All of those things are being done. COA brochures appear at most
shell shows, participating museums, etc. I would think something
more innovative is ripe for trying. Do any of the COA membership
work for non-profit associations? How do you promote your
association with your target audience?
At 05:37 PM 7/27/2010, you wrote:
>Thanks Rich, for sharing some of these ideas
>
>COA has some potentially very easy and inexpensive simple ways to
>cross-promote our hobby and our organization, for example
>
>Could any information on COA be shared via institutions such as the
>Shell Museum on Sanibel? could brochures or other materials at that
>institiution or others give information on organizations or clubs to
>join to learn more about shells? maybe they do that already.
>
>(I dont mean to single out the Bailey Matthews Museum but on a rainy
>day in Sanibel during winter the amount of potential COA members
>going through there must be huge)....
>
>Steve
>
>On 7/27/10, worldwide <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> > Marcus, Bill, and others,
> >
> > COA has many constraints in what it can and cannot do, i.e. auctions, since
> > it is registered with the IRS as a non-profit organization. Not that a
> > cyber-auction is much different than a convention auction other than the
> > logistics, such a venture should not be construed as a business venture. I
> > am not sure the type of IRS non-profit classification COA is registered
> > under, but their are many other complicated tax issues that need to be
> > investigated before such a venture is even discussed.
> >
> > The other point still being missed is that COA is not a Florida
> > organization; there are many members outside of Florida. Again, right from
> > the start, the conventions were to travel across the country to give
> > everyone an opportunity to participate and to find new members. If
> > conventions become confined to Florida, then there is a good
> chance that the
> > Bill Fenzan's of the country might never have an opportunity to learn about
> > COA.
> >
> > I received a private email today from someone who suggested that COA spend
> > more of its monies to go out and promote shell collecting and the
> > organization in other ways. To this person it seems that COA is promoting
> > to those who already know about the organization. I am not in any capacity
> > to know what COA is doing to that end, but just keep saying to
> yourself, COA
> > is a national-international organization. That is how it was founded and I
> > certainly hope that it stays that way. COA tries, but cannot be everything
> > to everyone.
> >
> > And don't forget, if profit is the only modus operandi, then COA's
> > membership will suffer and dwindle in the long run. COA must
> find new blood
> > and nurture closet collectors. It's time COA reinvest in itself
> by promotion
> > through various means country-wide and overseas. The COA Award given at
> > competitive shell shows around the world, the shell conventions so far held
> > within the contiguous 48 states, and of course, the COA magazine are the
> > main-stays in doing that. Maybe its time to investigate other avenues to
> > seek out the uninitiated. With a growth in membership comes the
> > opportunities and funding that COA needs to prosper. Again, the
> closed door
> > policy to make COA more profitable today will hurt it tomorrow.
> >
> > Whew!
> > Rich
> >
> > At 04:39 PM 7/27/2010, you wrote:
> >>
> >> As a collector who buys a lot of shells, I like the ideas that Marcus
> >> offers.
> >>
> >> If high-quality shells are offered on an auction site with proceeds going
> >> to pay for common use space at the next convention, I would be encouraged
> >> to use it. As a caveat, though, I need to say that the shells would have
> >> to be ones I want for my collection. Challenges to this approch would
> >> include: finding a steady supply of shells that are of high quality,
> >> finding the right person or persons to run the operation, and apparent
> >> oversight of the process. The weak links in auction sites are that the
> >> best shells are seldom auctioned and some do not invest in building trust.
> >>
> >> The idea to keep the convention in Florida also has appeal. If the
> >> majority of COA members live in Florida, this make sense. If an
> >> appropriate building is found to house the bourse and other activities, I
> >> would not mind if it was in the same place. As Marcus says, there would
> >> need to be a way for different people to run the convention so the locals
> >> do not get burned out.
> >>
> >> Earlier this year, I attended the Paris Shell Show and the Antwerp Shell
> >> Show. Both have large bourse operations which seemed to me as big as a
> >> COA convention. Perhaps the folks that put on these events can be
> >> consulted for ideas? I was not charged to enter the Paris show, but did
> >> have to pay 2 euros (about $3 at the time) admission in Antwerp. Both of
> >> these events are mainly the bourse, with displays of shells, drawings, and
> >> few other activities. I had a great time at both.
> >>
> >> Bill Fenzan
> >>
> >> Norfolk, Virginia, USA
> >>
> >
> > ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > [log in to unmask] - a forum for informal discussions on molluscs To
> > leave this list, click on the following web link:
> > http://listserv.uga.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=conch-l&A=1 Type your email
> > address and name in the appropriate box and click leave the list.
> > ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>[log in to unmask] - a forum for informal discussions on molluscs
>To leave this list, click on the following web link:
>http://listserv.uga.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=conch-l&A=1
>Type your email address and name in the appropriate box and
>click leave the list.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
[log in to unmask] - a forum for informal discussions on molluscs
To leave this list, click on the following web link:
http://listserv.uga.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=conch-l&A=1
Type your email address and name in the appropriate box and
click leave the list.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
