The collector car world is in the midst of a generational transition

[Crusty Trucker]

Please at least read this article before commenting or criticizing either the content or it's author. My opinion is that the information presented here is factual and based on current knowledge and research. Sure, this just one metric, but it's a good indication of what's to come.  It’s a rare moment that speaks to the ongoing evolution of the market’s demographics, and it punctuates Gen X’s growing influence as a trend-maker.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/the-collector-car-world-is-in-the-midst-of-a-generational-transition/ar-AA1b3XUD?ocid=mailsignout&li=BBnb7Kz

Edited May 11, 2023 by Crusty Trucker (see edit history)

[rocketraider]

Hagerty probably has a good handle on this subject, but I refuse to read any article that requires me to download an app before I'm allowed to read it.

[1937hd45]

Charts & grafts, nothing that effects my joy of the hobby. Hagerty will still make money, good for them. Next senseless internet article that others find to be must read material............... 

[edinmass]

As a life long Generation X’er, not one single car on their list is on my radar. 

[MCHinson]

The largest  majority of people entering the hobby have always been those who are somewhere in the area of 45 to 60 years of age. That is when most people have reached the point that they have the disposable income for a hobby car, and are more likely to have garage space or the ability to afford to pay for garage space. It does not surprise me that the Gen X group of hobbyists would now be larger than Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers portion of the hobby. None of us is going to live forever, but despite all of the gloom and doom predictions, it looks like the younger generations are still interested in the antique car hobby. The hobby will still be alive and well after most of us aren't. 

[Twisted Shifter]

1 hour ago, edinmass said:

As a life long Generation X’er, not one single car on their list is on my radar. 

You and Methuselah...

[CarNucopia]

The hobby will live longer then any of us. I think the relevant question for this forum is will the AACA be there?

 

I'm a life-long car enthusiast, Gen-Xer and former consumer marketing professional. What brought me to this thought exercise is the fact that, for the first time in my life, I have weekends free. As such, I started to look for more ways to get involved with the club. Based on my experience, I believe the organization is poorly equipped for the enthusiasts of the future.

 

I enjoy the AACA and want it to thrive. As such, this is offed to be constructive. The club needs to modernize how it communicates with people, particularly as it relates to events. Honestly, it's astounding that event registration is trafficked (in both) directions via mail. The next generation of members avoid mail. (I'd also wager a good portion don't have a checkbook). Using these means not only sets up roadblocks of sorts, it also gives the club an air of obsolescent. I said as a joke in another thread, the cars need to be 25 years old, do the communication streams need to be too? My own experience is that the effort required to find information on events isn't worth the time. I doubt I'm the first person to reach this conclusion. 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by CarNucopia (see edit history)

[Twisted Shifter]

2 hours ago, rocketraider said:

Hagerty probably has a good handle on this subject, but I refuse to read any article that requires me to download an app before I'm allowed to read it.

You might consider changing your service provider since you mentioned this problem before.  I don't recall ever having to download apps with any of our providers. 

[Melanie Harwood]

7 minutes ago, CarNucopia said:

The hobby will live longer then any of us. I think the relevant question for this forum is will the AACA be there?

 

I'm a life-long car enthusiast, Gen-Xer and former consumer marketing professional. What brought me to this thought exercise is the fact that, for the first time in my life, I have weekends free. As such, I started to look for more ways to get involved with the club. Based on my experience, I believe the organization is poorly equipped for the enthusiasts of the future.

 

I enjoy the AACA and want it to thrive. As such, this is offed to be constructive. The club needs to modernize how it communicates with people, particularly as it relates to events. Honestly, it's astounding that event registration is trafficked (in both) directions via mail. The next generation of members avoid mail. (I'd also wager a good portion don't have a checkbook). Using these means not only sets up roadblocks of sorts, it also gives the club an air of obsolescent. I said as a joke in another thread, the cars need to be 25 years old, do the communication streams need to be too? My own experience is that the effort required to find events isn't worth the time. I doubt I'm the first person to reach this conclusion. 

