vendor discount section

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maxwell_smart007

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Just wondering about one thing:

In the future, should the vendor discount area be just for vendors who donate a prize to the Bash? I always envisioned it as such.

I notice that Constant has a discount in there - and while I like the idea of getting as many discounts to the members as possible, it's essentially piggybacking off of the vendors who did donate...

Just wondering what others thought of this, and whether it's something to think about for next year.

Andrew
 
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Brooks803

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I thought it was a bit weird to see it this morning. Not to mention his discount itself is odd to begin with since 95% of his stuff is made in USA, lol.

If it's too late to install this year I'd remember to keep it to donation vendors only for next year. Bc isn't this something they'd have to pay to put in an ad otherwise?
 

mbroberg

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I think we have to ask ourselves what the purpose of the Vendor Discounts Forum during the BASH is. Why do we have it? Is it intended to be a money maker for the IAP or is it intended to facilitate discounts to IAP members. Personally I like to see as many discounts as possible during the BASH. I am somewhat disappointed that there are not more vendors offering discounts. Maybe it is my imagination, I haven't gone back and looked, but I think we have fewer discounts offered this year. Having the discounts enhances the party atmosphere that we try to achieve.
I generally stay out of the discussions about advertising. I will say that I would prefer advertising be 100% free during the BASH. In my opinion, not withstanding the Donation Drawing, the BASH is about the members, not the financial support of the IAP. The month of February is all about letting the members know that we appreciate them. One of the ways that can be done is by allowing and encouraging vendors to offer as many discounts as possible. Of course that is easy for me to say, I have no idea what type of yearly budget it takes to run this place. Nor do I know how much money we have in the bank.
 

jeff

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The mechanics of vendor discounts are something we can discuss next year, but the overall philosophy of the Bash is that it's for the members. So, whether or not a vendor wants to provide prizes, any discounts they offer are good for the members. Certainly they make money on the stuff they sell, and perhaps there's some fee we could extract, but I don't think it's necessary. We can "look the other way" for one month while vendors advertise for free as long as they're doing something good for members. As far as being a no-win for IAP, my macroeconomic view is that good vendor discounts give people extra money to buy a mug :biggrin:
 

maxwell_smart007

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Sounds good - my view wasn't to charge them, but to reward the vendors by giving them a free section to provide the members with discounts.

Just didn't like the freeloading of the vendor who deliberately didn't donate, but still used the free ad space.
 

MesquiteMan

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Out of curiosity, why didn't Constant donate this year?

Oh yeah, I am happy with leaving it as it is where any vendor can give a discount.
 
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