Paid Membership with perks? Any interest?

[Drachmyre]

I'd go for a premium membership. I don't post a ton, but I do read, and will eventually sell here when I get to the 100 post thingy. I'd almost suggest the "premium" membership be required for the posting of for sale posts.

Regardless it bothers me when people complain about paying for things they use on the Internet. I don't understand the expectation that the Internet is free. It isn't free to keep up. I see this all the time on forums, games, news, etc.

I'd also be up for donating a couple of lego items I have kicking around if someone wanted to run a raffle for expenses.

[Off the wall]

Regardless it bothers me when people complain about paying for things they use on the Internet. I don't understand the expectation that the Internet is free. It isn't free to keep up. I see this all the time on forums, games, news, etc.

I agree 100%

[Bamos]

If you were to offer something of value to paid subscribers like a monthly online magazine I could see paying for that.

Bill

[Alasdair Ryan]

If you were to offer something of value to paid subscribers like a monthly online magazine I could see paying for that.

Bill

You could make one roughly based on the "Lego club" magazine that could have a round up of that months front page news maybe a interview and a free instruction of a small moc make by someone.

[Bamos]

Yes something like Lego club but In line with the monthly Eurobricks theme. you could also do layout vists , alternative builds and make contests only open to paid members.

Bill

[Ridge Montante]

What about users who want to pay but don't have the funds to do so? If there were perks to paying they would be left out for no fault of their own. And I never even once noticed any ads. I don't pay any attention to them.

[CM4Sci]

As much as I adore this site, I wouldn't pay to use it.

Sorry.

Although advertising is annoying, they are certainly tolerable if they are funding the site.

This exactly.

If one of the perks is ad removal, I have AdBlock for that.

As much as I love Eurobricks, I will not pay for anything.

-Sci

[UrbanErwin]

I don't think I will be paying more than €10 a year for some extra's (like no lego related ads) otherwise I will stop using the site if I can't post without paying.

Perhaps another idea is to ad some more Lego ads

[Flare]

Ads do not bother me, however to support the site and to get some perks *hint hint* I would possibly be willing to pay a monthly fee to support the site.

[The Architect]

Hey Im back from "Taking a break''. I thank all the staff that were instrumentall in letting me stay.

Paid membership is a great idea.

10 USD sounds reasonable to me.

I don't think I will be paying more than €10 a year for some extra's (like no lego related ads) otherwise I will stop using the site if I can't post without paying.

Perhaps another idea is to ad some more Lego ads

Good idea they should definitely go through with this.

[Off the wall]

What about users who want to pay but don't have the funds to do so? If there were perks to paying they would be left out for no fault of their own. And I never even once noticed any ads. I don't pay any attention to them.

So? I drive past the Bentley dealer several times a week. I can't afford one.

And, yes, it would be their fault if they were left out. We don't necessarily have a right to what we want. Especially the non essentials. Like a Bentley. Or the premium version of a website.

[rriggs]

I would have no problem paying for enhanced membership of some sort. I do this on some other (non-LEGO) forums which I am a member of already. Even if the enhancements are things very simple I still contribute as useful sites need and deserve financial support. I also contribute to sites financially if they are useful and interesting even if they don't have a formal paid membership or donation policy in place.

However, I would only expect to pay c.$15 per year for membership. This is similar to what I pay for other sites which have a much smaller membership base. If it was monthly or much higher I likely wouldn't bother.

Cheers

Rog

[1974]

I agree 100%

It's not free, nothing is free. This forum is not free. The people who work to make it work do not work for free. Do they get paid? No, they take their dear time to to make EB work. That is not free. They got kids, wifes, boring work and LEGO to build as well, you know

Goddamn, I may be and old fart (actually, I'm not as you can guess by my name), but I _hate_ this 'the internet is free' mentality. If this was a physical club would you think it would be 'free'? No, why not?

