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I'm trying hard to come up with a plan regarding members who donate (or paid memberships) and companies who wish to advertise and/or sell their wares here on the board. The hosting costs are getting up there as I've had to upgrade the plan three times now, so it'd be really nice to offset some of the cost.
Members
I will not let this place become AR15.com-lite, with most membership features neutered unless you're a paying member. What I would prefer to do is recognize those who have donated and possibly give them some sort of additional perks, though I don't know what yet. One thing I'm definitely going to do is give them some sort of 'site supporter' graphic under their post count, which will reflect which 'level' of supporter they are depending on how much they donated. I was also considering the possibility of giving out pop3 email accounts so supporters could have <yourname>@northwestfirearms.com email addresses. Custom user titles have been disabled for new users for quite some time now, so that could be another feature, as well as permission to use the photo galleries. I'm just trying to think of ways to a) recognize those who support the site and b) give them a little 'extra' as a way to say thanks.
Businesses
I know this is still a small board (around 260 visits per day, 65-85 unique), so it doesn't make a bunch of sense to pay to sell or advertise here. I was thinking maybe similar to the member donations, business owners who post and/or advertise here would be 'supporting vendors' or something along those lines, for a very modest amount (maybe $25 per 6 months or something?). Again, I'm just throwing out ideas here. I believe this week I'll be ready to accept the first advertiser(s) for a banner ad at the top, again, for very reasonable rates. As the board grows and expands, the rates will be adjusted, but we're talking in the short term right now.
I'd really like to hear from both members and businesses that advertise here and get your input, so please let me know what your thoughts are on all of this.
Cheers,
Joey
Members
I will not let this place become AR15.com-lite, with most membership features neutered unless you're a paying member. What I would prefer to do is recognize those who have donated and possibly give them some sort of additional perks, though I don't know what yet. One thing I'm definitely going to do is give them some sort of 'site supporter' graphic under their post count, which will reflect which 'level' of supporter they are depending on how much they donated. I was also considering the possibility of giving out pop3 email accounts so supporters could have <yourname>@northwestfirearms.com email addresses. Custom user titles have been disabled for new users for quite some time now, so that could be another feature, as well as permission to use the photo galleries. I'm just trying to think of ways to a) recognize those who support the site and b) give them a little 'extra' as a way to say thanks.
Businesses
I know this is still a small board (around 260 visits per day, 65-85 unique), so it doesn't make a bunch of sense to pay to sell or advertise here. I was thinking maybe similar to the member donations, business owners who post and/or advertise here would be 'supporting vendors' or something along those lines, for a very modest amount (maybe $25 per 6 months or something?). Again, I'm just throwing out ideas here. I believe this week I'll be ready to accept the first advertiser(s) for a banner ad at the top, again, for very reasonable rates. As the board grows and expands, the rates will be adjusted, but we're talking in the short term right now.
I'd really like to hear from both members and businesses that advertise here and get your input, so please let me know what your thoughts are on all of this.
Cheers,
Joey