State of Airsoft
Re: State of Airsoft
[quote][I also am not knocking AOSC, but two things. First AOSC seems to hold the high ground (mid upper state) while not getting as much attention down where the sc forum resides. That said the other SC forum primarily seems to be fed by Savannah, and other boarder regions. SC for all of our airsoft hasn't unified like NC, Pacific NW, Cali, etc and hell hasn't going for a more regional taste. That is probably the biggest issue we have, becuase the info and the forum is nice, but the whole fractured enviroment seems to be a bit of a hiddernce.
Just my 2 cents/quote]
OK you are a new guy , so I will let you in on something , 1 , the majorty of the AOSC is state wide not mid to uppper state.
2 this is the very best run airsoft state in the south east. GA that is a fractured state. NC has nothing on the orginization of AOSC. thats a fact . The Aosc is starting to branch out to the eastern and low country. But those areas dont have much airsoft fields as do the mid or upper part of the state.
I think one thing that would help promote the airsofting in this state is like Lenorad said , FaceBook everything !!!
also if any wants to invest some ,money it should be to buy a field where we can always play and train. kinda like a southcarolina Fulda Gap . sorry if i sound like im snapping on the new guy but I know the AOSC is ther most orginized thing for airsoft in this state .
Just my 2 cents/quote]
OK you are a new guy , so I will let you in on something , 1 , the majorty of the AOSC is state wide not mid to uppper state.
2 this is the very best run airsoft state in the south east. GA that is a fractured state. NC has nothing on the orginization of AOSC. thats a fact . The Aosc is starting to branch out to the eastern and low country. But those areas dont have much airsoft fields as do the mid or upper part of the state.
I think one thing that would help promote the airsofting in this state is like Lenorad said , FaceBook everything !!!
also if any wants to invest some ,money it should be to buy a field where we can always play and train. kinda like a southcarolina Fulda Gap . sorry if i sound like im snapping on the new guy but I know the AOSC is ther most orginized thing for airsoft in this state .
LUCK IS FOR LOSERS !!! YOU CAN'T LIVE FOREVER !!!! The CEREBRAL ASSASSIN
v

v
-
- F.N.G.
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Thu Apr 07, 2011 1:05 am
Re: State of Airsoft
First off I am not that new, and no it isn't as state wide as you think. Yes GA has the same issue, but NC has a very healthy and thriving airsoft community with a very large single hub forum. AOSC is organized and has a flashy nice forum, but this place much like the lesser known S.C.A.A. seemed to have been a fragmentation of a original more consolidated regional coheision a couple years ago. Many of the southern SC players, and a few of the non-playing people I have run across in Chas would probably debate such points with you. It is rather moot and you can toot horns, but the reality is SC as a whole isn't a whole, and the regional domination of this forum is very strong from columbia up, and maybe Myrtle Beach up. Lots of people come by and poke there head in here, but nearly all the active people in chat are mid to north.CLERIC wrote: OK you are a new guy , so I will let you in on something , 1 , the majorty of the AOSC is state wide not mid to uppper state.
2 this is the very best run airsoft state in the south east. GA that is a fractured state. NC has nothing on the orginization of AOSC. thats a fact . The Aosc is starting to branch out to the eastern and low country. But those areas dont have much airsoft fields as do the mid or upper part of the state.
I think one thing that would help promote the airsofting in this state is like Lenorad said , FaceBook everything !!!
also if any wants to invest some ,money it should be to buy a field where we can always play and train. kinda like a southcarolina Fulda Gap . sorry if i sound like im snapping on the new guy but I know the AOSC is ther most orginized thing for airsoft in this state .
As for Facebook....... Facebook probably wont get you any more players then you already have in the region. First of you have to know about advertising and FB isn't as local oriented as one would like. Lets ask everyone here, how many facebook ads you click a month? How many don't even see the FB ads anymore, and can barely notice them?
The real interest in this sport and community needs to be by a compelling argument, and by useing a sound pull, not shotgun ads tossed out on the net like birdseed in a kennel.
For instance if I make a add for a new game and title it, "NEW FPS SHOOTER SO REALISTIC IT BLOWS AWAY ALL OTHER GAMES EVEN CALL OF DUTY" I bet I would catch your attention. Still lets say I bring this add written properly, giving a price, details on what you need to enjoy the game, and even some of the detractors in a gameing forum it might get peoples attention. Hell maybe even get it as a add in a local newspaper, and build it like article instead of a advert would probably work even better. Pretty pictures and facebook is like watering sand in the hopes that a apple tree will grow over night. The only time you will get interest in facebook is from friends, which you could have recurited yourself by actually talking to them and showing them the game, and explaining things.
