Searching for the Elusive Dozen...

Here’s the deal: we didn’t have a discussion on Saturday night, although we did have a meeting. Hobbs was out of town, Lindsay got caught in traffic coming out of D.C., and Nate was delayed, so at 5:30 Mark and I went to get something to eat and try and brainstorm ways to increase membership.

But since we were there and ready to meet, Mark and I did decide a couple or three things: one, the group will discuss Charles Johnson’s Oxherding Tale at our January 19th meeting; two, we selected a book for our March 15th meeting: One-Drop: My Father's Hidden Life--a Story of Race and Inheritance, by Bliss Broyard; three, Mark has agreed to do the communications for the next calendar year’s meetings. He’ll be conducting the nominations, sending out reminders, etc. Thanks, Mark.

We also came up with some ideas for pumping up membership:

Classified ads in the Free Press and Style Weekly
A day-sponsorship on WCVE-FM
A Craig’s List ad
A Google Group
Opening up the Black Men Read?! blog to unfettered Internet traffic
Asking Michael Paul Williams to feature us in a column

We still think it’s a good idea to have cards we can hand out to brothers in bookstores, and I’ll get that done as soon as I can find a spare minute. I’ll also check on how much the items above cost—those that cost anything at all, anyway.

Do you guys have any additional ideas?

Mark thought, and I agree, that we should gradually platform the above ideas, because what we don’t want is to get deluged with more brothers than we can handle. Remember, a cool dozen is what we’re looking for, when it’s all said and done. So what we’re proposing—for discussion, before we implement anything—is that we initially place ads in the Free Press and Style Weekly.

Then, if nothing comes of that, we move on some sort of sponsorship on WCVE-FM, figuring the guys we’re after likely listen to NPR. I have no idea how much the day-sponsor is going to cost (I went to the web-site to see if the amount was there, but they want to be contacted; so that’s what I’ll do, and I’ll let you know).

Fact is, my friends, our efforts to expand are going to cost us some cash, one way or another. I wish there was another way, but if there is, I’d love to hear about it. As far as I know, though, the Craig’s List, Google Group, and Black Men Read?! blog-opening won’t cost a cent, though.

Well, now that I think of it, let me throw this out for discussion: we try the free stuff first, and then do the print ads if necessary, then do the NPR day-sponsor if necessary, all the while passing out cards on a momentary, one-on-one basis. Then, as an absolute last resort, the Michael Paul Williams column. I hope it won’t come to that, and I don’t think it will.

As Mark and I agreed, with right around a million people in the greater Richmond area, and with the large percentage of blacks in the metro area, as well, we just have a hard time imagining that the five of us are so doggoned special, y’know? Five? Please. There’s got to be brothers out there who read as a habit, as a lifestyle, as Mark suggested, and that what we need is to somehow signal to them that we’re here, and they’ll quickly, gladly and gratefully join the group, same way each of us would—and did. They just need to know we’re here.

That’s why I feel like the NPR move is our ace in the hole. I’m betting our potential members listen to WCVE, and we have a good chance of finding them there if it comes to that.

Well, that’s what we came up with. Why don’t you guys share what you think, additional ideas you have, ways to get our membership up so that if two guys can’t make it, we’re not reduced to a trio, but still have a good-sized group.

What say you, gentlemen?