Poll for a paid FerrariChat site

I hate to say this, but honestly I'd pay $10 to get the old software, or it ease of use back.

 

I've found the advice I've received here quite valuable, and I would be willing to pay a "membership fee." I voted for $3 a month, but I'm thinking more in line of $20 per year or so, similar to a magazine subscription.

I have been a Rennlist member for some time, and that model, the voluntary membership + perks for members, seems to work well. Isn't the Rennlist annual membership about $20? As I recall, Rennlist also briefly sold "lifetime" memberships at a much higher cost - was it $300 or so? It does seem to me difficult to construct truly valuable perks for members, beyond forum participation and, on Rennlist, I'm not even sure what goodies I receive as a member.

My, aren't we all resistant to change ...

Cheers, Will

 

I miss the old board . Was much clearer , as Dan said , i dont i ll be visiting as much as i did when it was running on the old board.

 

don't get your panties in a knot, gentlemen.

as far as i know, we still don't have any definitive information from rob on how this is going to work, what it's going to cost, and what benefits paying will have over using the site for free.

doody.

 

I pay $85/year for my Ferrari Club of America membership, and I get a lot more 'Ferrari value' on a day-to-day basis from this site than from the FCA. I'd gladly pay $10 to $20/year for Ferrarichat.

 

I believe $10.00 is well worth the cost. Last week I saved $400.00 from info received about oil cooler line. I also have my Ferrari in Ferrari- Ads section, and have had two calls which has cost nothing. Dave Wexall and myself P & VP of FCA Michigan Chapter use Ferrari chat site to get out information about club functions. Keep up the good work Rob I could go on and about this site.

 

I will gladly pay.
I buy car magazines, sometimes for just one article!!
I do think this a very productive thread still as far as some are not against paying, but rather the mechanics of paying.
Also to compare this new format as a pay site to the old free site is simply not realistic.
This site has been up a total of 36 hours an what there are bugs!?
What did some of you expect!?
Heck i don't even buy the first model yr. of any car!!!
Give it a chance.....
Im sure Rob will make this site better than ever, he wants to do the right thing.


Dave

 

What is the opinion of Rob himslef? I keep missing that actually. Maybe that can bring an end to this duscussions

 

Hey, Rijk! I don't have a problem with a fee-based site, but i think certain parts of it should be free, and open to the public. A completely "closed" site will put off potential new users (and, despite the occasional troll, the new blood is usually beneficial to everybody).

 

From a marketing perspective, it would axe the "Over 2,500 registered users" to probably 3-400. Granted, there's likely only a few hundred "regulars" but I think it would chop the numbers to a small, small fraction of the current membership.

 

Nobody who has been a part of this site long enough to realize its value should balk at kicking in a few dollars. The apartment building isn't going condo folks--we're talking about maybe dozens of dollars per year. There is no entitlement to free FerrariChat, even though Rob did get us hooked like a crack dealer. All potential new members should receive a free trial period, or perhaps it should be structured so that you can read for free, but pay to be a participant. The point made is a good one about potential savings made through posted tech advice, as well as other things. Think also of the intrinsic value of this site, through which I know I've met a lot of great and interesting people.

 

depends...

If it is a hosting issue, I or many other members could hook it up for free hosting. Seems like a fun crowd, and I would probably pay a slight fee for the usage of the board.

 

Guys,
In reading all your posts, I am offering a suggestion. What happens if we ask new users for a donation to the site. They could make it for amounts like $5, $10, $20...etc. Then these people that donate money maybe these users could get their user name changed to a different color (based on the amount of the donation) and could also have a small icon, maybe of their car or someother picture, placed under their user name when they post. Also, every year a email could be sent out asking for a donation for that year, perhaps also with some comments about the website, etc. That way we could make it a fair playing field for everyone. Its a suggestion that I'm throwing out there so comment as much as you like. You guys are like family to me, I dont want to lose people just cause we cant work this out. Thanks Everyone!!!

~ Mike P.