Re: State of Airsoft
So radio is out of the question because I am willing to but $20 to any advertising and mark does have a good point about facebook and the SCAA.

-
- F.N.G.
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Thu Apr 07, 2011 1:05 am
Re: State of Airsoft
I should have piggy backed on this topic a bit more. I was.... before I left working on setting the foundation for a South East Regional group. Not to replace, or dominate, but to be a proper information hub for not only SC, but GA, FL etc. Basically a place to unify a seperated and fragmented region much like they have with the Pack North West website. The huge capability of SC and hell the non-metro ATL GA to really push and found a amazing community. Daisy which isn't to far from Savnnah has the a 160 acre playing field with enough tank trails, and foundation to be amazing. The guys are working on the place, but the backing of the region if nothing more then idea contributions would greatly increase what they are doing. Still add on the ability to get organizations like FN in Cola to help support Airsoft would be very useful. Hell I am working on that over here in Kuwait right now.
To get adds you need funding, to get funding you need a cause, and to have a cause you need organization which isn't a forum. The forum needs a campaign of sorts maybe a wounded warrior thing, a support the military campaign, or even a support the national Guard event. Get a cause (national Guard would be a great start and might get some of them to use airsoft as training if we can prove its value) get them to back you, while you back them and push. If you do that then half the time they will take care of the advertising for you. Look at Lion Claws and its movement. They help the military and in turn most of us know of the org from what Lon Claws has done and its involvment with the military.
To get adds you need funding, to get funding you need a cause, and to have a cause you need organization which isn't a forum. The forum needs a campaign of sorts maybe a wounded warrior thing, a support the military campaign, or even a support the national Guard event. Get a cause (national Guard would be a great start and might get some of them to use airsoft as training if we can prove its value) get them to back you, while you back them and push. If you do that then half the time they will take care of the advertising for you. Look at Lion Claws and its movement. They help the military and in turn most of us know of the org from what Lon Claws has done and its involvment with the military.
- SquadronROE
- I like this place!
- Posts: 82
- Joined: Fri Jun 17, 2011 10:40 am
- Location: Charleston, SC
Re: State of Airsoft
On the Facebook idea, I've been creating an Event for every Saturday game that the Swamp holds. Mostly this is so that I can invite my friends who are on Facebook all day long, but if any of you want to piggy back on it let me know via PM and we'll exchange friend requests or whatnot.
I think Facebook events are a great way to help keep it out there.
I think Facebook events are a great way to help keep it out there.
- Murphy
- Gold Team
- Posts: 105
- Joined: Mon Aug 09, 2010 10:30 am
- Location: Lexington/Clemson, SC
- Contact:
Re: State of Airsoft
Not gonna lie, I didn't read everything everyone wrote. But this is what I think:
Make sure up and coming kids no about the more serious airsoft scene. I got into clearsoft when I was like 14-15 and meandered onto places like ASF and SCAA. In the long run it helped that I knew Dom when i was younger.
If you see kids where you live running around in their backyards with walmart guns make sure they know whats up. Try to avoid the candy van vibe, but show them your guns and gear. One of my neighbors friends who played serious airsoft showed us all of his stuff and i was hooked.
Make sure kids have safe places to play (not the streets of their neighborhoods), and know the importance of safety.
TL;DR: Word of mouth. Make sure the up and comings play well and play right.
Make sure up and coming kids no about the more serious airsoft scene. I got into clearsoft when I was like 14-15 and meandered onto places like ASF and SCAA. In the long run it helped that I knew Dom when i was younger.
If you see kids where you live running around in their backyards with walmart guns make sure they know whats up. Try to avoid the candy van vibe, but show them your guns and gear. One of my neighbors friends who played serious airsoft showed us all of his stuff and i was hooked.
Make sure kids have safe places to play (not the streets of their neighborhoods), and know the importance of safety.
TL;DR: Word of mouth. Make sure the up and comings play well and play right.
Re: State of Airsoft
I think it would be a stretch to call SC the best airsoft state in the southeast. Having played in quite a few of them, talked to many out of state players, snooped around many forums, and generally done a lot of research, I think I would place us at a rather basic level when it comes to being a "mature" organization.
