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Way to go Xavier, People Behind the Scenes, Citizens, Visitors and Moderators!!
Aficionados to throw a `bashment' for Web site
Published March 31, 2002
Some methods of funding a Web site are more fun than others.
Ever since the dot-com bubble burst and online advertising revenues went south, along with venture capital interest, there has been a mad scramble to figure out ways to keep sites afloat.
Some of the biggies are turning to subscriptions and pay-per-view fees to access premium content and videos, an unpopular move with the general Internet community, long spoiled by getting Web content for free.
Jamaicans.com, a popular portal based in South Florida, like many other dot-coms, is facing a cash crunch.
But its founder and operator, Xavier Murphy, Miramar, has an unusual plan to keep the site going.
If all goes as planned, Jamaicans.com could turn out to be the only Web site on the Net supported by a series of bake sales.
Murphy, who grew up outside Kingston, started Jamaicans.com in 1995 primarily as a site for students and teachers to find information about his homeland. Before long he was attracting tourists eager to find out more about the island paradise, and then it became a hot spot for dislocated Jamaicans around the world to keep in touch. It is now a full-fledged portal with pages devoted to Jamaican cooking, travel destinations, language, culture, music and discussion forums.
Jamaicans.com is a one-man operation, with the help of volunteer moderators and content writers. Murphy said during "the good days" of the dot-com boom, he could support the site with advertising. But those days are gone, and he is down to just a few ad banners now that don't cover his costs.
He noted that these days, he is lucky to eke out $100 a month from ads and T-shirt sales. He tried an online store of Jamaican products, but had to cut back because of distribution problems.
The site's most frequently accessed feature is its bulletin board forums, which now have more than 7,000 registered members, most of them Jamaicans living someplace other than Jamaica. It has one impending wedding to its credit, from two long-lost lovers who reconnected at the site.
But popularity has been a double-edged sword. Murphy said that as the number of visitors has increased to his Web site, his Internet service provider has increased his monthly fee to cover greater bandwidth requirements. His $300-a-month costs are about to go up to $400 a month.
He discussed the matter with his loyal band of about 25 volunteers. They didn't like his idea of asking for a yearly membership fee.
Their suggestion, which may or may not work, at least sounds like a lot more fun.
It seems that the Jamaicans on the East Coast, in South Florida and Canada who seek each other out at the site's bulletin boards, often throw get-togethers to meet in person. These events are referred to as bashments, the Jamaican word for party. The events became so popular, Murphy said, he had to open a separate forum for members of his Web site community to plan their outings.
So, the site's volunteers have formed committees to organize a series of fund-raising bashments in areas of the country where the parties were already being held. The get-togethers will be the same as always, but now the homemade food will be sold, sort of like a bake sale. The fees will go to Jamaicans.com to help defray the costs of the site. One will be held in Fort Lauderdale in May (information will be posted on the site as it becomes available.)
One volunteer suggested in the moderator's forum that, after the cash is collected from food sales, they make out a check addressed directly to the ISP so no one doubts the sincerity of the fund-raising project.
"I hope it's just a temporary solution," said Murphy, who was one of the founders of the Association of Internet Professionals in Miami-Dade, and its 2000 president. He has a real job and a family, and calls Jamaicans.com "a hobby that just grew out of hand."
Murphy said he gets up at 5:30 a.m. every morning to do maintenance and updating on the site before he goes to work.
He said when he posted a series of statements in the forums at his site announcing the cash flow problems and introducing the idea of fund-raising bashments, he got several "good leads" on potential advertisers. He hopes if those work out, he may not have to go the party route for very long.
"I guess this is a pretty unique way to support a dot-com," he said.
Christine Winter can be reached at [email protected] or 954-356-4664.
Copyright © 2002, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Aficionados to throw a `bashment' for Web site
Published March 31, 2002
Some methods of funding a Web site are more fun than others.
Ever since the dot-com bubble burst and online advertising revenues went south, along with venture capital interest, there has been a mad scramble to figure out ways to keep sites afloat.
Some of the biggies are turning to subscriptions and pay-per-view fees to access premium content and videos, an unpopular move with the general Internet community, long spoiled by getting Web content for free.
Jamaicans.com, a popular portal based in South Florida, like many other dot-coms, is facing a cash crunch.
But its founder and operator, Xavier Murphy, Miramar, has an unusual plan to keep the site going.
If all goes as planned, Jamaicans.com could turn out to be the only Web site on the Net supported by a series of bake sales.
Murphy, who grew up outside Kingston, started Jamaicans.com in 1995 primarily as a site for students and teachers to find information about his homeland. Before long he was attracting tourists eager to find out more about the island paradise, and then it became a hot spot for dislocated Jamaicans around the world to keep in touch. It is now a full-fledged portal with pages devoted to Jamaican cooking, travel destinations, language, culture, music and discussion forums.
Jamaicans.com is a one-man operation, with the help of volunteer moderators and content writers. Murphy said during "the good days" of the dot-com boom, he could support the site with advertising. But those days are gone, and he is down to just a few ad banners now that don't cover his costs.
He noted that these days, he is lucky to eke out $100 a month from ads and T-shirt sales. He tried an online store of Jamaican products, but had to cut back because of distribution problems.
The site's most frequently accessed feature is its bulletin board forums, which now have more than 7,000 registered members, most of them Jamaicans living someplace other than Jamaica. It has one impending wedding to its credit, from two long-lost lovers who reconnected at the site.
But popularity has been a double-edged sword. Murphy said that as the number of visitors has increased to his Web site, his Internet service provider has increased his monthly fee to cover greater bandwidth requirements. His $300-a-month costs are about to go up to $400 a month.
He discussed the matter with his loyal band of about 25 volunteers. They didn't like his idea of asking for a yearly membership fee.
Their suggestion, which may or may not work, at least sounds like a lot more fun.
It seems that the Jamaicans on the East Coast, in South Florida and Canada who seek each other out at the site's bulletin boards, often throw get-togethers to meet in person. These events are referred to as bashments, the Jamaican word for party. The events became so popular, Murphy said, he had to open a separate forum for members of his Web site community to plan their outings.
So, the site's volunteers have formed committees to organize a series of fund-raising bashments in areas of the country where the parties were already being held. The get-togethers will be the same as always, but now the homemade food will be sold, sort of like a bake sale. The fees will go to Jamaicans.com to help defray the costs of the site. One will be held in Fort Lauderdale in May (information will be posted on the site as it becomes available.)
One volunteer suggested in the moderator's forum that, after the cash is collected from food sales, they make out a check addressed directly to the ISP so no one doubts the sincerity of the fund-raising project.
"I hope it's just a temporary solution," said Murphy, who was one of the founders of the Association of Internet Professionals in Miami-Dade, and its 2000 president. He has a real job and a family, and calls Jamaicans.com "a hobby that just grew out of hand."
Murphy said he gets up at 5:30 a.m. every morning to do maintenance and updating on the site before he goes to work.
He said when he posted a series of statements in the forums at his site announcing the cash flow problems and introducing the idea of fund-raising bashments, he got several "good leads" on potential advertisers. He hopes if those work out, he may not have to go the party route for very long.
"I guess this is a pretty unique way to support a dot-com," he said.
Christine Winter can be reached at [email protected] or 954-356-4664.
Copyright © 2002, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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