I've had this same thought oh, about a hundred times. I've even volunteered to help the AACA adopt online registration processes and have been turned down. The regions are all operated independently, which I understand, but some guidance and a push from HQ showing them how easy and effective it truly is would be a good start.

 

I know we've mentioned it before, but I'm the registrar of the longest-running car show in the country which attracts 450 cars each Father's Day. About 8 years ago, we switched to 100% online registration and not only did attendance NOT drop, but we had a lot of NEW participants, many of which were younger than our usual demographic. Yes, there were still plenty of old timers who wanted us to mail them an entry form that they could mail back with a check, and they do indeed wander into our shop demanding a paper form, but I usually help them with the online registration and everyone's happy. It makes my job a lot easier too. I can't imagine how much time I'd spend sorting paper, trying to decipher handwriting, cashing checks, and transferring information to a spreadsheet. With online registration, it's mostly done for me. If for no other reason, this notable improvement will save their volunteers a lot of time, regardless of the event. Just think of the size of Hershey logistics, and they're still doing it 100% with paper forms and mailed-in checks and custom envelopes for each individual. That must be an absolute nightmare to manage and requires a huge amount of time. Thers's an easier, faster, more convenient way if only they'd take the risk and give it a try.

 

My point is that if you want young people you need to speak their language. Checks, postage, printing paper, entry forms, SASEs, magazines, etc. are not the future. Just because that's how it has always been done doesn't mean that's the way it always should be. CarNucopia is 100% right that the extra steps are roadblocks, not just an inconvenience. There's a theory called the "20 Second Rule" that says if a task requires more than 20 seconds of preparation, chances of it getting done go way down. The club needs to embrace the change and just get over the fact that a handful of old guys will complain along the way. Rip the band-aid off quickly and ensure the club's future success.

[ia-k]

I didn't need to load any app to read the article on my laptop.

 

As an older Gen X, born in 1966,  I can see the trend in "newer" cars for my age group. These are the cars that were either new when we were coming of age/young adults (like a Chrysler Conquest/Mitsubishi Starion that is on my radar as a "want") to the cars we actually could afford to drive in high school like a late 70s Camaro, square bodied Chevy pickup, or an Olds Cutlass. I have a '51 Plymouth convertible that I bought when I was 9, would I be in the market for one today? Probably not. In fact, other than a muscle/pony car, anything before 1975 wouldn't gather much interest in me. If somebody gave me a 1948 Ford, or a 30's Dodge would I take it? Sure. Would I spend "market value" on one to acquire it, probably not. As people my age get to the stage in life where the kids are out of the house and life is winding down toward retirement they are going to buy these memories, which probably doesn't include cars from the teens to the early 60s.

 

When we had my parent's estate auction with several pieces of antique furniture the auctioneer told us not to expect much for these items as the market is "literally and figuratively dead". He was correct, the people who bought this stuff 10-15 years ago (with the higher prices) are now dead or in assisted living/nursing home and have no space for this large ornate furniture and the younger crowd is more interested in the mid century modern style. I see the same thing happening with the antique car market.

[Tph479]

55 minutes ago, CarNucopia said:

The hobby will live longer then any of us. I think the relevant question for this forum is will the AACA be there?

 

I'm a life-long car enthusiast, Gen-Xer and former consumer marketing professional. What brought me to this thought exercise is the fact that, for the first time in my life, I have weekends free. As such, I started to look for more ways to get involved with the club. Based on my experience, I believe the organization is poorly equipped for the enthusiasts of the future.

