Fish Land (1 Viewer)

[Guest]

Andy is not a sponsor, as far as I know at this time. A while back, he asked me if I was a Marsh Member, and at that time I was. At that time I think he may have been recruited to be sponsor, but I can't be sure. Andy asked me why he should be a sponsor of a group that I was a member of. I told him honestly, "I don't know, Andy. I'm a member, but I'm not going to drive past your store to shop somewhere that is a sponsor." The reason why? The Marsh discount is a joke. Each time I have pulled the MARSH card out, I was told that I was given the best price/discount included anyway. And I was, save for one time at T'nT when the proprietor told me that the Marsh discount didn't iclude dry goods or RO water. See ya. I don't do business at T'nT anymore, nor should I. I already get the best discounts at Global, Fish Land, or City Pets, without any MARSH card. So I bring this to the BOD, some LFS probably won't tell you, but they tell us, they could give a damn about any Marsh discount. Each of those store owners know what it takes to stay in business, and it's not catering to a reef club, it's giving the best customers the best price and service. Sadly, the few paid members of Marsh don't stack up.


Is there anything we/you can do to change this?

Don't tell me you have a good relationship with the LFS sponsors, because the truth is, you don't.

 

[Guest]

I was going to edit my previous post, but that gets people in trouble.

I would like to add that I am not complaining. I just see a problem and am wondering if there is a solution. I'd like to see all the LFS as sponsors, and I'd like to see a paid Marsh membership in the hundreds, not the dozens. Until Marsh gets the power of numbers, what does Marsh really offer the LFS owner?

I'd like to hear some feedback. Thanks.

 

[Guest]

You bring up some interesting points, however you do not bring up the things that a store gets when they become a sponsor. With sponsorship, a store receives a target audience for advertising. We have a rotating banner at the top of the page that advertises their stores. We also allow sponsors to post specials and sales in the vendor forum if they so chose. Non-sponsors are not allowed to do that. Sponsors also can take advantage of the mailing list to send out a mass mailing to all of the web members that have signed up for it. True, only a couple of stores take full advantage of their posting rights, but it is there fore them should they want to use it. John does, and so does Keith at Aquatic Designs.

True, right now we only have about 60 paid members, but that is growing. Last year we got up to 70, and that took all year. This year we are up to 60, and that is before March. I hope to see our paid membership up to 100 by the end of the year.

We also have 370+ web members, and several guests (not yet web members) that look at this site all the time. That number, too, is growing all the time. Definitely a target advertising audience.

All we ask in return is a discount for MARSH members and a donation of goods once a year to support our raffles (and the stores can get free stuf from the vendors for that so there really is not out of pocket for them).

As far as the discount goes, if you have never received it (when you had a valid MARSH membership card) then you have not been using the card. John at Global will discount more for a MARSH member than a non-member. I had not heard about T&T, but I will be talking with them soon about sponsorship anyway. Aquatic Designs, Aquatic Center, Fish Ranch, Neptune's Garden, and Village Tropical (our other current sponsors) all provide discounts to MARSH members who present a valid membership card. Most of them provide 15%, however Neptune's provides 10% and a "Deep Sea Dollars" card stamp which, when collected, will add up to another ~10% discount.

I talked with Andy about sponsorship, and if he asked someone else about it, it must have been at least a little bit intriguing for him. He did turn us down, but that is his prerogative. I have also been turned down by a few other stores, and there are also some stores that are still contemplating signing up. I hope to hear from them soon.

Currently we have 7 sponsors:

• Aquatic Center
  Aquatic Designs
  Fish Ranch
  Global Fish and Pets
  Neptune's Garden
  T&T Tropical Fish and Reptile
  Village Tropical Fish

We also have 4 others that are contemplating sponsorship:

• Aquatic World
  Planet Fish
  Tropical Fish Depot
  Aquarium Design Group

I am hoping to hear from these places soon. If you are in one of their stores, please say hello from me and say that you heard that they were considering sponsorship.

Thanks.

Jim

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the response, Jim. You bring up some points about benefits to the sponsors that I had not thought of. That's why you are out there selling and I am sitting here asking questions. I'll certainly pass along your sentiments to the non sponsor stores that I frequent and maybe they'll reconsider sponsorship. It may not help, but it can't hurt.

 

[Guest]

I think you bring up two separate questions...
Why should a store sponsor MARSH?
I echo what Jim said and also we ask very little out of these stores in terms of an annual donation of a product. These stores are already going to give out a 10% - 15% discount so I think the as far as the deal goes it is more in favor of the MARSH sponsor
Why should one join MARSH?
I think the 10% - 15% is a weak selling point for membership because most people will already get it. However I usually at least break even on my membership from the raffle. Last year I spent $15 on raffle tickets and got about $60 worth of prizes and I am not a lucky person it just seems like some of the raffles everyone wins.

 

[Guest]

As far as the discount goes, if you have never received it (when you had a valid MARSH membership card) then you have not been using the card.

That's a fair statement, but it brings up a a couple of questions.

If an LFS owner knows that you are a card-carrying Marsh member, do you get a quoted price thats different than the price that's quoted to me, just being a good customer?

Also, if I negotiate a price based upon my relationship with that LFS owner, and then produce a valid Marsh membership card, will that LFS owner then proceed to give me an additional 15% off?

That's the point where I might get uncomfortable.

 

[Guest]

Also, if I negotiate a price based upon my relationship with that LFS owner, and then produce a valid Marsh membership card, will that LFS owner then proceed to give me an additional 15% off?

That's the point where I might get uncomfortable.

If you negotiate a price (non-listed) then that is considered a sale item and therefore not valid for MARSH discount. However, if you go by the posted price, and then produce the card then you will get the discount. If the LFS is a sponsor, typically (although not always) they will give you a better negotiated price if you are a MARSH member than if you are not.

It should be noted that not all LFS will negotiate. I can think of several that will not, although I will not name them here.

Jim

 

[rhane71]

What MARSH needs is for every member to make it clear they are MARSH members. We also need to be asking the owners why they don't support your club. We need to think of it as a mutual relationship. You support me and I support you. We make up a strong purchasing power. The quick one time sales are great for stores but the repeat customers are the best for any business.

I think Polecat is correct when he said our numbers need to increase. We are in the process of setting up more recruitment events this year. Everytime you meet a fellow reefer at a store you should tell them about MARSH. Ask them to visit your website or pick up a brochure. You can tell them about our meeting or anyone of our special events. Best of all you can tell them about all the usefull information available to them even if your not a member.

(back on the subject)
IMO, one of the best selling points is that you can become a better reefer through the club. We save the store owners time by answering those thousand questions everyone has. This saves them time and in reality money. Also, better reef keeping skills equals longivity in this hobby. If you loose hundreds then you are likely to just quit. If you save hundreds you are likely to advance in the hobby and become a repeat customer. Every store owner wants a repeat customer. Not just next week, but next year. This reason alone should be enough for a store to sponsor MARSH.

abran

 

[Cakepro]

Last year we got up to 70, and that took all year.

FWIW, we hit 80 members last year. Up from about 50 members from the previous year. We are fast approaching our 80 member mark...I received three memberships via PayPal just today.

~ Sherri

 

[Guest]

Jim, Abran, thank you both for taking the time to respond. The more information that gets out, the better chances you have of increasing both sponsorship and paid membership.