RadioBanter - View Single Post - Unwritten policy and the intent of the average amateur ...

Bob Brock · February 2nd 07, 10:26 PM posted to rec.radio.amateur.policy

On 2 Feb 2007 04:02:21 -0800, wrote:

On Feb 2, 1:29?am, Bob Brock wrote:
On Thu, 1 Feb 2007 17:44:10 -0500, "Dee Flint"

Then let's discuss ways of improving that growth.

What word is it that you want to get out?

GOOD QUESTION!

That you can talk to people
in foreign lands? hat it is a good hobby for older people who are
shut in to be able to talk to new friends? hat you can use it for
reliable communications with family and friends? ow about the public
service aspects such as SKYWARN and ARIES? his is just a quick list
of things that I can think of because, as I already said, time is kind
of short for me right now and I think that brainstorming is a much
better method. hat's why I suggested it.

Here's my version:

1) Ham radio exists *today*

2) It's very different from other kinds of radio, such as cb, GMRS/
FRS, broadcasting, etc.

3) You can do a wide variety of things with ham radio, including some
that you can't do in other radio services. There are only a few things
you cannot do in ham radio (commercial operation, music.
broadcasting).

4) Ham radio operation requires FCC licensing. Getting a license
requires passing multiple choice tests and making an application to
FCC.

5) Ham radio is essentially "radio for its own sake" - an end in
itself more than a means to an end.

6) One word: FUN!

That's a good list.

What are the competitors to ham radio? MRS, FRS, MURS, cell phones,
CB, etc.? hat are the comparative advantages and disadvantages of
each of these? hy would ham radio be a better choice.

I'd be careful with that one.

I can see comparative advantages for ham radio over all of the ones
that I mentioned.

I think one of the main reasons for lack of growth over the past
several years has been that for a long time now ham radio has been
presented as a sort of "personal radio service", with emphasis on
radio as a means to an end rather than an end in itself. The problem
with that approach is that as soon as a technology appears that also
serves that end, we lose out.

I think that we lose out to inferior services and why we do that is
another thread altogether.

I think that amateur radio will continue to exist only if it
emphasizes how it is unique, rather than how it is similar to other
radio services.

That ham radio is unique is a selling point. It offers benefits that
none of the others have to offer to certain demographics.

Then you could discuss market demographics. hat kind of people might
be interested in ham radio? ow about hunters and fishermen who may
want to be able to talk back people who are out with them? erhaps
people who are interested in off grid living and homesteaders? Perhaps
farmers who want to be able to call back to the house when they are
out in the field? ow about emergency communications like being able
to either call home or get someone else to call home for you when your
car is broke down? his list too could be a lot longer.

The problem is that most of what you describe is about radio as a
means to an end rather than radio for its own sake. FRS, GMRS, and
cell phones can already do most or all of what is written above.

The thing to point out is what amateur radio can do that other radio
services cannot:

- Wide variety of modes and bands
- Homebrew, kit or manufactured equipment, old to new technologies.
- Local, regional, national, international and even space
communications *without* dependence on commercial infrastructure.
- Competition (radiosport)
- Public service communications
- Emergency communications

Thank you. It's a good list.

Once you decide what the demographics are, you could look at what
kinds of media do these people read? can tell you right now, it's
not ham specific magazines such as QST. deas that come to mind,
based on the list that I've provided are the various newsgroups and
list servers that cater to their needs.
agazines that sell to
homesteaders such as Countryside Magazine or Mother Earth.
ll kinds
of hunting and fishing magazines out there. here are a lot of media
outlets tailored to older people and people on a tight budget/fixed
income. ou could also look at organizations publications of specific
groups. his list too is abbreviated.

This is a very good point. Here are some more ideas:

- Ads/articles in boating, camping, RVing and flying magazines
- Highly visible amateur radio exhibits at air shows, town fairs,
parades, etc.
- Community-access cable TV and public radio/TV exposure
- Placement of amateur radio magazines, books and other material in
local schools, particularly middle schools.

Once again, a very good list and one that I agree with.

Two of the barriers to people getting a ham license that I run into
quite a bit are the Morse Code requirement and a lot of people don't
realize that there is a difference between ham and CB. he code
barrier is gone and that is a good lead in as to why someone may want
to consider ham radio even if they had dismissed it at an earlier
time.

I don't think the Morse Code test is the "barrier" that it is often
said to be, but that's
soon to be a moot point.

The code/no-code thing is past us now. I agree that it's time to move
on to potentially productive discussions and get past hurt feelings in
the past. Of course, that's easy for me to say since I elected not to
participate during the battle.

I do think confusion between cb and Amateur Radio has really hurt
growth in Amateur Radio for many years.

Agreed again. This doesn't happen often.

I also think that complete ignorance, or gross misunderstanding, of
the *existence* of Amateur Radio is a continuing problem.

Then someone could look back over the various open discussions and
write an article to be submitted to any of the various media
describing the advantages of ham radio over other methods. eople who
otherwise hadn't considered ham radio as an option for their
particular needs may get a chance to see that it is indeed an option
that would meet a need.

Perhaps - but that method emphasizes "means to an end".

I say the best selling point is that simply going on the air and
making contacts is a heck of a lot of fun. So is designing, building,
testing, fixing and repairing your own radio setup. That's what ham
radio is really all about, isn't it?

It's like trying to sell sailboats instead of motorboats by
emphasizing how a sailboat doesn't need lots of fuel the way a
motorboat does, and is only a bit slower than many motorboats. You may
sell a few sailboats that way, but it's not the best approach IMHO.

The way to sell sailboats is to sell the unique *experience* of
sailboating itself - how it makes you feel, how much fun it is, etc.
Sailing as an end in itself. Some people will "get it", most won't.

Of course most people's motivations to do something are a mix of the
practical and the emotional. So the ultimate goal is to appeal to both
of those, not just the practical.

Agreed and point taken.

It's not only a good chance to promote ham
radio in a media read by someone other than hams, you might make a
little money from it. here are many here with excellent writing
skills who are capable of doing it.

The other option is to take a fatalistic viewpoint that the market is
saturated and growth is impossible. o that, I say that marketing is
everything and right now the vast majority of marketing is keyed
towards those already in ham radio. t's a policy that I disagree
with and if no one else wants to do it, it's something that I will do
alone as soon as time permits. owever, that may be after the current
widow of opportunity created by dropping the code requirement has
passed and that would be truly unfortunate

How something is sold is very important, though. If we sell amateur
radio only by what it can do for your personal communications needs,
we will always be at the mercy of the next technological improvement.

Any technology is at the mercy of technological improvement. I think
that we are using one of ham radio's biggest competitors right now.
The only advantage of ham radio over the Internet is mobility and
price. Otherwise, anything you could imagine doing via radio can be
done here either via newsgroups or IRC.

However, that too is something better left to another thread.