Poll: Subscriber perks?

[Dee Dee Warren]

Short history: The owners came from another theology forum which ran things in a way that we didn't care for. Not that it was wrong per se, we just didn't like it. That isn't the reason we left, but when we did leave (or rather got thrown off - that's another story), we talked about what we didn't like so that things here could be different.

One thing we didn't like was that only subscriber got to do many things such as post images, have custom smilies, have bylines etc. There was also subscriber-only debate areas in which the threads appeared in new posts so as to tempt new subscribers. All moderators had to be $40/month subscribers unless waived by the owners. I am sure there were a few more things, but that is all I remember. And it was very obvious who were the "preferred members" and who were the riff-raff, in both posting and in moderation decisions. It is quite tempting to an owner not to want to ban a $40/month subscriber. Our staff here with the exception of me (and I don't have the final say in any banning decision) even knows who subscribes and for how much, and my memory is so bad, I don't even remember most of the time.

So, we went the extreme opposite. The only perk subscribers currently get is advance notice, input, and posting privileges in testing new features. That worked really well for a long time. That's not working so well right now, and frankly, we have to have a steady revenue stream.

So please participate in the poll about how you would feel about having more perks for subscribers---which inevitably means that if it is something already existing, it would be taken away from nonsubscribers.

Note: I haven't ran this by the other owners at all. They may veto the idea entirely but before I even brought it up, I wanted to know what the family thought.

[Raphael]

From a mod perspective, limiting video would be bad idea.
The ability to embed video means that we don't have to make sure that the site hosting the video doesn't have profanities on it (which can often be the case in youtube vid comments). We just have to make sure the video is clean, which means people can post more content.

Custom smilies would be a good idea (you might get the entire years hosting costs just out of mossy for that)
Custom tag lines as well (I've never customised mine, so won't miss it)
Special coloured names aren't a bad idea, so long as people remember it doesn't give them +10 protection against being modded.
I thought that paid subscribers already had a private lounge.

[Catholicity]

I think that perhaps the subscribers should be given an award (custom smilie maybe?) but not too much "glory" it isn't fair because There are people who really really really really would like to subscribe, but can't due to their living situation I'm sure. And I don't think its ok to "give glory" to one over another. Someone can brag or be a complete jerk about it such as "ooh look I gave more than you, so I get this super ultra custom" blah blah blah blah. I think that giving, to tweb, as it is a ministry should be left unto the person, and a little reward is GREAT!!!! but keep it that way to custom smilies.

[Catholicity]

Custom tag lines as well (I've never customised mine, so won't miss it)

AHEM

[lao tzu]

Note: I haven't ran this by the other owners at all. They may veto the idea entirely but before I even brought it up, I wanted to know what the family thought.

I think you need to be more proactive in asking for subscribers. And I don't think it's sufficient to just bring in enough revenue to keep the site going. We need a regular advertising kitty to bring in more visitors. So we need to have an ongoing push for subscribers. (That's what you've got staff for, dizzle.) I voted against subscriber perks, though, mostly because it marks out the subscriber base, making it something that could lead to some of the abuses we remember from the other location.

As ever, Jesse

[Soyeong]

I think smilies, special colored names, and maybe shout box access (if money is part of the issue of finding a new one) would be acceptable only if they represented one-time purchases instead of subscribers so that the person doesn't represent an implied future source of income. With that in mind, I think it might be worth looking into opening a TWeb themed store (mugs, t-shirts, Bibles, and the like) where the proceeds go towards funding the site, with any possible excess going to a charity to show that it's not done for profit.

[Sparko]

I don't like the idea of everyone being able to tell who subscribes and who doesn't, so if we do give any perks, I think they should be something that is basically invisible, like special forums that only subscribers can see and post in, which we sort of have (or had) in Booster's Bar and Grill. If there were other perks we could give without calling too much attention to the fact that someone is a subscriber, I would be for those too. Or if someone can argue to me that making it plain who the subscribers were would not foster resentment in those who can't pay, or foster a privileged sense in those who did subscribe.

