Thoughts on SELEM 2014 pricing - need input

[buffo]

Hey folks!

OK, I've got the final quote for SELEM 2014. Looks like we're looking at around $2800 to pull it off this year (that includes the venue, the labor, the cafeteria, and a decent estimate of the shirt cost). Adding an extra day to the event definitely bumped the price up!

This is a pretty steep budget (the highest ever), so I'm considering a tiered pricing structure this year, but I'd like to have some feedback first. My thought was to set the registration fee at $75 for those people who register and pay prior to July 1st. And for those who register later than July 1st, the price would increase to $100. (Extra shirts would remain at $20)

We typically have between 33 and 40 registered members in attendance, plus many guests. And in the past, we've always had enough extra funds to pay for things like pizza, drinks, and other niceties while still leaving several hundred dollars left over to donate to PL. I'd like to ensure that we can continue that way, but I'm also sweating the thought of fronting nearly 3 grand in the hope that we make our goal.

So what do you all think about the tiered pricing? I'm hoping it will motivate people to register early, which would help relieve some of the stress of whether we'll make budget or not. Your thoughts?

Adam

PS: Reminder of SELEM 2014 dates... Load-in and setup starts on Wednesday, August 13th at noon. SELEM formally kicks off Thursday, August 14th and runs through Sunday, August 17th.

[Bradfo69]

I'm good with it but... you figure, I'm usually the second person (behind you) to register. I guess the only people that effects are those who may not know until the last minute that they can make it and often, those people are only making it there for less than the entire time. I'm frequently surprised by the number of people who you know darn well are going to attend that wait until the last minute to send in their registration. I don't really see the price increase as being a deterrent that would reduce the number of people that attend. You've held it the same for several years and it's still one of the best values for the dollar in the whole damn hobby.

[SaltyRobot]

I agree. The pricing is fair. Last year was my first year and I totally got my moneys worth plus some. I am down with 75.

[Displaser]

Good idea about the tiered pricing. I'm ready to pay NOW.

Thanks Adam, as always.

[buffo]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I'll be putting up an official SELEM registration thread soon.

Adam

[JohnYayas]

I'm good with it but... you figure, I'm usually the second person (behind you) to register. I guess the only people that effects are those who may not know until the last minute that they can make it and often, those people are only making it there for less than the entire time. I'm frequently surprised by the number of people who you know darn well are going to attend that wait until the last minute to send in their registration. I don't really see the price increase as being a deterrent that would reduce the number of people that attend. You've held it the same for several years and it's still one of the best values for the dollar in the whole damn hobby.

I usually wait until the last minute and typically Saturday is my only full day there but if I went the whole time I think $100 with $75 early registration seems fair.

[dkumpula]

Hey Adam!

You can count on me to pay immediately regardless of the pricing structure. As Brad said, this event is a steal!

David

[BlueFang]

As someone who has never attended a laser event before, this seems totally fair to me - my only problem is that August is a very busy month vacation wise - also, my other hobby (RC Helicopters), has their gigantic annual event in August, but I really want to try and make it to this - it's practically right down the street from me!

[buffo]

Hope you can make it this year! Regarding RC helicopters, there will be a few RC fans in attendance at SELEM this year. I just made the jump to a mini collective pitch bird, and I've been having lots of fun with it. Quad-copters are also pretty popular, and I'm sure you'll see several of them at SELEM.

Adam

[araugh]

I'm hoping to have my first quadrotor built by then so I can join in the fun. I got some of the Syma counter rotating helicopters after SELEM last year and got hooked