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1:39 pm
October 7, 2008
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Chris
Admin
| | York, PA | |
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| posts 241 |
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Awen Eldorath said:
Awen Eldorath said:
I definately like the idea of membership cards, t-shirts, and bumper stickers as part of a membership package. You might also want to look at selling baseball hats, watch caps, pens, and maybe even some calanders eventually. The more advertising tools, the more chances that people will notice and be more likely to ask about the COBM.
I forgot to mention–with the calanders, I am envisioning something with pictures of actual members for each month and maybe a short bio. The calanders could also include saftey and educational tips regarding body mods; maybe short poems or statments by members, all depending on just how elaborate you want to make it, of course.
Hmm. I'm a bit torn on the idea. A question I would ask myself is, at what point would we cross the line into making the CoBM a commodity? T-shirts and stickers, okay. Baseball hats, I could maybe see that. Pens, underwear, faceplate covers for cellphones, etc.. I don't know. Though the revenue would help us in other areas of the CoBM, holding and promoting events, for example, I'm not sure that selling merch with our logo on it is the best way to go. When I think of advertising tools, other than shirts and stickers, I think of flyers, brochures, or simply introducing myself to an artist or shop owner and striking up a conversation.
I'll tell you this though, any suggestion is worth considering and I'll definitely bring up your idea at the next board meeting. 
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“You are not what biology birthed.”
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3:52 pm
October 7, 2008
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Anora Eldorath
Member
| | Burnsville, Minnesota | |
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| posts 147 |
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The calendar idea is something I've seen in another group I'm a part of. They asked for member submissions of photos that best represented the group as a whole, the values, and so forth. Of course, not everyone came running, but those of us that did are anxious and excited to see something like this done. It's being marketed at members buying the calendars, so nothing super large but that works. If all of us had a calendar in our home or work place can you think of the great lead in for a conversation? And being a part of the new member information would be helpful especially if it contained helpful information.
I do agree, I don't want to see the CoBM become a money making entity, that's not the point. However, I can think of a few things that could help you introduce yourself. When I worked as an Administrative Assistant I was frequently solicited by temp agencies. One of their “sales” tools was coffee mugs with their name on it filled with chocolates, etc. That's a wonderful way to get your name out there and leaves them with a bit of a treat. The same idea could be used for CoBM in visiting local shops. Bringing in something like that is a nice touch. I'm not a hat wearer but for those that are, nice way to advertise lol.
There is a site that I can't think of offhand, I think it is cafe something or other, where you can send in your business logo and choose the merchandise to be available. It's up to those visiting to decide what they want, etc. It's an idea at least if you want to have a revenue to be able to do church functions without having to always rely on donations/fundraisers.
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“What makes a man a man? A friend of mine once wondered. Is it his origins? The way he comes to life? I don’t think so. It’s the choices he makes. Not how he starts things, but how he decides to end them.”
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4:54 pm
October 7, 2008
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NeoDarkElf
Member
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| posts 113 |
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I believe you're thinking of “cafepress.com”.
I'm kinda torn about this as well, I don't think CoBM could become a money making entity very quickly, but caution is advised. The real idea of it IMHO should always be about proving members the merch they want. If that means an abundance of items to try and promote the church, great! But, if this means making few, maybe limited edition, items such as shirts, calendars, etc. that's great too!
Personally, I think it should be about a limited number of items that have contributions from a lot of different members, at least for now. I think it would be better to establish a strong base of members who contribute at many different levels before we try to get everyone and their sister to join. On the other side of the same coin, selling merch as a revenue will expand the coffers to allow official locations to be set up/built/purchased for future meeting places. Which I think would be amazing, but again, I would want a supportive base that is knowledgeable and experienced in church activities.
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“I am not my body, I exist beyond the flesh, as my body dies and decays my soul will continue on…” –Unknown
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9:25 am
October 9, 2008
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ElloFoto
Member
| | Bozeman, MT | |
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| posts 262 |
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First thing, cafepress is entirely low to mid quality inkjet printed shirts. They wash out after a while and I'd rather see quality, not quantity for our members. I'd also rather have a company that was interested in body modification, or at least supportive of its employees to where they're allowed to have mods at work. I'd have a hard time supporting a company that didn't support their modified employees who are making things for a modified community. I know some amazing small companies in my area that go above and beyond to make sure every one of their employees are treated equally, and a couple don't even have employees, they're just friends who screen print for the love of it who are regulars at the store I work at. I'm not sure about Cafepress, but from some of the things I've heard from people who've used it, they've been fairly closed to a few ideas and they're expensive for the quality, although a CoBM coffee mug would be pretty cool…
I don't know, I guess it goes without saying I feel this should be almost a fair trade style thing. Not necessarily pulling the whole “100% fair trade organic cotton shirts” aspect, because those aren't cheap, but knowing the companies we are having our apparel and goods made from are good people.
