It has been talked about since the inception of the club that a membership fee is required to run the club, competitions and help local clubs develop.
After a lot of heated debate membership for year one will be €10. Anyone who entered the competition was offered a 50% discount on this. That still applies.
Members will have a direct say in how their club is run. They will also have :
Access to club group buys.
Affiliate discounts (to be announced).
Discount entry fee for the National Brewing Championships.
We hope to be up and running and offering membership by May but we are migrating the forum to a more user friendly system and everything is dependent on that.
If you have any suggestions for membership or affiliate discount ideas now is the time to put them down.
What about a small charge per person at tasting evenings? Even say €2 per person per tasting night with all money going to the club. Would work out at €250 to €300 per club per year being raised.
QuoteWhat about a small charge per person at tasting evenings? Even say €2 per person per tasting night with all money going to the club. Would work out at €250 to €300 per club per year being raised.
A good idea in principle, but a pain in the arse for those organising the tasting evenings, having to lodge (or hand over in person) 20 euro. I'd rather see a higher annual subscription rather than attach a fee to events like this.
QuoteWhat's an "affiliate discount"?
Examples are the best way to go:
5% off at [Homebrew shop]
€0.50 off vounchers for [Pub Group]
QuoteWhat about a small charge per person at tasting evenings? Even say €2 per person per tasting night with all money going to the club. Would work out at €250 to €300 per club per year being raised.
I don't think this would be unreasonable to ask? Everyone has €2 to spare for a good night out.
QuoteQuoteWhat about a small charge per person at tasting evenings? Even say €2 per person per tasting night with all money going to the club. Would work out at €250 to €300 per club per year being raised.
A good idea in principle, but a pain in the arse for those organising the tasting evenings, having to lodge (or hand over in person) 20 euro. I'd rather see a higher annual subscription rather than attach a fee to events like this.
Didn't think of the admin side, very good point Conor.
Not everyone can afford to pay a higher annual fee. It's not 2007 anymore
Yes, brew days are a different kettle of fish, where there is an actual cost attached to the event.
QuoteNot everyone can afford to pay a higher annual fee. It's not 2007 anymore
True enough, but charging people to turn up at every event might discourage people from attending. I only suggested the possibility of a higher subscription charge to show that I'm aware the NHC needs to be funded somehow. I just don't think a "per event" charge is the way to do it, as it's a logistical nightmare for everyone involved.
€2 to get your brews evaluated and the opportunity to sample many other quality beers is very reasonable and I don't think it would put people off. Would a monthly bank deposit be a big deal?
I am just a bit confused. There are plenty of other homebrew forums that are free to use. There are other clubs that you can go to for free to have your beer evaluated.
I am confused on the discounts??? Which homebrew shops have agreed to give us a discount or is this just been thrown out there???
Once you start to ask people for money they may want to see more transparency on the accounts!!??
Did tube not just say a few days ago that anyone is free to join to have their say??? Now money is being spoken. I am confused and seem to be getting a mixed message here??? Anyone else????
QuoteI am just a bit confused. There are plenty of other homebrew forums that are free to use.
Indeed there are - but I think the idea is that this is much more than a forum.
QuoteThere are other clubs that you can go to for free to have your beer evaluated.
There are - currently we are free - also I'd imagine that you will always be able to go to a meet with your beer - even if your not a paid member.
QuoteI am confused on the discounts??? Which homebrew shops have agreed to give us a discount or is this just been thrown out there???
A number of shops have been approached and its not 100% nailed down - but suffice to say - a discount is what is being sought.
QuoteOnce you start to ask people for money they may want to see more transparency on the accounts!!??
Slightly harsh - a suggestion that the accounts are not transparent -
of course accounts should be 100% visible to PAID members and annual statements showing what was taken in and spent shown.
Currently everything is free - did you see the scale of the national brewing competition ? Entry fees covered <25% of the costs.
QuoteDid tube not just say a few days ago that anyone is free to join to have their say??? Now money is being spoken.
Proof in point - you are having a say and you haven't paid.
Charging for membership has been talked about for a long time.
Edit I see James has covered a good bit of this but I will leave it as is...
My understanding is that you don't have to pay anything if you don't want to. As a free member you will have access to 95% of the forum which is pretty much the way it is now.
Membership would entitle you to:
Access to members section of website (I assume there would be more policy talk rather than brewing talk here)
Access to participate group buys
Access to discounts (To be agreed and that is kinda the purpose of this thread, ideas for this)
Etc..
Personally I don't like the idea of being charged to go to a tasting night especially if you are already brining your own beer every month.
whats a tasting night ? - do you mean the monthly meet ups ?
Charging for tasting nights is not a goer lads. So dont worry about it.
For starters its probably ilegal (who do i sound like?).
