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Lily&Me · 06-09-2010, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickDavis

Maggie I agree with your concerns.

I am not particularly concerned about the nepotism aspect as long as the marketing people in the firm are competent and I have no reason to think they aren't.

They may well be competent. It seems to be an income-generating-out-of-membership-dues thing, for a member/his family, from a club that has some other, serious expenditure questions.

What I question is whether there is a need for a professional marketing firm at all.

Well, yes, that was my point, exactly.

The club had managed to put the Blue Beret in .PDF format at wbcci.org and it worked fine. Why do we have to pay for another web site and all the fancy page flipping stuff.

Exactly.

I am sure the club could use member talent for other marketing moves also.
The best marketing tool the club has would be the members themselves. If they are satisfied with the club they will talk it up and bring in new members.

This is a #5k expenditure this year and $15k next year.

Yes.

The problem is NOT attracting new members. It is keeping the existing members.
I think it was Frank Yensan that said they should ring the bell at the international for 2nd timers instead of first timers.. Something to think about

Maggie

Coloradobus · 06-10-2010, 10:49 AM

From a communication from Fred Richardson thru Cindi Reed, the Presidents Newsletter mass emailing was at "no" cost to the club.

Buttercup · 06-10-2010, 11:40 AM

Wait, they used Constant Contact, and it was at no cost to the club?

Lily&Me · 06-10-2010, 11:48 AM

I am a little skeptical, too. No cost yet or ever or billing reconsidered since the posts here? If it isn't being billed for, why through Constant Contact and why from Marketing?

What exactly has and is the allocated money being used for?

Maggie

Buttercup · 06-10-2010, 01:13 PM

Actually, I would like to know how much money Richardson Media has received from the Marketing committee. Because, when it comes down to it, I also would like to be able to be considered for production of ads and services for WBCCI.... Don't I have the same rights as any other member to make a little money on the club providing a legitimate service?
I saw the WBCCI ad in Airstream Life, can I have a chance to produce an ad that I believe will really bring 'em in?

RickDavis · 06-10-2010, 01:29 PM

If the cost of mass e mail is only $35 a month I can't get too excited about even though it could be done in house.

Heck, that is not even a down payment on a "cease and desist" letter

dwightdi · 06-10-2010, 07:17 PM

The $125,000 for officer travel is of more concern. Per the Constant Contact price sheet on their website, we could pay an extra $10 per month and do as many member surveys per month as we want. Using Constant contact would be a lot more efficient and scientific than Region officers asking members what they think when visiting their unit rallies. Using internet surveys via Contant Contact would eliminate the excuse that they are driving around gathering member opinions to help them run the club.

From my experience most of the presentations the Region and International officers give when they visit Unit rallies is related to promoting their Region or International rally. They should be billing their promotion trips to the cost of advertising for their rally and that charge should be added to the cost of having the rally. This way the cost would born by the people who attend the rally, rather than be paid for out of the member annual dues monies. That is the way the Good Sam club does it.

Occasionally, a Region officer does install incoming Unit officers when they visit so that should be paid by the International dues monies.

RickDavis · 06-11-2010, 04:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwightdi

From my experience most of the presentations the Region and International officers give when they visit Unit rallies is related to promoting their Region or International rally. They should be billing their promotion trips to the cost of advertising for their rally and that charge should be added to the cost of having the rally. This way the cost would born by the people who attend the rally, rather than be paid for out of the member annual dues monies. That is the way the Good Sam club does it.

Occasionally, a Region officer does install incoming Unit officers when they visit so that should be paid by the International dues monies.

I seem to recall a $40K line item in 09 for "Rally Promotion". I think in the rally budget. Seems like a lot to spend to tell us they were having rally, which we already knew. I would like to see a breakdown on that one.

Regarding the Installation of unit officers by region officers, this always seemed to me to be a waste of time and money to have some one travel quite a way to read a canned speech while everyone else is waiting for it to be over.

The old guy and the new guy should just congratulate each other, shake hands and pass the blue book over and get back to having fun

73Overlander · 06-13-2010, 02:09 PM

I’m unable to visit airforums as often as I would like, so didn’t see the more recent posts to this thread until today.

I think that responsibility is important, so must say that if folks don’t like the fact that the IP’s latest newsletter came to them via the marketing committee, the blame for that resides with me. It was done at my suggestion.

It seems to me that membership retention is vital, and that frequent, open, and honest communication is of utmost importance to that effort.

As memory serves, when these IP newsletters first started out they were directed to top-level leadership only. I’ve always felt that was a mistake because everyone in our club has a right to know what’s going on. It is after all, our club. Additionally, as those newsletters were marked for limited distribution, but widely distributed, it gave a feel, in my opinion, that there was an effort of sorts to hide the information.

I was, as a result, pleased to see that this latest newsletter was addressed to everyone in the club. I was also though, struck by the oddness of the proposed distribution system. As I understood it, the newsletter was to go from the office, to the regions, from the regions to the Unit Presidents, then from the Unit Presidents to the members. (As mentioned above, I did not receive a copy from my Unit, so the system broke down somewhere here in Washington State.)

Noticing this long and drawn out distribution, I wondered why, since the club has started using Constant Contact anyway, it wasn’t just sent that way. Hence my suggestion, which resulted in it popping up in mailboxes. (To be very precise my suggestion was that future newsletters go straight from the office to the membership, but it was decided to go ahead with this current one.)

It was my intent, in doing this, to show that electronic communication can be sent quickly, easily, and efficiently. I do not know if Constant Contact is the service that the club should use long term, or if the club should develop it’s own abilities to send the messages. I do think however that for our club to prosper efficient forms of communication from leadership to members and members to leadership need to be developed and utilized.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought it important that folks know how this came about given the concerns expressed.

Beyond the Marketing Committee, the Overlander has new bathroom fixtures, so I’m hooking up this week and we are off on a long trip to Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast.

Buttercup · 06-13-2010, 02:34 PM

Cameron,

Thanks for the reply and history on this! I think everybody is in agreement that its about time the club use this medium to get the word out to members. But where the concern rests is in the costs to do that to the club. Because, right now in WBCCI, the budget is the biggest issue the club has had to face.
My concern also exploring the total costs of the e-mailings - not just the Constant Contact fees, but the fees being drawn to produce the newsletter/mailings and by which avenue are these fees going. Is this something the members could be tasked to do in support of the club without going to outside 3rd parties to get it done.
Overall, I would rather see the club use email to get business done and keep all of the membership informed.

RickDavis · 06-13-2010, 02:59 PM

Cameron,
No problem with the distribution by e mail here. I had questioned the weird system using over 100 people both here and on the "other Forum"
Hopefully we will continue to get information this way.
We receive bulletins from Escapees. Good Sam, and Passport America probably a couple times a week and have for years. We don't even belong to the last two.
It's just kind of hard to drag the WBCCI into the modern age.
As long as there is an "opt out" button no one should have a problem

byamcaravanner · 06-15-2010, 06:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 73Overlander

...frequent, open, and honest communication is of utmost importance...

Seems that frequent and open have been taken care of... now the IBT needs to take care of the honest part

joecolao · 06-16-2010, 12:36 PM

“BP notes the fall in its share price in U.S. trading last night. The company is not aware of any reason which justifies this share price movement,” the company said in a statement.

See any parallels? Or is it me, again?
Membership shrinking
Reserve monies shrinking
Morale of members shrinking
Member benefits shrinking
Freedom of expression shrinking

No problems at all - just get rid of all those that have a different opinion!