My new project... MFV Elizmor LOCKED

[Heckler]

I think Ellie is conducting an experiment to see if its possible to let an online presence die and how long it takes. We're all just lab rats in her test.

She is a young person, young persons CANT stay off the internet, its almost bred in to them and yet she has disappeared! nothing, not a peep on facebook, twitter et al! not a trace!
I am beginning to think that something has happened to her. Is there anyone in brighton who can pop to her old boat to see if she is OK?
Stu

 

[FishyInverness]

Before and after an hours paddling in the Moray Firth in March!

I'd be happy to assist her in that, if she gave me a free camera...

 

[The Dogs Pollacks Brother]

How clever am I......I am posting on a locked thread!
I must be an internet wizard and did'nt know it.
I must channel my skills in a different direction to get the most out of it.....now, what do I need for the Grumpy Uncle...oh yes...a new GPS, a set of fenders perhaps?...a new anchor would be nice...a vhf upgrade?

 

[FishyInverness]

Thanks for the template Fishy, I have cut and pasted it and sent it off to Lamborghini - you can have the car for 50% of the time if you put a good word in for Lambo on your yachty website.

I'm in, sadly the bikini wont look quite so good on me....

 

[Lakesailor]

How clever am I......I am posting on a locked thread!
I must be an internet wizard and did'nt know it.

Bad news...

 

[Cardo]

Just thought i'd share this that turned up in our email box today as it's spookily relevant in the "Give me something, I do online media" vein, showing how some perceive the 'value' of their "online presence" regardless of the actual worth to those giving out the goodies - We get these sort of things fairly intermittently: (Names and company references removed)


Dear team at <Company> (Incidentally, our company name was in a different size and font, nice cut and paste job!)

My name is <Name> and UK health, beauty and lifestyle blogger at <Name>. I'm currently putting together my schedule for the next couple of weeks and would love to include a kayak in my post for Spring.

I'm featuring new bikinis and tips for going out kayaking to get into shape for the summer. In exchange for the product I am happy to include produce a high quality review post with a link back to your website and will share with my social media followers. I aim to have reviews live in 2 weeks with plenty of images and an in-depth review of the product.

<Blog Statistics>

Ranked as 'up and coming' on <Name> and has been featured on <Names> and other brands. I've guest posts for online and offline publications inlcluding <Names>. Search for 'UK Beauty, Health and Fitness blogs' on Google, and you'll find us on the first page!

<Name> readers are primarily women between 18 and 32 located predominately in the United Kingdom and United States but has a worldwide audience in over 70+ countries with a strong following in Australia, Canada and France.

Recent review posts


I'm happy to run a competition alongside too, my <Company> competition (here) recently bought in almost 28k entrants. I can also offer YouTube video product reviews on request, see this one I did for <Name>.

I think a YouTube video would work really well with this kind of post. As previously mentioned, I'm able to get this post up in a quick turn around. I'm happy to mention the kayak again in future posts throughout the Summer.

Furthermore, I can place a branded logo on my sidebar homepage linking back to you.

Looking forward to hearing from you,



So......"I want to write about a kayak, give me one, and i'll tell everyone about it"

You'd like to think people who write articles 'n' stuff might write using better grammar.

Or is this just a ploy to get free stuff?

 

[Poignard]

Ploys to get 'free stuff' are nothing new. Shackleton and Scott had to spend a great deal of their precious time before starting on their heroic Antarctic expeditions in travelling around the country trying to drum up money and 'free stuff' from companies and private sponsors. In fact, the boat Shackleton used to get from Elephant Island to South Georgia, the James Caird, was named after a sponsor.

 

[chinita]

You are right. The parallels between the Endurance and Elizmor are extraordinary.

Firstly, they both begin with 'E'.

Secondly........erm,.......oh, both made of wood.

Thirdly...........erm,..............erm.

 

[Wandering Star]

You are right. The parallels between the Endurance and Elizmor are extraordinary.

Firstly, they both begin with 'E'.

Secondly........erm,.......oh, both made of wood.

Thirdly...........erm,..............erm.

Very good! If people can't fathom the difference between sponsorship and begging then I despair.

 

[FishyInverness]

Very good! If people can't fathom the difference between sponsorship and begging then I despair.

Sadly, and especially in the example of the email above, the current slew of "media bloggers" don't seem to be able to fathom the difference.

We get a lot of "I'm doing this, sponsor me with stuff" emails, at least 2 a week. Unfortunately because it's worked in the past for high profile individuals or campaigns, now anyone looking to make a marine related achievement thinks that marine companies have an endless amount of freebie equipment to give away for what the instigator believes is excellent exposure, but is, in fact, just a very small glimpse of a logo by a very tiny subset of that company's potential customers...

