Would an approach to CTV be worth considering? They do a lot of community stuff Cheers Chris
On 8/16/07, Rik Tindall <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Robert Fisher wrote: > > On Wednesday 15 August 2007 5:21 pm, Nick Rout wrote: > > > >> I'll start by pledging $25.00, and I 'll fix up a page on the wiki for > >> pledges to be recorded, once a couple of other people have supported > the > >> idea. > >> > > Count me in for $15 (if this scheme goes ahead) > > > > Rob > > Thanks Nick, Adrian, and Rob. Very kind offers. > > Total CLUG pledges so far: $65. x 2 = $130.00. > > So we are almost half way towards one Tuesday 'Technology' Press ad > placement, only. That we'll probably do. > > Looking back at last year's payments, this item was $300. The Saturday > ads were $395 each. > > These prices we should now expect to have inflated, again, which reminds > us why - having collectively shelled out $1090 on 2006 FOSS promotion in > The Press alone - second thoughts became due. > > The investment so far has established the event brand, so that cheaper > reminder means should now suffice for telling people where & when it is > on (the where, e.g., is quite habituated). > > But to answer David's question, it has always been the case with SFD in > Christchurch, that we have been effectively paying - quite a lot per > head - to have people come and see us about free/open software. And thus > it becomes a question of how much, and is it worth it? Attendances have > grown at a rapid rate, from 25 to 60 to 150 approx over three years, but > that is all new audiences every time. Only the team members are > attending twice or more. LUG meetings too have quite a turnover, around > a dedicated core, so that is par for the course in this field. Market > research complete. > > What we can all agree is that this technology sells itself - on quality. > There isn't a need to brag about it or push it at all. What Goldedge > said, except that it's "mainstream [for geeks]". Slowly, people will > sample the geeky goodness for themselves, and year by year the barrier > eases so that more can steadily come aboard. But there is no imperative, > or ready budget, for subsidising a popular learning. Social support > structure - which SFD demonstrates, behind good software - is the > missing, or sometimes tenuous, link. > > So SFD-Chch will now reverse tack, and focus on accessing all the > free/community notice avenues first, and build up towards that one paid > newspaper ad. This is how far the "business model" can apply to local > FOSS, it seems - quite a low, but constant, level. Nothing loud, just > solid, stable, and reliable. > > Thanks for the feedback, and for the support shown for > www.SoftwareFreedomDay.org - a very cool international initiative, with > largely unperceived big-scale achievements. > > Will report back on the promotional work. > > Cheers, Rik > >