 

I enjoy the AACA and want it to thrive. As such, this is offed to be constructive. The club needs to modernize how it communicates with people, particularly as it relates to events. Honestly, it's astounding that event registration is trafficked (in both) directions via mail. The next generation of members avoid mail. (I'd also wager a good portion don't have a checkbook). Using these means not only sets up roadblocks of sorts, it also gives the club an air of obsolescent. I said as a joke in another thread, the cars need to be 25 years old, do the communication streams need to be too? My own experience is that the effort required to find information on events isn't worth the time. I doubt I'm the first person to reach this conclusion. 

 

 

 

 

Late last year a college education, mid twenties guy, had to give me a rent check and he had to google on his smart phone how to fill out a check. After he gave it to me I gave it back to him and told him that he needed to sign it. It was check number 1001….. first check he ever wrote. I thought that was pretty funny, but then again it made me feel like a dinosaur.

[Pfeil]

2 hours ago, MCHinson said:

The largest  majority of people entering the hobby have always been those who are somewhere in the area of 45 to 60 years of age. That is when most people have reached the point that they have the disposable income for a hobby car, and are more likely to have garage space or the ability to afford to pay for garage space. It does not surprise me that the Gen X group of hobbyists would now be larger than Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers portion of the hobby. None of us is going to live forever, but despite all of the gloom and doom predictions, it looks like the younger generations are still interested in the antique car hobby. The hobby will still be alive and well after most of us aren't. 

Possibly, but don't count on it.

[Twisted Shifter]

3 hours ago, MCHinson said:

...None of us is going to live forever, but despite all of the gloom and doom predictions, it looks like the younger generations are still interested in the antique car hobby. The hobby will still be alive and well after most of us aren't. 

 

54 minutes ago, Pfeil said:

Possibly, but don't count on it.

Maybe you should sell your old car collection = except for one, and be buried in it!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by Twisted Shifter (see edit history)

[1935Packard]

In breaking news, time is passing and people don't live forever.

[1937hd45]

4 hours ago, MCHinson said:

The largest  majority of people entering the hobby have always been those who are somewhere in the area of 45 to 60 years of age. That is when most people have reached the point that they have the disposable income for a hobby car, and are more likely to have garage space or the ability to afford to pay for garage space. It does not surprise me that the Gen X group of hobbyists would now be larger than Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers portion of the hobby. None of us is going to live forever, but despite all of the gloom and doom predictions, it looks like the younger generations are still interested in the antique car hobby. The hobby will still be alive and well after most of us aren't. 

Discovering the Antique Car hobby at 10 years of age in 1961 may have been my problem. If I had amassed the funds most 40-50 years old do today I'd have started out with better cars. Then again I'd have missed all the people I've met over the past 62 years, I'm still happy with how things are going. Bob 

[Steve_Mack_CT]

What 1935Packard said, along with tastes change.  If I were concerned about making money, heck even staying even I wouldn't buy prewar cars or other cars the up and coming hobbyists may not want.  Luckily I don't have that concern, and hope those who lust after other cars enjoy them as well, after all, that's what it is all about.

[avgwarhawk]

Good article. I was born in  1965. In between a Boomer and Gen X. Probably the reason I gravitate to cars of the 50s and 60s. Not so much muscle cars either. I'm a luxury car guy with a soft spot for wagons. True I'm in a financial situation where I can afford a car and enjoy the hobby. Something the article points out. The list of vehicles offered does not have any that interest me except the Toyota Land cruiser.  I always thought these were cool. In any case,  there are plenty of people just like me in the hobby.  Many more to come no doubt. 

[edinmass]

6 hours ago, 1935Packard said:

In breaking news, time is passing and people don't live forever.

There goes my non exit strategy…………can I borrow some money? 

[PWN]

I was born in 65 and just squeaked into the xer category. My old car enthusiasm comes from my grandfather....who deemed everything newer than the late 1920s as "used cars ".

 

I still walk by practically everything newer than that at car shows with my grandfather's mindset...but I'm trying to like the used cars and respect their collector interest. 😁

[Brass is Best]

The problem with websites and magazines is once you have one it needs to be filled with articles. Collect what you like, not what someone who is not you tells you to collect. 

