Donating to LPF

jayrob said:

$1700??

I missed that...

The donation bar says 'goal amount' $240...

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LPF pulls in ad revenue hand over fist; with 252,000 views per month, WL, Viasho, and CNI I'm sure pay a pretty penny to get their ads here. Plus Google ads traffic.

The stats site I quoted estimates the amount based likely on hits and number of ads. And as Spyro said, does not take into account private deals.

-Trevor

Oh ok...

Well good for Avery!

He has worked hard to keep up such a great forum...

jayrob said:

Oh ok...

Well good for Avery!

He has worked hard to keep up such a great forum...

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I think what we're really wondering is why another $240 (or more) is necessary per month, when all the "back-fees" are paid and when the forum is pulling in $1.5k in ads, private deals notwithstanding.

-Trevor

The contention that everyone is having over this (and I'm not saying I agree or disagree) is that the call is put out on a monthly basis for donations to cover forum costs yet revenue is being generated from ads that should more than cover expenses. Now, the reason I'm not taking a stance on this is because as jay says, it's avery's business and as such should net him some income. It's like folks complaining that I made a ton on the Kryton barrel runs when it really isn't anybodies business how much I did or didn't make on them. Yet at the same time, is it dishonest to say that forum costs are so high that donations are needed on top of what is made in revenue from ads?

I don't know. I honestly dont' know if I even care. Yet at the same time, if it turned out that I was lying about being destitute soon unless folks helped me out, you can bet the hammer would come down on me in a quick hurry if I was found to be lying.

It's not my place to say that avery can't generate income and donations from this forum.. I love this place and it's a great community... so I'll stay out of this one.

Well I'm sure that I speak for many when I say that I make my monthly donation out of appreciation...

And that I sure hope this forum is bringing Avery some good income!

Hopefully much more that just covering the operating costs...

Oh wow i just dominated you guys. I totally win.

jayrob said:

Well I'm sure that I speak for many when I say that I make my monthly donation out of appreciation...

And that I sure hope this forum is bringing Avery some good income!

Hopefully much more that just covering the operating costs...

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I don't think the issue here is any one person's motives for donating. What interests us is why donations are still being solicited when there is clearly a large amount of money coming in from donations. Are we donating to LPF or to c0ldshadow?

I think I speak for everyone by inquiring as to where it goes.

-Trevor

twhite828 said:

I'm confused - where does $1,700+ per month go, if all these "back-fees" are now paid? :undecided:

www.Laserpointerforums.com

I'm sure I'm not the only member who's curious.

-Trevor

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Laserpointerforums.com has been valued $5,692 - Laser pointer forums - discuss lasers & laser pointers

laserpointerforums.com Estimated Worth $35375.8 USD by websiteoutlook

www.laserpointerforums.com estimated worth and web stat from Cubestat

Peace,
dave

daguin said:

Laserpointerforums.com has been valued $5,692 - Laser pointer forums - discuss lasers & laser pointers

laserpointerforums.com Estimated Worth $35375.8 USD by websiteoutlook

www.laserpointerforums.com estimated worth and web stat from Cubestat

Peace,
dave

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Where exactly are you going with that? :thinking:

The last link said:

Daily Ads Revenue: $42.08

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-Trevor

twhite828 said:

Where exactly are you going with that? :thinking:
-Trevor

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Just showing that there are other tools for valuing a website AND that they tend to disagree with each other. The focus was a bit narrow

Peace,
dave

Keep in mind that Avery doesn't solicit donations... (just posting the donation bar is all)

There are dedicated members who do so, but they do that on their own. Just showing appreciation...

Anyway, it's a matter of choice for everyone. So if they don't want to donate, they can still use the forum without donating.

And if you think about the amount on the donation bar, it really is not much money. Especially when you consider the amount of active members.

Just my opinion. But I certainly don't want to ask Avery where the money goes. I feel like it's none of my business. (IMO)

daguin said:

Just showing that there are other tools for valuing a website AND that they tend to disagree with each other. The focus was a bit narrow

Peace,
dave

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They do, however, agree that there's scads of ad money coming in.

The actual value of the site isn't really relevant in this scenario.

