@Crimson02 I'll have to look into registering at all the clubs and the health tests when it's time. The potential to be a stud is ust something I've been pondering, not sure yet!
I've only read a little about it, but it seems to have less of a Kickstarter feel and more of a fundraising feel. For instance, there's no deadline and money can be withdrawn at any time. I think I'd be much more likely to donate than expect something specific for my money like I do on Kickstarter.
I think if the NASC set up a fund and advertised it on Facebook and their website and even here in a thread, maybe there'd be some little money that could be made. Also, an individual could donate multiple times as their income allows.
Then, breeders could petition NASC for funds in their particular breeding program, decoupling the fundraising from the use of the funds, so no one feels entitled to "rewards" like puppies or upset if an import doesn't work out, since it was a donation. We all know that at the end of the day, the breeder is going to make the best decision for his/her puppies' new homes and likely won't be swayed by who was a donor. If someone wants that sort of control or preference, they should become a breeder themselves and then they can have pick of every one of their litters
Going to be the debbie downer. If you were to do GoFundMe, with no reward type things, I don't think enough money will be gained. There will be some, but lets face it, there will probably be a few people donating $20 or $50 here and there (which anything definitely helps I'm sure!).. A dog is easily $3000+ to import, and all of the big donors would want something out of it (maybe stud service, puppy, co-own, who knows)..
Is there a way to contact NASC to maybe set one up? I think that would be a great idea! Maybe they could advertise it as like a "save the whales" type thing, so it's more about preservation than getting a puppy out of it.
Yeah, I guess I figured big donors would contact a specific breeder directly since getting something out of it requires a contract and/or a relationship. Whereas, this would be to support NASC efforts in general, some of which would go to breeder imports and some to having the Shikoku accepted in additional registries, etc.
ETA: Along the lines of a more public 'Donate!' button, where the community could see the progress. Maybe each campaign is tailored around a specific goal of NASC and even if it's small and takes a while, it would be visible. That transparency would hopefully prompt people donate more and more often, since 'Donate!' buttons are something of a black hole and something with a progress meter is like those huge painted thermometers they have a firehouse and school and church fundraisers that you want to see overflow with monies.
For those willing to donate to the cause, let me talk to Beth and we'll see if we can get a paypal donation button link set up on the homepage of the site.
We're very cautious to provide a means for doing anything like requesting something from our members (and the public in general) without being able to provide tangible evidence of a return on the effort. In this case, the club's been mainly keeping lowkey but there are some news like Saki just finally being assessed as heartworm-free and having a good set of x-rays on hips. On top of that, there's some logistical things we're hashing out with establishing submitting the Shikoku for AKC-FSS so it's a lot of boring organizational stuff. I'm not going to lie, we are trying to get better at updating, but it's nice to read and hear that people are interested in helping.
That GoFundMe thing is a good idea. I mean, yes, it is important to remember that without "rewards" like with kickstarter, people might not be so inclined. I think that very small rewards could still be offered, or at least something tangible, so that people know what their money is going toward.
I think a lot of charities for animal rescue or that do animal "sponsorship" will usually do things like email updates and photos of the animal(s) for sponsors so that they can see what's going on and feel like they're invested, as opposed to simply having flung their money away and knowing nothing about the progress. Even if it was just something as simple as "hey, we used this money to get the dog vaccines! Here's a picture of her happy, healthy face" or "here's a video of us constructing dog houses to home the new dogs we're planning to import" or something, whatever's going on/needs to be done in order to help the project achieve its goals, it would be a good thing I think.
Perhaps for people who donate above a certain amount, something else small could be offered. A thank-you phone call from the recipient. Some kind of special Christmas card "written" by the dog. Perhaps a bumper sticker or a regular sticker if one could be relatively cheaply made/printed.
Frankly I think shikoku preservation is a very small niche in the world and the likelihood of anyone Not-Already-On-This-Forum donating is pretty slim, so why not save the trouble of all this set up with which donation tool and wondering what your incentive or reward might be, and just join NASC, be part of the solution and donate already? I mean, it's silly to make NASC do a lot of busy work just to get the same people who are in this thread to give money- if you are serious about supporting their work, put up!
