i love you guys really do but its jaz jaz count em one z look at my sig its just jazz makes me think of jazzy which is what my mom called me when little and it was alway so How do i put it like being  treated like a baby? and jaz has 3 letters 3 my favorite #

[Jaminos]

Sorry that was how it was spelled on my letter with your number and the ticket for the sake tasting.

[Himeno]

I didn't really have any problems with my VIP badge, although I also got a VIP badge last year, knew what it got me and got my badge on Friday afternoon.
The only problems I had were the standard issues that any convention has.

[Animeman73]

Oops, sorry Jaz my bad  .

[superjaz]

Oops, sorry Jaz my bad  .

yay!!!

[Fox]

I attended this year as a VIP. You might remember me by the Inu Yasha costume I wore. I choose to go VIP this time based on my experiences at last year's con. I would happily say that it lived up to all my expectations. I was able to go to all the events I wanted with good seating and Jaz was able to pave the way for me in some places where tickets\wrist bands fell through the cracks.

My experience this year was quite pleasant and though the Hilton staff was pretty frazzied on Saturday, but things seemed to be much better on Sunday. On the whole I am planning to acquire a VIP badge next year as well even if the price goes up.

P.S. I think Jaz did a great job when she had to contend with 2 large main floors of the convention that had no to minimal cell phone coverage. Good job Jaz!

[MichaelEvans]

As a staff member (who thankfully wasn't tasked with guarding any doors/etc) I can say this.  I don't believe I even saw a single VIP badge the entire convention, and if I did, I wouldn't know for sure it wasn't faked.  I'm going to add the following to our staff Rant/Rave thread.

Followup: Badging VIPs.  The look of VIP badges and what special access they have should also be added to -all- staff training.  Just in case we need to help one of them around lines and in to prime seating.

Followup: Firecode, VIPs should be reserved under the hard cap to our soft cap for events/etc. (Increase the buffer accordingly)

[Repku]

Well, let's see.. Overall, I did enjoy myself for the most part (well, okay, it wasn't the best con for me, but that's mostly because I didn't prepare well and didn't realize that having meet with some people I knew last con was a matter of fortune that shouldn't have just expected to be repeated... and I mostly did enjoy myself) The lines were horrendous.. I remember some of the yojimbo or hotel staff would actually part the red rope things that other yojimbo and hotel staff told us to NOT walk through and  made seemingly random rules for the bathroom near the escalators..
I don't think I once went the same way to get to that bathroom, but I ended up having to go there a lot.

I did get a mild impression that some of the hotel staff weren't very happy with us, but I don't know.. It could just be that they were flustered, so I'm not sure.. Still, it wasn't very good.
The yojimbo were fine, on the other hand.. very helpful, though it seemed there might have been some communication problems which seems inevitable.. They seemed a little confused I think....

But I don't know.
I can't keep track of my thoughts, so I'm not very reliable. Maybe I'm just somehow making it up in my head because everyone else keeps saying it.
I didn't even realize when Kumoricon was until Friday night around midnight just before the con (thought I'd look it up the next 'morning' because I knew it was soon).

Perhaps I'll go next year, but just get a normal badge and not get a room.

I will let the samurai know, i became friends with him and worked a few days with him too.

When it came to the VIP's, yes, we were not giving total clarification on what to do, other than you had priority on everything. I was at the bottom of the escalators for the Masquerade Ball and had my 1 and only encounter with a VIP who was late to the sake tasting. I made sure he got in.

I thank you then.
I mixed up the events calendar and thought it started 30 minutes later than it did...

I'm kinda Osaka-ish.. Missed the VIP dinner as well.


EDIT: Crap.. I got the threads all confused..

[camname21]

As a staff member (who was tasked with guarding doors/lines) I can say this.  I saw my share of VIP's but not to many badges, half the time all they said was I'm a VIP and off they were sent to the front of the line (okay mind you this was mostly for registration, wow that sounds bad of me.  They did seem like they were VIP if that helps? )  I did not actually see to many VIP badges other then photo staff and the such, but I did see them.  As for other staff knowing what to do with yall, it was a toss up.  Lots of new staff this year, myself included.  All VIP were taken into account for all ticketed event caps that I am aware of.  I heard this multiple times by multiple higher ups.   In response to M.E.

The lines were horrendous.. I remember some of the yojimbo or hotel staff would actually part the red rope things that other yojimbo and hotel staff told us to NOT walk through and  made seemingly random rules for the bathroom near the escalators..

I did get a mild impression that some of the hotel staff weren't very happy with us, but I don't know..

I can't keep track of my thoughts, so I'm not very reliable. Maybe I'm just somehow making it up in my head because everyone else keeps saying it.

Lines were a little unorganized due to the places we could have people stand, most of the sides of the plaza were ether doors that couldn't be blocked or railing with desks/other assorted things around them.  As for the red ropes.. I helped set them up, took them down opened them up and closed off little sections.  I also walked over, crawled (okay lifted and crouched) under them, that was part of my job.  Random rules?  What rules! Hehe, ya okay we had rules set up but sometimes they had to be bent due to what we were faced with if ya get me.  I don't know anything about the bathroom however, I don't think I ever used one outside my hotel room.  Yes hotel staff were a little off by the sight of 2k people suddenly trampling into and over their pretty floors.  I heard this right out of one of their mouths, paraphrasing of coarse.  And no you have not gone compleatly bonkers,  The thoughts being projected into or seeping out of your mind are in fact what most of us were thinking during the con.  But we did okay, we had fun, and have lots of info for another year there to improve EVERYTHING! 

If anyone wants to chat about con outside the forums PM me.