On 6/12/06, daniwo59@aol.com daniwo59@aol.com wrote:
1 Are we allowed to solicit funds anywhere? Not quite as simple as you may think.
I remember that we've had those discussions before about the fundraising page and the way it should be worded. In recent fund drives, however, we've become more aggressive, with a personal appeal from Jimmy, slogans like "Help empower the world", and so on. We still have a disclaimer that this does not constitute a solicitation, but is that sufficient? Are we currently registered in any U.S. state other than Florida for solicitation of funds? If not, would such a registration make sense?
2 What is the cost of a direct mailing? Try multiplying postage costs by 1000s, add printing costs, then add hourly rates. We can either do the mailing in-house (at which point you must consider whether it is worth paying my salary to have me stuff envelopes) or a service (which adds to the costs).
How about trying to decentralize the "licking envelopes" part? Allow a large number of reasonably trusted volunteers to send "thank you" notes (add some legal disclaimer about the sender not being a Wikimedia employee etc. if necessary). Compensate them for postage, but not for time. I'm not sure this is a viable model, but it may be worth trying out.
3 Are there any mails that we are required to send by law? Yes
That's a good point. How good are we presently at complying with these regulations, e.g. notifying people who make >$200 donations outside regular fund drives? Does the applicable law already allow for the use of digitally signed e-mails, or do we have to send snail mail?
Erik