[Bhigdog]

10 hours ago, CarNucopia said:

The hobby will live longer then any of us. I think the relevant question for this forum is will the AACA be there?

 

I'm a life-long car enthusiast, Gen-Xer and former consumer marketing professional. What brought me to this thought exercise is the fact that, for the first time in my life, I have weekends free. As such, I started to look for more ways to get involved with the club. Based on my experience, I believe the organization is poorly equipped for the enthusiasts of the future.

 

I enjoy the AACA and want it to thrive. As such, this is offed to be constructive. The club needs to modernize how it communicates with people, particularly as it relates to events. Honestly, it's astounding that event registration is trafficked (in both) directions via mail. The next generation of members avoid mail. (I'd also wager a good portion don't have a checkbook). Using these means not only sets up roadblocks of sorts, it also gives the club an air of obsolescent. I said as a joke in another thread, the cars need to be 25 years old, do the communication streams need to be too? My own experience is that the effort required to find information on events isn't worth the time. I doubt I'm the first person to reach this conclusion. 

 

 

 

 

But....But............We've always done it this way. ................Bob

[8E45E]

The first magazine I ever bought that was solely on collector cars only was the now defunct 'Car Classics' starting with the August, 1973 issue, though I always liked Motor Trend's 'In Retrospect' series of articles with a nice color centerspread prior to that.

 

With few exceptions, 1973 was around the time cars were getting ugly with the government-mandated 5-mph bumpers and emission-choked engines.  Some of the cars covered in those first Car Classics magazines I bought were only ten to fifteen years old at the time, and remain collector's items to this day.  It wasn't until the 1980's, I started to give new cars a second look again, once designers found there was a way to work with the 5-mph bumper rule, and make them appear to belong there; not a hideous afterthought hanging off both ends of the car.  And prices still remain low for late '70's malaise cars over 40 years later compared to some later 1980's cars with better looks and performance, which would have been part of a 'Gen-X'er's' youth.

 

Craig

[George K]

2 hours ago, edinmass said:

There goes my non exit strategy…………can I borrow some money? 

Ed, It’s aka natural attrition and it sucks.

[jp1gt]

I read the article. The cars they mention in my opinion are not affordable to most of those gens.

[prewarnut]

   As someone who looks at graphs and statistics all week long there's one point not mentioned in the article...the total number of cars being collected. Sure, the percentages of buyers are changing with the changing demographics of any society (do we really need an article to tell us that?). It would be more helpful to comment on the total number of collector cars collected, the number of cars per collector, total vehicle values insured, static versus dynamic use of collector vehicles, etc...

   Ok, back to my day job.

[PWN]

1 hour ago, 8E45E said:

The first magazine I ever bought that was solely on collector cars only was the now defunct 'Car Classics' starting with the August, 1973 issue, though I always liked Motor Trend's 'In Retrospect' series of articles with a nice color centerspread prior to that.

 

With few exceptions, 1973 was around the time cars were getting ugly with the government-mandated 5-mph bumpers and emission-choked engines.  Some of the cars covered in those first Car Classics magazines I bought were only ten to fifteen years old at the time, and remain collector's items to this day.  It wasn't until the 1980's, I started to give new cars a second look again, once designers found there was a way to work with the 5-mph bumper rule, and make them appear to belong there; not a hideous afterthought hanging off both ends of the car.  And prices still remain low for late '70's malaise cars over 40 years later compared to some later 1980's cars with better looks and performance, which would have been part of a 'Gen-X'er's' youth.

 

Craig

I like bumpers that look and act like bumpers. No need to replace half the body panels when you have minor "accident" when ya have a real bumper. Kinda like saying I hate fish because its fishy....well that's fine, but now that is how fish is marketed now and it makes you go huh? Cars are marketed as safe and they are, but they are hellish to fix as mentioned in another thread and the insurance cost increases reflect this.

