First try here :)
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Posted on 04/19/2012 1:22:35 PM PDT by Jim Robinson
I've checked with an ad agency. We can probably raise the funds we need to operate FR at our current level and at the current market price for online advertising if we run a banner ad at the top of every page and at least one rectangular ad in the above the fold body of the page and a couple rectangular ads in the sidebar. If that doesn't generate enough revenue, we can also run pop ups or pop unders and we can even run audio and video ads if need be. But of course, if we go full bore commercial, we'd have to insure strict copyright compliance with very brief excerpting of all articles to avoid lawsuits. And the agency would require that we install a filter to censor out any bad or unacceptable words in our posts.
Or, of course, there's always the membership model. We could setup a members only system where paying members get full access and non-paying members get throttled back, etc.
I don't like either of the above models and think we'd soon lose a lot of our readers and participants. Of course that may happen anyway if we can't fund it and if we cannot get our equipment problem under control, or if my refusal to vote for or support an abortionist/homosexualist/statist who has plans to install ObamaCare, er, I mean RomneyCare into all 50 states runs everyone off.
The donation model has served us very well since 1997 when we first started using it. It's very clean, uncomplicated and we attract participants who perhaps can't afford membership dues but do want to join the discussion and join our rallies, protests, prayer sessions, etc. And the advertising model would probably bring in the revenue, but it comes with strings attached.
I'm sure there are other ways and ways to combine features of various models, sell books, cds, gear, etc, offer no ads for paid subscribers, etc, even ISP services, but all of these also complicate matters.
I'm an old dog and I like to avoid new tricks, new complications, additional overhead, additional accounting, additional rules and regulations, etc, wherever possible. I like to stick to simplicity and with what works.
Thank you all very much for your continuing participation and support.
Windflier, I can see you’re sincere and you’ve never been nasty. I appreciate that.
But I cannot agree with you.
Sorry.
Put yourself in the shoes of an American colonist in the late 1700s. Events are coming to a head. Do you support the Loyalists, or the Revolution? Or, do you choose the third way, and refuse to stand for anything? Those are your only choices.
A vote for Romney or Obama is a vote to continue under the reign of King George III. The only candidate who represents the Revolution is Newt Gingrich. If he doesn't make it, will you then decide that those chains really do "rest lightly upon you"?
Think about it. It's where we truly are today.
I want three pockets tees, Men's - L and three baseball caps please.
But Ma’am, I don’t wish to be excused. This is a conservative site and I support conservative candidates. You have pontificated on your soapbox supporting your liberal choice on a conservative forum, to little acclaim.
I would be more than happy to yield to the opinions of the owner of this site, as to whether a n00b conservative, or a veteran member stumping for liberal candidates, should be the first to be excused.
You see? Now your blood pressure is up and you could be relaxing with a bowl of rocky road right now watching Gilligan’s Island, but No-o-o
Stay away from ads.
Charge a membership fee to be able to post. But let the public view what is going on.
I would support any option that you choose to keep FR healthy and alive.
Personally, I don’t care for the outside ad route, because I believe that you could lose control and the libs could easily do as they have done to Rush.
Of course, the ‘naughty word’ filter could keep me from using my most favorite word—”bastard”. ;>)
Good luck....
Wow!! I have seen gays, come out, perverts all, but never quite like that.
pissant, was that you???????
If all that changed at FR was that a current contributor's name in a post was changed from black to green and indirectly got just another 10% of regular posters to contribute a dollar a month saving FR from bankruptcy could you deal with that?
Alternatively, why not acknowledge FReepers who keep the lights on and the site up for all the freeloaders?
My miserable but automatic, monthly contribution is small but with others it adds up to ~ $35,000 quarterly - 1000 people supporting 200,000 users for 1/3 of the costs? Check with Jim for actual numbers ... one thing I am certain - its a small number of FReepers paying a big percentage of the budget.
One other thing, aside from just keeping the lights on, apparently from reports we need some server upgrades to avoid downtimes - especially during FReepathons - kind of embarrassing. ;-)
I made up an example for Onyx here.
Consider just the first one. Unobtrusive, acknowledges the poster's level of support and as seems to make you uncomfortable, distinguishes the FReeper from the free riders.
I think it might even have been Onyx that noted that it takes $2 to process a contribution so a $5 per quarter would likely need to be the minimum to be acknowledged graphically as a contributor.
Given the VERY minor contributions necessary from a larger minority of FReepers to keep us up and running I'm not really worried about the freeloaders feelings.
For my part, if these miniscule changes could shame frequent FReepers into contributing, save FReeRepublic, unnecessary then I think its worth a try. FWIW. ;-)
Joe Pro Bono started it and I eagerly followed, so thanks to JB.
I wouldn’t have trouble living with those ads. On other forums of interest, I don’t even notice them anymore.
I would consider a combination of 2 approaches. The ad’s and also some sort of marker for monthly donors.... “Gold membership” with a bit more access.
I guess I might have to come up with a code word for “bastard”...... damn!
I think the processing fees are percentages, like in stores and established by credit cards and pay pal. AMEX, which I use, almost always charges more. Jim could better tell you.
Let me read your detailed post in a little while, because I have my very talkative son from CA on the phone.
Charlie, I for one really like your suggestions.
Who in the heck would eat at an Arby’s? Yuck!
LOL!
Joe is one of my heroes. :)
Create a classified section for Freepers... Freeperville... where items can be listed for sale/services rendered, a Freeper version of Ebay/Craigslist.
Either charge a small listing fee or charge membership/annual fee to use the listing service, or work on the honor system whereby upon sale of an item or service, the seller donates a small percentage to Freerepublic.
I, for one , would have many things to list and would rather pay FreeRepublic than Ebay or trust a transaction on Craigslist.
I have more ideas on this, having been involved with software development of an on-line auction site start-up many years ago.
The best of all worlds, reasonable membership fee (would a buck a month actually work?) with restrictions for non members, and probationary period for newbies, aka spies, trolls and agitators.
Freedom of speech without restrictions, recognizing that this is an adult forum (intellectually, if not physically.)
Good to know.
I pay quarterly; I'll start adding $2.
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