Annual IAP donation

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Chasper

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In advance of all the fund raising activities that will begin soon, I sent my annual donation to IAP in today. I'm a solid supporter of IAP, I've learned a great deal from the time spent here, I have made some good friends, I know this is a place where I can both expert advice and as well as a good dose of non-conventional thinking.

I made my donation in advance, now I can feel no guilt about ignoring all the fund raising activities. I have no problem with the fund raising, it just is not for me. Sometimes I'm a little uncomfortable with how often we ask our suppliers to donate. Does anyone else feel the same way? Or to ask the question more directly, does anyone remember the names of the buinesses and individuals who donated prizes last year? If a supplier makes a nice donation to IAP fund raising efforts do you loyally support them throughout the year? Or do you jump ship for someone who sells a similar product for a few pennies less?
 
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Gerry, I tend to support the suppliers and members that contribute to the fund raising events, as a matter of fact, there is one supplier that I've stopped dealing with since that business decided to quit supporting this site.
 
I agree with Ken, I try to spread my support around to different suppliers that support IAP. I do have a problem with those that refuse to support this site even though it is there right.
 
It is also easy to make a small ongoing donation, which helps all year long. It seems to me that most of the folks year support the suppliers and each other and that is what makes IAP such a great place to learn, hang out and make pens, etc. Certainly is one of my favorite spots on the Web
 
Good anwsers, but does anyone other than the person who won, remember who gave what? Even simplier, does anyone remember who gave the lead donation, i.e., the largest and focus merchandise donation of the entire fundraiser?
 
To me I don't think it matters who gave the biggest price, only who actually donated. If someone donated a $5 blank I would consider that vendor a supporter of the site as much as someone who gave $1000 item.

I also don't want to know who, individually, sends a donation to this site as I think that should be between them and Jeff
 
Interesting topic!

Well to me the whole fundraising thing is a confusing time with so many people starting so many contests, so many threads, some of which spawn off sub threads and the threads start linking to each other for rules, lists, winners, etc and they all start intertwining. After a while it's all a blur to me and it's hard to keep up with what's going on so I just back away and look at photos in the SOYP forum. :) I don't even remember seeing a list of contributors last year let alone who contributed what.

As far as who I buy from, I buy products based on quality and value, not how they do or do not support the forum.
 
Chasper,
Thanks for bringing this to light.
Regardless of anyones' rationale or motivation, this site does not run for free. I pretty much sat in the background for a long time, but have since come to appreciate the information I get from here a great deal. Even better are the people....I have yet to find a site where the people are as helpful and gracious as I have found here. The team that runs this site does a great job and are certainly appreciated more than they will ever know. Ask 100 people how to raise money and you'll get 101 answers.
I will gladly participate in any fund raisers. Just say when..
Cheers
Bob
 
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On another forum I participate in, they do it monthly. A vendor donates a product, and people pay $5 via paypal to participate in the drawing every month. If it's a higher value product, people pay more to participate like $10 for a chance at a nova chuck setup. It's kind of like purchasing a "ticket" for a raffle every month. I personally like this format because it's always ongoing really, and I can pick and choose which items I buy a ticket on, or when I have extra money to spare for the chance. I would prefer this type format to an all at once type thing like we did here for the last birthday bash.
 
As the person who contacts the vendors each year, I can assure you that I have never heard them complain about the frequency of donations. I make sure that they are well aware of the fact that we have a celebration every year, and they are certainly not pressured into donating anything.

Many of the vendors thank us for letting them take part in our birthday celebrations - so I wouldn't think that they consider it a burden. The fact that they donate every year - and such good prizes - is a solid indication of their willingness to help support our forum and its membership.

I'm rather fiercely loyal, so I tend to support the vendors that I know, and the ones that have gone the extra mile for me. These tend to be the vendors that support the forum, too, so that makes it easy for me! :)
 
The group will have a different value to every individual. let each give in accordance to what they receive. And never let it be said that anyone owe anything for what is given here freely by those that participate. Never let it be said that there is a requirement to participate. And please never let it be said that anything is required to be given. let those that give, give and be grateful. let those that do not be at peace. We each have our own reasons for what we do or do not do.
To do so would be the end of one of the greatest attributes of this group. That is the arms wide open genuine acceptance and welcoming of every member that chooses to make there presence known. Great the newcomer and the supplier and allow them the freedom to give as they see fit. I would never ask a member that is struggling to support their family to give one dime. I woudl not ask a supplier to give if they are not motivated to do so with a heart of generosity. To do so would risk the giving to become about personal gain. not an authentic desire to see this groups needs met.
 
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I have a question for all of you who only support vendors who support IAP. How do you expect to get new vendors to support IAP if you don't support them? It's a 2 way street.

As for the vendors who no longer support IAP... well honestly I don't really keep track. I have a good idea but I don't keep a list. What I do think is that I wouldn't blame some of them for not supporting IAP. I have seen many threads here that are aimed at some vendors for very minor issues (sometimes no issue at all) and yet there is a pile-on to discredit the vendor. Can you blame them for not supporting IAP? Again, it is a 2 way street. If we want them to come back and support IAP then we need to be supportive of them. There is nothing stopping us from taking the first step in the process.
 
dustmaker said:
Yeah, and more specifically, what are the donations used for? Some of us are new around here, and would like to know more about this.
Click to expand...

Not to sound ambiguous, but to me it doesn't matter how much it costs to run this site (unless it is going to close down because income is less than expenses) or how much anyone is making on it - if anything. Probably is none of my business. I just know I like what I see and have a choice to contribute when it is presented to me to participate in some fun activity.
Personally I hope there are people making a fortune here......good for them !!! If I don't like it, I can either go away or I can start my own site. Kind of like Bill Gates....people complain he makes too much money. Take a breath and imagine what it would be like without Microsoft. Yeah, I know, there are others out there, but MS kind of set the bar for others. If we don't like how much Big Bill makes, we have choices.
Why burn the calories worrying about it? Have some fun along the way...
Cheers
Bob
 
On the issue of the cost of running the group. I am not expert but I have seen comments int he past associated with cost , changes that required money to make etc.
For example a few years ago the group reached a size that cause paying for internet access to become extremely expensive. at that time the issue of buying a server was mentioned. As I recall this in fact happened but still there are costs associated with just the sheer volume of traffic on this site. In some cases money is raised and once the amount is known the options as to what can be done with it are figured out. for example. where does the money come from for Jeff to be able to have mugs made? In short it had to be donated in advance. Recently Jeff changed the format, or should I say the program that is used to build the site. I am not certain but I do believe that the program was not free. Again a situation that once there was money to make changes. the decision was made as to what changes to make. The internet will change, technology will change and the group will need to keep up with it. this will require additional money for the future. At times discussions of IAP sponsored events have come up and faded away. In short they are extremely complicated, expensive and cary all sorts of liabilities. having small local groups is one item that actually did come from just those sort of ideas.
It is my intuition combined with comments I have seen int he past that leave me with the thought that the actualy dollar cost of this group each year is actually a few thousand dollars. but that is an intuition not a fact. All I know is that I ahve come to develop a faith in those that do know that correct decisions are being made. the fact that this group continues to grow and thrive is all the proof I need of that. Of course being new you woudl not have the benefit of knowing that. So in that case give in accordance with your consience. The place will grow on you and you can make up for it at any time. Donations are always accepted it's just sometimes we make a big shindig about it.
 
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