from the rtb dept
A few years ago, in the pre-Kickstarter (but post-artists-
crowdfunding) world, we decided that there was no reason why some of the basic experiments for funding that musicians were doing shouldn't apply to blogs as well. So we
launched our own "tiered" "CwF+RtB" (Connect with Fans + Reasons to Buy) store entirely as an experiment. By the end of the year, we made over $50,000 with it, which exceeded any modest expectations we might have had. Since then, it's always been on the list of things to do to update the store in a big way, and a few months ago, we finally decided to focus in on it. While it took longer than we expected, we're proud to launch the new version:
The Techdirt Insider Shop
It has many of the same offerings that the original had, but a bunch of new and expanded offerings as well. It's designed more as a store than a "tiered" setup, so shop around a bit. We'll have a few more posts highlighting some key features and merchandise, but for those of you already familiar with the
Techdirt Crystal Ball -- which allows you to get early access to some stories and preview the headlines of others -- that's still around, but it's now been expanded, so you get to see some stories up to two hours early, rather than just one. And, if you sign up for a
premium package, you can even get the brand new Crystal Ball Plus, which gives you pretty detailed access to all sorts of posts we're working on, including false-start stories that never make it onto the site, and some works that are very much in progress. If you're
already a Techdirt Crystal Ball subscriber, your account has been upgraded to the new version, meaning you get to see more stories earlier, and you get some other features.
We also have some brand new features on the site for Insiders, including the new
First Word/Last Word offering, which I'll have another post discussing in more detail a little later today. There's also the brand new Insider Chat which all of you should be able to see to your right. Certain Insider membership packages allow you to join in the chat. Without one of those... you can still view the chat, but you can't participate. Also, for those who sign up for longer term packages, we have a number of offerings, including special Insider Hangouts (using Google+'s Hangouts feature), which should be a lot of fun. Check out the store for a
detailed explanation of all the new blog features that are available.
You want more
gear? We've
got more gear, including new t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, bottles and other assorted paraphernalia. We've got a brand new
Seized t-shirt in honor of various domain seizures (more on that later!) and an
updated DMCA takedown t-shirt. The original was our most popular seller, so don't miss out on the new, revamped version. We've also got a very special, limited edition
Techdirt staff bundle -- of which only
five are available to buy. These are special staff-only hoodies and an assortment of other goodies. If you don't want to splurge to that level (or if they all sell out before you get a chance) we've got some
other hoodies to
choose from.
Downloads? We've got
downloads. You can "pay what you want" for the ebook version of my book
Approaching Infinity (built off a collection of Techdirt posts) or our famed
Sky is Rising report. Name your price and help support more such works in the future! Hell, if you don't want anything specific in return, you can also just
donate some money.
There's plenty more as well, including
getting lunch with me -- which we offered only as a one week special last time, but it was quite popular (and a lot of fun) -- as well as the indisputably
Awesome Day with Techdirt (which a few folks did last time around, and it really was quite awesome). There are also various
business services that tie back into how we normally make a living.
And, last and most certainly least, we still have options for those of you who
hate Techdirt. Last time around, we offered to take a year off for merely $100-million, and surprisingly none of you took us up on it. We did have some requests for pro-rated offerings, so we'll now
shut down for 24 hours for just $1 million (pocket change!). As for the big one? Well, we always hear the haters insist that price is equal to value, and no one appeared to value that $100-million offering enough... so
the price is going up. You can shut us up for an entire year for the new, more luxurious price of
$100,000,001. Hurry up. We may raise the prices again before you know it.
Either way, the store platform we've put together is a lot more robust, and we're hopeful that we can do a bunch of other things with it over the next few months and years, so
shop away...
Please note that while we've been testing the new store & features extensively, when things go live, problems always pop up. If you spot any errors or bugs, please let us know and we'll get to them as quickly as possible...Filed Under: crystal ball, cwf+rtb, gear, insider, shop, store, t-shirts, techdirt
