Last year we posted our expenditures for camp and everyone seemed satisfied; or at least we didn't get any complaints. In my travels, I'm seeing camps that charge from free to $99. This year we are charging for camp and so I thought we would share a little bit about where the money goes. We are particularly blessed because our major costs, the building and internet are graciously covered by BPOC (Rich Cherry, Bill Bostick and Team) which not only allows for a great camp but continued growth and ease for our user group meetings. Please thank them when you see them.
The reason we are charging for camp is for planning reasons: we need to know how many people are coming. Without charging, the no-show number can run between 20%-60% of registration (bad) so we can't be sure what will happen. It stresses us out because we might run into session crowding, food and drink shortages, etc. On the other hand, Austin charges $30 and had 105% attendance (good). We need to buy supplies, order meais, plan sessions, invite guests, coordinate volunteers and gather sponsors. None of which can be done on weak attendance estimates. Some expenses for camp:
--breakfast
--drinks
--coffee truck ($300)
--general office supplies
--badges/nametags/lanyards
--signage
--tshirts
--lunch
--general printed materials ($100)
--after party ($25+/hd)
--thank you gift for sponsors and session givers (new idea this year)
This doesn't count the hundreds of volunteer hours put in and the camp is blessed that Achieve lets me spend a lot of my work day on camp planning.
The last part of costs is that we made a decision to form a business so we can have a bank account that belongs to the user's group. It makes our Paypal transactions clean. There are always small licenses, fees and other operating expenses now. We did this because we need to deposit money into an account that belongs to the user's group itself.
If we gather more money than we need for camp, the money can be used in many ways during the year:
--pay for Drupal training
--sponsor new startup camps so they can get going in their community
--roll it forward to next year's camp, I will not always be running it and others might not be as comfortable soliciting sponsorship
Remember if you complain, we'll make you volunteer ;-D Our mission is to keep camp just above break-even while providing the best sessions and amenities possible. This camp promises to be amazing with over 300+ attendees, Kieran Lal as the keynote speaker and several high-powered sessions by notable Drupalers. Can't wait to see you all there!