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In lugnet.events, Frank Filz wrote:
> I think there may be a separate note pointing out that the space is free
> (it isn't, it's being paid for with blood, sweat, and Rears [as in
> Jeremy Rears who put in most of the effort to build the model which is
> being used to "pay" for the space]...).
Yeah, but that's a much cooler story than "a bunch of people paid entrance
fees", and it should generate some free pre-event news coverage
*coughHINTcough*. And talk about a unique souvenir...
> Back to the "free" space. Here is where there is a tremendous advantage
> to our "bid". Because we are not paying for the space with attendance
> dollars, BF PDX has very low fixed costs, and thus can take a larger
> risk. Of course we have to be careful of setting a standard that is hard
> to meet. Do we use the attendance dollars to pay for goodies that won't
> be as easy for the next con to pay for if they have to use attendance
> dollars for space? Do we reduce the attendance fee, and then dissapoint
> people next year when the fee goes up because attendance dollars are
> needed to pay for space? These are questions the BF PDX organizing
> committee will have to answer for itself (and then the rest of you will
> judge, with your comments, and attendance).
I have a little bit of practical experience on this one. I was involved in
starting up an annual haunted house in the dorm I lived in during college. We
didn't make tons of cash the first year, and we ended up spending all the
proceeds on something for the dorm (a ping-pong table, I believe). The next
year we realized we had to do it again (far too much fun to pass up), but we
basically had to start from the ground up again. No money was saved to bankroll
the next HH. That year we had an expense account set up so the participants
wouldn't have to fund it out of pocket and wait until after the event was done
to get reimbursed. What this allowed us to do for the third year was pay to
have T-shirts made and delivered in time for the HH (which is a one-night
event), so that everyone who helped run it was able to get a free shirt out of
the deal.
In this case, setting an appropriate door cost would allow you to bankroll
the hall rental fee for the next year (yes, I realize this would produce some
serious financial issues that would have to be resolved well in advance of
BFPDX04), maybe pay for some T-shirts and bricks and things so that (and here's
the important thing) none of the event coordinators have to seek out funding
prior to the event. This is how most major Cons are probably run. The unique
rental agreement involved here just makes it that much easier to get a good
start on this in '04.
> I'd also like to point to Mark's comments about NWBC's public component
> as a recruiting tool. Perhaps we should be solving our low potential
> audience problems by really reaching outside our community and really
> trying to bring in everyone.
Absolutely. I mean, consider how you first heard about LUGNET, BrickFest,
or your local LUG/LTC. I knew _one_ person in college who casually mentioned
LUGNET, BrickBay/Bricklink, and Brickshelf to me about 8 years ago. Outside of
MichLUG meetings, I've never personally met anyone who mentioned ever having
heard of them. We aren't the only FOLs out there (we aren't even the only
AFOLs), and most of them aren't aware of any of this. Hitting the public
consciense in such an impactful way is just what it takes to inspire the next
generation of AFOLs or bring members of the current generation into the group.
A roving Con has the advantage of seeing a new general audience each year, and a
stationary Con has the advantage of annual reinforcement of the "wow" factor for
the local audience.
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Comments added below the selected statement:
In lugnet.events, David Laswell wrote:
>
> In this case, setting an appropriate door cost would allow you to bankroll
> the hall rental fee for the next year (yes, I realize this would produce some
> serious financial issues that would have to be resolved well in advance of
> BFPDX04), maybe pay for some T-shirts and bricks and things so that (and here's
> the important thing) none of the event coordinators have to seek out funding
> prior to the event. This is how most major Cons are probably run. The unique
> rental agreement involved here just makes it that much easier to get a good
> start on this in '04.
David,
I happen to work in a University Conference Center called the Georgia Center for
Continuing Education. We do a lot of conferences here for academic and
non-academic purposes. We serve many state organizations with annual and
quarterly conferences.
I am not certain what experience you have had, but typically conference
facilities are not paid up-front. There are occassionally paid a initial fee
that, depending on the size and nature of the conference, varies on the amount.
For example, the Georgia World Conference Center will charge an initial
commitment fee that will book the dates for the conference and arrange for a
certain amount of space. This fee is sometimes returnable, usually not. If the
conference facility is contracted to perform the registration, then this fee is
substanitally reduced or wavied.
The conference facility is usually paid through the registration fees of the
conference. This can happen at a date after registration is closed before the
convention or it is paid after the convention follwing the rendering of
services. It is highly unusual in the conference facility business to be paid
for services in advance of the services. Most large facilities providing the
registration support use a seperate bank account and will issue the sponsoring
organization a check for the balance of the account following the event. In
essence the organizing body never handles the money and organizing bosy uses and
accounting firm to verify the income/expense statements.
While I think you have a great idea for funding the next conference, I think
past experience has shown that a small group of people and not a single
individual needs to handle the finances. Having a bank account with available
resources over the next several months with thousands of dollars is not
something I would sanction. Especially in light of historic events.
So, I would nix the idea of having a large sum of money out there for the next
convention. A couple bucks seems appropriate.
WAMALUG has demonstrated their education and adultness by practicing sound
fiscal responsibility. Unfortunately, BF03 was charged more for the facility
than they have been in the past and the cost may not continue to be competitive
with other options. Also I believe there are plans for George Mason University
to build a parking deck and replace the existing facility with one that was not
built to be a department store.
Respectfully,
Todd
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