Gatorchatter monetization discussion thread

Would you consider paying a small amount for an ad-free experience and extra features?

  • Yes

    Votes: 14 33.3%
  • No

    Votes: 28 66.7%

  • Total voters
    42
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oxrageous

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Please read this to the end before commenting.

Been thinking about this for literally a couple of years now, and still haven't made any decisions. While Gatorchatter is a passion of mine and something I'm extremely proud of, it's also a side business. The question has always been how to monetize the site without turning off the membership. Personally, I don't like ads and have never cared for throwing them in front of the members and guests, but that's simply how money is made on websites.

However, online ads have been under assault for years now, largely due to ad blockers and other factors. As a result, revenues have tailed off. Many websites have combated this by either setting up paywalls to access the material or forcing people to turn off their adblocker before they can access the site.

While I have toyed with making Gatorchatter an ad-free pay site, I've concluded that it isn't really a long-term option. The goal is to continue to have Gatorchatter grow (something it has steadily done since inception), and shutting out any non-paying membership would kill that growth and basically create a small country-club atmosphere.

The best solution is for mostly free content with options for paying for extras. Since sports is what Gatorchatter is all about (and where 80% of the activity is), the Main Sports Forum is always going to remain completely free (with ads, however). The question is, how many members would find it worth it to pay for everything else? When I say "everything else", I mean:

-No ads
-Access to the Lounge/Saloon/Political Forum
-Access to the Chatbox

The secondary question is would pulling those things like the Political Forum and the Chatbox away from non-paying members at this point cause people to leave? At the end of the day, if you don't have people, you don't have a forum.

Keep in mind rates would be extremely affordable, say $6 a month or $60 for a year (member option). There are hundreds of members and guests that check into Gatorchatter every single day of their lives. What is that worth to you? For example, I'm willing to give YouTube $10 a month to have an ad-free experience, because I view so many of their videos. Yet many people scoff, even though they'll happily pay twice that when ordering a damn pizza or buying a few Starbucks coffees.

Let me reiterate that no decision has been made. I'm just looking for honest opinions. I have no plans to sell the GCMB - I'd love to have it for the rest of my life.

I've created an anonymous poll that I am sincerely asking you to answer honestly. In other words, please don't claim in the poll you wouldn't be willing to pay for access to the extra features if you know you actually would.

I hope we can have a mature discussion about this.
 

SeabeeGator

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Jan 2, 2018
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As a relatively new guest here... it probably would’ve turned me off from even trying GC out. Since I’ve been around for a minute or two, I might consider something small but I think the risk would be turning off people who check this out as an alternative to the myriad of pay site options.
 

oxrageous

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As a relatively new guest here... it probably would’ve turned me off from even trying GC out. Since I’ve been around for a minute or two, I might consider something small but I think the risk would be turning off people who check this out as an alternative to the myriad of pay site options.
Fair point, but keep in mind the Main Sports Forum would always be free.
 

LagoonGator68

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Jun 12, 2014
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Server issues cause members more headaches than you realize. You are the most attentive owner on the interwebs, though.
 

URGatorBait

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Content, content, content.

For what you have as is, switching to that model would likely be the death of this site.
To charge something like that on going you need original, unique content, and I don't just mean posters.
You need legit writers with access to the UF sports programs that provide exclusive content.
Better would be writters that already have a following...but baby steps.

Secondly, making the sub forums the "additional content" for paying members with sports forum always free seems backwards to me. No one is going to pay for that...they might pay for the sports forum, but again, it comes down to content.
 

SeabeeGator

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Jan 2, 2018
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Fair point, but keep in mind the Main Sports Forum would always be free.

My favorite part of this site - and its excellent - is the free flow of conversation that covers multiple topics - sports, culture, politics, etc. I was a long time member of alligator army but finally left because Andy drove me insane with his biased moderation of the forums. Went vagabond amongst several places until I found GC and the app. As a Mobile only member, this works best for me. Again - at this point, I would pay something to keep the free flow alive. Just not sure it would sustain the growth you’ve seen.

Speaking of mobile... I can’t see polls or get notifications. I’ve tried all the options, etc and can’t get it to work. Am I just a moron or is there some secret set up for iPhones that enables that?
 

oxrageous

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Content, content, content.

For what you have as is, switching to that model would likely be the death of this site.
To charge something like that on going you need original, unique content, and I don't just mean posters.
You need legit writers with access to the UF sports programs that provide exclusive content.
Better would be writters that already have a following...but baby steps.

Secondly, making the sub forums the "additional content" for paying members with sports forum always free seems backwards to me. No one is going to pay for that...they might pay for the sports forum, but again, it comes down to content.
Not surprisingly, you miss the point. 90% of the reason to pay is to kill ads.
 

oxrageous

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Speaking of mobile... I can’t see polls or get notifications. I’ve tried all the options, etc and can’t get it to work. Am I just a moron or is there some secret set up for iPhones that enables that?
You are using the App, which is fast but limited. Just try the mobile version on Safari.
 

MissouriGator

Senior Member
Aug 30, 2014
1,186
1,441
Time is money; $6 a month or $60 a year is reasonable. The Main Sports forum is why most people sign up here. I would offer a 30 day trial period beginning in September (for obvious reasons). Then if $6 a month works for you, I'm fine with it.
 

Slevin

Law’s Alter-Ego
BANNED
Aug 12, 2014
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are lifetime members going to be grandfathered in to not having to pay? And if not, can we all get our 75 bucks back?
 

oxrageous

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Oh, I was under the impression you wanted honest responses.
My apologies.
That depends on who the member is.

You haven't had to view ads in years. If you had, I think your opinion would be different.
 

URGatorBait

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That depends on who the member is.

You haven't had to view ads in years. If you had, I think your opinion would be different.
meh.

Anyway, the point is the amount you threw out there.
It would likely be counter productive, unless you had content like I brought up, hence why I said it :lol:
 

SeabeeGator

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Jan 2, 2018
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Time is money; $6 a month or $60 a year is reasonable. The Main Sports forum is why most people sign up here. I would offer a 30 day trial period beginning in September (for obvious reasons). Then if $6 a month works for you, I'm fine with it.

That’s a really good idea as long as you don’t require CC information to get the free trial - always feels like a trap that’ll automatically enroll you whether you like it or not.
 

78

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Jun 9, 2014
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Keep it free.

Sell more life insurance.

My .02.
 

MissouriGator

Senior Member
Aug 30, 2014
1,186
1,441
It would be difficult to manage--as it would require more time, but I think it would be worth the investment. I've been following the Gators on websites since the late 90s, and this is by far the best site.
I've never ran a website, but I imagine that it requires a lot of time and effort. $6 a month is not too much to ask imo.
 
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