Then the pub involved might be a bit pissed off if we're gaining from it.
People have been doing this long before the NHC was around.
NHC adds no value to these events - so who are we to charge for it.
Wasnt having a go at you there Derek - just trying to get this thread back on track :)
Its been prety much decided there will be a 10 euro charge to be a member of this club. Thats a fact - see OP.
You wont have to be a member to view the forum.
You wont have to be a member or pay to go and have a pint with other fellow home brewers.
First question people ask is "as a member, what do i get?"
Fair question
The purpose of this thread was to answer that question and come up with ways we can make it more attractive for perspective members.
From OP
Quote
If you have any suggestions for membership or affiliate discount ideas now is the time to put them down.
So as a member you will get;
- Access/Priority on group buys facilitated by the NHC.
- "affiliate" discounts - there are various things being worked on by various people to organise a discount for NHC members in certain relavant establishments that a homebrewer may frequent. Nothing finailsed yet.
- Discounts on entry fee into the annual competition or any other events organised by the NHC.
- Will have a vote electing people to positions within the club and any other issues that are deemed necessary of a members vote.
Anyone have any more suggestions on how we can make that list look better to someone we are asking to "gimme 10 euros"
Back on track. :)
Don't forget that anyone who entered the competition gets a 50% discount so in reality it is €5 to be a member this year which I would imagine you will save in a heartbeat with the affiliates and group buys.
Members will be shown accounts and they will be externally audited to ensure everything is above board.
This club has evolved since inception and is in a continuous evolutionary state. Members will drive this and shape the future.
+1
but hey nothing wrong with a bit of brainstorming
just be ready for a rat ta da tat as your idea may get shot down.
I suggested discounts at my "gentlemans club" but that went down like tourettes in the library.
QuoteWhat about a small charge per person at tasting evenings? Even say €2 per person per tasting night with all money going to the club. Would work out at €250 to €300 per club per year being raised.
Interesting idea. It might well work in the future as clubs needs arise...rent or whatever may need to be paid.
We have talked about trying to get people at the TOG brewdays to contribute as there is a cost on the brewer and there may well be electricity cost in the future but figured it would probably drive numbers down. If we ran a one day course as Capital Brewers and asked for €2 a head it might help that local club but then does the local club need a treasurer and bank account or can the money be lodged at national level and be drawn down later by the club..all to be worked out by the members I suppose. As a club we can put these ideas into action..as a forum only we cannot.
QuoteWe hope to be up and running and offering membership by May but we are migrating the forum to a more user friendly system and everything is dependent on that.
Why change the system?
I like the current system (apart from the poor structure of sections), that's why I'm still here and not on other Irish brewing forums.
What changes are coming? Will current threads get lost in migration?
I see why some sort of income for the NHBC is needed, and I have no problem in paying the membership fee.
However, apart from the NHBC getting money the affects seem to be (based on the posts so far)
a) unsure unclear discounts from unnamed associates
b) Smaller pool of potential group-buyers
c) discounted entry into NHBC events
d) door-charge on regional club meets/tastings (very bad idea in my opinion. 'hey guys, lets meet at my place instead and then we dont have to pay' - a new club is born, the same as the last club but specifically non NHBC affiliated.)
QuoteQuoteWe hope to be up and running and offering membership by May but we are migrating the forum to a more user friendly system and everything is dependent on that.
Why change the system?
I like the current system (apart from the poor structure of sections), that's why I'm still here and not on other Irish brewing forums.
What changes are coming? Will current threads get lost in migration?
I see why some sort of income for the NHBC is needed, and I have no problem in paying the membership fee.
However, apart from the NHBC getting money the affects seem to be (based on the posts so far)
a) unsure unclear discounts from unnamed associates
b) Smaller pool of potential group-buyers
c) discounted entry into NHBC events
d) door-charge on regional club meets/tastings (very bad idea in my opinion. 'hey guys, lets meet at my place instead and then we dont have to pay' - a new club is born, the same as the last club but specifically non NHBC affiliated.)
Quotea) unsure unclear discounts from unnamed associates
there will be discounts available exclusively to NHC members that is sure. We need to work out the details re how much how often and until everything is finalised the names of the businesses involved cant be disclosed.
Quoteb) Smaller pool of potential group-buyers
Members will get priority on group buys, non-members will only be invited if the numbers dont stack up for paid members.
Quotec) discounted entry into NHBC events
That cant be bad can it?
Quoted) door-charge on regional club meets/tastings (very bad idea in my opinion. 'hey guys, lets meet at my place instead and then we dont have to pay' - a new club is born, the same as the last club but specifically non NHBC affiliated.)
