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moderated Group Sponsorships #update
Mark,,
I upgraded my 2,000 member list from Basic, two weeks ago. Unfortunately I paid for the first year with my credit card on file and then activated sponsorship, not knowing the level of list support I would receive, I had told my list this would be done before the 18th. And after the special notice went out I started getting a lot of sponsors. I then realized that I should have activated the sponsor feature a day before the upgrade. AS it was I received enough sponsors for two more years of Premium subscription. Within an hour of the upgrade I sent out a second notice to the list that they could donate to me using Paypal to reimburse me for the first year Premium fees. within eight hours Paypal donations had paid for the initial upgrade and I asked Paypal donations to stop. Most donations were between $5 and $25, only two higher. I got 17 contributions thru Paypal in eight hours and 34 thru the sponsorship function in 48 hours at which I had funds for three years and disabled the sponsorship function. Several subscribers who had pledged earlier to contribute complained that the Paypal donation ended before they learned of the request. Two lessons learned. First the Sponsorship function works effectively, just if you have a Basic list, turn it on BEFORE you upgrade. Two Even though the Paypal donations were more complicated to make and did not directly add to the funds on hand, they came in faster and in larger amounts. PAYPAL should be added to the sponsorship funds collection function. ken clark Jan 14 #27914
On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 11:05 AM Samuel Murrayy <samuelmurray@...> wrote:
On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 07:22 PM, Mark Fletcher wrote: Oh, err, you're right.
What is a reason why people must be registered with Groups.io to use that button? Why can't non-members sponsor a group? And is there a specific reason why such people can't sponsor via e.g. PayPal? They need an account with Groups.io to sponsor a group because the payment mechanism uses existing code that requires a Groups.io account. I don't see that as a serious impediment. If you're interested in a group, you probably have a Groups.io account anyways.
I haven't added Paypal because the last time I looked at Paypal, their API was a mess and it made me feel dumb because I couldn't figure it out. I think their API has changed over the last few years; I will work up the courage to look at it again at some point.
Mark
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On Fri, Jan 15, 2021 at 12:01 PM SP4149 <ken@...> wrote:
The funds do not disappear if you uncheck the allow sponsorships checkbox in settings. All that does is cause the Sponsor button on the home page to disappear. The funds will continue to be used to pay for hosting fees. Hope this helps. Mark
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Since I set up the Sponsorship as art of an upgrade to Premium decision, paid for a year with credit card on file, all sponsorship contributions are thus going into a reserve.
After an hour the list has in reserve 75% of the cost for the next year starting in 2022. I expect in the next couple of hours to have in reserve the funds necessary for paying for another year starting Jan 2022. How do you suspend sponsorship when you have reached full funding for the next year? If I disable sponsorship in Settings, do the reserve funds disappear? Is there a method to suspend sponsorship until the reserve needs to be increased to cover a full year's funding? In retrospect I should have upgraded to Premium for only a month, collected sponsorship funds in reserve for enough for a full year and then paid for a full year from reserve funds. lesson learned. But since i had enough pledges of Support to pay for four year of Premium, I don't want to collect that much to leave in reserve for four years. ken clark
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Sandi D <sandi.asgtechie@...>
I activated the Sponsorship for my legacy groups. There is nothing for any of them to gain at this time by upgrading to a Premium group. However I do want to allow myself and the group members an opportunity to show their appreciation to GIO for hosting the legacy groups I have joined and those I have created.
-- Sandi Dickenson
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Mark, I really like this new "sponsorship" option. In my large/active premium (hobbyist) group, I had no difficulty getting contributors for the annual fee at renewal time, but going through PayPal to my individual account was not ideal. I did not want to set up a Stripe account in order to use the previous donation function. My smaller groups do not need premium functions, but it is nice that individuals can make donations there if they wish. And optional "donations" to a particular group or groups should be more palatable to my members, vs paying the GIO organization per se just to come through the door, even if only a small yearly amount.