Edited May 12, 2023 by PWN (see edit history)

[CarNucopia]

20 minutes ago, prewarnut said:

   As someone who looks at graphs and statistics all week long there's one point not mentioned in the article...the total number of cars being collected. Sure, the percentages of buyers are changing with the changing demographics of any society (do we really need an article to tell us that?). It would be more helpful to comment on the total number of collector cars collected, the number of cars per collector, total vehicle values insured, static versus dynamic use of collector vehicles, etc...

   Ok, back to my day job.

That’s a really good point. 
 

I’d guess the Hagerty numbers underrepresent enthusiasts under 30 because the car they are passionate about and wrench on is also their daily driver. Hagerty doesn’t insure these folks. Based on my experience, the most popular car among 20-somethings is the Miata. Nothing else is even close, yet Hagerty doesn’t mention it.

 

If I had to read the tea leaves on car enthusiasm trends, they’d tell me there are more people under 30 who love cars then ever.

Edited May 12, 2023 by CarNucopia (see edit history)

[edinmass]

1 hour ago, George K said:

Ed, It’s aka natural attrition and it sucks.

Especially since I'm much closer to the end than the start. I try to enjoy every day........because I'm gonna blink my eyes and be 80 years old.....if I live that long. 

[1937hd45]

12 minutes ago, edinmass said:

Especially since I'm much closer to the end than the start. I try to enjoy every day........because I'm gonna blink my eyes and be 80 years old.....if I live that long. 

I share the same outlook, enjoy the cars and people I like, ignore the cars and people that wish to change my ability to enjoy MY hobby. 

 

Bob 

[Pfeil]

33 minutes ago, 1937hd45 said:

I share the same outlook, enjoy the cars and people I like, ignore the cars and people that wish to change my ability to enjoy MY hobby. 

 

Bob 

Exactly!

 

As for Twisted Shifter, don't mention me in any of your post!.

[Bhigdog]

3 hours ago, edinmass said:

..because I'm gonna blink my eyes and be 80 years old.....if I live that long. 

And just what the **** is wrong with being 80 years old? Or 83 for that matter. One of the benefits is long range planning only means........Next week..............Bob

Edited May 12, 2023 by Bhigdog (see edit history)

[Steve Moskowitz]

Well, I realize that this will fall on deaf ears as some people have their mind made up. I have posted before about AACA's challenges but some folks do not want any answer but what pleases them. This club has invested heavily in technology and some who are not members would have zero idea of that.  Others have never spent one hour in our building or have any idea of the the challenge of dealing with several hundred regions who operate autonomously nor have they had any involvement in discussions we have had with our regions about doing things differently.  Our latest magazine highlights several new and far advanced technological improvements for the club.  I dare say no other club has these capabilities including our massive technology in the library. Our digitizing of film is something that is almost unheard of in libraries.

 

We also mentioned in this issue of the club magazine that we have finally found a way to separate our membership join/renew feature from our "store" and now joining or renewing is a snap.  We also gave out a contract for a new library website a few weeks ago.  On top of all this we finally found an affordable (yes, we are stewards of our members money) solution to a subpar online store and staff have been in training to open a complete new store plus a fabulous inventory control system which we have wanted for many years.  It was simply not in the cards for us in the past as the systems were too expensive for our size.  Our staff is busy with the barcoding, taking pictures of merchandise and setting up the Point of Sale terminals. This is another massive improvement for us.

