K=D8HB wrote:

.. . . .


Obviously a lot of this proposal needs a great deal of "fleshing out"
and
refinement, but I present it in the spirit of a "topic for
discussion". I'm
sure that the minds gathered here will not be bashful about improving
my PBI.

All warm and fuzzy good Hans but it's another OF's top-down
"reorganizational solution" which I don't see would work any better
than it's predecessors.

The League needs to recognize/concede that it has a serious marketing
problem and address the problem the same way other businesses do in
these situations. They have a product line which isn't selling to a
large sector of their potential buyers. Why? Nobody actually knows. And
nobody will know until the League finds out why the Techs aren't buying
their wares.

Well-run businesses tackle this problem via market research and the
League needs to do a bunch of long-overdue bottom-up market research as
a first step if they expect to get any more real penetration into their
Tech market.

The League should go out into the trenches in volume and, for openers,
start asking all the Techs who are not ARRL members why they aren't
members and what the League needs to do to pry the forty bucks a year
out of them. Then properly analyze the results of the surveys and make
the appropriate changes in their product line. Shuffling SM's duties
around and talking up ham radio to the town burghers, etc., etc. as
"potential solutions" would drive a real marketeer to tears of
laughter. =20

73, de Hans, K0HB

w3rv

wrote:

The League needs to recognize/concede that it has a serious marketing
problem and address the problem the same way other businesses do in
these situations. They have a product line which isn't selling to a
large sector of their potential buyers. Why? Nobody actually knows.
And
nobody will know until the League finds out why the Techs aren't
buying
their wares.

Here's one big reason:

The League is a *national* organization. Focused mostly on national,
international, and regional issues, and not so much local ones.

Now if a ham's focus and interest are national or international, the
League can have a lot to offer. But at the local level, how much the
ARRL can offer someone depends entirely on who the local folks are.

As a prime example, look at QST. How much of it is devoted to purely
local stuff? Not much - the mag would have to be huge to cover ever
locality in any depth at all. So why should someone whose main interest
in amateur radio is the folks within, say, 50 miles, shell out $40/yr
for a membership?

73 de Jim, N2EY

wrote:
wrote:

The League needs to recognize/concede that it has a serious
marketing
problem and address the problem the same way other businesses do in
these situations. They have a product line which isn't selling to a
large sector of their potential buyers. Why? Nobody actually knows.
And
nobody will know until the League finds out why the Techs aren't
buying
their wares.

Here's one big reason:

The League is a *national* organization. Focused mostly on national,
international, and regional issues, and not so much local ones.

Hmmmm? Why have they formed Divisions and Sections, ARES and NTS?

Now if a ham's focus and interest are national or international, the
League can have a lot to offer. But at the local level, how much the
ARRL can offer someone depends entirely on who the local folks are.

As a prime example, look at QST. How much of it is devoted to purely
local stuff? Not much - the mag would have to be huge to cover ever
locality in any depth at all. So why should someone whose main
interest
in amateur radio is the folks within, say, 50 miles, shell out $40/yr
for a membership?

73 de Jim, N2EY

The ARRL has made an effort to get web pages up for each division and
section. That is the method they use of distributing regional and
local information.

wrote:
wrote:

The League needs to recognize/concede that it has a serious
marketing
problem and address the problem the same way other businesses do in
these situations. They have a product line which isn't selling to a
large sector of their potential buyers. Why? Nobody actually knows.
And
nobody will know until the League finds out why the Techs aren't
buying
their wares.

Here's one big reason:

The League is a *national* organization. Focused mostly on national,
international, and regional issues, and not so much local ones.

Now if a ham's focus and interest are national or international, the
League can have a lot to offer. But at the local level, how much the
ARRL can offer someone depends entirely on who the local folks are.

Which is almost entirely a function of the quality of the leadership of
the local clubs and the time and effort they have available to put into
the clubs. Which the League can't control or do anything about no
matter how they reshuffle the organization and event charts in
Newington. Beyond that the facts are that the League has only managed
to sign up ~20% of all licensees in this country nocodes thru 20wpm
Extras and some uncounted huge number of those aren't members of local
clubs either. There's nothing new about any of it, this whole topic
area has been massaged into oblivion many times in the past and it'll
come up again after this minor cycle of angst peters out.

As a prime example, look at QST. How much of it is devoted to purely
local stuff? Not much - the mag would have to be huge to cover ever
locality in any depth at all. So why should someone whose main
interest
in amateur radio is the folks within, say, 50 miles, shell out $40/yr
for a membership?

That question has already been answered by a several hundred thousand
zipped-up wallets.

Don't get me wrong though. I'm quite firmly convinced that the ARRL can
and needs to boost it's support amongst the Techs but I'll stick with
my proposal vs. Hans' proposal.

73 de Jim, N2EY

w3rv

wrote

I'll stick with my proposal vs. Hans' proposal.

Is there a copy of your proposal that I can point my browser at? I'd be
interested in your view.

73, de Hans, K0HB

K=D8HB wrote:
wrote

I'll stick with my proposal vs. Hans' proposal.

Is there a copy of your proposal that I can point my browser at? I'd
be
interested in your view.

Oh fer chrissake, spare me will you Master Chief SIR, I clearly stated
that the ARRL should engage in a business-like market research effort
to find out how to connect with the non-member Techs rather than go off
on your fuzzy tangent. =20
=20
73, de Hans, K0HB

w3rv

KØHB wrote:
wrote


I'll stick with my proposal vs. Hans' proposal.


Is there a copy of your proposal that I can point my browser at? I'd be
interested in your view.

He kind of gave it, Hans. Hire a marketing firm.

My concern is that Marketing firms tend to work to the lowest common
denominater. Not what we need.

Marketing is what gave us Ketchup that you can't get out of a bottle
(Thicker!.... Richer!) and milkshakes that you have to eat with
jackhammer....


- Mike KB3EIA -

wrote:

As a prime example, look at QST. How much of it is devoted to purely
local stuff? Not much - the mag would have to be huge to cover ever
locality in any depth at all. So why should someone whose main interest
in amateur radio is the folks within, say, 50 miles, shell out $40/yr
for a membership?

I think that was a big part of Hans' point, Jim. 8^)

- MIke KB3EIA -

The League is a *national* organization. Focused mostly on national,
international, and regional issues, and not so much local ones.

Now if a ham's focus and interest are national or international, the
League can have a lot to offer. But at the local level, how much the
ARRL can offer someone depends entirely on who the local folks are.

As a prime example, look at QST. How much of it is devoted to purely
local stuff? Not much - the mag would have to be huge to cover ever
locality in any depth at all. So why should someone whose main interest
in amateur radio is the folks within, say, 50 miles, shell out $40/yr
for a membership?


There is a lot of "generic" local stuff the ARRL could
deal in. Doing a parade or county fair in Cowville, North
Nebraska won't be that different than the parade or county
fair in Swampgulch, Alabama. Sure the names are different,
but organizational politics and technical issues with 2 meter
handhelds on the street would be quite similar.

wrote:

The League should go out into the trenches in volume and, for
openers,
start asking all the Techs who are not ARRL members why they aren't
members and what the League needs to do to pry the forty bucks a year
out of them. Then properly analyze the results of the surveys and
make
the appropriate changes in their product line. Shuffling SM's duties
around and talking up ham radio to the town burghers, etc., etc. as
"potential solutions" would drive a real marketeer to tears of
laughter.

w3rv

I just received the reminder that I asked for when my membership is due
to expire. If I make it to Dayton I'll renew. If I don't, I won't. I
almost read last month's QST. I won't miss it.