That was a mis-placed suggestion made during the discussion of the thread - it was put forward as a alternative to membership (which has already been decided on) it wasnt in the original post, so please dis-regard.
...
Lads, most people agree we need to pay something in the form of membership into the NHC to keep the show on the road. And people have no problem with it, from feedback received. We are just trying to find out what are the things we can offer (not take away) to make paying the membership more worthwhile for members - making sure we are getting the most value out of our tenner.
The fee at tastings wasn't meant as a replacement of an annual fee. :)
If you want to sell something on the site you will also need to be a member
I have another question and that is what would members like to see us doing that we are not currently?
QuoteQuoteWe hope to be up and running and offering membership by May but we are migrating the forum to a more user friendly system and everything is dependent on that.
Why change the system?
I like the current system (apart from the poor structure of sections), that's why I'm still here and not on other Irish brewing forums.
What changes are coming? Will current threads get lost in migration?
I see why some sort of income for the NHBC is needed, and I have no problem in paying the membership fee.
However, apart from the NHBC getting money the affects seem to be (based on the posts so far)
a) unsure unclear discounts from unnamed associates
b) Smaller pool of potential group-buyers
c) discounted entry into NHBC events
d) door-charge on regional club meets/tastings (very bad idea in my opinion. 'hey guys, lets meet at my place instead and then we dont have to pay' - a new club is born, the same as the last club but specifically non NHBC affiliated.)
As Jimmy said...
a, We can't name names now but in the next couple of week we should be in a position to.
b, Group buys will be offered to the public only if they are not fully subscribed. The public will pay a higher premium for using the club facilities (bank account, delivery - if at all)
c,Yep - competitions.
d, That would be a club thing to help pay for a venue or whatever a local club might need to pay for.
What would you like to see? What would you like to see your club become?
On the new system, Jimmy or Johnrm can probably answer better than me but it will be more mobile friendly I believe and will take the plugins we need going forward.
Can we get downloadable hops onto edible paper?
QuoteIf you want to sell something on the site you will also need to be a member
I have another question and that is what would members like to see us doing that we are not currently?
Lobby whoever makes up whacky whatever days (like the recent national burrito day) & push for a National Homebrew day.
Get all the suppliers in one venue with stalls, have some live brewing demos, diy homebrew kit conversions, etc. I guess kinda like what Capital Brewers do in TOG but on a more national level. Make a day of it.
National Homebrew Day I like it, I think they do that in the US
QuoteQuoteIf you want to sell something on the site you will also need to be a member
That was knocked on the head as it may mean members miss out on good deals.
"I've 100 cornies at €20 each I wanna sell. Hmmm, have to be a member on NHC, I'll just stick them on adverts.ie instead"
Thats a sellers perogative and why sellers on here also post on Beoir, Adverts and Done Deal all for the same item.
Are you in or out make your uckin mind up.
Either way please make you comments constructive to the notion of membership which is going to happen.
QuoteQuoteIf you want to sell something on the site you will also need to be a member
I have another question and that is what would members like to see us doing that we are not currently?
Lobby whoever makes up whacky whatever days (like the recent national burrito day) & push for a National Homebrew day.
Get all the suppliers in one venue with stalls, have some live brewing demos, diy homebrew kit conversions, etc. I guess kinda like what Capital Brewers do in TOG but on a more national level. Make a day of it.
Yep we had talked about that. It is a great idea. Certainly something we need to prepare for.
On the forum, which was just mentioned in passing...
We're looking at converting to a new forum which will basically make it easier for us to tie into the main web-site and manage things like charging membership, possibly faciliating group buys - making it more than just a place to write words (which is what the forum is now)
So the underlying software will change but the old content will still remain.
Like with most things it will be possible to tweak it to do different things - and different people will complain that they prefer things a different way - we'll deal with those issues as they arise (almost left the 'i' out of that word) after we switch over.
I think its great to be adding incentives for members, such as discounts at the NHBC events and with homebrew suppliers.
I'd be wary of suggestions that seem to penalize non members.
It's my opinion that most active members would pay the membership fee without any incentives or discounts, because what they are already getting out of the club is worth more than a tenner a year.
There are alot of new homebrewers out there all the time, and I think it is important for the NHC to be a welcoming place for them, in order for the club to grow.
If it was up to me the only difference between members and non members would be a discount for members (For NHC events, from whatever homebrew companies, and for groupbuys)
I wouldn't restrict anything from non members (restricted forums, restricted buying / selling privileges, blocked from participating in groupbuys) as it creates an us and them clique, in my opinion. As I said above, when new members become more active and see how valuable a resource the club is they will have no problem paying.
QuoteI think its great to be adding incentives for members, such as discounts at the NHBC events and with homebrew suppliers.
I'd be wary of suggestions that seem to penalize non members.
