- This topic has 19 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 20 years, 9 months ago by
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Okay, I did this;
http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/modules.p … age&pid=13
Del will be pleased and that now fits with the ACH thread.
Can you all critisise please. 😉 😆
Chris, can you re-write/expand/brush up….
http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/modules.p … age&pid=15
Del, can you trawl the articles, give them a read and see if we need to change anything to slot in with the ACH please?
Martin and Alexa, can you check we do the shit right and tell us if we don’t?
Mark, you’re too busy right now to be doing mch of anything. 😉
John, can you get an articel written up all about the ACH that we can review/change as needed?
Thanks guys.
K.
Re: Tasks!
I’m a little concerned (as always) with free everything. I know that we are trying to encourage as many people as possible to get involved and fully utillize the site.
But I feel that we should now be thinking of restricting certain services from those that do not wish to be subscribers . There are several reasons for this.1) The guy’s that have been with us from the beginning not only subscribe but also spend hours on the site moderating forums.
2) The information that we give freely on the site. other trades have to pay for by purchasing their individual trade publications.
3) It is my fervent belief that people in general do not hold any value for things they are given free. (Remember the tale of Alexa’s tyres ! a classic example of what I’m trying to say)
4) No matter how small we set the contribution we then at the very least, have a degree of committment shown and accepted by everybody. I know that you find askin’ the trade members for money abhorent but at roughly £5 a month thats about the cost of five cigarettes a week.
If an independant trade member cannot afford that miniscule level of committment, then he should look for another carear, as he’s way past our help.5) I also belive that we will then be better placed and funded to bring even more services (like those requested by Martin in a recent post) to our committed membership.
I have no problem in free access for a set period of time to see if it suit’s a prospective member but after that it should be either sign the charter and stump up, or go away.
I would be gratefull if all the moderators would comment on this as I’m sure I’m not the only one that feel’s this way.
Sean
Agree 100{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d}
Have to go wife calling
will post my thoughts later
Re: Tasks!
Del wrote:But I feel that we should now be thinking of restricting certain services from those that do not wish to be subscribers
In many ways I see your point Sean and in an ideal world that surely would have to be seriously considered. But I believe the ideals cannot be implimented by virtue of the fact that I am all too aware of what I consider has been a poor response (take-up) to the recent Mail-shot!
Now I guess Ken will start jumping about trying to prove my statement to be false and unfounded. But whilst the trade membership level has gone up somewhat as a result of the mail-shot, the response has been a dissappointment.
I have mentioned in the past that very few contribute except to the jokes in the Off- topic Forum, but again Ken was quick to point out that the likes of me and Chris give little chance to anyone contributing as we very often reply to Postee’s before anyone else has chance. So, just to see if that theory had any truth attached, I this week have not replied to any posts (except a couple of times maybe?) just to see who else may pop up to answer the blindingly easy questions the public asks all the time. During that time no trade members stepped into the breach to my knowledge to answer these posts in spite of an average of 20 were on-line at any one time? OK a very inconclusive survey I agree, but nevertheless it convinced me somewhat of the complacency that is the trade membership in general!
Now ask them to stump up some money? (And I liked Del’s reference to 5 cigarettes by the way) I have never seen the many smokers at the UKW meetings actually offering a cigarette to a fellow sufferer, so why anyone would spare 5 fags a week on UKW beats me!
Now if we could only come up with some tangible evidence that subscriptions will actually gain something over and above what is already FREE then we are getting somewhere. I so wish we could stipulate that in the case of all those that benefit from Repairs@ and Directory listings should be for SUBSCRIBERS ONLY as that would be a positive step forward. Offering that for free is really not on as that has to be a winner I reckon.
Anything else like discounts on Insurance, vans, tools etc etc would follow I’m sure, but that takes a great deal of time and effort and with the small amount of subscribers at the moment it really doesn’t cut much ice to warrant action.
I take it you’re referring to the directory listing Sean? If you are I have no problem with making it subs only and/or those that are in Repairs@ so long as there’s consensus on it.
K.
Re: Tasks!
I was about to rewrite article as requested…..
If you accept that this all started as a self-help circle between a small group of individuals with common problems and interests, then we have simply grown that group into the community we are a part of today. The fact that this is a free resource to all is one of it’s strongest assetts and has ensured the open nature of discussions on a huge diversity of topics through the site.
That manufacturers, work providers, wholesalers, engineers, retailers, employers, electronic specialists, foreigners even ( 😆 ) all talk to each other and about each other without rancour is simply outstanding, especially given the hard time that The Indesit Company gets from the membership at large, for instance.
It may be a long term “dripping tap” policy, but these discussions get monitored and probably discussed by all manner of interested parties and we will hopefully be gradually exerting an influence on the way things work.
The other consideration from my point of view is that while this is still a highly professional operation, it is still a club. All clubs operate on the “10{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} rule” – 10{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} do everything, the rest enjoy the ride. We can reasonably say that to be a member of any club you have to pay your subs every year, but look at the on-going debate about what we’re going to do with the Subs Money we’ve already got! We’ve been talking about it on and off for the best part of a year now and haven’t managed to agree how to spend one single penny.
Given that the site itself is now self-funding, I can see no obvious advantage in a compulsory membership fee, although encouraging people to subscribe is an ongoing and worthy endeavour.
The only compulsory fee I can really justify would be a fiver a gag in Off Topic!
Anyway, please decide quickly – it’s Sunday, I’ve got rid of the wife and kids, so I have that rare commodity – time to do something I fancy for once.
Regards,
Chris.Re: Tasks!
I can see where Sean’s coming from Chris and I side with you on this.
I can also see that we may have to regulate the people in the directories at some point, repairers at teh very least, and so logically there’s a requirement to have them sign the charter.
I can also see that to become a sub we’re going to have to ask people to sign the charter. 😕
Nightmare!
But in the end we have to control it somehow. And we also have to make is accessible as is humanly possible to do. That’s the balance.
And, as you rightly point out, the fact that the guys can have an open discussion will most probably be influencing what’s going on at higher levels as you can bet your ass that some people are REALLY scared of us getting organised as we would be a force to be reckoned with.
K.
kwatt wrote:I take it you’re referring to the directory listing Sean? If you are I have no problem with making it subs only and/or those that are in Repairs@ so long as there’s consensus on it.
K.
Would there be a concensus on the above then, as I really cant see the A.C. having any effect to influence any dubious members otherwise.
O.K. I conceed that it should remain a free talking shop but repairs @ and any one who uses uk whitegoods to advertise their bussiness has a responsibility to other members to abide by a mutually agreed charter.
If they stand to profit from their membership then why should’nt the UKW
community chest expect a nominal contribution in the form of subs.Sean
Re: Tasks!
Whilst some might think this is sour grapes I don’t mean it so…………..
Why should Dasa members receive a different level of respect????
Dasa does not police its members and once a company has joined Dasa it can do what it likes, with no come backs. I thought we’d moved away from this CRAP and were trying to set standards.
KevinRe: Tasks!
actually I’m in passive mood this afternoon, totally relaxed……………so there you go……..
up yours jock
KevinThanks yer old twat! 😆
TBH, Chris is right though, we should treat them all the same and you’re also right, DASA people shouldn’t get it any easier.
K.
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