I'm a member (mod and owner as well) of several fora. Some of them have paid membership _only_ That actually really keeps the riff raff out and only attracts really interesting and lasting members (and also interesting, paid forums have MUCH less need of moderation). Not saying this is what should happen here, but I've seen some of the biggest fora (in their speciality) vanish because something better came along. Does not happen to those fora that have a really good hold of key members though

Just my 20 year experience on the net

Sure, don't want to pay, you can just find another high quality LEGO forum out there. Oh, wait - you can't! I find it amazing that people who spend countless of hours posting and reading cannot find just a few dollars each month to help EB continue. Funny, as it's probably the same people who spends a shitload of money on little plastic bricks made for children every month

Ok, my soapbox broke and I'm off to bed

I guess I'm in the minority here. Just continue as allways and set up that PayPal account, so I can pay for what I like

Cheers,

Ole

[Junpei]

I'll at least donate. Although I don't think a $5 monthly fee is really all that bad...

I honestly don't know why so many people don't want to, it's a privilege to be a member of this forum in the first place, this is the best-maintained and well-run forum I've even known.

We'd better be thanking the gods we're not paying anything. Yet.

So just my 2 cents. But I understand sometimes money is definitely an issue, I think donations would be the most beneficial for a lot of people. But of course the paid membership could always be optional.

[antp]

I wouldn't pay a monthly or yearly subscription fee, but I would probably make a small donation from time to time to contribute helping to keep the site alive if there is such system added.

I do not mind ads as long as they aren't intrusive: banner ads at the top of the page do not annoy me (I am surprised that here I see one only at the bottom, btw).

The problems with ads is when they open new pages, insert links in the middle of the contents text, or display ads overlapping the contents of the page.

[Off the wall]

Set up a two tier system. One tier is free, one is available for a modest fee. Maybe reviews or breaking exclusive info from Lego on new sets would be available only to those who subscribe. Or, whatever, I'm sure there are plenty of suggestions on what would be exclusive to paying members.

No free rides. And please, no donation box where people can contribute like you are a charity. Set up a fee based system for a premium version of your website.

[Legogal]

I would support $5US a month. Maybe free for those under 25... who tend to be students and or unemployed.

Also I would waive the fee for mods, academy reviewers, etc., who already have paid more than enough with their time.

Anyone selling on the forum should definitely be paying the fee, and sales (both sellers and buyers) probably should be limited to paying members. This could help with the lurker problem making folks join and pay before they can sell.

If registered users are inactive, they could receive the same email telling them about the change and providing a three month period to switch to the monthly payment site or be automatically placed in the free version group.

There could be a lesser version open to the public and non-payers except for those excluded above. It might exclude set reviews and contests/raffles/drawings, etc.

I pay for the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Consumer Reports online, and they save me thousands of dollars some years. EB provides similar value to those who know how to use it.

If the number of active users fell by half, would that be disastrous? There could be a hardship waiver if someone who has been active (maybe 25 posts per year) is unable to pay. But the reality is that we all buy LEGO, and many sets costs more than 60US, the proposed price of an annual EB membership.

While it would be cool to get a free ride on LEGO paying for the server, we would lose our independence, and it would put LEGO in an awkward position having to turn down the other forums' request for server funding. I would rather feel free to say what I honestly feel about LEGO without worrying about their pulling their sponsorship of our server.

(While I honestly detest online and most ads, I have not really noticed the ones on EB.)

[Andy D]

I really, really don't want to see EuroBricks go away. We need to pull together to make sure that that does not happen. I get a lot of value from this site in reviews, looking at contest entries and other MOCs and other hints and tips that are discussed here.

I would also support the $5US per month for a premium version of EB. I would appreciate a semiannually or annual payment plan, some might like the monthly option. I really would not like the idea of an auto-pay, I would rather have control of when I pay and when and if I decide to stop.

Like Legogal I also feel that the $60US per year is not too much to ask considering the value of EB to me.

I get the impression that many of us here spend $1000-$5000 US per year on LEGO and LEGO related activities, so $60 per year should't be a real hardship.

I am not sure that all reviews and contests need to be excluded from the non-paying version of the site, maybe just offer some extra contests and raffles for the premium version.

The advertising should definitely continue for the non-paid version of the site in order to help meet expenses and the premium version should be add-free.