It's my opinion that most active members would pay the membership fee without any incentives or discounts, because what they are already getting out of the club is worth more than a tenner a year.
There are alot of new homebrewers out there all the time, and I think it is important for the NHC to be a welcoming place for them, in order for the club to grow.
If it was up to me the only difference between members and non members would be a discount for members (For NHC events, from whatever homebrew companies, and for groupbuys)
I wouldn't restrict anything from non members (restricted forums, restricted buying / selling privileges, blocked from participating in groupbuys) as it creates an us and them clique, in my opinion. As I said above, when new members become more active and see how valuable a resource the club is they will have no problem paying.
We certainly want to be open to new brewers and be a resource for beginners. That won't change and I think, through the clubs, we will be encouraging newbies with demos etc.
Quote
I wouldn't restrict anything from non members (restricted forums, restricted buying / selling privileges, blocked from participating in groupbuys) as it creates an us and them clique, in my opinion. As I said above, when new members become more active and see how valuable a resource the club is they will have no problem paying.
No other organisation offers HB group buys on the scale of the NHC, not even our closest neighbours.
Non members cannot have the same deal as members in Group buys.
If we are offering a product at cost or close to cost this will not be offered to non members under the same terms.
Ask any of the group buy organisers why they bothered and all bar none will say to you to get a better deal for a product I wanted and for the benefit of the NHC at no personal financial risk.
Where is the incentive for use of the clubs bank account and goodwill of the facilatators to non members :(
Group buys will be offered to non members in the public area where making up the numbers is required and they will be attractive enough but significantly more than the price paid by members which will at cost or just over.
All Non members will be able to see the for sale section but wont be able to post there unless they are members.
You are absolutely right we are building a clique but I would prefer to use the term brotherhood or sisterhood! and hardly a day goes by when I don't see one of the posters on here going above and beyond the call with an offer of support or sharing something.
So as not to alienate new non members and I am guessing over 90% of the site will still be accessible.
Our only source of income is membership not banners or advertising as how could we be impartial in our comments about a product or service relevant to our hobby if we have heavyweight sponsors.
Who will choose (or who currently chooses) what is being bought in the group buys?
QuoteWho will choose (or who currently chooses) what is being bought in the group buys?
You do!, what do you need? can it be bought in bulk? how much will you save with volumes?
The group buys as I said above are usually initiated by the person looking to save money in the first instance use the NHC forum as the means for gauging interest, list of purchasers, collecting monies and ensuring delivery is facilitated.
The epics have been
Corny kegs
Grain
Hops
Cider Juice
Conicals
Grain mills
what have i left out :-[
Ah ok. So is there a minimum amount of interest required per group buy for it to be considered. For example if I wanted a particular item and only 2 other people are interested will the idea be shelved?
not always, but you obviously wont get the same discount from the vendor even though there are only 3 of you. Its up to you to decide if you want to drive it forward.
We have not had one group buy here that hasn't been oversubscribed :) and plenty of "please sir can I have some more" why? cos its cheap and we are all tight ;D
Quote...even though there are only 3 of you.
...other than the grain mill Group Buy. :-*
Group buys will be for members. If a group buy needs some extras to fill it then either the club will buy in to sell the item later or we offer it to a non member. The epic corney buy eas so good but some people availed of it and never came back or said "thanks for saving me a bunch of money". :(.
QuoteGroup buys will be for members. If a group buy needs some extras to fill it then either the club will buy in to sell the item later or we offer it to a non member. The epic corney buy eas so good but some people availed of it and never came back or said "thanks for saving me a bunch of money". :(.
Not feeling the love there Dempsey?, you had their children and they just issed off, all men are bar stewards.
Dempseys were 15 and never to be repeated but Shanna also did a cracker and got grade A tested with new rubbers 45, still saving 20 on retail :)
I guess summary is anybody thats out for themselves is not what NHC is about, we are not a "cheap retailer", we are a club made up of committed volunteers trying to help each other out in at all levels of brewing in whatever way we can.
Any chance the forums going Tapatalk friendly?
QuoteAny chance the forums going Tapatalk friendly?
I know that was one of the requirements from switching away from current Yabb, only Mettatron, JimmyM or Johnrm can answer that question
QuoteAny chance the forums going Tapatalk friendly?
I think that is the plan.
Great, all my frequently used forums in one app!!!! Except hbt
Yep the new forum will be tapatalk compatible - one of the main drivers.
In a nutshell: "what is tapatalk"?
QuoteYep the new forum will be tapatalk compatible - one of the main drivers.
Sweet
tapatalk is an app for your phone which takes a forum and kind of re-renders or re-formats it to be more user friendly for a small hand-held device.
Has nothing to do with making the membership fee more attractive though :P