MAAST dead as disco?

[350gt]

When i joined in 2010 and picked up my tank shortly after.... The guy who i was buying the tank from wasnt pleased with what MAAST had become, at the time I didnt know what he was talking about. But he brought up the us vs them mentality, the few ppl vs the mods and anyone who sided with them. I personally thought maast was great at the time as I was new and getting a lot of info...

But then i stepped on a few toes with a lfs feedback review and a few other posts and I guess i fell into the "them" category... Which i was okay with, cause Im always ready for a fight ;)

Since then, a few of the sensitive ppl left and its been peaceful on here, even with the "trouble makers" still as CHARTER members...

I even decided to become a mod to see the "other" side of things and I have slightly...

I've seen a little bit of over policing, which imo nothing should be enforced unless its a direct threat towards another member.

This over policing is what runs ppl off IMO...
If a few ppl left cause they cannot handle real ppl with real opinions.... Then those are the kind of ppl who shouldn't be on the net in the first place..

I've also seen a few individuals who actually care about this site and getting her up and runnin' again.... Which is cool IMO, cause its all on their time....


Im down to help with maast when i can, being a small business owner and a dad of a 1 & 9 year old, time is very limited..... I rarely get to make the meetings or even the Swaps....

I have been asked to help with photography and I am good with that, time permitting of course...

[LuckySingh]

I just got back . Long vacation 😄

[furam28]

Great discussion, as always! Maast is not dead. Look at the bright side. Maast is 10+ years old, and live and kicking. There are veteran members here who have been here since the beginning and still very active. There are new members joining all the time (i am one of them). In hobbies people come and go - that's just how hobbies are. And social media is over-rated. I bet you - in another 10 years maast will still be here, and in that time there will be a few dozen more facebook groups that will come and go. When i first started - i also joined a fb group... and then i discovered maast and arc. There's no depth in fb - no well-organized discussion - anyone and everyone says anything and everything. Its the same few people liking all the posts, or "sharing" random stuff from all over the internet... with no caption, no source, no reference... And in 6 months it will be another group of few people who will be doing the same. Trust me, FB groups are not a threat or a legitimate alternative to a solid forum like maast.

That being said, I'd like to share a couple of thoughts:

1. I know most of the veteran members here truly care about the hobby and have a genuine concern for the group. The best thing you can do to make this club grow is make new members feel more than welcome, answer their dumb questions, compliment them on their noob tanks full of gsp... and save the judgements and harsh criticism for other veteran members who you are tight with... who know you can't offend them or drive them away.

2. Let's not trash members who buy and sell... even if they are doing it for a measly profit. Another club that I am part of... there are a few fragmasters who are always making and selling frags... and they are loved by all. As someone else mentioned on this thread, the true strength of a club is in its diversity. You want to have all types of members.

[Dean]

I'm going to throw a plug in here since this thread is so hot right now.

Keep an eye out for a free charter member scavenger hunt. The first 21 charter members to sign up get a chance to win a zoa/ paly frag pack. That's all that I want to reveal until the thread gets posted.

[Zack]

When i joined in 2010 and picked up my tank shortly after.... The guy who i was buying the tank from wasnt pleased with what MAAST had become, at the time I didnt know what he was talking about. But he brought up the us vs them mentality, the few ppl vs the mods and anyone who sided with them. I personally thought maast was great at the time as I was new and getting a lot of info...

But then i stepped on a few toes with a lfs feedback review and a few other posts and I guess i fell into the "them" category... Which i was okay with, cause Im always ready for a fight ;)

Since then, a few of the sensitive ppl left and its been peaceful on here, even with the "trouble makers" still as CHARTER members...

I even decided to become a mod to see the "other" side of things and I have slightly...

I've seen a little bit of over policing, which imo nothing should be enforced unless its a direct threat towards another member.

This over policing is what runs ppl off IMO...
If a few ppl left cause they cannot handle real ppl with real opinions.... Then those are the kind of ppl who shouldn't be on the net in the first place..

I've also seen a few individuals who actually care about this site and getting her up and runnin' again.... Which is cool IMO, cause its all on their time....