I think the some of the point of the GoFundMe campaign would be to get the word out. Sure, a lot of the support would probably come from this forum, but it would would be an easy Facebook post away to reach family members and friends who might not have heard about Shikoku, but would be willing to donate a little something. Sort of an ants vs grasshoppers thing (a la Bug's Life). Given more exposure, there could be an exponential acceleration that would outstrip any of our expectations.
However, you're right, it could just be 5 people from the forum would donate $20-50, so somewhere between $100-250 dollars total. That would be sad, but maybe a real possibility. So, then would the NASC representative have spent more than $100-250 of their time signing up, writing up a campaign and withdrawing the money? I don't think so, but maybe I'm optimistic. Will something have been learned at least? Maybe that the campaign or the way it was presented or the push for exposure or something else caused it to fail or that at this moment there isn't enough interest.
I think either way, it would be a valuable experience. I'm pretty sure most of us believe there is merit to the scientific method. It's the reason we have most of the innovations of the last couple millennia. If we don't experiment, we risk stagnation and every experiment, whether we prove our hypothesis or not, has value. At the end of the day, if all we do is pay for someone to be able to take the time off work to shuffle paperwork and get the Shikoku accepted for AKC-FSS, isn't that worth something? I think we just need a tangible goal to rally around.
*End of soapbox rant*
@CrimsonO2 Despite all my talk, I've never done anything like I'm describing, but I'd be willing to learn and set things up, if that's the push this needs. I'd just want to do it under the auspices of the NASC, of course, so if you're interested in me helping out with that, please PM me and we can get the ball rolling.
I like the updates and sticker idea, @Illium! I'm looking at you @WrylyBrindle I know I'd pay $25 for one of your stickers to put on the back of my car in the name of a good cause.
Meh, what I don't like about the GoFundMe site is that they take a chunk in fees from what you donate, so that's something to keep in mind when setting a goal (example if you need $3000, what you'll end up with is $2700 or something).
I really like what NASC is doing, and I feel like its possible to pursue a Gofundme-style fundraiser through NASC. Set up a donation run, have a goal, maybe display how far you are from that goal?
I apologize, I lurk much and post little. But this is good conversation and I am learning a lot. I missed out on the Shikoku calendars, but I am definitely on board if there are stickers hehe :P
We *had* stickers up on the café press (wonder where those ran off to) and the calendars can be adjusted to start next month if you wanted to help now. I will likely do another calendar for 2015 and hopefully it'll be more of a mosaic if I can get more photo submissions from other Shikoku owners.
Just throwing out there that I particularly like updates/newsletter type things. So if you do an on-site donation/fundraiser route, remember to send out updates and personalized thank-yous. Maybe recognize a few random donors each Newsletter. The nice thing with Newsletters / Updates is you can throw in cool little things.. like so many people don't know that if you dog gets stung by a bee you can give them benadryl, or if your dog is over heating / possibly having a heat stroke you can put rubbing alcohol on his paw pads / belly to help cool him off.
Also see if you can get sponsors. I'm sure Shikokus and their owners are usually very active, maybe see if Outward Hound would make you a special coupon code you can send out to club members. For like 20% off or something. Who knows. Worth a shot? :P
@Agilus makes a good point about GoFundMe (and other sites like it) taking a cut of the money. But, I'm wondering: is there any place/way that doesn't? For example, I know that paypal (which I don't think is designed to take charitable donations? I'm not sure, if anyone has more experience with them let me know, but I'd heard of people having their charity stuff shut down through paypal because of the potential for scams) takes a cut of money every time I make a payment to someone, and it either comes out my end or the recipient's. If something like GFM was deemed a good experiment to try, then we'd want to make sure a service was selected that would take the smallest cut.