 

[Searush]

First thing about getting sponsorship is to show that you have an effective & costed plan for a high profile project relevant to the sponsor & convince them that you have the ability and determination complete it. THEN you can start talking about benefits to the sponsor & what you can give them in return for the money.

Asking for freebies generally just annoys most companies, altho, for smaller local charitable events many large stores allow the manager a budget for support. Back-2-Bikes got £300 worth of tools from B&Q shortly after start up & managed a half page feature in the local rag that would have cost B&Q a lot more than 300 quid if they had bought it as advertising space.

 

[JumbleDuck]

We get a lot of "I'm doing this, sponsor me with stuff" emails, at least 2 a week.

It's the same sort of mindset which says "Please sponsor my trek to Macchu Picchu for charity" which actually means "Please help pay for me to have a holiday in South America and I'll give some of the money to charity" and which annoys the hell out of me.

Even when the fees don't get paid from contributions it can be a bit dubious. Recently I was asked if I would contribute towards £1,000 someone was trying to raise in sponsorship for a charity while undertaking an adventure holiday, the fees of £10,000 for which he'd paid himself. Hang on a minute. If it's such a deserving cause (and it was) why isn't he donating the ten grand to it instead of splurging it on a holiday? Don't ask me to pay to assuage your guilt, sunshine.

And ... relax ...

 

[TimBennet]

First thing about getting sponsorship is to show that you have an effective & costed plan for a high profile project relevant to the sponsor & convince them that you have the ability and determination complete it. THEN you can start talking about benefits to the sponsor & what you can give them in return for the money.

But firms can give money or good or discount to whoever they choose. Lot's of people on here ask for 'discount' at boatshows on items or boats. It's extremely common for firms to support a 'project' that they think is worthwhile not because it makes financial sense, but because they want to. One year the Sonata Nationals were sponsored by Hyundai for no better reason than they had just launched their Sonata model and a local dealership liked the coincidence. No one thought Sonata sailors would start buying Hyundais on the back of this 'sponsorship'. It's call philanthropy and the givers are free to dish it out to whoever they want for whatever reasons they want. It's their money.

 

[FishyInverness]

But firms can give money or good or discount to whoever they choose. Lot's of people on here ask for 'discount' at boatshows on items or boats. It's extremely common for firms to support a 'project' that they think is worthwhile not because it makes financial sense, <SNIP>.

Absolutely true, but I think Searush was more expanding on the thinking behind my post, in that no-one is going to listen to an email that says "Hi, I'm FishyInverness, I am aiming to Kayak the Moray Firth in aid of Help for Heroes, I have a facebook page with 300 likes, I need the following list of equipment, can you donate it?" - and to be honest, that is the tone of the majority of requests received - the unanswered question being.....what are you going to do with this equipment after the event, auction it for charity, or just keep it for your hobby?

Even worse are the types that say, "I want to review a piece of equipment because I blog online, give me it for free, and i'll review it, and put a link on my website" - as per the mail from the bikini kayak girl!

Which leads me to also comment to Jumbleduck +1,
My sister couldn't understand why I wouldn't donate to her "charity" visit to China to walk the Great Wall....seeing as the charity element was 40% of the donations, and 60% covered her holiday, I couldn't understand why she expected me to!

 

[Lakesailor]

Sadly, and especially in the example of the email above, the current slew of "media bloggers" don't seem to be able to fathom the difference.

We get a lot of "I'm doing this, sponsor me with stuff" emails, at least 2 a week.

Talking of "stuff" when I enquired about "Greenstuff" brake pads for my trials car the manufacturer offered me 50% discount for putting a sticker on the car. I hadn't asked for it.
I wouldn't have thought anyone would be persuaded to buy them because I had them fitted. Maybe the opposite :nonchalance:

 

[TimBennet]

"Hi, I'm FishyInverness, I am aiming to Kayak the Moray Firth in aid of Help for Heroes, I have a facebook page with 300 likes, I need the following list of equipment, can you donate it?" - and to be honest, that is the tone of the majority of requests received - the unanswered question being.....what are you going to do with this equipment after the event, auction it for charity, or just keep it for your hobby?

Well, that's all part of the consideration of whether you want to support them. There's no compulsion and some people are either genuinely naive or think "What the hell - if you don't ask you won't get".

