Background information to AGM tiered membership proposal

Peter Harvey · Post by **Peter Harvey** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 1:36 pm

Hi folks
There's some information on the website concerning the proposed AGM resolution concerning tiered membership.
It might be useful for those thinking of attending the AGM at Turweston.

Also, the RAeC still have a few places for anyone thinking of attending the morning seminar on EASA pilot licensing. No need to book, just turn up to Turweston.
Pete

Bill McCarthy · Post by **Bill McCarthy** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 4:18 pm

Peter,
I had been banging on for some time on here about bringing the message of our association to the "general public" and was encouraged by the incentive taken by the Andover strut in getting the Europa into Basingstoke. Do you have any details of the numbers that this display attracted into the LAA.

Peter Harvey · Post by **Peter Harvey** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 5:24 pm

Hi Bill
I don't have exact figures. It's often difficult to quantify the metrics for marketing events. We don't have a 'Lite' membership offering and we don't have a technique to seperate out memebrship applications from where folks hear about us. We do ask, but the response is variable.

The strut reported back with great enthusiasm, there were newspaper clippings and photos. All seemed really positive, fun and enthusiastic. Exemplar to us all. I'll try to get some photos on the web, but am currently finalising stuff for tomorrow's AGM.
Cheers
Pete

Bill McCarthy · Post by **Bill McCarthy** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 5:35 pm

Thanks Peter - hope it all goes well at the AGM.

Bill.

J.C. · Post by **J.C.** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 7:49 pm

I am hoping to get to the AGM but I fear it may be a poor turnout due to the poor weather forcast.350+ miles in snow doesn't sound like much fun.

Mike Cross · Post by **Mike Cross** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 12:09 am

A somewhat saccharine flavoured bit of marketing.

The idea as proposed is that we will attract new members who will want to join to support our aims while paying a lower fee because they won't need access to Engineering.

Permit to Fly renewals from 1st January 08 to the end of October are 1,968 (about 200 more than this time last year). New Permits issued are 179, and 104 new projects have been registered. Credit crunch, what credit crunch!

Way over half of the membership already have no need of Engineering by the look of those figures. Do we have an estimate of the lost revenue anticipated from members trading down?

merlin · Post by **merlin** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 9:02 am

Mike, I fear that it is the plus members who will be asked for more cash rather than the lite less but hope to be proved wrong.

Dave Hall · Post by **Dave Hall** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 10:08 am

I don't know what proportion of drivers belong to either the AA or RAC, but they have different levels of service for different subs.

I don't see why the principal won't work, but I'm concerned that if half the membership are enthusiasts rather than active pilots, we may initially see a big dip in income.

Do we have a figure of the subsidy engineering dept gets overall? (including its fair share of overheads in office costs etc).

Mike Cross · Post by **Mike Cross** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 4:41 pm

Adult Membership £53

Recently, the Andover strut smuggled a Europa into Basingstoke City Centre during civic celebrations and spread the word to the wider community with excellent results. A great job and a credit to the Association. How useful it would have been if they could have sold a low cost, ‘basic’ membership to members of the public. We’ve got a great magazine that stands up very well against the news-stand offerings. We’ve got a terrific strut system and enthusiastic members across the whole country. Therefore a ‘basic’, no-engineering membership category might have brought in many new members and their needed investment.

Magazine Subscriptions (1 Year)
Flyer 32.45
Pilot 34.00
Today's Pilot 35.00

If you reckon people will pay a similar sum for our magazine then it's currently around £19 over the commercial value of the magazine that is going to other activities. Whatever price point you pitch the "‘basic’, no-engineering membership category" at it is likely that those members who don't need access to engineering will downgrade. Sure, it won't happen overnight but over the next couple of years I can foresee the risk of some 4000 members who don't use Engineering switching to the membership that suits them best.

As a f'rinstace, let's say that the basic membership is set at £39 to tempt people to join.

That's £14 less income per member than if they were paying the current rate. 4000 x £14 = £56k. How many NEW members would you need to make up the shortfall? If you take the commnercial value of the magazine at £34 you're getting an extra £5 per new member £56k = 11,200 fivers, rather an ambitious target. How much would it cost in marketing to get 11,200 new members and how much would it cost in additional administration to police access to Engineering?

These are just theoretical figures but they illustrate the danger.

If we're worried about membership fees putting people off and want it lower the only way it will happen is if we trim expenditure or raise income from other sources. At the moment the only other source I see is engineering charges.

Rod1 · Post by **Rod1** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:54 pm

I have a suspicion that the “lite” membership will be set at the current full level, and the “engineering surcharge” will be extra!

Rod1

Bob F · Post by **Bob F** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 7:27 pm

Some good & valid points being raised. I fly "spam cans" & really do feel we have to get more overall GA friendly, rather than give the impression that we only do "homebuilts". I thought this before I joined the PFA, but I had read the small print that said it represented all. The name change was a good step in this direction but I feel we have a long way to go. Ask the next pilot or enthusiast you see what they know about the LAA. If they are "homebuilts, kit,etc" they will know, but your average PPL? The best people to spread the word are ourselves, but we need to be seen to be all encompassing, the whole GA family.

Bob Farrell

Nigel Hitchman · Post by **Nigel Hitchman** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 9:25 pm

I think Mike has a good point of people downgrading to make their membership cheaper, we need to take this into consideration.
But the numbers quoted are also not really correct, they only assume one member per flying aircraft, whereas in a lot of cases there may be two or more members per aircraft. It also doesnt count projects.
I wonder how much we really know about who our members are. Surveys are ok, but are they mainly filled in by the comitted members and not by those that perhaps might be the "lite" members. I used to know a lot of enthusiasts who were members, but most of them have left over the years with the cancellation of the Rally and less benefits of membership in terms of Rally admission price discount for members.
Hopefully some will return if we have a Rally in 2009.

Bill McCarthy · Post by **Bill McCarthy** » Sat Nov 22, 2008 11:10 pm

Perhaps it's the time of night but for a brief millisecond dyslexic moment when I clicked on the forum title, I thought it read "....tired membership proposal". I'll say again - the Andover Strut has grasped the initiative and showed the route to increased membership by taking the Europa "into town" and this should be mentioned in the mag to encourage others to match their effort or better it - a very good move by them.

howard bradley · Post by **howard bradley** » Sun Nov 23, 2008 7:35 am

I should renew my membership at the end of this month , the two tier may help me to stay with the LAA , due to AN 98C with the introduction of Alcohol into Mogas early next year I will not be able to fly my Cat A with Mogas and will have to revert to Microlight this takes me towards the BMAA , News on any action from the LAA on this subject would be welcome any Rotax owner will have a big problem Avgas is not welcome and alcohol is a NO GO with the CAA so what happens now ,
Any news is required now before a run of membership to the BMAA

mikehallam · Post by **mikehallam** » Sun Nov 23, 2008 11:40 am

Howard,

You've surely made the LAA's very point !

In our increasingly complex field we DO need the LAA to challenge/negotiate for us with the bodies that impose conditions on our sport. This costs employed experts' time, hence our money is required to fund that.

Your panic (?) suggestion of jumping ship to the BMAA won't help you for long, nor the LAA.
Neither will the BMAA survive identical problems without proper funding.

As for two stroke a/c, there are plenty of them on the PFA microlight fleet: anyway the limited percentage bio fuel content appears to be acceptable to engine makers.

[Me ?, I've a foot in both camps with two stroke & fourstroke Rans']

Light Aircraft Association

Background information to AGM tiered membership proposal

Background information to AGM tiered membership proposal

Membership proposal