 

What the heck.... I'm already paying $9.95 a month for my NudeTeenGirls.com
(whoops I meant to say- Study of Female Art)


$20/ a year for F-chat is just a way to help out.

 

LOL!

 

I have mixed feelings about the pay thingy.

But bottom line, F-chat is one of the only websites I frequent, and I've made good friends (yes, even Art ) on this site. Would that make me willing to pay? Sure, I guess.

But what makes me even more willing to pay is the fact that Rob deals with a lot of crap to keep this place moving. THe amount of work he does to provide this forum for us deserves, in my opinion, some sort of compensation, even if it doesn't make him rich.

Do I want to pay? Of course not. I can barely eat during the week (college student with no job). Would I pay? Of course I would! I've met people on this site that I would call good friends, and am I going to let $20bux keep me from calling them friends?

And again, Rob deserves it, damnit.

 

Let's see:

Ferrari Chat wouldn't be available if it wasn't for Rob Lay

Rob uses his own time and hardware to make it run ?

The Tri state New York area is filled with great people who I would not have met had it not been for Ferrari Chat

The technical advice has been excellent and at no charge

I get more out of Ferrari Chat than I do the Ferrari Club of America

Why would someone not want to pay ten bucks for this???? The FCA charges over $120 for what? The ability to put their decal on the window of your car? (Fifteen minutes on FC have more value than FCA's worthless newsletter if you are in the Empire Region, and a quarterly magazine that is all gloss and less substance compared to Forza or Cavallino) Oh wait a minute, I'm wrong, the Empire Region is going to have a holiday party

Count me in on a fee based site.

 

OK,OK,OK.

Rob,

You've nearly had me in tears.

It's like a little angelic faced 4 year old turning up on your doorstep.
saying "please mister".

Rob you're the best
How can I resist

I love you

Where do I send the cheque ?



Wazza

 

Owning a Ferrari is not at all like owning a Ford or a Toyota or anything else, except perhaps a Lamborghini. The insights and information from current owners is absolutely priceless. Dealers certainly would not provide this much critical information. As a browser and not a chatter, I would certainly pay.

 

And the new site is much better as well.

 

I think that having a "free trial" subscription undermines the purpose of having pay subscriptions to cut down on trolls.

If the purpose of subscriptions is to limit growth of the board, ... I think the business term for that is "self defeating". When the board becomes too large for one person to manage, you can either go back to having a small board, or add moderators.

Sometimes, that can answer the revenue issue as well, with sections "sponsored" (and moderated) by specific vendors. For example, on the vBulletin based evolutionm.net board, the tire and suspension forums are sponsored by TireRack and moderated by TR personnel.

Rob, check out evolutionm.net and nasioc.com forums. Both are vBulletin based, have very large populations (dealing with all Mitsu and Scooby products, respectively). Both have more active advertising than Fchat, both have more moderators, and both are still free.

And more moderators also make dealing with trolls easier, too.

Let's not get confused in the objectives, here. A pay site can be used to limit growth, limit membership, or increase revenue. More moderators can cope with increased growth and manage membership, and expanded advertising might enhance revenue. Certainly a board with a larger population can get more revenue out of advertising than a small board.

Granted, there aren't as many superchip, coil-over, bling wings, and body kit vendors for the Ferrari community as there are for the ricers.

So if it's about revenue, then that's one thing.

But if you're being overwhelmed by the board's success, remember that the key to success is to not flinch when it comes. After all, Billy built a massive software company on software he didn't even have yet.

 

Forums on the web are plentiful and they all have one thing in common - people with something specific in common. That is an advertiser's dream. I believe any worthwhile forum that attracts the level of interest that FC does should be easily sustainable from advertising revenue. The better the site from an informational and ease-of-use perspective, the more eyeballs it will attract.

That's the secret to success on the web.

Regardless of the "votes", a charge to access this site would result in 99% of the users dropping off. You'd be left with DES and Allanlambo squaring off with no-one there to watch except for Rob Lay