Patreon for the State of the Hobby

During the course of this survey and it's development, some people have mentioned launching a Patreon page as a way to support the initiative. While I administer the survey out of interest and as a service to those who read the results, I've decided to do just that. The survey is currently financially sustainable out of my pocket, however I'd like to grow this each year and with that comes some opportunity to invest in new platforms.

To that end, while Google Survey is the right price (free), it's not without it's limitations. I've received feedback that some of the questions lack clear or functional responses, something due in part to the Google platform. Others have also shown concern over the hosting of this survey on Google itself, and while I don't share in those concerns, it doesn't make them any less valid.

I'm going start a Patreon as an option for those who would like to financially support this initiative. This survey will always remain non-commercial and I will not accept financial backing from private corporations, advocacy organizations or governmental agencies. The voice and option to support the State of the Hobby remains squarely in the hands of us - the operators and hobbyists who enjoy amateur radio.

If you find the survey results interesting, useful or otherwise important, please considering subscribing to my Patreon campaign. While I don't have any reward tiers or gifts, I may consider having a special thank you section for my patrons in future years.

Graciously Yours,
Dustin N8RMA


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2019 State of the Hobby Survey

Get ready operators - the 2019 State of the Hobby Survey is here! I first want to take a moment to sincerely thank everyone for the fantastic participation in 2018. Our inaugural survey in 2017 found around 600 responses but 2018 came booming in with nearly 3,000 responses, voicing their opinions! A huge shout out to the blog / websites owners, podcast producers and large clubs for taking the time to promote the survey within their respective audiences - I could not have done this without you! If you have not had a chance to see the results from previous years, they are listed here: 2018 2017 The survey started out in 2017 as simple curiosity. While browsing Reddit I began to notice several users posting surveys for highly specific topics. I made sure to participate yet often wondered what the results were. I then decided to host my own survey, to collect the opinions from the community on a variety of topics for comparison over the years. I wanted to ensure I made the r
Read more

2020 State of the Hobby Survey

Greetings fellow operators! First and foremost, I hope everyone is staying healthy out there. The COVID-19 global pandemic has, for better or worse, certainly cause a large amount of change in the world today. While I was originally hoping to release this survey mid-March, due to the pandemic response I was forced to change this up. I trust many others have had to make similar adjustments, so I hope folks understand. That said, the time has come for the survey to be released! I wanted to ensure I could devote the proper amount of time to promoting and administering the survey before I released it. Things have calmed down a bit in my world and I'm ready to do that. If you have not had a chance to see the results from previous surveys, they are available here: 2018 2017 2019 The survey this year is 100% anonymous (which was common feedback I received) and any demographic questions are optional - this data does help me drive better analysis but is completely optional.
Read more

2019 State of the Hobby Results

Image
Radio amateurs have spoken and the results are in! I truly hope you read and enjoy the report below. It represents approximately 120 hours of blood, sweat and tears each spring, donated out of love for amateur radio and a sense of duty to help in some way. Share these results with your clubs, ham friends and family, and most importantly challenge them (and yourself) to use the information to enact positive change. We all know this hobby isn't one we can do solo - it's in our best interest to improve and grow it each and every year. It doesn't have to be a grand gesture either - to quote the greatest movie ever, Contact , starting the marvelous Jodie Foster, "small moves Ellie, small moves". Do something small within your community or club to positively promote the hobby and create that ripple. As always, if you are interested in receiving email updates please subscribe to the blog. The yearly survey, results and information will be posted there and by subscr
Read more