The SCAA got airsoft off the ground in SC. There is no question of that. The issues started coming up when Robin was the only guy putting any effort into running games, and the people not at all involved in the sport were throwing power around. Tempers flared, etc, etc. Years after the fact, I don't know if starting the AOSC was the right choice or not. It certainly worked, but it probably could have been avoided. The SCAA is more or less dead. Somewhat ironically, the only thing that really happens over there is the organizing of games in Georgia. The AOSC absolutely facilitates games for the overwhelming majority of the active playerbase in SC, but that's not very many people.
The AOSC suffers from one major issue that both NC and GA have avoided. We run every single game (well, mostly). The airsoft community here is tiny. At the most, we have 200 active players. There are fields all over the mid to upstate areas (Mark is absolutely correct about us being centered in the top half of the state), but none of the major field owners will run their own events. They only care about free money while the airsoft players (AOSC reps, for example) do all the work. As businesses, the Airfarm, Redfox, Triggertyme, Wellford, etc, all fall short. If the AOSC stopped hosting games, they would stop having airsoft games. The emergence of fields like SQA and Slick's field in the Charleston area are a step in the right direction, and I hope we start to see more of them. In order to grow our playerbase, fields need to advertise locally. Columbia alone could field a hundred players if Triggertyme had something even close to a good advertising strategy.
TL;DR - AOSC has a long way to go, field owners need to get off their butts and advertise locally, we owe a lot to the SCAA.
The SCAA got airsoft off the ground in SC. There is no question of that. The issues started coming up when Robin was the only guy putting any effort into running games, and the people not at all involved in the sport were throwing power around. Tempers flared, etc, etc. Years after the fact, I don't know if starting the AOSC was the right choice or not. It certainly worked, but it probably could have been avoided. The SCAA is more or less dead. Somewhat ironically, the only thing that really happens over there is the organizing of games in Georgia. The AOSC absolutely facilitates games for the overwhelming majority of the active playerbase in SC, but that's not very many people.
The AOSC suffers from one major issue that both NC and GA have avoided. We run every single game (well, mostly). The airsoft community here is tiny. At the most, we have 200 active players. There are fields all over the mid to upstate areas (Mark is absolutely correct about us being centered in the top half of the state), but none of the major field owners will run their own events. They only care about free money while the airsoft players (AOSC reps, for example) do all the work. As businesses, the Airfarm, Redfox, Triggertyme, Wellford, etc, all fall short. If the AOSC stopped hosting games, they would stop having airsoft games. The emergence of fields like SQA and Slick's field in the Charleston area are a step in the right direction, and I hope we start to see more of them. In order to grow our playerbase, fields need to advertise locally. Columbia alone could field a hundred players if Triggertyme had something even close to a good advertising strategy.
TL;DR - AOSC has a long way to go, field owners need to get off their butts and advertise locally, we owe a lot to the SCAA.

There's no kill switch on awesome!
- Avenger
- I do in fact have a life.
- Posts: 1432
- Joined: Fri Jul 22, 2011 3:47 pm
- Location: It's a secret.
Re: State of Airsoft
I played for about two years in the backyard, only dreaming about real games. I did't think we had any fields, or any players, in South Carolina. Eventually I got my hands on a PC and discovered the AOSC.
Also, what does TL;DR mean?
Also, what does TL;DR mean?
I do not always accidentally, but when I do, I accidentally the whole thing.
- slickridley
- I love forums!
- Posts: 452
- Joined: Tue Dec 01, 2009 7:36 am
- Location: South Carolina
- Contact:
Re: State of Airsoft
Plug for Swamp Airsoft Field! For Airsofters by Airsofters!SteevoLS wrote:The emergence of fields like SQA and Slick's field in the Charleston area are a step in the right direction, and I hope we start to see more of them.
Palmetto Guard members have been able to work very closely with the field owners to build structures, clean up the field, run the games and keep things going smoothly at events. Of our 4 events so far we've averaged about 30 players, not much compared to some events but we still have our fun.
An AOSC event would be welcomed at any time, just have to ask! Till then we plan on running our events on AOSC 'off' weekends.
A sneak peak into Swamp/PG advertising strategy,SteevoLS wrote: In order to grow our playerbase, fields need to advertise locally. Columbia alone could field a hundred players if Triggertyme had something even close to a good advertising strategy.
TL;DR - AOSC has a long way to go, field owners need to get off their butts and advertise locally, we owe a lot to the SCAA.