 

That being said, a huge source of frustration for us and some of you is registration for events.  Unlike a lot of clubs who have one or two events a year we can have up to 15 or so with each one being unique and requiring specific requirements.  Our events are tied into custom software which we have a fortune invested in as they allow us to have a database that accomplishes many functions for our members.  So, we start off with the resistance by regions to national taking over the online collection of money for events and registration data.  As I said, the regions are autonomous.  Then there is the issue that we have heard a decent amount of objections to, raising our prices or charging for the use of a credit card.  The club nor the regions cannot simply absorb the fees. On top of that, the cost to program each event's registration is not cheap and most events change from year to year.  We do not have anyone on staff that can write this code.  Our events run the gamut from a very simple registration  form with virtually just a couple of items to events with multiple food choices, shirts, tours, dinners, etc.  Then let's add the issue of many, if not most of our regions do not have the capability of processing credit cards.  Registration for our events go directly to the local regions.  When the national club runs an event it can absolutely accept credit cards and do online registration.  We have that already and have for years, for our judging system which many of you probably are completely unaware.

 

That all being said we are committed to finding a way to solving our dilemma as we are certainly aware that a checkbook is a total anathema to younger people and based on predictions from news sources our government may try moving us in a different monetary system.  So, we will continue to try and find solutions that work well for our members and our regions and chapters.  Solutions require an understanding of the total picture.

 

Please do not get the misunderstanding that AACA does not want to hear criticism be it constructive or not but in some corners it comes from people with zero knowledge and no skin in the game.  A case in point, we had criticism recently about a forum being dumped and we actually came up with a quick solution that made it fair to all without causing heartache for the moderators.  See the Services Offered Forum.  We do listen and when possible take advantage of ideas given to us.  This was a win for the moderators, a win for vendors and a win for forum members.  

 

 

 

[8E45E]

4 hours ago, PWN said:

No need to replace half the body panels when you have minor "accident" when ya have a real bumper. Kinda like saying I hate fish because its fishy....well that's fine, but now that is how fish is marketed now and it makes you go huh? 

I just drive safe and don't go running into things so I can keep my Fishy  Fisher body looking good.  

 

Craig

[1912Staver]

On 5/11/2023 at 5:35 PM, MCHinson said:

The largest  majority of people entering the hobby have always been those who are somewhere in the area of 45 to 60 years of age. That is when most people have reached the point that they have the disposable income for a hobby car, and are more likely to have garage space or the ability to afford to pay for garage space. It does not surprise me that the Gen X group of hobbyists would now be larger than Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers portion of the hobby. None of us is going to live forever, but despite all of the gloom and doom predictions, it looks like the younger generations are still interested in the antique car hobby. The hobby will still be alive and well after most of us aren't. 

 

If I only became interested in the hobby at age 45 - 60 I would probably have not become involved. Peak age for house and family costs. Both huge budget killers . Almost all my involvement was before I bought a house { age 35 } and the brief time between when the mortage was paid off { age 55 } and when I retired { age 63, big drop in disposable income } . Otherwise there was almost no spare money. Canada , a pretty decent job, offset by very high housing costs and a generally high cost of living. Now I am doubly screwed , 65 , retired and a mortage again. But it prevented a divorce so I guess you have to choose your battles.

[CarNucopia]

8 hours ago, Steve Moskowitz said:

Well, I realize that this will fall on deaf ears as some people have their mind made up. I have posted before about AACA's challenges but some folks do not want any answer but what pleases them. This club has invested heavily in technology and some who are not members would have zero idea of that.  Others have never spent one hour in our building or have any idea of the the challenge of dealing with several hundred regions who operate autonomously nor have they had any involvement in discussions we have had with our regions about doing things differently.  Our latest magazine highlights several new and far advanced technological improvements for the club.  I dare say no other club has these capabilities including our massive technology in the library. Our digitizing of film is something that is almost unheard of in libraries.

 

 

I'm not sure if you are referring to @Melanie Harwood, or me since we were the ones giving criticism in this thread. But since I sent us down this path, I'll share some thoughts.

 

The AACA is clearly a decade or so late in adopting digital communications and processes. Your reply outlines challenges you've recently addressed that have had solutions readily available for years. I implemented a POS system with 25,000 SKUs in 2006. This was for a business smaller in budget and resources then the AACA.

