Membership costs

[chris]

Hi All, my copy of the cultivator arrived yesterday, in it is much concern about the costs of running the club and raising the membership fee to £30 to mitigate this. You asked for feedback!
Would I pay this, yes I think I would, would I accept reducing the the number of issues of the cultivator to Five a year or lower?
If that what it takes then yes, but I do look forward to each copy .
I think that if the number of issues is reduced then perhaps we should reconsider allowing for sale advertisement on the website, three months between copies is a long time if you are selling or looking for something. This is of course a matter of club policy.
Unfortunately if the club is going to continue then we all need to contribute a little more to keep it going. Clearly the advice and help given is a very valuable commodity.
Regards to all Chris

[andyfrost]

Yes , Im all for the increase to keep this wonderful club afloat. I’ve also long thought that there should be a forsale section on here , but for CLUB MEMBERS ONLY , even more so if we have fewer magazines , perhaps we could have a membership vote on this??

Andy.

[davidbliss]

Yes to everything, A for sale and wanted section bit on here think would be good.
David

[john-e-w]

Having been through the same issues with another organisation I belong to, here are a few ways to cut the costs.

1. Use slightly cheaper paper for the magazine so that it is lighter and doesn’t cost so much to post. We now use 80gm A3 folded in half to make $ sides of printable A4 – and we keep the issues to 2-3 sheets of A3
2. Only post-out the magazine to those that really need a paper copy, the majority can read it on-line and/or download it if they need a paper copy to read
3. Have a look around for a cheaper web-site host – there are plenty out there looking for customers

Yes by all means increase the membership costs, but try to keep them in line with inflation. Like all organisations that are run by volunteers try to get the younger generation involved in the technical and management issues, otherwise the club will just fade into obscurity.

Regards
John E-W

[charlie]

Thank you for your suggestions, these will be discussed and considered at a future committee meeting.

[andyp]

I agree with the comments by John E-W above. Not sure how it would be if members elect to have a paper copy but definitely worth exploring. If a paper copy is required, could the member pay more? Don’t want to penalise anyone with IT or accessibility issues though.

[sidevalve5]

Agree that if the production of the paper copy of the magazine is the main driver for increasing the membership fees. Then the possibility of a two tier fee should be explored, with the higher amount being paid by those who still wish to get it through the letterbox. The lower sum for an online version that can be downloaded. A cost analysis needs to be carried out for a more informed decision.

Am concerned that a £30 fee may put off new members from joining and others that are less active, or interested, will not renew. There is a distinct possibility that a 25%, or even a 50% fee increase, will actually reduce revenue.

I wish to emphasize that I think the paper copy of the magazine is fantastic, those involved in publishing it rightly deserve great credit. But is the financial cost of printing and sending it to every member too heavy a burden on the budget. Should those who wish to either be happy to download the magazine, or thinking if the higher fee is worth it. Affectively subsidize those that insist on having their paper copy.

[chrisk]

I think that the proposed increase in membership fee from £20 to £30 should be put in perspective.

The increase is £10 per annum or £0.83 per month which is equivalent to little over one pint of petrol.

Our hobby is operating internal combustion engines , perhaps using a vehicle to transport them to events but would any members decide to stop using their machines or attending rallies to save that pint of petrol each month? I would suggest not.

[urbanalfa]

I would agree with the statement above about the cost increase being small when considered over the course of a year. Costs everywhere are rising and it’s no suprise that club subscriptions need to rise, too.
Personally, I don’t feel that moving to an online only publication would be a good move. There may be others who are very happy to read the material online, but my experience of other clubs that have moved to electronic publications is that I read them much less frequently (and enjoy them much less) than when they were on paper. Some things work well online (from example classified adverts where responsiveness is helpful), but I’m not sure everything does.
The suggestion of looking at lower cost website hosting is sensible, but perhaps that’s something that has already been explored

[Author]

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