Maybe the non-paid version of the site should just continue as-is just give some premium features for the premium version. This should satisfy all.

Count me in as a supporter!

Andy D

Edited December 4, 2013 by Andy D

[Legogal]

Andy D,

Great ideas! I agree!

Extra contests and raffles, etc., could add value for the premium site leaving the reviews and some contests for all.

Your idea of paying once or twice a year sounds good…like a magazine subscription. Cheers and thanks to all for the open discussion of how to keep EB financially healthy.

[1974]

What Andy said

[TheLegoDr]

To be honest I had never seen an ad on this website before. I happened to scroll to the bottom and see one ONLY because other people mentioned one being there. I assume I am supposed to click on it so they continue to want to advertise here?

I've been online since junior high in the mid/late 90s, so I am quite used to ads being in the way. I've never noticed them. I have a kindle fire with the "special offers" because it doesn't phase me seeing them on the main screen. I never click on them. I buy what I want, when I want it. I do all the research I need to before I purchase anything. I am as non-impulsive as one can be, so ads don't bother me. I don't even have cable, so I never see commercials..what a world I must live in...

As far as paying regularly, I'd more than likely quit coming to the site, and I have over 3000 posts so I get on here quite often. I already have to spend money for my LUG's server needs, so more than likely I could get any LEGO information from them anyway. Plus, some of them are reviewers/moderators on other popular LEGO websites, so I wouldn't miss out on anything other than the small chit-chat here and there about new MOCs/sets. I had the free flickr for the longest time. I didn't care that I couldn't see "all" of my pictures, but now they give everyone more space for free, so I never had to bother paying for that pro version.

I'd imagine if enough people were interested and it was sustainable, a very small fee would cover the cost for everything. Probably even less than the $5 quoted above.

I don't mind the idea of having a paypal donation link, although it does appear more like begging instead of asking people to pay for what they use. You can look at it like this, You pay for what you use or you quit using it. If I had to pay, I'd probably quit using it. It wouldn't affect anything. I'd find other use for my time. I only get on when I'm free at work anyway, which isn't too often this time of the year.

[Brandon Miller]

I don't know if it's possible on your type server or not, but the message boards that are Yuku based have it both ways. If you pay for a membership, the ads do not show up. Those that have a free membership, get the ads.

[Redhead1982]

I'd prefer not to pay to use EB. But then, if I had to, I'd prefer some reasonable amount up to 50$ a year, making it less than 5$ a month. Also, I'd prefer to pay yearly. I hardly see the adds, and I don't mind them being there.

In general, I agree with many other users about what should be included in the fees. Most of all, EB administration puts lots of their efforts and mostly, their precious time to keep this site running. Having a fee to use the site might keep spammers away, and help to improve the forum. As far as the info goes, I wouldn't mind to wait few extra weeks to get the exclusive info on new sets (after all, they do get out after the release date). On the other hand, I wouldn't like people being turned off by having to pay a fee to use the forum. As there are people from all around the globe, with different incomes, it'd be nice to have a choice of what and when to pay for EB service. On that hand, having a Paypal donations account (or similar) might be a nice option for everyone to contribute within their financial limit.

[Dhivael]

I like the idea of creating a "donate" type system, and reserve judgement on a premium membership until you see how much that would raise. Given the number of users here even a handful donating yearly might significantly help. As for a premium membership I agree about having a choice to give yearly or monthly, and keeping it to under ~$5USD/month. I don't mind contributing, but I'd really like to see the functionality of the site remain even for those who are unable or unwilling to pay. I know that EB was one of the ways that I got drawn back into being an AFOL, and restricting membership would have hurt me, and I'm sure countless others who use it as a way to break into the community.

[Only Sinner]

I do not mind ads as long as they aren't intrusive: banner ads at the top of the page do not annoy me (I am surprised that here I see one only at the bottom, btw).

The problems with ads is when they open new pages, insert links in the middle of the contents text, or display ads overlapping the contents of the page.

I agree with this However, I also also would gladly pay for a premium membership. Maybe special tags or content for those members, and the others who would still like EB for free would still see all the ads (which aren't all that intrusive anyway).

just M2C