But to pretend that Ellie has committed some sort of outrage to ask for stuff is ludicrous. There's a yacht called Anasazi (IIRC) who are sailing the world with their young family on the back of their blog and articles. Their sponsors include:

Altex Coatings
Antal
AquaTech
Black Diamond Equipment
CT Sail Battens
Clif Bar & Company
Equiplite Europe
Explorersweb
Facnor
Finot-Conq
Furuno USA
Greatland Laser
Hallett Canvas and Sails
Harken
Hotel Graeme, South Africa
International Paint / Interlux
Jeppesen
Locker 14
Lopolight
Musto
NKE
Navtec France
OzValves
Patagonia, Inc.
Raymarine
Sea to Summit
Seaport Supply South Africa
Shakewell Seacock/Martwell Ltd.
Solara/Centrosolar
Southern Ropes
Spelean
UUplus
Windrush
Winslow Life Raft Company

all of whom seem to be happy with their funding a lifestyle choice for this couple.

 

[FishyInverness]

But to pretend that Ellie has committed some sort of outrage to ask for stuff is ludicrous. There's a yacht called Anasazi (IIRC) who are sailing the world with their young family on the back of their blog and articles. Their sponsors include:
.

Oh, i'd like to make it abundantly clear that I have no strong feelings one way or the other about Ellie, it's just the inevitable thread drift occurred into the perceived value of Online Media Awareness, and I imparted an opinion and something that turned up in the mailbox...

..I also think if you don't ask you don't get, but I also laugh loudly at something that is blindly fired away to all and sundry saying "I have complete faith in the worth of my digital presence, give me something free for it because it must be valuable to you to, because I emailed you!" - As Searush says, think it through, form a case, relate it to your audience, and you're likely to get a positive response...like any other kind of sales.

 

[Poignard]

From The Daily Telegraph website:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...tarctic-A-frozen-legacy-of-fame-and-fate.html

"A century later, the International Scott Centenary Expedition (ISCE) is being planned to honour that doomed venture. Some time in December 2011 or January 2012, Falcon Scott, son of the explorer's only child, the ornithologist and conservationist Sir Peter Scott, and four other representatives of the families of the dead will be flown via the South Pole to the spot on the Ross Ice Shelf where Scott was buried.

(...)

The ISCE air party will rendezvous with an overland party of five people, who will man-haul their sledges from Scott's starting point and back, a distance of 290 miles. One of the ground party will be chosen in a competition run by the ISCE and The Telegraph.

"It will be quite emotional when it comes to it," says Falcon, sitting in the kitchen of the house he has built on a small island off the west coast of Scotland. "There will be some kind of ceremony and I guess it will touch me. It's a tremendously emotional story, isn't it? It's classic tragedy. Yet in a way, the death of my grandfather was the making of him."

The expedition will require at least £1 million and the organisers are appealing for sponsors. David Wilson, great nephew of Edward Wilson and a member of the steering committee, says: "Enthusiasm and endeavour are the main characteristics of the ideal candidate for the ISCE-Telegraph competition. They should be young, with a passion for the story of Scott and a desire to ensure his legacy."

(...)
Competition to join the ISCE 2012 expedition

The ISCE 2012 in conjunction with The Telegraph is offering a reader the chance to win a place on the tribute journey. The winner of our competition will join the sledging team from McMurdo Sound to the last campsite of Captain Scott's Polar Party, where a memorial service will be held, and then return to McMurdo Sound.

Applicants should be aged between 18-30, and write an article of 500-1,000 words entitled: "Why Captain Scott is important to me." Applications must include a £10 non-refundable entry fee.

Cheques and Postal Orders should be made payable to 'ISCE2012'. Short-listed candidates will be invited to a training day in the UK to assess their fitness to participate in the ISCE2012. Two finalists will be chosen, one to participate in the sledging party, and one reserve.

Terms and Conditions can be found at telegraph.co.uk/isce2012. Any polar expedition is complex and unpredictable, so applicants should be prepared to commit to a flexible itinerary. Entries should be sent to:

ISCE 2012, Box 20, Unit C, 203 Sandgate Road, Folkestone, Kent CT20 2HT"

 

[JumbleDuck]

But to pretend that Ellie has committed some sort of outrage to ask for stuff is ludicrous.

I certainly don't think she committed an outrage. I think her use of "sponsorship" is a bit naive - it's a straightforward stuff for publicity swap - but if she can persuade companies to cough up freebies, good luck to her. Of course a company might then reasonably say that having done their bit and given stuff they expect the publicity to appear. Doesn't look like a great deal for them so far, though on the upside the anchor hasn't dragged, the topsides are unscuffed and everyone knows exactly where Elizmor is.

 

[JumbleDuck]

..I also think if you don't ask you don't get, but I also laugh loudly at something that is blindly fired away to all and sundry ...

I recruit volunteers every year, most of whom are doing their D of E gold award. Full details of what we offer and when are on our website, but I still get a couple of generic emails every week which show that the sender hasn't read a work of it. One of this week's had my address in a To: list of 20+ organisations.

I am amazingly quick at deleting these emails.