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Young Writers Society


Would you pay to remove ads?



Would you pay to remove ads on YWS?

Yes at $4 a month
16
5%
Yes at $2 a month
24
7%
No
307
88%
 
Total votes : 347


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Sat Jul 12, 2008 4:40 pm
Nate says...



TNCowgirl wrote:I wouldn't pay to remove them when Firefox removes them for me for free. I don't know if anyone has already mentioned this, but there is an ad on for firefox that removes the ads for FREE!!!! So no I would not bay for them.



This is actually something that really bothers me. You are able to stay and visit YWS for FREE. You talk of it as if it is such a great thing, but for small Web site operators like me, it's not. YWS COSTS A LOT OF MONEY. Ads help to defray that cost. By refusing to view ads on this site, you are a freeloader.

Imagine if even 10% of people who visit this site used Adblock Plus on YWS. If they did, this site could not financially exist anymore.

So if you're going to use ABP, don't go about saying "Oh, isn't it great!" Because what you're really saying is, "Isn't it great that Nate has to pay even more money out of his pocket so that I don't have to view ads that 99% of people don't even notice to begin with!"

Please do YWS a favor and make an exception for it on ABP.
  





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Sat Jul 12, 2008 4:52 pm
Emerson says...



Amen, Nate. That's exactly why I'd pay to remove ads.

It isn't about removing ads - I ignore them (for the most part! Some are actually interesting.) as much as the next person. If I want YWS to survive and be something more than money out of Nate's pocket, I need to help out, too.

Of course I completely understand those people who can't spare the change/convince there parents to spend money. How many of you would donate money to YWS? It's the same thing, only with an added bonus.
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Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:57 pm
Lynlyn says...



I'd definitely pay $2, just because it's cheaper than having to buy something I probably won't use from the CafePress shop (does that still exist?) but isn't so steep that I'd miss the money. I'd love to support YWS and I know that a lot of it probably comes out of Nate's pocket, but $4 seems a little steeper - that's when you get into the subliminal "well that's x songs on iTunes, and the ads don't bother me that much." I think $2 would be nice because it's still more than the ads that particular person viewed might be bringing in (am I right?) but isn't so much that it would deter people from paying for their removal.
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Sat Jul 12, 2008 8:10 pm
Alice says...



Why are the Ads such a big deal? *confused* they don't bother me any...
I just lost the game.
  





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Sat Jul 12, 2008 9:02 pm
Charlie II says...



YWS is popular with young people that, for the most, won't be able to spend money very easily on the Internet. I'm sure you recognise this, so this idea would have to be aimed at the older writers on the site. Some would, of course, pay for ad-removal, but their reason for paying would not be for the removal of adverts, but be because they would be contributing to the great site and service they are using.

I can't help but wonder why there has to be ad-removal for a fee at all. If users feel that they want to pay for this incredible service, can they not be allowed to do simply that?

You would argue that you don't want people "donating" money to you. That's fair enough. But, would you allow users that want to help keep the site running to do so? There are a lot of users that have benefited greatly from YWS, and so it's only fair that they should be allowed to help keep it running.

Nate, we are constantly in debt to you because you take no pay for the work you do on this site. If you added up all the hours you've spent working on it, tweaking it, and generally making it awesome for us, don't you think we should be able to give a little back to it in return?

"Isn't it great that Nate has to pay even more money out of his pocket so that I don't have to view ads that 99% of people don't even notice to begin with!"

Really, we don't want only your money going into this site. All YWS wants is the jokey, often crazy, webmaster to keep out-doing himself in making this site into what it is.

Can you accept a little generosity from us? Every time we use the site, we accept your generosity. It doesn't have to be so one-sided.

Yours,
Charlie
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Sat Jul 12, 2008 10:04 pm
dragnet says...



I would like to have the ads removed, but I'm not going to pay for it!!! ARE YOU CRAZY?
Many ask me if I see the glass as half full or half empty. Well, I don't know about you, but I see the glass as, WHO DRANK HALF OF MY MILK?!?!?!
  





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Sat Jul 12, 2008 10:31 pm
Lilith says...



I wouldn't pay strictly because some of those adds have led me to some pretty fun stuff. I found an amazing site a long while back through an add that was sooo super helpful.
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Sun Jul 13, 2008 8:53 pm
Prosithion says...



I would consider it... if you accepted paypal.

Dunno, I'm not online enough to make it worth while.




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Mon Jul 14, 2008 1:49 am
yoha_ahoy says...



Paying would be so annoying. Plus the ads aren't that invasive. I hardly notice them at all really...

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Mon Jul 14, 2008 1:55 am
TNCowgirl says...



Ok, maybe I should've paid a tad bit more attention to what this was really about. So, if I just let the ads stay up does that pay you? Cause if so then I'll let them back up. I'm really confused now. I have no way of paying for an ad remover, my family doesn't do credit or debit or any card. So, sorry from my end.


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Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:22 am
Teague says...



Alice wrote:Why are the Ads such a big deal? *confused* they don't bother me any...

As myself and others have said, it's not so much the ads, but the revenue they generate. Nate can explain it better than me, but if you click an ad and spend X amount of time looking at whatever page it takes you to, YWS gets a bit of money. Obviously not everyone clicks on the ads, and not everyone spends that X amount of time on that site. So while the ads generate money to help ease the financial burden of keeping YWS running, they're not always reliable. Asking users to send a bit of money is more of a surefire way to get money for the site.

Don't just focus on the advertising aspect of it. Focus on the fact that you're helping YWS stay financially afloat.

That's really to everyone who's said "The ads don't bother me, so no." It's not about them bothering you. For the sake of this site, don't stick to that selfish mindset.