Im down to help with maast when i can, being a small business owner and a dad of a 1 & 9 year old, time is very limited..... I rarely get to make the meetings or even the Swaps....

I have been asked to help with photography and I am good with that, time permitting of course...

I think the over moderation issue is an interesting one. On one hand, some may be turned off by it, on another each member who signs up agrees to abide by a certain code of conduct and it is the uniform enforcement of this code that allows the site to run smoothly. We've had issues in the past with how grey the tou is and how a lot can be open to interpretation and it's the job of the current moderator team to decide what they think is right and wrong under their interpretation . The mods of today are different from last year when I was on and different form two years before and the new faces allow for new perspectives which is always good.

[Pennies2Cents]

FYI BOD Nomination Thread for Prez, VP & Directors is up..

Directors:
http://www.maast.org/showthread.php?...or-Nominations

Pres & VP:
http://www.maast.org/showthread.php?...esident-and-VP

[cowboy572]

I agree MAAST isn't dead yet. Yes I understand it is hard to compete with social media and everything else. But what have we done as an organization to fix the problem. We talk of membership drives and club "outreach" to spread the word and thats about as far as it gets, just talk.We need action and direction to get this club rolling again. Also I feel we are missing some of the demographics. Why not dedicate some time to local high schools that have a marine biology class and bring in more junior members who want to know and learn more about the hobby. My wife and I just started participating at a new catholic church and I was introduced to the president of the men's club. We got to talking and he told me, and later met, was his wife who works for the NISD who is over the science classes. I figured this would be a good opportunity to get the word out about a little organization. This is something I will pursue for the club.

[Zack]

Club outreach is something I've been actively working on as head of the marketing committee in the front office forum. I'm still ironing out buisness cards and posters the latter of which id like to roll out in January once we have firm goals for the next year.

I think that's a really really great idea about the highschool students. Marine bio my senior year was awesome and my experiences with the hobby helped a ton with that. Like said earlier, social media will come and go and I don't feel it's time to completely jump ship on our tried methods yet. Although when talking about what have we done? We've done a lot and are working on a ton of things to distance us from the social clubs. Dean had a list in the OP that he's updated with our actions and it's actually quite nice to see what we've been able to accomplish

[Dean]

Club outreach is something I've been actively working on as head of the marketing committee in the front office forum. I'm still ironing out buisness cards and posters the latter of which id like to roll out in January once we have firm goals for the next year.

I think that's a really really great idea about the highschool students. Marine bio my senior year was awesome and my experiences with the hobby helped a ton with that. Like said earlier, social media will come and go and I don't feel it's time to completely jump ship on our tried methods yet. Although when talking about what have we done? We've done a lot and are working on a ton of things to distance us from the social clubs. Dean had a list in the OP that he's updated with our actions and it's actually quite nice to see what we've been able to accomplish

Well said Zach. Over the last few months we have achieved a great deal. With more committee reform in the front office and motivated Directors I am really excited to see what we can achieve through out the year next year.

The more active we all are ( from the web members to the directors), the more successful the club will be. It really is that simple. If you want the club to be successful then get active in the club.

[Justin]

I'm fairly new to the site but I definitely prefer it over some other larger sites. My biggest complaint on the other larger sites is the occasional smart *** that likes to post a negative comment. I have heard the drama associated with the group from other local non member reefers and LFS's, but to be honest every group is going to be plagued with drama and people getting upset. Its just human nature.

One of the things that I have seen lately that I really like is the pouring out of ideas and concepts to get the club moving again. Someone brought up that we need to offer something to a charter that is worth their time and energy and I could not agree more with them. Working in the grocery industry now; managing a a few businesses and several other organizations for a bit, I think we really need to have a brainstorm session and put on paper some of the issues that we are experiencing and also what our goals are for the group. Once they are written down, they become an actual tangible item vs a thought or idea. From there we should really figure out what we feel our target audience "consumer" is and come up with a plan of action to create a quality "product" that we could present to members.

I can explain the process in further detail at the meeting this Sunday but that is my $.02!