Mistakes of setting up a VTC

[iiQwertz]

Mistakes of setting up a VTC

Many people are interested in setting up a VTC of their own and want their VTC to become popular in some degree. It's common that people jump ahead of themselves when setting up a VTC of their own and sometimes their ideas are ahead of the necessities they need which can negatively impact the VTC both short term and long term. I will go through some of the mistakes made when setting up a VTC.

 

1. Buying what they don't need.

 

It's easy for people to get ahead of themselves in the start, and will set up unnecessary materials. These include:

 

• Websites - Website are a great material to use for your VTC, however they cost money to keep up. When starting out, a website is not vital to promoting your VTC however it can be useful long term. Do not commit to buying a website host at these early stages.

 

• Domains - When people first make their VTC, they want to keep it their own and will buy a domain. Although domains are not entirely expensive, they are also not really needed when starting your VTC. A domain is the name that appears on a web link and can be connected to a company email system e.g. (www.[ComanyName].com) and (help@[CompanyName].com) These make your company look more professional and although that's what you may want, it will not impact your first stages of recruitment.

 

• Logo - Although some people can make their own logo, others may look elsewhere for a logo and will sometimes pay for a logo. This is not a good investment for your VTC. Your company is starting off, meaning that things will change through the process and a lot of the time, logo's and names will be changed at the beginning. Keep a simple, free logo and if you want to change it, you don't have to worry about wasting the money you spent. 

 

• Trade-Mark - It's normal for people to want to keep what they make, however you do not need to trademark the company name in the start. Similar to the logo point, people will change their mind on the name of their VTC and even if you are dedicated to that name, there is always a chance that you may prefer another name. Let your VTC expand and improve before you pay for a trademark.

 

All of these materials are great to have for your company and I would suggest investing in them, but don't splash your cash in the early stages.

 

2. Recruitment

Recruitment is the front line of any VTC. The way you recruit will determine the successful of your VTC and the people you have in your company. Take these notes to your advantage and don't stay blind to recruitment.

 

• Don't expect people to join immediately - Although this may sound very basic and obvious, it's easy for you to forget about this. As soon as you have made your VTC, all you want now is for people to join, and this is how VTC's reach their end. Instead of wanting people to join, you need to be think  of 'how am I going to get people to join'. This can be a challenge sometimes but you build a baseline of your recruitment, so how are they going to apply, what is needed for them to apply, what materials can I use to get it out there.

 

• Don't push recruitment on people - When recruitment, all you are thinking about is getting people to join, and this can blind you from why people join. The last think you want to do in a recruitment sense, is force it on people. By force it on people, I am talking about heckling. Don't make people join and stay approachable, people want a friendly experience in a VTC so make recruitment more human. This means that you see the player as the player and not a number.

 

• Don't start recruitment without a foundation - The last thing you want to happen, is for people to join, and not know what to do next. You need materials available for players, a place where the community will communicate and chat. A great example to use, would be Discord. This is a great platform that enables you to make announcements, get the community involved and communicate to your members. 

 

• Always have a goal - Even when you get the members, you may loose people and recruitment will fall. The best way to deter this, is to have company goals, both for the whole company and individual members. This may include making a rank structure (the more you do, the higher you go), having convoys (keeping the community active). The main point, is to always have something for members to do / reach.

 

 

All of these points will help you successfully build your VTC and although there are many more mistakes people make, these are the mistakes which will impact you most when first starting. The rest are learning curves and a chance for you to improve your VTC.

 

 

 

 

[Luna]

Approved.

[.Quality]

Good content however I disagree on the website point. I certainly wouldn't recommend buying a domain for 24 months, but with how cheap domains and hosting are these days, I don't think it would be a bad idea to purchase a domain on a month to month basis and set up a basic website. Many people's first instinct if they spot someone's tag in game would be to google it and with seo, it could help people spot your vtc.

 

Other than that, great guide and thanks for making it! 

[Guest]

Good content!

[Red'Sire]

Nice content! 

[Deniz.]

Great Content!

[Tacticalumbreon]

Good content.

 

However I do have a question to ask. I read the rules of having a VTC and it seems to say that you shouldn't start one if you aren't planning on being a serious VTC. This is just how it read to me and my brain can be weird sometimes but does that mean I can't just make a VTC for me and my friends to play on when we play TruckersMP? I would just have me and them all join one of the open VTC's but... I don't think we play regularly enough. Feels like we'd be a waste of space on another persons' VTC if they're actually serious.

 

If anyone could answer this I would really appreciate it. I was just about to spend time making a custom logo in Kirita before I read the rules. Sounds like I'm not supposed to do stuff like that so I'll be holding off for the time being.

[Guest]

Sure you can create a VTC on TMP just for you and your friends with your VTC internal Rules (or even no rules).

 

 

[MaxiZockt13]

Good content

[stappat]

^^^^^
Good and helpful information. Thanks.

[Mehmet [25]]

Good content! 

[User_1134724]

Thank you . Good content .

[OmSaL]

Nice content!  

[pofii]

Nice content. Thanks for information.

[Abyssial]

Very nice informative post for those looking to make a VTC. I myself am not looking to make one, but if I was this would be where I started. There is more that could be added I think but then that would be to detailed and probably dissuade someone from jumping in the deep end and making a VTC. Only recommendation I have to add to this is that you should join a well established VTC for a few months. That way you could get a feel for what the "competition" does, but also see how they recruit, and maintain members while making the experience enjoyable and rewarding for everyone.

[[GER] NordicWarrior]

Look at this and dont make the common mistakes

[Guest]

Thank you. Good topic.

[-Elvis-]

Very nice information .

from my experience don't rush into anything Websites logos & any other extra stuff can wait the community is what matters the most a lot of people as you said about recruitment don't push recruitment you will slowly have people apply . Its a gradual process but good to see some sensible points I do see so many times VTC's Startup & going about things with not the right intentions  

[ItsHarryUK]

I am loving with this topic / Post.

 

Experience is always key these days which helps anyone thanks for doing what you do. 

 

- Harry 

[Guest]

Hello,

Nice guide! thank you for this informations.

[Naklov.]

Good guide!

[Guest]

Good content!

[Guest]

Useful information.

[Guest]

Thank you for the tips. Been thinking about creating my own, but at the same time I think it would be better to join one. It could be a great way to learn before I set up myself for failure. I'm a graphic designer and for the past weeks I've been designing a ton of trucking/logistics companies logos, just fake ones. But it is something that I enjoy doing a lot.

[Maxi.]

Thank you for the tips, this is good information.