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Author
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Topic: Supporting Brainstorms: Keeping us Banner Free
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Micah Sparacio
Member
Member # 6
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posted 18. March 2003 10:46
Brainstorms Participants,
It takes approximately $100/month to run Brainstorms on a very tight budget. Our hope is that our members might be able to pick up the tab and perhaps even extend it a bit.
If you look on the main Brainstorms page on the top right, you'll notice a text box and donate button that allow you to easily make a contribution. Underneath the box is a link to Amazon.com. Click on the link, buy a book, and support Brainstorms. It's that easy.
As I said, $100/month is what it costs to run Brainstorms in its current state. Many of our members have written to us indicating how pleased they are with the level of discussion that takes place at Brainstorms. Creating this atmosphere takes a great deal of work and the help of several moderators. Your contribution can help it stay this way.
Going forward, ISCID is considering the possibility of hiring editors for Brainstorms. This would mean paying certain participants as "editors" to contribute high quality content on a regular basis. Our proposed budget for this is approximately $300/month on top of the $100 that it currently costs to operate the forums.
If you have an interest in helping Brainstorms get better, and like what you see here already, please consider making a one-time donation by using the Donate box on the main Brainstorms page. If you'd like to make a regular monthly contribution, please send me an email at micah.sparacio@iscid.org and we can discuss the details.
To make a quick $25.00 donation, click here.
Thanks to all those who have made Brainstorms such a great place to hang out.
Sincerely,
Micah Sparacio
Managing Director, ISCID
[ 18. March 2003, 11:00: Message edited by: Micah Sparacio ]
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nobody
Member
Member # 145
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posted 31. March 2003 15:05
Okay Micah,
This is an excellent board. Count me in. However, I hope you don't mind that I didn't include my home phone number on the order form (since the money is going through a third party). We get too many telemarketing calls as it is and I don't know why they actually need our phone number to process my credit card. They have my address, which seems like plenty to me.
Anyway, I hope you get a lot of donations. Keep up the good work here! I've learned a lot.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
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dennist
Member
Member # 271
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posted 02. April 2003 01:18
Micah,
The history of banner ads in supporting web sites is poor. Similarly with donations. Your only chance, as I see it, is to require membership in order to post.
As you know, I tried to become a member. But the credit card is on a bank in another country, while I'm here in Israel. My cousin, an accountant, has the power of attorney. For some reason, the combination caused my attempt to be rejected.
I use the credit card(s) all the time without problems. You've got to make it easier.
dennist
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nobody
Member
Member # 145
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posted 02. April 2003 11:48
Grrr.
Neither of my credit cards has the magic extra three numbers they want. I got rejected. I'm not very high tech.
Can I just mail you a check?
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Micah Sparacio
Member
Member # 6
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posted 02. April 2003 12:51
Nobody:
Sure you can send us a check ->
ISCID
66 Witherspoon Street, Suite 1800
Princeton, NJ 08542
http://www.iscid.org/contact.php
Dennist,
We do the best we can do on the limited budget that we have. As I've indicated, we have two credit card systems, with one of the two normally working for people overseas (both of which almost always seem to work in the United States).
Also. Banner advertising may not always work for the person advertising, but it is a steady stream of income for the organization that sells the advertisement. Why? Because you merely sell impressions, and people naturally visit your site, bringing the banner up each time. We've gotten enough solicitations from various advertisers (most of which have NOTHING to do with ISCID) that I'm sure the demand is there to sustain the program for at least a year, regardless of performance.
I personally hate banners (detest them). But that might have to be a route we take in order to sustain and improve the Brainstorms forum. Perhaps we'd be able to remove them a few years down the line if support picked up.
Based on the response we've gotten for donations, I'd agree with you that the system just doesn't work. Unless you've got someone in your organization who spends his/her entire day soliciting for donations, donors rarely take a pro-active role. It is just human nature...nothing to complain about.
Unfortunately, this poses a catch-22 for organizations like ISCID. We don't have the manpower (nor the funding) to actively solicit donations, but we can't increase the manpower until we've got the funding.
We're actively seeking productive models, so feel free to buzz in if you've got any ideas. I'm sure that us moderators won't mind a slightly off topic thread for a change. Right guys;-)
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Chronos
Member
Member # 693
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posted 06. May 2003 03:29
Micah,
You might want to consider Paypal. This works for everybody, credit or debit cards, or direct payment from checking accounts.
http://www.paypal.com
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gedanken
Member
Member # 594
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posted 06. May 2003 19:50
PayPal is known for problems. And they charge a substantially bigger cut. They definitely don't accept credit cards from all foreign countries. Where PayPal is very useful is for small businesses that can't afford a lower cost per transaction directly connected credit card service (which is more costly to initiate), as they provide an intermediate system to actually collect the credit card. I see that ISCID is using a competing service, but there is no inherent reason to believe that PayPal will do better.
[ 06. May 2003, 19:53: Message edited by: gedanken ]
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