I'm also digging @omgtrain's idea about the newsletter. Even if it's something done quickly once a month or once every month, it would be a great thing. You want to build up a rapport with donors to encourage them to donate more and to see value in the project. If you did a small Q and A thing every once and a while, too, that would give people a chance to really see the individual people behind the organization as well as learn more about dogs and the shikoku, and I think *all* of these are valuable things. I'm not a professional, but I do a lot of bumbling around with (a legal version of) Photoshop and I'd be happy to donate some time to make graphics for free for something like this. I also draw/paint on the computer and I can't swear that I'm the best artist, but maybe I could draw up something nice to help offer as some kind of enticement for donators. The sponsors thing would be excellent too. I wonder how people manage to persuade companies to match donations. Or... well, I imagine that some/many people wouldn't like it because the breed is in such a condition and needs to be handled carefully and not turned into a media circus, and maybe it is barking up the wrong tree to even suggest it, but it's a shame that we don't have anyone with a "name" to the cause. George R.R.Martin did a campaign recently for a wolf sanctuary in AZ and helped them raise some serious amounts of money by offering incentives to fans of his.
@Crimson02 I would be interested in a 2015 calendar if/when you produce it.
@Ilium. Sign up at shikokuclub.org to be part of the mailing list there. Members (there's no membership fee right now) get first notice of submissions for pictures when I start the calendar up again.
Comments
@Crimson02 I'll have to look into registering at all the clubs and the health tests when it's time. The potential to be a stud is ust something I've been pondering, not sure yet!
I've only read a little about it, but it seems to have less of a Kickstarter feel and more of a fundraising feel. For instance, there's no deadline and money can be withdrawn at any time. I think I'd be much more likely to donate than expect something specific for my money like I do on Kickstarter.
I think if the NASC set up a fund and advertised it on Facebook and their website and even here in a thread, maybe there'd be some little money that could be made. Also, an individual could donate multiple times as their income allows.
Then, breeders could petition NASC for funds in their particular breeding program, decoupling the fundraising from the use of the funds, so no one feels entitled to "rewards" like puppies or upset if an import doesn't work out, since it was a donation. We all know that at the end of the day, the breeder is going to make the best decision for his/her puppies' new homes and likely won't be swayed by who was a donor. If someone wants that sort of control or preference, they should become a breeder themselves and then they can have pick of every one of their litters
If you were to do GoFundMe, with no reward type things, I don't think enough money will be gained. There will be some, but lets face it, there will probably be a few people donating $20 or $50 here and there (which anything definitely helps I'm sure!).. A dog is easily $3000+ to import, and all of the big donors would want something out of it (maybe stud service, puppy, co-own, who knows)..
Maybe they could advertise it as like a "save the whales" type thing, so it's more about preservation than getting a puppy out of it.
ETA: Along the lines of a more public 'Donate!' button, where the community could see the progress. Maybe each campaign is tailored around a specific goal of NASC and even if it's small and takes a while, it would be visible. That transparency would hopefully prompt people donate more and more often, since 'Donate!' buttons are something of a black hole and something with a progress meter is like those huge painted thermometers they have a firehouse and school and church fundraisers that you want to see overflow with monies.
Here is link to the North American Shikoku Club. There is a contact us page.
http://www.shikokuclub.org/index.php
Saki is shikoku clubs recent import coarse it's in OCT 2014, but better then nothing.
http://blog.shikokuclub.org/
Checking here there is sometimes shikoku pups or adults in need of a home.
http://nihonken.blogspot.com/
Jesse
I think a lot of charities for animal rescue or that do animal "sponsorship" will usually do things like email updates and photos of the animal(s) for sponsors so that they can see what's going on and feel like they're invested, as opposed to simply having flung their money away and knowing nothing about the progress. Even if it was just something as simple as "hey, we used this money to get the dog vaccines! Here's a picture of her happy, healthy face" or "here's a video of us constructing dog houses to home the new dogs we're planning to import" or something, whatever's going on/needs to be done in order to help the project achieve its goals, it would be a good thing I think.
Perhaps for people who donate above a certain amount, something else small could be offered. A thank-you phone call from the recipient. Some kind of special Christmas card "written" by the dog. Perhaps a bumper sticker or a regular sticker if one could be relatively cheaply made/printed.