I also appreciate the fact that GIO is absorbing the processing fees, which makes things much more simple. If needed, my large "legacy" group would likely be willing to _voluntarily_ pay a higher amount. An additional "donation" if you will, in addition to the billed rate. I do hope that there are enough new groups that "grandfathering" does not need to be phased out. Linda N
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Niman H
I agree with you, although I did not realize they were absorbing the cost until now. Just need to clarify things for the members of my group, who are wary of "new" things. Thank you.
Nancy
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 01:20 PM, Niman H wrote:
So the funds accumulated stay in the group account. What happens to them if a group closes?Sponsorships are non-refundable, and on that basis I assume any funds remaining for a now-defunct group will be forfeited to groups.io (and in fact, may have already been spent). Given that GIO is absorbing the Stripe processing cost of each such transaction, I really have no problem with that. Regards, Bruce
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 2:28 PM Annick Phillips <annick@...> wrote: On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 01:24 PM, Mark Fletcher wrote: All of it. Mark
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 01:24 PM, Mark Fletcher wrote:
Mark, Will the entire $10 donation amount be credited to the group for the group's maintenance, or the net amount that you will receive after Stripe takes their piece? Annick
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 11:05 AM Samuel Murrayy <samuelmurray@...> wrote: On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 07:22 PM, Mark Fletcher wrote: Oh, err, you're right. What is a reason why people must be registered with Groups.io to use that button? Why can't non-members sponsor a group? And is there a specific reason why such people can't sponsor via e.g. PayPal? They need an account with Groups.io to sponsor a group because the payment mechanism uses existing code that requires a Groups.io account. I don't see that as a serious impediment. If you're interested in a group, you probably have a Groups.io account anyways. I haven't added Paypal because the last time I looked at Paypal, their API was a mess and it made me feel dumb because I couldn't figure it out. I think their API has changed over the last few years; I will work up the courage to look at it again at some point. Mark
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Lynne
Thanks, Andy, there must be a bit of a delay. I checked moments ago and it wasn't there and now it is.
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Lynne wrote:
It's a new button rather than a notice that appears on the homepage.
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 07:22 PM, Mark Fletcher wrote:
I tested this, and: it does show up in my test group. However, when I click it, I'm asked to log in or sign up. What is a reason why people must be registered with Groups.io to use that button? Why can't non-members sponsor a group? And is there a specific reason why such people can't sponsor via e.g. PayPal? Samuel
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 8:03 AM Niman H <nimanh2000@...> wrote: Great idea to add this option. What fees are charged by Stripe? Our members will want to know. Is it per transaction or a percentage? No fees are added to the amount the person chooses to sponsor. That is, if someone chooses to sponsor the group for $10, then $10 will be charged to their credit card. The credit card processing fees are taken out from that amount. Mark
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 8:03 AM Lynne <lklein@...> wrote: The sponsorship was turned on for one of my free groups, but I don't see any notice on the group's home page. I double-checked that I had confirmed the group change as well as logged off and then viewed the home page. Still no notice. Am I doing something wrong or does it take a while for the sponsorship blurb to appear on the home page? I checked your Lancsgen group, and the button shows up for me. It will not show up if you are logged out of Groups.io completely. Mark
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Niman H
Thank you Duane.
So the funds accumulated stay in the group account. What happens to them if a group closes? Nancy
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 10:03 AM, Niman H wrote:
What fees are charged by Stripe?The standard Stripe fees are 2.9% + 30 cents (same as Paypal) and are deducted from the payment. A $5 sponsorship should net $4.55 to GIO. Duane
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On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 04:03 PM, Lynne wrote:
but I don't see any notice on the group's home page.It's a new button rather than a notice that appears on the homepage. Andy
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Niman H
Great idea to add this option. What fees are charged by Stripe? Our members will want to know. Is it per transaction or a percentage?
Nancy
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Lynne
The sponsorship was turned on for one of my free groups, but I don't see any notice on the group's home page. I double-checked that I had confirmed the group change as well as logged off and then viewed the home page. Still no notice. Am I doing something wrong or does it take a while for the sponsorship blurb to appear on the home page?
Thanks! Lynne
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Joseph Hudson
Oh thanks Mark, I think that this will be a definite good deal.
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On Jan 13, 2021, at 12:05 PM, Mark Fletcher <markf@corp.groups.io> wrote:
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