[MR] Atlantia Digest, Vol 45, Issue 41

[Alex and Kier Kenlon]

The part that makes this a hard issue is that both sides (attendees and 
autocrats) have very good points and concerns that are equally valid. 
 From the autocrat's side is the concern that there will be too much 
invested into an event that is under attended or that not enough will be 
budgeted for an event that is over attended. From the attendee's side is 
the issue of the expenditure of funds to go to the event that may or may 
not be worth going to due to a change in the weather or ability to go 
due to real-life situations.

The autocrat can check past attendance and compare numbers to get a 
basis on possible attendance, but that is of no help in every case. Say 
you have an event spiked for a full year in advance. Another barony 
spikes their local event on the same day. No big problem, that barony is 
beyond the 100 mile limit and thus is in no conflict. Whoops, last 
minute change of plans and now that event becomes a Royal Progress 4 
months out due to an emergency investiture of new Baronage. RP's attract 
a whole bunch of attention and now your event is going to be under 
attended and your historical numbers are worth the paper they're printed 
on and you can only base feast's budget on [insert fanfare] Pre-Reg.

The attendee basis his/her attendance on the activity they want to 
participate. It's a fighting event where it's going to get rained out, 
or fighting was added last minute due to the weather clearing up, or the 
event is now a RP and your friends are coaxing you to go so you can 
finally get your AoA, or perhaps you were going to work that weekend, 
but the client isn't going to be in town till Monday so suddenly your 
weekend is free, or any number of reasons that could affect your 
ability/desire to attend.

No, we're not out to make a profit, but we need to make enough money to 
be able to expand the event to meet popularity and to be able to hold 
other events.

No it's not the responsibility of the attendee to pre-reg to make it 
easy for the autocrat, but if you know you are going and weather 
wouldn't affect your attendance then why not pre-reg to help the 
autocrat fine tune the budget?

Yes, the autocrat should be able to come up with numbers based on past 
attendance to come up with a budget, but what if something comes along 
to put a broadside into the plans of the autocrat? What if it's a 
completely new event with no past history? Sometimes pre-reg numbers are 
all the poor autocrat has.

Something needs to be done, but instead of the autocrats and attendees 
complaining about each other, maybe they could get together and try to 
figure out how both sets of issues can be addressed to the satisfaction 
of both.

Lord Alsandiar
> Message: 4
> Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2006 05:54:12 -0700 (PDT)
> From: "Sean D. Sorrentino" <sdsorrentino at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [MR] The importance of pre-reg
> To: atlantia <atlantia at atlantia.sca.org>
> Message-ID: <20061027125412.69185.qmail at web37702.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-7
>
> Why doesn't everyone simply understand that the vast majority of us will either Pre-register or not based on OUR circumstances? Each of us will make a decision based on what we get out of pre-registering versus what we give up. It is a basic economic decision to bet money on weather, time, and random family or job commitments. 
>
> The decision to go to an event can happen as late as 5 minutes before I leave for day trips and as late as Thursday night for camping events (I have to load the truck after work on Thursday night). 
>
> By then I know what the weather will be like. I know I won't have to work late, go see my mom, or do anything else which would prevent me from going. And the only thing I have given up is a small discount and a guaranteed spot On-Board. Most times, pre-registering does not make sense for me. When it does, I Pre-Register. The rest of the time I don't.
>
> I hear Autocrats complaining that it makes their calculations difficult. Sadly, it is not the job of your guests to Pre-register in order to insure your event makes a profit. It is not bad manners to decide against spending one?s money and time getting rained on at an event just to insure the profit margin of that event. It is a fine thing for you as Autocrats to suggest to people that Pre-registering is a nice thing to do, but it is quite another thing to insist that failing to do so is some sort of lack of manners. 
>
> Please remember that, by my calculations, it costs about $100 every time I go to an event when I include gas, event fees, food, and incidentals. It may cost more, but it only very rarely costs less. If I am going to commit to spend that much money, I am probably going to check to see if it is going to rain before I go. I am generally only willing to suffer through rotten weather (Ymir this year) if there is something special about the event that will make it worth my while. 
> Respectfully,
> Domenico
>  
> Sean Sorrentino
> Email:
> sean at seansorrentino.com
> check out my photos @
> http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/sdsorrentino/my_photos
>   
>