 

And, we should look to the magazine for updates? Have you seen what has become of the magazine business and how relevant a form of communication it is? They're as popular as checkbooks for people under age 35. Magazines are great for long-form content and there is a place for them. The AACA is awesome at this. But, timely organization information should be done electronically. Maybe you're right we have "zero idea" what's going on. But please direct me to the minutes of the Board of Directors meetings so I can see the process in action.

 

Sorry for the rant Steve, but I found your reply defensive and one that rejects criticism instead of welcoming it. The characterization in the first sentence is simply insulting.

 

Anyhow..., I have a thick skin and would like to make this a productive exchange. I have three questions, as a member concerned about the heath of the Club:

 

1) What metrics does the AACA use to measure the performance of the organization?

 

2) What document governs the Club's relationship with Regions and Chapters the prohibits the AACA from exercising the any oversight? These organizations operate under the AACA name, yet the club has no say?

 

3)  Finally, I'm curious: is there marketing plan?

 

Thanks for listening and, in advance, answers to the questions above.

Edited May 13, 2023 by CarNucopia (see edit history)

[nick8086]

How do I find out the list of AACA members in Nebraska?

 

Is this on line or in print?

[MCHinson]

5 hours ago, nick8086 said:

How do I find out the list of AACA members in Nebraska?

 

Is this on line or in print?

Go to aaca.org and log into the member log in section. You can then search the membership database (by state abbreviation) and you will find a couple of pages of members in Nebraska. 

[Steve Moskowitz]

Carnucopia, it was not aimed at any one person as there were several people who in my opinion simply have not been involved in AACA to any extent and have little knowledge of how this club operates or the reasons why we have not made more progress.  However, you also highlight on decades behind and what does that matter, if true,  at this point since the important thing is that we are in fact making massive improvements.

 

Your comment about the POS system simply reinforces my point.  First of all, AACA's merchandise in not in the thousands but in the 100 range plus or minus. Secondly, our new system is not just a POS system and  inventory control but also it gave us a new online platform as we wanted out of Magento.  We got all of this as a turn key program from a reputable company at a very affordable price. We were not about to waste money on a program that is very small in nature.

 

Minutes are not published and quite frankly would do little good in having a clear understanding of all that goes on as we have been advised by our legal counsel on keeping minutes extremely tight.  We do have roundtable meetings at virtually every national show where members can ask the board questions, complain, praise or whatever.  The board communicates through a multitude of media options.

 

1.  Naturally a key metric is our membership numbers, our retention of current members and our gaining of new members.  We measure a lot of individual portions of where our members are coming from.  It is a key challenge for the club.  Of course there are many other metrics used in attendance at events, number of regions and chapters, financial health, growth of our library, etc.

 

2.  Simple, our By-Laws and Policy & Procedure govern our relationship with the regions.  They only requirement they have with us is to submit Officer's Reporting Form and Roster once a year and ensure all members are members of national.  Our by-laws and policy & procedures can be found on this website's home page.  Our regions all handle their own financials and do not report them to us at all.

 

3.This is an area that we have failed miserably and recently we formed a committee to seek outside help in finalizing a meaningful marketing plan.  A big issue in this area is a lack of funds to do all that we would like to but we are doing our best to address that now.

 

I sorry you felt it insulting, it was not meant to be but it is also insulting to all of us who are busting our tails on behalf of this club to constantly listen to snide an inappropriate remarks from people who are not members and who are not involved.  They do this on our forums which are free to them but cost this club a ton. Our board is not paid and volunteers across the country are all trying to make AACA stronger.  Let's also look at your communication thoughts.  Our magazine is thriving and it is the one constant praise the board hears from our members.  Advertisers are sticking with us and we have not had to resort to reducing the quality of the magazine like many others.  Not all magazines are dead, just look at the news today about the sale of Forbes for 800 million.  Timely?  How about our monthly e-newsletter Speedster which is almost 15 years or more old.  On top of that we communicate through emails constantly through Constant Contact and we consistently have open rates far exceeding the industry average.  As I said before we also open up meetings to our members to express their thoughts at our events, we have these forums, Facebook pages (two pages one for official club and one for a group with a huge following).

