StarletMad Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Would defo stop little dickheads coming on here to rip people off nuff said. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Starbuck Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I think the complete running costs of uksc should be made apparent then everyone would know what they're paying towards. So they can get a better idea as to what running a website costs. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Starbuck Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 £10 memberships would be fine with me. Specially knowing its going towards a great community Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DavidAshton Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I don't really have an opinion on the mebership front I'd probably end up paying it even though I tend to lurk more than I post.But, working in I.T I'd say make sure you are getting the best deal possible in regards to your VPS, hosting etc. £600 over the last few months seems mega steep for a VPS / forum update / hosting package. Everyone is jumping on the Cloud / VPS bandwagon atm, there are some good deals out there to be had.Also has anyone thought about advertising? Like having people pay to advertise on here. A lot of car forums I use do this and do it well in a none intrusive way. It may be a nice way of generating a bit of money for the site. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fozzie Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I haven't been on here all that long and haven't had much of a chance as yet to get to know everyone on here. However, I can easily say that this is far and away the best forum I've ever been registered on, both in terms of knowledge and content, as well as the friendly atmostphere. If anything, IMO it's surprising that all this is currently available for free.I'd certainly have no objection to paying £10 a year for membership; I've paid more for what was really a heap of tripe in comparison! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
darylb Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I don't really have an opinion on the mebership front I'd probably end up paying it even though I tend to lurk more than I post.But, working in I.T I'd say make sure you are getting the best deal possible in regards to your VPS, hosting etc. £600 over the last few months seems mega steep for a VPS / forum update / hosting package. Everyone is jumping on the Cloud / VPS bandwagon atm, there are some good deals out there to be had.Also has anyone thought about advertising? Like having people pay to advertise on here. A lot of car forums I use do this and do it well in a none intrusive way. It may be a nice way of generating a bit of money for the site.I was thinking the same, i have 3 dedicated boxes running Linux Centos and i pay no where near £600 for those.Geo where are you buying your VPS from? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
glanzagee Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I don't think Enzo should have to pay out of his own pocket to keep the site running even if he is the founder after all this is OUR site for all our benefits and if it means members have to pay to keep it running so be it I'm happy too pay the membership cost I think we should have a vote pay or not too pay and why Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flaminsam Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 just my little input here, Enzo i appreciate you for paying out of your own pocket to keep this site going. you could have quite easily said bollox to it and shut the site down. i would be willing to pay. excellent site, met some nice lads and lasses and looking forward to this show season.ever thought of running this site like the sxoc? they have weekenders, track time availiable and also do shows. why not have a treasurer that keeps account of all the costs of running the site? then if there are any profits use them to arrange uksc weekender meets? maybe offer up track time for those who would like to go? maybe even put the extra money towards a marquee or a club bbq for shows? the list can go on and on. i think the aim of this thread is to see peoples reaction to the actual costs of running the site, and up to now it seems like a good reaction. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steve GT Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 why not have a treasurer that keeps account of all the costs of running the site? then if there are any profits use them to arrange uksc weekender meets? maybe offer up track time for those who would like to go? maybe even put the extra money towards a marquee or a club bbq for shows? the list can go on and on.we have a seperate club accound for shows dude managed by me, rob and john. kitted out the stand with a massive marquee,brand new generator and huge tear drop flags for JAE last yearsee herehttp://www.ukstarletclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=45222&hl=marquee&fromsearch=1got some spare cash left over for this years show season too so were fine on that front for now Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Johnboy GT Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Im more than willing to pay, i donated last year without any qualms. alot of people have said it but i agree, if it wasnt for this site, the abundance of knowledge, great guys and regular traders offers and discoutns then i would have probably made some very costly mistakes. Ive no idea what you lads are on about with vps and the likes but i can only assume that nothing has or will be for free so contributing to keep such a worthwhile club up and running is fair.UKSC is a laid back friendly community and i cant say that any club.ive been a member to even rivals that. I would like to make a donation ontop to get things goin again.John Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shahzad Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 I have paid for my membership for the year. I’m not sure when it is due this year. I am happy to contribute more to the club for running costs. A club membership sticker for a premium membership would be a good perk. I think that a 100 post rule or something similar should be enforced for non paid members from selling or buying parts. I know traders/sellers might get a wee bit pissed off but it will stop people signing up just to sell parts and go.Shahzad Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Turbo Goose Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Do you think this would put new members off as theres other starlet sites out there for free so for those new members who havent experienced how good this community is, they may think its better to go elsewhereI dont mind paying at all as I use uksc whenever I can get on really Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TrisK Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 (edited) Here we go again, i seem to remeber ruffling a few feathers the last time donations came up.I think paying is a great idea for members, aslong as its an optionAlthough I agree with Hou that the costing needs to be much more transparent if people are going to pay.Geo, I think the hosting solution your on is very expensive if you are paying 600 for 2 months hosting.What is UKSCs monthly traffic? How many GB?What is its database size?I have quite a few Virtual Servers and from the information you have given you are paying over the odds.Fair enough, but if you want people to donate to run the club then you have to expect them to want the money to be used efficiently.Matt offered to host UKSC for free, but you say you'd want to move all your sites.You dont HAVE to move all of your sites. So why not take the free hosting option if its going to save you you ££££'s every year.Also if you want people to pay then they are going to have to offer them something extra, stickers, tax discs, discount, priority tickets at shows etc. Edited April 18, 2012 by TrisK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hou Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Show tickets, good idea Trisk. A lot of clubs have a members price and a non-members price, this could be a good idea as if it is going to make people think for the extra few quid it is worth joining. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ali_legend Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Well Uksc get a £3 donation per japfest ticket anyway. Tickets here are £16 and over on epcivic there £13. Just sayin Quote Link to post Share on other sites