-Trevor

EDIT: Does him posting this thread count as soliciting donations? Check the OP. The problem isn't with people donating out of appreciation, it's with donations being solicited via a possible misrepresentation of the amount of ad money flowing in relative to the cost of operating the forum.

jayrob said:

Keep in mind that Avery doesn't solicit donations... (just posting the donation bar is all)

There are dedicated members who do so, but they do that on their own. Just showing appreciation...

Anyway, it's a matter of choice for everyone. So if they don't want to donate, they can still use the forum without donating.

And if you think about the amount on the donation bar, it really is not much money. Especially when you consider the amount of active members.

Just my opinion. But I certainly don't want to ask Avery where the money goes. I feel like it's none of my business. (IMO)

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But, if you donate money to support the server fees, wouldn't you like to know where it's going? I, for one, would only donate if I knew, with absolute certainty that it WAS going to cover the server fees. I only say this because I wouldn't want to end up with a bad case of buyer's remorse. I love LPF, don't get me wrong, this place is great, but I don't like being misled.

Prototype said:

But, if you donate money to support the server fees, wouldn't you like to know where it's going? I, for one, would only donate if I knew, with absolute certainty that it WAS going to cover the server fees. I only say this because I wouldn't want to end up with a bad case of buyer's remorse. I love LPF, don't get me wrong, this place is great, but I don't like being misled.

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Quoting the OP...

c0ldshadow said:

Hello everyone. I wanted to make this section for people who are interested in donating to LPF. While the forum does generate some revenue from advertisers, donations would be helpful as well. Donations of any amount are welcomed; it would help cover the costs for hosting and maintaining the forum.

If you are interested in donating, follow this link:

http://laserpointerforums.com/donations.htm

Thanks to you all for making this forum a great place. LPF is a big part of my life and I am excited to see where it will be in years to come!

Regards
-Avery

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So I guess it's just how you want to look at it... Can members help to cover the hosting, but all other revenue be for profit?

It seems that it's up to the owner. And of course all donations are voluntary...

It's obvious that the large majority do not donate. But it's their choice! And since it a matter of choice, we shouldn't demand to know exactly where the money is going. But that's just my opinion...

Not a big deal or anything... But it does seem like a discussion like this will detract from the idea of donating.

Hopefully it will turn, and have the opposite effect. And make people want to donate!

Prototype said:

But, if you donate money to support the server fees, wouldn't you like to know where it's going? I, for one, would only donate if I knew, with absolute certainty that it WAS going to cover the server fees. I only say this because I wouldn't want to end up with a bad case of buyer's remorse. I love LPF, don't get me wrong, this place is great, but I don't like being misled.

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Nope. I don't care in the least.

I don't ask the ice cream man where he spends his money. I don't ask the lady who does my pedicures how much profit she turns. I don't ask the Girl Scouts for an accounting of my cookie money. I don't ask online authors how much of my donation goes to pay for the website in which I left my donation.

If I am provided a valuable service or product, I help cover the costs

We are enjoying a great benefit from this forum. We would not be able to if Avery had not created and if he did not continue to maintain the forum. For every month that I derive some measurable benefit from the forum (and I am financially able) I will donate, no matter what other revenue Avery generates. He created and works on the forum. He deserves any rewards he can generate from it.

It is my hope that Avery makes so much money from this forum that he can quit his "job" and only has to service the forum to maintain his income. That would be cool.

Peace,
dave

jayrob said:

Quoting the OP...

So I guess it's just how you want to look at it... Can members help to cover the hosting, but all other revenue be for profit?

It seems that it's up to the owner. And of course all donations are voluntary...

It's obvious that the large majority do not donate. But it's their choice! And since it a matter of choice, we shouldn't demand to know exactly where the money is going. But that's just my opinion...

Not a big deal or anything... But it does seem like a discussion like this will detract from the idea of donating.

Hopefully it will turn, and have the opposite effect. And make people want to donate!

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LPF gets 250,000+ hits per month. This translates into at least $1,000 of revenue per month. Donations are being collected on top of this. The most expensive plans offered by our host (that are overkill) are <$500/mo.

This leaves at least $500 of overhead ad revenue per month. Donations are being collected on top of it under the pretenses of covering the costs of the hosting. Those are clearly already covered by ad revenue.

Dave, the problem is not Avery making a living off the forum. That's great if he can do it. The problem is about donations being collected on top of already huge ad revenue, under the pretense of covering "costs."

Does no one but the few of us see a problem here?

-Trevor