 

I have always prided myself i being reasonable and fair in my posts on this forum.  However, everyone has a breaking point and maybe I was unduly harsh but it was not aimed at one person although I know a couple commenting are not AACA members and have not been for years so how in the world do they think they know what is going on.  AACA just completed a massive project with its new headquarters and new library and acquired a large portion of the Free Library of Philadelphia's automotive collection.  Those were massive projects and were done with no debt to the club.  When you add in all the new features we are installing here and all the hard work we are putting into future events and membership it does get under my skin at times that the work of our great staff and board are not appreciated.  Same with managing this forum.

 

To sum it up, in my opinion, we have to do better.  We all recognize that and are seeking answers to our problems which are prevalent throughout the hobby.  We can't do it alone, we need dedicated members to get involved, join a committee or run for the board.  There is an ad in this month's issue trying to recruit candidates.  The fact is, that despite all the challenges we are working hard for the future.  Failure is not an option.

 

[Walt G]

On 5/11/2023 at 10:26 PM, Melanie Harwood said:

magazines, etc. are not the future

Very sorry to read this , so print publications should cease to exist and only on line articles, stories, history should be published. If so I am done and will look at my vast collection of printed material as archaic and need to be boxed and placed in a dark area to be rediscovered in generations in the distant future. I do not agree. Electronic resources are indeed important , but as a former art teacher , electronic generated anything  is nice but is only creative by what can be found that has been posted to be used. What about all the other ideas etc that are in peoples imagination? History has been captured in print, that printed data can be destroyed by fire, flood etc. but electronic data can evaporate in one mis click of a button, some regained but a lot just lost/gone.

Data so far as names/address/ etc for sending communication asap is understood and appreciated. It is easily accessed by a mass of people - I have seen this in a thread on old images I started 3 1/2 years ago here. But if all of this material were not a "hard copy" what would we have ? should it be dismissed?

I will admit I am "old school" - "Archaic" , one of the fogies of automotive history but in order to remain viable and not depend upon electricity to always be there at the flick of a finger I still think a print publication should be appreciated. Not everyone goes on line every day to read a newspaper, magazine etc. to stare at a screen. Will classrooms in schools all become on line TV screens to learn from?

We all have an opinion and can agree to disagree.

WEG

[STEVE POLLARD]

20 minutes ago, Walt G said:

Very sorry to read this , so print publications should cease to exist and only on line articles, stories, history should be published. If so I am done and will look at my vast collection of printed material as archaic and need to be boxed and placed in a dark area to be rediscovered in generations in the distant future. I do not agree. Electronic resources are indeed important , but as a former art teacher , electronic generated anything  is nice but is only creative by what can be found that has been posted to be used. What about all the other ideas etc that are in peoples imagination? History has been captured in print, that printed data can be destroyed by fire, flood etc. but electronic data can evaporate in one mis click of a button, some regained but a lot just lost/gone.

Data so far as names/address/ etc for sending communication asap is understood and appreciated. It is easily accessed by a mass of people - I have seen this in a thread on old images I started 3 1/2 years ago here. But if all of this material were not a "hard copy" what would we have ? should it be dismissed?

I will admit I am "old school" - "Archaic" , one of the fogies of automotive history but in order to remain viable and not depend upon electricity to always be there at the flick of a finger I still think a print publication should be appreciated. Not everyone goes on line every day to read a newspaper, magazine etc. to stare at a screen. Will classrooms in schools all become on line TV screens to learn from?

We all have an opinion and can agree to disagree.

WEG

Agree Walt !  There's a place and time for everything......for me, I enjoy sitting in my easy chair, lousy television turned off and the AACA Magazine in hand...