As many of you know one of my goals has been to try and figure out our sponsorship program and reboot it. It used to be our primary income as a project, and I feel that long term it is what is needed to get long term growth of cash flow to allow things like hiring individuals to work on Inkscape. I keep tweaking and changing this, but I've gone with putting a list of issues at the end that I see as unresolved, please help! Sorry, I do realize it is a long read, but I think worth it in the end.
I think that our old program had the problem that it talked primary about how much money people wanted to give to Inkscape. So we ended up with a bunch of people who basically wanted to buy ads. But we didn't end up with people who love Inkscape and want to see it grow as our sponsors. This hurt us both financially, but also part of the sponsorship program is to get people working with you, and we didn't attract those people.
So how I'm thinking that we should change our program is to move from "how much money" for the levels of program to "how you work with Inkscape." And I with that, not having all the "payment" be financial, but instead including publicly talking about the project and usage. Also, to provide time for employees to contribute to the project for the higher levels. My goal here is to provide a level that makes sense for everyone who's working with Inkscape in an organization to have a foothold to get that organization connected to the project. Along with that restructuring I'm suggesting we rename from a "sponsor program" to a "partner program."
To be clear, there are a lot more details to work out in the individual items. But I think it is at a point where it is starting to come together as a plan and I'd really like to hear folks thoughts on how it can be better.
Freelance Designer/Developer
For an individual or small firm up to three employees
Publicly lists either Inkscape development or design as the list of services that they provide customers (i.e. on their webpage)
$120/yr
Listing in the directory of Inkscape sponsors as someone providing Inkscape services.
Encouraged to include the "Inkscape Partner" badge on their website
Small Firm
For a small design/development firm that provides Inkscape services
Employs up to 10 employees in the company or division that provides Inkscape services
Publicly lists Inkscape services on the information on the company or division
$1000/yr
Listing in the directory of Inkscape partners as someone providing Inkscape services.
Encouraged to include the "Inkscape Partner" badge on their website.
Inkscape Services Provider
For a large design/development firm/division that provides Inkscape services
Up to 50 employees
Provides a public statement of allowing some employees to contribute meaningfully to the Inkscape project
Publicly lists Inkscape services on product offerings
$10K/yr
Listing in the directory of Inkscape partners as someone providing Inkscape services.
Encouraged to include the "Inkscape Partner" badge on their website.
Inkscape Product
Customize Inkscape for use in their product through an extension or patch that they then provide to their customers
Provides a link and information about the Inkscape project and what changes or modifications they've made
Ensures that changes and modifications/additions are correctly distributed under the Inkscape licenses
Donates a percentage of sales back to the Inkscape project for the product in question (depends on product by generally Inkscape recommends 10% of profits on the Inkscape value added)
Listing in the directory of Inkscape Partners using Inkscape in products
Encouraged to include the "Inkscape Product Partner" badge on their website
If the product includes retail packaging it is also encouraged to include the "Inkscape Product Partner" badge
Educator (Individual)
For an individual educator who chooses to create content with or about Inkscape for their classroom
Publicly publishes information about their class and that it uses Inkscape
Gets permission to use the school logo and information on the "Inkscape Educators" page
$0/yr
Includes the "Inkscape Educator" badge on their website
Education Program
For a department or program that uses Inkscape
Publicly publishes how their program or department uses and contributes to Inkscape
Gives permission to use the school logo and information on the "Inkscape Educators" page
$100/yr per lab or classroom or program
Includes the "Inkscape Educator" badge or their website
Makerspace
For community oriented makerspaces that use Inkscape
At all instructional or learning sessions about using equipment that takes vector graphics students are taught how to get a design from Inkscape onto the tool.
All general public computers in the makerspace have Inkscape installed for member use
Includes the "Inkscape Makerspace" on the Makerspace webiste
Allows for usage of the makerspace logo on the "Inkscape Makerspaces" listing webpage
$0/yr
Obviously agreeing on the program is only the first step of the whole process. Next steps would include working with Vectors on the partners website and various badges. Also we'd need to work with SFC on the agreement we'd need people to sign to ensure we can use their logos and that they'd agree to the other parts of the program. I'm not assuming we'd police it heavily, but more count on people to do what they said they would.
Issues I see that I'd like comment on:
We don't have a way for someone who just wants to sponsor. For example, Red Hat has sponsored us in the past. They do use us internally, but I don't believe those efforts have a public face. Not sure one of these categories works for that. Should it? Or should we keep a generic sponsorship thing around? (seems like confusion, but I don't know)
The education ones aren't great. I feel like that's a place we can grow credibility in "look at all these folks learning Inkscape." Which if we wanted to write grants in the future would really help. But I'm not sure the individual classroom vs. program thing makes sense. Just all education the same? All $0/yr + logo usage?
Makerspace, I like it, but is that the same as an education program? Seems like it is a different type of thing to me, but I'm not sure.
Process as I see it once we have a blueprint:
PLC Votes on the levels and requirements
Prepare materials. Work with:
Vectors work on badges
Vectors work on partners website
SFC work on agreements
Work with Vectors to do a promotional roll out
Generally speaking I'm volunteering to bring this through all those stages, but I'd love help. If anyone wants to join in talk to me!
Ted