F3rAL Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 (edited) Go ahead with it Enzo, you are not suppose to pay alone for all of this, we all use it and benefit from it, you are a founder and you should not be paying for this as we have a lot of members to pay for running costs and a little bit for you for the idea. All car club forums I have been to charge for a membership, this way it benefits everybody, less scammers, more genuine interested members and traders.I am willing to pay for a membership £10/year is nothing when you have so much info here.I really appreciate that you did not lie to us that we need to pay money because you can not afford this to run, you said it straight forward, you need to get some of your money back and that is a very honest thing to do. I say you need to have three kind of memberships.1. Free new member ship deal (6 months or so, so they can sniff around ) (or some kind of limited account)2. Yearly membership £10-£15/ year (for members already on here or the ones after 6 months trial period)3. Traders membership (I have no idea how much). This one would be for people selling more that lets say 10 items a month.I think people your appreciate some club stickers if they go ahead and pay for yearly membership, just a little something I think it is only fair for everybody to contribute to the running costs of this forum and some beer for you, you should have done it long time ago. Edited April 18, 2012 by F3rAL Quote Link to post Share on other sites
m11xky Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 But if you have put time and money into it over the years and have provided a FREE service for so long while others have charged....there shouldn't even be a debate over charging a little.Kinda pathetic tbh when everyone can afford so much to mod there cars...starlets are a money pit...£10 for the forum is pennies!Also, if you want to 'get something back' from it...YOU ARE ENTITLED TO!! the site is huge now, Geo - you just have to decide want you charge so that it doesnt affect new members etc.I nice to have a discussion about it, and i understand the problem traders may have, but everyone should be behind geo no matter what - he isn't going to do something that harms the site.Free stuff is cool and would be nice but you don't HAVE to.....the advice, how-to guides and experience is worth the fee by itself!Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hou Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Well Uksc get a £3 donation per japfest ticket anyway. Tickets here are £16 and over on epcivic there £13. Just sayinSo you say non-members get charged that, members pay half the contribution or even none, but Geo must pass over cash to the show team when they need it.The only concern I have is that the traders fees alone should be paying for the site and more. There are 10 traders plus myself! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ro55ifumi Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Well Uksc get a £3 donation per japfest ticket anyway. Tickets here are £16 and over on epcivic there £13. Just sayinTaken direct from Japfest Site In advance On the dayEarly Bird Offer £15* N/A Offer ends midnight Sunday 5th February 2012Public entry tickets £17* £20 Under 14’s free with an accompanying adultTrack Time £35* £35 Price is per 15 minute sessionTrack Passenger Ride £10* £10 .Read more: Japfest | Tickets http://www.japfest.c.../#ixzz1sNX6gyWTWe place £1 for the show fund and do not take £3 the above is direct from Japfest site, the £1 is clearly stated in the threads as a donation to the show fundReally disappointed with that comment, seeing as you are attending with this club.The amount of hassle Steve,Rob and i have in chasing people down to pay even to after the cut off time is un real, if everyone paid on time it would make all our lives easierWe were the poor club of the shows until last years raffle and purchases, i know both Rob and i paid towards a marquee out our own pockets for all to use at previous eventsJohn Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ali_legend Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 I'm not sayin that you guys are Ripping us off etc. I'm saw someone's comment sayin we should give a little to the club when paying for tickets. I was just saying that we do give a little to the club when purchasing japfest tickets. Personally as I've said up there £10/£15 a year is nothing at all. And if it aids the site we should pay it. Also I have thanked the mods along with all the other members for their commitment and hard work in securing us a stand at japfest when it seemed impossible. It may have sound like I was being a dick when I wrote that last comment but I assure you no harm was ment from it Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fozzie Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 I think the initial free period before you have buy a membership sounds like a good idea. I've only been on here 2 months and I'd happily pay a fee after having seen how friendly the whole club is. I guess the only problem is trying to stop sales scammers registering short term... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LeeroyV Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 i have absoloutly no problem paying a small annual subscription fee most sites worth their salt now operate this way to fend off scammers etc. could you not operate a limited site to non members and full site to members?? i think all will agree that the help, advice and community is worth a few quid a year.obviously things like sales forums will only be for members Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TrisK Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 (edited) most sites worth their salt now operate this way to fend off scammers etc. could you not operate a limited site to non members and full site to members??You need to be very careful with this.The main reason UKSC gets traffic willl be google.And the fact you dont have to sign up/pay to read the information means people like the siteand sign up anyway with a positive experienceHow many sites have you had to sign up just to read on little peice of information, then you never go back. Edited April 18, 2012 by TrisK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pick1 Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 I personally wouldn't mind paying £10 a year membership for Uksc I've met some great peopleOn here and want to attend shows on the Uksc stands this year and the sticker idea for paid members are a good idea we all use this site for our benefit and to chat so I can't see a problem with helping to keep things running sweet Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LeeroyV Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 You need to be very careful with this.The main reason UKSC gets traffic willl be google.And the fact you dont have to sign up/pay to read the information means people like the siteand sign up anyway with a positive experienceHow many sites have you had to sign up just to read on little peice of information, then you never go back.read on and i say things like the sales section to be members only so not inhibiting people signing up and seeing the wealth of info on here!!!i mean people and make a tenner from selling an item or save a tenner from buyig a part!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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