Apartments, Military Surplus and related stores, Outdoor sporting good stores, Military bases (PX/BX/Commissary), canvasing gun related events, college boards, any airsoft sales at Ace Hardware get a throw-in, work place notices, and just asking members and participants to talk about it with their friends. Our current effort so far has started to pay off, i'm noticing more hits on both Swampairsoft and x3 in the number of new accounts on the PalmettoGuard site.
And this is what we post Dowload link, SWAMP FLYER, its simple and to the point.
- SquadronROE
- I like this place!
- Posts: 82
- Joined: Fri Jun 17, 2011 10:40 am
- Location: Charleston, SC
Re: State of Airsoft
Agreed.SteevoLS wrote:TL;DR - AOSC has a long way to go, field owners need to get off their butts and advertise locally, we owe a lot to the SCAA.
Also: TL;DR means Too Long;Didn't Read. It's a shorthand designation that prefixes a one-line (usually) summary of whatever else has been said.
Now that I'm back at work and have access to a printer, I'm going to print out a couple dozen of Slick's advertising sheet. I think that's a great way to get word out about the field.
I'm still trying to put together a more basic flyer that explains what Airsoft is all about in the first place, but that will likely take some time as I'm pretty terrible at graphics. Here's what I'm trying to create though:
A single sheet flyer that:
- Explains what airsoft is
States a couple of differences from paintball
Explains the basic technology
1. They're worried that the crowd will be too full of "hardcore milsimmers".
2. They're worried that the financial investment will be too high.
3. They're worried that they will simply be terrible at the game.
From what I've found, all three of these are simply common misconceptions (there are a very wide variety of people playing at the games, guns are pretty cheap, and as long as it's not a serious scenario no one is going to be angry if you're terrible at it).
So I'm going to be trying to focus on those three misconceptions as well as providing some context in my flyer.
- VoidSuicide
- I do in fact have a life.
- Posts: 589
- Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 11:04 pm
- Location: Columbia
Re: State of Airsoft
In reference to things said earlier, I'm wondering if the SCAA was just too early to be ran like it was. i know there's no "perfect" system, but perhaps what would be better is if the steps were made to make the AOSC what it's called in a better sense. Right now it is mostly A few guys designated as the "reps" who have to do all the work.
I've heard how this can go bad, but eventually, I think it should reach a point where the AOSC board is just the state hub where players from across the state can meet to discuss games and everything, while having seperate sections/forums sites for their local area. Also, continue to have the standard statewide rule system, with posible games that are put on by the reps, but change it so that the council over the organization is made up of field owners and elected players from each team or state region. I would even be willing to start drafting some of this later today. Of course there would have to be rules to prevent any elitist nonsense, like not allowing more than one person from a team to be a rep at one time, or if one region has a larger playerbase than elsewhere, limiting them to a handful of players from their entire base. Also, possibly have regional reps for the lonewolf players if only to make sure things are fair for those who aren't/don't want to be on a team.
As for advertising, word of mouth probably is among the better forms, be it over facebook or school lunch table, especially since we lack any major brick and mortar stores. also, if you have the room for it, throw a few small games and invite your friends. Just follow/explain the aosc rules and play safe (airsoft is not neighborhood friendly). let them bring their walmart guns, you don't have to make a special show of your arsenal, because they will ask about your guns at some point before they leave. and then you can recruit/refer them to the AOSC boards.
I've heard how this can go bad, but eventually, I think it should reach a point where the AOSC board is just the state hub where players from across the state can meet to discuss games and everything, while having seperate sections/forums sites for their local area. Also, continue to have the standard statewide rule system, with posible games that are put on by the reps, but change it so that the council over the organization is made up of field owners and elected players from each team or state region. I would even be willing to start drafting some of this later today. Of course there would have to be rules to prevent any elitist nonsense, like not allowing more than one person from a team to be a rep at one time, or if one region has a larger playerbase than elsewhere, limiting them to a handful of players from their entire base. Also, possibly have regional reps for the lonewolf players if only to make sure things are fair for those who aren't/don't want to be on a team.
As for advertising, word of mouth probably is among the better forms, be it over facebook or school lunch table, especially since we lack any major brick and mortar stores. also, if you have the room for it, throw a few small games and invite your friends. Just follow/explain the aosc rules and play safe (airsoft is not neighborhood friendly). let them bring their walmart guns, you don't have to make a special show of your arsenal, because they will ask about your guns at some point before they leave. and then you can recruit/refer them to the AOSC boards.
[align=center]Back from the dead?