And it's not like Nate is asking much, either! What'd he say, $20 for a whole year? That comes out to a twentieth of a penny a day. Think of how much money you spend on other, more frivolous things. Is a twentieth of a penny a day really that much to sacrifice?

Just some things to think about. ^^ I've said this before, but people don't seem to read through the entire thread before posting?

And again, obviously, if you can't, you can't. But if you can and you're just saying no because you don't mind the ads, at least consider your options.

Nate: I really hope you start this up anyway. I think that as long as one user is willing to pay, it's well worth it. ^^

-:pirate3:

(bwaha... Pengu and I were so not a collaborative effort...)
Last edited by Teague on Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:41 am
PenguinAttack says...



Hullos there.

When I first read this poll I was like “zomg $4 a week? That makes lots doesn’t it?!” Of course, I was set straight when I read the post properly and realised that it was only $4 a month and that four dollars would be zipping off to Nate so that I could stay in Chat all the time and whinge about how little time I have.

I think it’s kind of amazing, you know. Looking at something along the lines of giving $20 a *year* to make sure that my uber favourite site stays online? That’s like asking me if I’d like some free chocolate. Chyeah! Of course! Heavens, I’d give much more than that to make sure that a place I love to tiny squiggles can stay where I can mess with it.

I didn’t really think it was about advertising to begin with, as I’m one of those horrific people who don’t actually click on ads. I hardly notice them at all, to be honest, so why would I care if they’re gone? Because it means that Nate is no longer getting the money he usually would from them sitting about. If you think of it in one of those generalised ways, it’s rather evident that the site is hard to run. We have many ads, ne? That means that the site is growing and we need the cash to keep it running. Of course, Nate has been the coolest person on the face of the universe for paying out of his pocket. He totally owns you, kids.

Can you imagine being asked to pay hundreds of dollars of your own money so that other people can be happy? Holy gadzukes! That’d be tough. Yet, Nate’s been doing it for years. So, if anything, it’s a tribute to Nate, to be considerate enough to think about what he does for us, and the YWS by paying for it. If I can donate a simple twenty dollars a YEAR < yes, I used capitals, yes, I did say a year > then why wouldn’t I? I have the ability and the money to do it. I’m not suggesting that everyone has the ability to donate anything, some people won’t. That’s fine. But it would be lovely if we picked up a bit of the slack, ne?

Lee: I’m totally into this if you go through with it.

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Mon Jul 14, 2008 4:07 am
Emerson says...



Charlie mentioned donations. I hate to add babble to this thread that doesn't really fit what it was intended to, but from what I know about Nate, the reason he refuses to take donations is because he doesn't want to take money out of the pockets of his users. He would rather sell us something - anything, even the removal of adds, rather than take money right from us. He's a kind person like that, and as much as I wish he would accept donations, I love him for how giving he's been to us all.


All the times I've told him I want to give him money, and he says no, I've learned to stop offering money, and start to buy things! (Or at least, click on things.)
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Mon Jul 14, 2008 3:44 pm
Nate says...



dragnet wrote:I would like to have the ads removed, but I'm not going to pay for it!!! ARE YOU CRAZY?


Crazy like a fox!


On what Charlie II (darklight) said:

Suzanne's right; I'd rather sell you something than have you donate money. Even this ad removal service is only being offered because I'm worried about the effects of Adblock Plus. A couple of weeks ago, I managed to install a simple script that lets me know how many people are blocking ads, and that number ended up being 15% of all users. Plus, it's growing.

The three options of dealing with ABP are: (1) Block all ABP users, (2) Ignore the problem, or (3) offer a way for them to still help the site out financially. Option 1 is out of the question (I'm an ABP user too). Option 2 is fine in the short-term, but not in the long-term. So I'm following option 3, which is what many other Web sites have done.

Plus, if you want, you can treat the ad removal system as a donation system. The two work exactly the same, except that one removes ads. So that's why I don't get your solution of donation as a way to allow younger users to contribute since for all intents and purposes, the two systems are the same.

Younger users are less likely to be able to pay for ad removal, but that'd be the same if we were just discussing donating money. As far as ad removal goes, many users have already noted that the ads on YWS are unobtrusive. And for those who are worried about it, please keep in mind that I am not signing up for ad removal for practical reasons.
  





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Mon Jul 14, 2008 5:15 pm
Snoink says...



TN>> Don't worry too much about it. If you allow ads to run on YWS only, you can help support the site, and that will be perfectly fine. The ads are rather unobtrusive anyway, so that's a nice way to give back to YWS. ^^

Also, as a general note, it's rather apparent that younger members wouldn't be able to pay for ad removal services very much, if at all. This is perfectly fine and we don't expect you to pay for these services. Since this is a young writers society, we understand about crazy parents and everything. To you guys, YWS will appear as it always does, without any other things cut off to you. That wouldn't be fair.

This is mostly a question for people who have a couple of dollars to spare and would like to support YWS. Two dollars a month is very cheap... that's less than a fast food meal! Heck, four dollars is about as much as a fast food meal. And any price is much less than a gallon of gas. :P So, for me, a poor college student, this would actually be a low cost way to support YWS, which is something I would like to do. After all, I spend so much time on it... why not give back? Plus! I can stay healthier, because the money I would be spending on a fat cheeseburger would go to YWS. I mean really... how much more awesome could it get?

Also, the reason why the ad removal services is being considered is because right now, the money that comes from the ad fluctuates from month to month, and it's really not very consistent. By allowing people to pay for ad removal, this would make the income more stable. Donations also fluctuate lots, and that really defeats the purpose, lol. In the end, stability is king. :)
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