Site fundraiser

[IdahoKidd]

Mike mentioned in a different post about adding ads for fundraising. I suppose it is inevitable but he mentioned money out of his pocket too. I have projects I support out of love for the project, and perhaps this is Mike's, but there must be a way we can help out with a semi annual or ?? fundraising project. Any thoughts? I was thinking like a charity auction, those of us that can could donate an item, Z related or not, to a silent auction and the proceeds could go to the upkeep of the site. Donating person could submit a pic and arrange shipping, buyer could pay shipping from donator's address. Items could be anything from misc parts to non related but interesting stuff. The details could be worked out, but it is a thought. Anyone have others?

I haven't participated on the boards for some time due to health reasons, but still lurk when I can. I'd hate to see it become and ad section with a bit of Z info.

Leonard

[psdenno]

A fund raiser is a good idea to stem the tide of intrusive ads. However, an auction with donations from multiple sources could become a bucket of worms if items aren't shipped or lost in transit. Not sure what a better idea might be, but I think the auction could become uncomfortable.

Dennis

[Arne]

An auction would require significant volunteer time from some people, but might work. Every once in a while fundraising is mentioned, which generally seems to spawn a small flurry of donations, which is a good thing. And less often (only a couple of times that I recall) some other type of fundraising happens. For example, when I organized the group buy on the mylar sunshades a while back, I built a bit of profit into the price, and gave 100% of the profit as a site donation. That project generated several hundred dollars for the site. So there are a few ideas to consider.

[grannyknot]

A Yamaha FJ 1100/1200 forum I'm a member of has a paypal DONATE button, virtually everyone on that site has the word

CONTRIBUTOR under their user name and the ones that haven't donated get told "3 free questions then you donate"

There are no ads on the site.

If all members gave $10, well... that's alot of no ads.

Chris

Edited May 4, 2012 by grannyknot

[Mike]

A Yamaha FJ 1100/1200 forum I'm a member of has a paypal DONATE button, virtually everyone on that site has the word CONTRIBUTOR under their user name and the ones that haven't donated get told "3 free questions then you donate"

There are no ads on the site.

If all members gave $10, well... that's alot of no ads.

Chris

Hi Chris, what's the website URL to that site? Would love to check it out.

[Reverend]

That sounds like a great idea

[IdahoKidd]

That works and would be easier. Personally, I like things to be voluntary. Some newbies may turn away if they 'had to pay'. I would have. It isn't long enough to establish a relationship (speed dating in a sense). And besides, I had a bunch of 'stuff' to get rid of :classic: I was thinking silent auction on the honor system, registered buyers send money to the site, registered users send the item to the buyer. I realize there will be problems and really havent thought out all of the logistics.

Maybe someone can dream up a monthly online event that will create an interest. Trying to think up something that works across the spectrum, a raffle drawing for a larger or desirable ticket item. The site could buy or be donated........ a set of wheels, new or used, spoiler/air dam, seat foams, who knows, tickets could be bought with paypal, a number given and then some sort of live drawing in a chat room or ??? something to spark interest and participation.

And maybe not, maybe just an icon of a pot at the top of each page and let folks donate as they wish. I personally never gave the costs of these sites much thought. Out of site out of mind

And I do remember a year or so ago when the site went down due to a go daddy issue it generated a lot of spontaneous donations. Could happen again.......................

[24 Ounces]

Mike...I will donate some cash. I have been on here for a year and have gradually become hooked. Give the newbies the first year for free, then a modest donation. I pay 20 bucks a year to my local Z club and get way more benefit (and satisfaction) out of this. BTW...thanks for putting this site together and maintaining it...I'm sure it is a real headache generator (but worth it). Best regards, Alex from Ohio

[Wade Nelson]

Donating via Paypal would be my preference. Getting a single question answered can save me hours and hours of labor. More than worth a few dollars once a year. Let me know when it's set up.

Wade Nelson

Silver '80 280zx "Sway-Z"

[Mike]

Unless a majority of members disagree, I don't think we will ever become a "pay site"... although I believe there is room for a separate section that only supporting members can get into.. ie: microfiche scans, documents, downloads, publications, etc. We have been kicking around the idea of another data disc (like our Zcar CD), but, that takes a LOT of work up front and someone eventually gets stuck with a huge up front bill for manufacturing. We already have a lot of documents prepared, so, I should get busy and start working on ways to get the data added to the site.

Anyway, donations have always been available on the site. There is a donation box on the right side on the home page or you can use this link: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/payments.php Everything goes through Paypal at the moment. Contact me if you don't like Paypal or prefer to use another method.

As far as donating, we don't always need money. There are other ways to donate to the site with your time. For instance, I could use some help in the gallery.... I need someone to go through and create new galleries for the events this summer. I also could use someone to go out and seek links to different events on the planet. I know Sport Z Mag has a listing of summer events and it would be great to browse through the mag and add the events here. Uploads, I also have some great ideas here. But, I need someone with time enough to help me figure out how to make the download module work correctly. We have the ability to add downloads to the site, I just haven't had the time to test the module.

And, as far as "lurkers" or people who hang in the background.... if you want to help out.. simply click on the ads. It really does help. Last time I checked, we get $.85 per click on some of the bigger sites. Please don't go haywire on the clicks, a few a day are ok. If Google detects anyone clicking an ad more than just a few times a day, the Google ad system will block your IP. But, if you think about it... everyone who visits the site has an opportunity to virtually donate up to $2-3 a day just by following ads. It's a strange concept but it really does work.

There you go... many ways for people to help with the site without actually having to organize a big event. If you are so inclined, one more idea is I need someone to chase down Ian at Gearhead Shirts... he promised to build a Tshirt for the club. How many project managers do we have out there? This is your chance to shine!

Thanks guys!

mike

m

[siteunseen]

I just read all about Glade Plug-Ins, and tried to see my car value but it wouldn't go beyond a '98. Evey little bit helps. Maybe one day I'll be in RED.

[grannyknot]

Hi Chris, what's the website URL to that site? Would love to check it out.

here you go, FJowners.com - Yamaha FJ1100 FJ1200 Owners Group, Forum, Worldwide discussion message board