[/align]

Re: State of Airsoft
As far as splitting up the AOSC into different areas in the state would mean a lot less people coming to the games because I live in the upstate but I travel to Columbia and Newberry games and I really don't know what that would do for sc airsoft. You do have a good point this site is ruled by AJAX and partly aircross. But advertising by just telling some people at the lunch table isn't going to cut it, putting flyers up at paintball places and/or possibly backing the national guard or wounded warrior project would be a lot more effective.

Re: State of Airsoft
Current Representatives of the AOSC:
Dominum
Gambler
GARRETT
Diesel
GREEN NINJA
2/5 is Ajax. Ajax doesn't 'rule' the AOSC, no one does. These represenatives are people who have been here a while, and who do things right. If you havn't noticed, none of these people really own any of the normal fields we play at. Reason is simply because this is a site for airsoft, not for making money. Put the field owners on the board and we would have money put in the situation. Reps work for free, they arn't on a payroll and they dont get many, if any, benefits whatsoever. The reason there is only 5 at this moment, is because there are only 5 that can truly do it correctly. AJAX and Aircross are big, they rule nothing.
Backing up anything, whether it be the Nat Guard or WWP, or even teh Purple Heart Foundation, will cost money, and wont bring many people in. Flyers wont do anything either. Straight up, ive brought at least 20 people onto this site just by telling them "Hey, theres a game here, and the info is on the AOSC!" Talk around school, talk to your friends. They wouldnt want to play alone, so invite people.
Dominum
Gambler
GARRETT
Diesel
GREEN NINJA
2/5 is Ajax. Ajax doesn't 'rule' the AOSC, no one does. These represenatives are people who have been here a while, and who do things right. If you havn't noticed, none of these people really own any of the normal fields we play at. Reason is simply because this is a site for airsoft, not for making money. Put the field owners on the board and we would have money put in the situation. Reps work for free, they arn't on a payroll and they dont get many, if any, benefits whatsoever. The reason there is only 5 at this moment, is because there are only 5 that can truly do it correctly. AJAX and Aircross are big, they rule nothing.
Backing up anything, whether it be the Nat Guard or WWP, or even teh Purple Heart Foundation, will cost money, and wont bring many people in. Flyers wont do anything either. Straight up, ive brought at least 20 people onto this site just by telling them "Hey, theres a game here, and the info is on the AOSC!" Talk around school, talk to your friends. They wouldnt want to play alone, so invite people.
[align=center]Delta Bravo Niner
[/align]

- VoidSuicide
- I do in fact have a life.
- Posts: 589
- Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 11:04 pm
- Location: Columbia
Re: State of Airsoft
I see where it may have sounded like it, but I definitely didn't mean to split up the games. I think that was one of the scaa's failing points. While I do mean for games to rarely be hosted by reps, and by the teams and such instead, if there was a schedule of some sort maintained it would also help. there could even be a section for field owners/teams with fields to discuss who was planning what on what dates as to avoid arguments stemming from two groups wanting to run something the same day/weekend.
You do have a valid point tho felix regarding the money aspect. And that is something that I'm not sure how to work out. What you said about the reps tho isn't entirely true. In my talks with dom/steevo, they've talked about how there's plenty of people who want to be reps, but just shouldn't be because they would be horrible as reps, and that a lot of those who could be reps don't want to be or can't for some reason, which I do see some cases where this is true.
Also @ atl: I never said anything about anyone ruling the aosc, my mentions of limiting numbers from teams or such are from common sense of how people can be, as well as stories about how it is/was in other organizations
You do have a valid point tho felix regarding the money aspect. And that is something that I'm not sure how to work out. What you said about the reps tho isn't entirely true. In my talks with dom/steevo, they've talked about how there's plenty of people who want to be reps, but just shouldn't be because they would be horrible as reps, and that a lot of those who could be reps don't want to be or can't for some reason, which I do see some cases where this is true.
Also @ atl: I never said anything about anyone ruling the aosc, my mentions of limiting numbers from teams or such are from common sense of how people can be, as well as stories about how it is/was in other organizations
[align=center]Back from the dead?
[/align]

Re: State of Airsoft
Truthfully, a good idea would have the fields doing their own games, like SQA and Swamp, but then AOSC massive games, like BH. Then run it all through a simple hub like AOSC. Then the field owners get their money in their small games, we get both small and big games, and admin dont have to do everything. Simple as the field owners need to get started...
[align=center]Delta Bravo Niner
[/align]