[Sparko]

I do think we need ads though, as long as they are not too obtrusive, and perhaps a banner that is up all the time asking for subscribers and a link to subscribe. Something like "if you like theologyweb, please help support it by subscribing or making a donation. link"

[Chrs]

I do think we need ads though, as long as they are not too obtrusive, and perhaps a banner that is up all the time asking for subscribers and a link to subscribe. Something like "if you like theologyweb, please help support it by subscribing or making a donation. link"

I agree with this. Why are there no ads already? If I were you i'd consider something like Project Wonderful (https://www.projectwonderful.com/) which is non-obtrusive, sleek and allows you to vet the ads before they are displayed. (And make no ads a subscriber feature?)

[Sparko]

I agree with this. Why are there no ads already? If I were you i'd consider something like Project Wonderful (https://www.projectwonderful.com/) which is non-obtrusive, sleek and allows you to vet the ads before they are displayed. (And make no ads a subscriber feature?)

yeah, no ads for subscribers would be a good perk.

[Raphael]

Why are there no ads already?

There were google ads for a short bit, but they seem to have disappeared.

I agree bring back ads, and ask people to either disable adblock, or subscribe if they don't want ad's, and yes there are things you can do to check if AdBlock is running and chuck a pop-up asking people to disable. (I don't run a browser without adblock, I have it permanently disabled for TWeb.)

[Dee Dee Warren]

I think you need to be more proactive in asking for subscribers. And I don't think it's sufficient to just bring in enough revenue to keep the site going. We need a regular advertising kitty to bring in more visitors. So we need to have an ongoing push for subscribers. (That's what you've got staff for, dizzle.) I voted against subscriber perks, though, mostly because it marks out the subscriber base, making it something that could lead to some of the abuses we remember from the other location.

As ever, Jesse

I agree with you Jesse. At one time we did have plenty for advertising and it really helped, plus I was more personally prosperous so I put in a great deal personally. I really really have a visceral reaction against perks, perhaps just due to my past experience. The only thing I could stomach would possibly be a private debate area or something similar.

Looking back now, the other location was making actual profit hand over fist if my limited knowledge of their subscriber base through inference is even remotely correct. And I had naïvely believed that it was just all site expenses. I think there was some creative definitions of "site expenses" such as salary for the owner. Can't prove it, just my instinct. There's nothing wrong with a forum owner earning a salary, the amount of time and talent that some put in is tremendous, but it needs to very much out in the open. (and that has never happened here, every cent goes to typical site expenses, and any windfalls go to upgrades and advertising)

[Dee Dee Warren]

There were google ads for a short bit, but they seem to have disappeared.

I agree bring back ads, and ask people to either disable adblock, or subscribe if they don't want ad's, and yes there are things you can do to check if AdBlock is running and chuck a pop-up asking people to disable. (I don't run a browser without adblock, I have it permanently disabled for TWeb.)

The ads need to get running, but they were maybe a few dollars a month. Seriously. That is just another tech glitch we are having that demonstrates the need for the tech team that is the subject of another thread.

[Dee Dee Warren]

I think smilies, special colored names, and maybe shout box access (if money is part of the issue of finding a new one) would be acceptable only if they represented one-time purchases instead of subscribers so that the person doesn't represent an implied future source of income. With that in mind, I think it might be worth looking into opening a TWeb themed store (mugs, t-shirts, Bibles, and the like) where the proceeds go towards funding the site, with any possible excess going to a charity to show that it's not done for profit.

We have a Cafe Press store but it was just anotehr thing to keep up that we were stretched too thin to do. If someone wants to run it, we are totally open to having that back up and having new stuff put in.

[Dee Dee Warren]

No ads would be a good idea.

What about subscribers having larger allowances for avatar file size and image upload size? That wouldn't be obvious to the average user.