I thinks Sways needs sponsors on top of the Google ads etc. Im thinking Fiberglass Hawaii, 3M, or maybe their competitors. I would think a blank manufacturer would want a presence. I’d model the forum format after Bloody Decks. They seem to be very successful. I joined sways along time ago so I don’t remember if I was forced to sign up. Bloody Decks only allows a few free views and will block you until you register. After that they can advertise you directly relevant content. Registered users matter
I just went through a hassle trying to post a link to Bloody Decks. Couldn’t pate the link in the Special paste box. Then I had to hit the back button and lost my last paragraph. Shit like that has to be fixed.
My previous comment was based on the tendency for certain parties to engage in ad hominems. That is always the sign of a weak mind and a failed argument.
Do you have good analytics for the site? What do the current statistics look like? How many active users are there and how many unique site visits is the site getting?
I honestly can’t see people paying to use this forum. You’d probably immediately lose 80% of those still active because they don’t want to attach a credit card to be charged.
Regarding the paid model, think of the old Photobucket website. They switched it to a paid website and like most I abandoned it when they started asking for money even though I had thousands of photos hosted there.
I have great analytics going back to 2005. GA doesn’t use “unique visits” any more and have replaced/rolled it up into Active users. Since January 1, 2022 there’s been an average of 1,100 active users per day on the site. It’s been ramping up quickly since Aug 1 and is close to 2k per day right now. Not sure why.
Alot of good comments and suggestions in this thread, many getting to the meat of things…and I like it.
First let’s start with the bare facts:
As of today (and for many years), I've been loosing money on Swaylock's.
I've made up my mind (for both practical and personal reasons) I can't do that any longer.
At this juncture, I have very little time or resources to dedicate to this. That could change.
I see two options on how to move forward: Shut down the site and move on or figure out how to keep this thing up an running for the short-to-medium term and worry about bigger things down the road.
Let’s unpack Option 2 a bit keeping in mind number points 1-3 above.
The goal here is tweaking things just enough to generate income to cover costs plus a little wiggle room. As of now, in my opinion, the simplest tweak is to set up a Patreon and hope for enough donations to flow per-month to meet this cost. I’m figuring something on order of $500-$1000/month. If I went this path, I would give it one month and if I can’t meet those numbers, I would pull the plug.
This path assumes ZERO improvements, changes, upgrades, to the functionality of the site. It’s just to keep the lights on and this jalopy running.
Looking forward, stemming the blood loss in this way will buy some time to evaluate options for improvements to the site. I think there’s a much larger opportunity, both financially and culturally, that Swaylock’s can (and should) evolve into. I have many ideas around what can & should be done but all of them involve considerable expense and a wholesale re-imagination of the site.
Gotta get over this first hurdle before we tackle the bigger issues…
Seems like a lot of potential here, but all the logical options involve work, time & $$. Hoping for the best, but regardless what happens, happy to have been a part. IMO Swaylocks has earned its page in surfboard history.
I’m new on swaylocks. Maybe i’m not the most indicated to give recomendations but i neither don’t want that swaylock push the buton. English is not my language but I’ll try to add a couple of alternatives to what already was posted. One example i take is from a cinema forum. They make founds compaigns along all the year, until get what the site requires to work (similar to partreon idea but without the one-month dead limit). Another way to cover the costs could be to make a swaylocks youtube channel and post videos with the agreement of users who make them. Another option is to have an own server. This requires some linux distros and a little help from informatical users… Is what i can add in this moment.
If you need 1000$/month to keep this free forum alive, more to upgrade it, I think you should shut down the light and close the door. Then we could said: Swaylocks.com was a part of history of surfboard shaping where many guys learn to DiY boards helping birth of diy surfboards industrie… That killed swaylocks. Everything coming and going, that’s life no?
Last question you must ask yourself is if you want/can let an open source database?
I bet guys suck data know, some hoping to do a business with them.
What would the cost per month be just to keep it as a static site/reference library.
It would be a shame to see all the collective effort and sharing of knowledge just disappear, I think sways is an important part of surfing culture.
I contributed quite alot to the Trea to Sea wooden surfboard forum and it was a real bummer when it diappeared, in an ideal world it should of stayed a static site.
Maybe some sort of shareholder system say $10 per year, from my point of view if I made a small contribution I would feel more connected to Sways and therefore visit more and be inspired to contribute more often.
Mike- I’m really sorry to hear about your situation, but I fully understand it. I haven’t been active on the site for some time (life got in the way & board building took a back seat) and the last year or so has me in a similar situation financially facing the same type of questions you are facing. My business is commercial construction in a somewhat rural area & the combination of the pandemic & now the inflation from the current geopolitical enviroment has absolutely decimated my business.On top of that, I hurt my back last march & haven’t been in the water since (making me very grumpy). So, I’m facing the same questions as you on what to do: close the business & work for someone else; try to expand with marketing (website? radio & or tv ads?); or retire.
I realize that this site has been “a labor of love” , but everyone has a right to make money for their work. If your not making money & this is becoming too burdensome, then you should close it down (i hate to admit this because I use it when I’m building a new board & find it very helpful).
Playing “devils advocate” for a minute though, do you think that membership will drop off drastically if this becomes a “pay to play” site? I don’t know how many of the members are true amateur “garage board building hacks” like me, but I would think that a majority of them would probably not pay a subscription if they’re only using the site periodically.
If you do decide to “close up shop”, I hope there is way for us to to download our messages beforehand. I know that I have some important information & advice from the friends I’ve developed on this site like BB30 & Stoneburner & others who have generously shared their knowledge with me.
My advice is simple… Do what you need to to be happy… If it’s a burden, let it go… You have no obligation to anyone other than you and your family… Archive what has already been contributed, if you can… The other options you mentioned seem to me to be bailing out a sinking boat… You owe no one an explanation of your decision making… BTW, I’m going to let my website expire, it had it’s time, it was an amazing adventure, but it’s time has passed… No regrets, only smiles when I think of the seeds that were planted… You should feel that way too… It’s part of your legacy, be very proud of that …!!!..
If Mike is considering turning out the lights, and walking away, alot of valuable information and history will be lost. Not to mention Mike’s legacy to surfboard culture. Why not hand it off to one or more individuals that will ‘‘shoulder the burden’’ of carrying ‘‘Swaylock’s’’ forward? Seems to me, that’s a better solution, than giving all the contributers the finger, and killing the site. The archive is valuable, perhaps not in a monetary sense, but in a cultural sense as it relates to surfboard/surfing history. Anyone?
I just got back from tha annual Swaylocks Campout at Plaskett Creek in Big Sur this week. Attending were some of the old guard. The guys who used to contribute with build threads. The guys who carried the stoke here. The guys who made swaylocks famous. The guys who have been coming to the campout for 20 years and were here from the beginning.
The guys who don’t post anymore.
The ending of the website was discussed.
Guess what the guys who made swaylocks great said?
It was pretty much universally agreed. It was what I said before. The guys who actually created the content got sick of arguing with, and watching arguments between, the guys who didn’t create content. Other than Bill T and Huck, I don’t think there is an active user who has ever done a build thread. I might be missing Reverb. He did one a long time ago.
Without content, nobody is going to pay to use this site. And the thought of us old guard paying you money so we can teach othrs how to build a board… I’m kind by saying that was met with eye rolls and polite chuckling.
Muting negativity and publishing good content is the only thing that’s going to help.
Other than that, pull the plug and spend that money on yourself.
That is something that does not interest me. If I have a legacy, it is that I have mentored several individuals in thier development as surfboard builders. Just as I was mentored by several Water Men of my era. Nothing more.