However, you're right, it could just be 5 people from the forum would donate $20-50, so somewhere between $100-250 dollars total. That would be sad, but maybe a real possibility. So, then would the NASC representative have spent more than $100-250 of their time signing up, writing up a campaign and withdrawing the money? I don't think so, but maybe I'm optimistic. Will something have been learned at least? Maybe that the campaign or the way it was presented or the push for exposure or something else caused it to fail or that at this moment there isn't enough interest.
I think either way, it would be a valuable experience. I'm pretty sure most of us believe there is merit to the scientific method. It's the reason we have most of the innovations of the last couple millennia. If we don't experiment, we risk stagnation and every experiment, whether we prove our hypothesis or not, has value. At the end of the day, if all we do is pay for someone to be able to take the time off work to shuffle paperwork and get the Shikoku accepted for AKC-FSS, isn't that worth something? I think we just need a tangible goal to rally around.
*End of soapbox rant*
@CrimsonO2 Despite all my talk, I've never done anything like I'm describing, but I'd be willing to learn and set things up, if that's the push this needs. I'd just want to do it under the auspices of the NASC, of course, so if you're interested in me helping out with that, please PM me and we can get the ball rolling.
I like the updates and sticker idea, @Illium! I'm looking at you @WrylyBrindle
I really like what NASC is doing, and I feel like its possible to pursue a Gofundme-style fundraiser through NASC. Set up a donation run, have a goal, maybe display how far you are from that goal?
I apologize, I lurk much and post little. But this is good conversation and I am learning a lot. I missed out on the Shikoku calendars, but I am definitely on board if there are stickers hehe :P
http://www.cafepress.com/northamericanshikokuclub
Thank you,
Jesse
The nice thing with Newsletters / Updates is you can throw in cool little things.. like so many people don't know that if you dog gets stung by a bee you can give them benadryl, or if your dog is over heating / possibly having a heat stroke you can put rubbing alcohol on his paw pads / belly to help cool him off.
Also see if you can get sponsors. I'm sure Shikokus and their owners are usually very active, maybe see if Outward Hound would make you a special coupon code you can send out to club members. For like 20% off or something. Who knows. Worth a shot? :P
@Agilus makes a good point about GoFundMe (and other sites like it) taking a cut of the money. But, I'm wondering: is there any place/way that doesn't? For example, I know that paypal (which I don't think is designed to take charitable donations? I'm not sure, if anyone has more experience with them let me know, but I'd heard of people having their charity stuff shut down through paypal because of the potential for scams) takes a cut of money every time I make a payment to someone, and it either comes out my end or the recipient's. If something like GFM was deemed a good experiment to try, then we'd want to make sure a service was selected that would take the smallest cut.
I'm also digging @omgtrain's idea about the newsletter. Even if it's something done quickly once a month or once every month, it would be a great thing. You want to build up a rapport with donors to encourage them to donate more and to see value in the project. If you did a small Q and A thing every once and a while, too, that would give people a chance to really see the individual people behind the organization as well as learn more about dogs and the shikoku, and I think *all* of these are valuable things. I'm not a professional, but I do a lot of bumbling around with (a legal version of) Photoshop and I'd be happy to donate some time to make graphics for free for something like this. I also draw/paint on the computer and I can't swear that I'm the best artist, but maybe I could draw up something nice to help offer as some kind of enticement for donators. The sponsors thing would be excellent too. I wonder how people manage to persuade companies to match donations. Or... well, I imagine that some/many people wouldn't like it because the breed is in such a condition and needs to be handled carefully and not turned into a media circus, and maybe it is barking up the wrong tree to even suggest it, but it's a shame that we don't have anyone with a "name" to the cause. George R.R.Martin did a campaign recently for a wolf sanctuary in AZ and helped them raise some serious amounts of money by offering incentives to fans of his.
@Crimson02
I would be interested in a 2015 calendar if/when you produce it.
Jesse