How many "paided members" are there?

Originally posted by Gus Kalanzis
I guess the the biggest problem is trying to understand how 30k is going to make someone "rich" when it costs more than that to keep this place flying.
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I thought I heard Spark runs this place from a third-world country where $30/K is a fortune on which for one to retire. ;)

Seriously, if there is only $30/K year to go around, Kevin should find another business. His personal take should be a lot more than that! This is America. The sky's the limit. No one should be disgruntled at someone doing well and succeeding in life and business. If someone told me Kevin was making a quarter million a year, spent every Friday on the golf course and took long weekends on his yacht, I'd say "good for him!" That's what success in business is all about.

The bottom line is always...”Offer a beneficial service at a reasonable fee.” Kevin is certainly doing that...and offering a ton free of charge!
 
Originally posted by RGRAY
11,812 members and only 152 supporters, now that's sad. :(
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I would guess that we only have a few hundred members who post actively in any given month, however. I mean, let's face it -- if 11,000 different people posted every few days, you wouldn't constantly see names you recognized.
 
Razoredj, what's your point? :confused:

You have been here a long time and post a lot.

Why aren't you a supporting member?
 
151 members out of 12,000. Man, most of our members are a bunch of cheap bastids. Get on with it and support your friends. That is the best way to make sure they will be there to support you when you need it.

N2S
 
Not surprisingly, I too hope that Spark ends up with a boatload of Premium/Gold members who can turn this place into a self-sufficient Website. Likewise, I'm all for folks singing the praises of upgraded membership.

That having been said, however, I don't think it reflects very well on us collectively when we have paying members (or moderators, for that matter) singling out individuals and pressuring them to pay up. So please, by all means, promote the benefits and advantages of upgraded membership, but let's think twice before we start employing any strong arm tactics. If I'm off base here, I welcome intervention by Spark or Suds to set me straight.:)
 
Bill,

I don't think Spark should respond to TODD1's thread and I don't like your accusing anyone of "strong arm tactics."

I don't see anyone being pressured.

Are you a supporting member?
 
Razoredj, what's your point?
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My point is that the ratio isn't as bad as the total members to paying members figure might at first seem.

You have been here a long time and post a lot.
Why aren't you a supporting member?
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That's really none of your concern. I shall pay to become a member at such time as I deem it necessary, and not before.
 
"My point is that the ratio isn't as bad as the total members to paying members figure might at first seem."

Razor, are you trying to say that 1.28682% is good?

It's pitiful!


"That's really none of your concern. I shall pay to become a member at such time as I deem it necessary, and not before."

I was just curious why someone who participates as much as you would not have been one of the first to support?

Again just being curious; what do you mean by necessary?
 
Rick,
I absolutely agree with your sentiments regarding the tone of Todd's original post in this thread. But that was not the reason I posted.

I admire and support your enthusiasm for promoting upgraded memberships here at BFC. As I stated before, I too want to see as many people as possible upgrading to Gold and Premium memberships. I only question the sagacity of making it a habit to ask specific members, point blank, if, and/or, why they haven't upgraded their membership status. It seems within the realm of possibility to me that such behavior could, in the long run, end up being counterproductive to our common stated goal. I don't believe it's Spark intention to make Basic members feel any less welcome here, but by the same token, it's not my place to speak for our esteemed leader. This is why I asked Spark to please step in and tell me to shut the hell up if I'm off base here.:)

I didn't intend for my last post to take on a confrontational tone, and I apologize if my comments inadvertantly came across in such a manner, or if I offended in any way.:)
 
I'm sorry Bill and I agree with you. :)

I guess all the whinning about paying has gotten to me.

Also, I am trying to figure out why long time members aren't supporting?

I bought a watch today (Fortis Pilot) and saved $35 from advise I got here on the forum.
 
Razor, are you trying to say that 1.28682% is good?
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I am trying to say -- quite clearly, I thought -- that since we have only a few hundred members who actively post here, a more useful ratio might be "active members to paying members," the percentage of which would be much higher.

I was just curious why someone who participates as much as you would not have been one of the first to support? Again just being curious; what do you mean by necessary?
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Quite frankly, as I have stated previously, the features exclusive to paying members are not features I am likely to use. I do not sell knives (here or anywhere), I am not interested in majority opinions (and hence find polling useless), and I don't wish to send private messages when I can send e-mail. I see no reason to pay for something that has no value to me.

As for the concept of "supporting" the forums, I give as much as I gain from participating here. If I could not participate without buying a membership, I would buy one. (Watch the traffic drop here if were are forced to go that way, however; the money is necessary because we are popular, but we would not be as popular if the money was necessary -- round and round we go.) I pay for things which have value to me. That is one reason I purchase overpriced hats that say "BladeForums.com" on them.

If Bladeforums degenerates into a paying versus non-paying class war, I will refuse to pay on principle.
 
I think the point Razor is trying to make in his inimitable way is that not everyone who is a member is even aware that changes have occured. The real ratio of those who have upgraded to those who have not should be based on the number of members who have actually participated since the upgraded membership options became available. So the ratio of those who have paid to those who have not is better than the raw numbers would indicate. There may be 11,000 registered members, but how many are active?
 
Thanks, Rick.:)

Hopefully more and more of our long time BFC denizens will make the jump to upgraded memberships. The ability to upload photos (and thus avoid Photopoint, et al.) is alone well worth the price of a Premium membership.

Great call on the Fortis, BTW. I've had my eye on one of their Spacematics for some time now.;)
 
Originally posted by Steelhed
I think the point Razor is trying to make in his inimitable way is that not everyone who is a member is even aware that changes have occured. The real ratio of those who have upgraded to those who have not should be based on the number of members who have actually participated since the upgraded membership options became available. So the ratio of those who have paid to those who have not is better than the raw numbers would indicate. There may be 11,000 registered members, but how many are active?
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Precisely. And I did indeed forget to mention the concept of uploading photos; that does interest me slightly, but I'm not sure if that alone makes the membership wortwhile to me. I might have called in a paying membership tonight, for that matter, but I will not be pushed into it. The fastest way to earn my contempt is to begin demanding of me why I have or have not done something that happens to be no one else's business.
 
Originally posted by Razoredj


There is nothing to understand. As I said, it is not your concern.
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Razor, don't be so paranoid!

I was referring to not understanding why more people aren't supporting

I don't give a **** about you.
 
I seem to be seeing something happen here that I was afraid of when the multi-level membership was announced. That is that some members that pay are feeling superior to those that don't. I hope this is not the case. The problem I see with this is that members that do not anti up will think that they are considered deadbeats. This may cause a lot of them to leave, and this is something I would not like to see. The more members that stay, the more that may decide over time that they would like to support Bladeforums.

That being said, the ones that bother me are the ones that say they will not pay because they see no advantage to the extra features they get. What you should be considering, IMO, is whether you get enough from Bladeforums, without the extras, to support it.

I think that as time goes along more and more members will opt for a premium or gold membership. They will do this because they feel it is the right thing to do, not because they were made to feel like jerks for not doing so. I sure hope that I am right.

This has been my attempt to explain how I feel about this whole situation, and was not meant to insult or flame anyone. If what I have posted here has done either of these things then I apologise, I did not mean to do so.
 
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