The Bellydance troupe I used to manage made a calendar for 2008. It was part of a fundraising activity, they didn't sell too well, and everyone knows a calendar has a shelf life of one year, really. It would be fun to put something together like that, but I feel that it might be hazardous.
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The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes. -M. Proust |
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10:12 am
October 9, 2008
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Anora Eldorath
Member
| | Burnsville, Minnesota | |
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| posts 147 |
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I was referring to, and I'm pretty sure Awen was, having a calendar for members only by members. It would include things like interviews with members, how to's, don'ts, etc. It's sole purpose would be to include it in either the new member package, or be available to members only for purchase. If that's not fair trade, I'm not sure what is. At this point in time I'm willing to put together a prototype, pay for the production of a single prototype and submit it to the board for a look at. It would definately take time to initially get going but we've got 271 members on this board alone, that should prove to be enough of a selection to make such a thing occur.
The cafepress idea came from an occult group I'm a member of. They did the cafepress with their symbol and they are accepted by them. I do like the idea and support the idea of fair trade so if there is someone who is a member of CoBM that owns a print shop and was willing to do the work discounted or not discounted then I would feel that would be the way to go. The cafepress, though not truly a money raising tool, was suggested for non members. It could help bring in monies needed for church events.
The best sorts of advertising that actually work with huge success is face-face. I've done a lot of sales work in my past and the quickest way to reach people is by face-face. This does involve being professional. We've got a tough enough time as modified individuals that we don't need someone to blow us off as a bunch of teens with a t-shirt and badge. I like the idea of membership cards. I like the idea of getting out and personally doing a brochure for face-face meetings, letting people know who we are. I definately like the idea of having meetings locally that people of both modification and nonmodification could attend.
Regardless of a non for profit status, all organizations need to have a cash flow. Yes, in our ideal world of barter and trade we'd not need cash, but in today's world of business that is the “barter tool” used. I agree that we don't want the church to look as it has in the past, or take on the role of money making scheme, however we do need a cash flow to host and do church related events. I know that I personally can't sustain a church in my city on my own cash flow from my job. That's just not possible, I'm not a millionaire. The church has choices to make in the future in regard to this-A. Sell merchanise, B. Charge Dues, C. Solicit donations, D. Fundraise, or E. A bit of everything mentioned in order to be able to effectively function.
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“What makes a man a man? A friend of mine once wondered. Is it his origins? The way he comes to life? I don’t think so. It’s the choices he makes. Not how he starts things, but how he decides to end them.”
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12:56 pm
October 9, 2008
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8:40 pm
November 14, 2008
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sherilynndupuis
Member
| | Carleton Place, ON | |
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| posts 79 |
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I put my vote in for membership cards, but shy away from the idea of overly merchandising the Church. I believe that keeping it light on the merch could keep the Church pure.
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“I wish I had a propaganda machine :(”
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12:03 am
November 15, 2008
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Angel-gore
Member
| | Adelaide | |
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| posts 46 |
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It all sounds gd . I like the idea of a calendar for members only .
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12:58 am
November 15, 2008
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Mad_Mush
Member
| | Adelaide, South Australia | |
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| posts 27 |
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The whole members pack sounds like a fantastic idea. Am looking forward to their arrival. Need to keep the merchandise to a minimum i think. A members only calendar sounds great. Stickers, badges, pens and t-shirts would be good. No need to get carried away.
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9:45 am
November 15, 2008
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Corvin
Member
| | Carleton Place, On | |
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| posts 28 |
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Personally, I think that membership cards (that can be purchased by members only) is not a bad fundraising idea.
If members would like a “Membership Packet” then perhaps there needs to be a one time membership fee to help cover costs, I have a few idea about this that I will contact admin regarding.
In my opinion anything beyond a membership card/packet and possibly a tshirt/sweatshirt is overkill and doesn't help the image of the church.
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3:04 pm
November 16, 2008
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SheWolf
Member
| | Oregon | |
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| posts 47 |
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That's great, and have a good trip!
You are honestly the best, Chris. =) I can't wait to see what everyone's come up with.
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3:04 pm
November 16, 2008
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SheWolf
Member
| | Oregon | |
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| posts 47 |
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That's great, and have a good trip!
You are honestly the best, Chris. =) I can't wait to see what everyone's come up with.
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3:05 pm
November 16, 2008
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SheWolf
Member
| | Oregon | |
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| posts 47 |
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I have no diea why mine just posted twice, and quoted. =/
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