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Thanks all,
Some great discussion going on here as usual!
Unlike more traditional media, flexibility and ‘power to the people’ is what the web is all about, and everyone has different preferences and tolerance to ads which is totally fine – ad blockers can be effective for sites that may be deemed to overdo it.
At Flying Solo we see it as our responsibility to adapt to the needs and demands of the community and create a valuable environment to hang out in, while at the same time having a business model that sustains itself long-term. Like free-to-air TV, being shown ads is one way to ‘pay’ for a service, for many this is preferable to a paid subscription (no ads) type idea as you mentioned Matt (food for thought though). And as Scarlett mentioned, there are various other ways to contribute to and support communities.
Ultimately, it’s up to us, Flying Solo, to come up with creative ways to keep the lights on that aren’t just reliant on advertising, which should be just one leg of the stool. Our new membership offerings are part of this!
A bit of a ramble for a Tuesday night
Cheers,
Peter