pasofoodcooperative.coop domain

[Kermit]

.coop domains are special, and do have limitations.  Because we are legally a cooperative, we can obtain one.  The annual cost for pasofoodcooperative.coop (to match current domain name of pasofoodcooperative.com) is $96. 

We could just point it to the existing website.  However, for abour $150 year we can get our own server (vps / virtual private server), and then do anything we want.  The key thing I see is to establish a member logon/database setup such as members.pasofoodcooperative.coop and eventually store.pasofoodcooperative.coop. 

I would be willing to do the legwork on the server setup, page setup, etc. (mostly it is copying & pasting existing site stuff I have access to), but it does commit PRFC to $250/year expenses (domain & server).  We would have to be willing to figure out the buyers club or group purchases using this tool as a way to pay for it.

So the 3 options are:

1) Do nothing / do not obtain .coop domain name

2) Purchase pasofoodcooperative.coop at $96/year - point to existing website, and get it associated with national coop stuff (would require some efforts to figure out possibilities/how beneficial this would be)

3) Purchase pasofoodcooperative.coop at $96/year / purchase web server vps at $150/year.  Start with member logons/database info (member spreadsheet), build survey and build database of member interest/member details

To move forward Board would have to vote on any spending options - open to discussion by all that are interested in chiming in.

Kermit

[Lydia Francis]

Thank you for the research. After we talk to FCI about Communication and Board & Committee Recruiting we have this to think about. :)

[Kermit]

Woohoo! We are live on pasofoodcooperative.coop! (see below)

Right now I have it redirecting to existing website (.com)

I've started building the survey, and have sent ad to Paso Mag.  You can check out the work in progress at:

pasofoodcooperative.coop/survey

It will be harder to do changes as it gets built, but we can always add questions at the end fairly easily.

Kermit

IMPORTANT: Please do not change the subject line of this email when replying.

Dear Paso Robles Food Cooperative, Inc.,
  
Your eligibility for registering a .coop domain has been verified. No further action on your part is needed. 
   
Thank you for your patience while we were completing this process.  The .coop verification process helps to ensure that only organisations within the cooperative movement can use a .coop domain, making your .coop name a valuable asset for differentiating your business on the internet.     

If you have any questions or if you need assistance setting up your .coop domain name so that it points to a website or emails, your registrar is the best point of contact. 

However, you may contact us for any questions regarding your .coop name and we will refer you to the right contact.   
  
Thank you for your support of .coop!    

Regards,

dotCoop Verification Team

[Lydia Francis]

Hurray! And new members today too! :)