Now that Worldcon has (sadly) come to its 2014 conclusion (fear not! Worldcon will return, like the good Doctor, as itself in different form next year as Sasquan!) and in light of the special FREE!!! (gotta have the exclamations! [see?]) 1 Year Subscriptions extended to members of both Worldcon and this year’s NASFiC, I thought it would be a good idea to remind everyone visiting of a few things that have always been going on but haven’t been talked about much lately. Namely, membership levels.
We’ve established three basic levels of participation for visitors to the website. These are –
VIEWERS
MEMBERS
SUBSCRIBERS
(There are loftier levels of participation, but you have to WORK, and WORK HARD to attain them. They’re positions like Site Admin, Editor, Author, Artist, etc., etc. See our menu items on contributing if you are interested.)
From the beginning we adopted and supported the belief that ALL content on the website would ALWAYS remain free and open to the general public, regardless of who you are, where you come from or what you believe. (Of course that doesn’t mean that the contents are free for copying and distribution; we do this to encourage as many people to visit the site and partake of all we offer right here on the site. Since it is all free, there’s no need to go anywhere else.)
However, there are some differences between the various levels of participation.
Viewers can read, listen and watch all that we offer, but they can’t comment on posts (without registering) or participate in groups. They also won’t be able to receive our forth-coming email newsletter and will only learn about what we’re doing by visiting the site.
Members can comment, can participate in various social activities, will receive the newsletter (after opting in), and, in just a few short days, will be able to construct their very own “Home” page right here on Amazing Stories, populating it with their favorite features, images, links & etc.
Subscribers get all of the above and more: a discount in our store on selected items (we’re working to bring all products in line with that discount), advance notice and access to various materials, “Go to the front of the line” on special offers, exclusive items, free offers (such as a copy of our 88th Anniversary issue in one of several different electronic formats) and whatever else we can think up and pile on.
EVERYONE visiting the site helps us move closer to our goal of returning Amazing Stories as a regularly published, professional magazine for science fiction, fantasy and horror. Members help us more by lending their names & email addresses; Subscribers even more by providing much-needed lucre. (Which no one is paying for yet because we’ve not turned on enough of the Subscriber benefits to justify a fee; those enrolled in our Free Subscription promotion are having their 1 year of subscriber benefits EXTENDED until such time as they can enjoy a full year with benefits.)
The bottom line for the equation is this: the more eyeballs Amazing Stories has, the easier it becomes for us to attract outside advertisers, marketers and other businesses. We’re offering you everything for free in exchange for that support.
Not a bad deal, huh?
Now for the hard sales pitch. Here’s a copy of the fabulous ad that our Art Director, Duncan Long, put together for the Loncon3 (Worldcon) souvenir book:
Do you run or work for a convention (traditional, fan-run convention)? If so, a suitably modified version of the above ad could soon be appearing in YOUR program/souvenir book (or other con-related publication). Convention size does not matter; convention subject does not matter; time-frame does not matter. If you gather FANS together in one place for a weekend of Fannish Delights, we’d like to work with you to help enhance your marketing reach and your value-added offerings. Get in touch.
