Last month I wrote to you about some exciting goals we have set for ourselves based on strategic planning we completed some months ago. The first goal from that planning meeting was to more than double our membership to 10,000 within the next 12 months. The second being to create underwriting opportunities to allow people to participate in funding projects that are important to MUFON and the UFO field in general, especially UFO Research.
As part of that process you are now beginning to see those changes take place before your very eyes. The first being a newer, cleaner looking, MUFON logo which is being previewed on the cover of the MUFON UFO Journal this month. The second being the evolution of the Journal itself beginning with this issue. We are reshaping and resizing the Journal to be more contemporary, easier to read, and oriented to a new generation of UFO researchers and investigators as well as newly acquired members whom we are actively recruiting.
As part of that process you are now beginning to see those changes take place before your very eyes. The first being a newer, cleaner looking, MUFON logo which is being previewed on the cover of the MUFON UFO Journal this month. The second being the evolution of the Journal itself beginning with this issue. We are reshaping and resizing the Journal to be more contemporary, easier to read, and oriented to a new generation of UFO researchers and investigators as well as newly acquired members whom we are actively recruiting.
We’ve also rolled out new membership levels at both the Classic and VIP Level for people who are new to MUFON while protecting our current membership base at current pricing levels. Please watch this space in the weeks ahead. The next major change you will see is a completely new website that is simple and easy to use, including a member’s login and exclusive membership section. For the first time in MUFON, membership will literally have its privileges as they say.
But most importantly, and exciting for me, is the number of projects that are both on the drawing board and in-flight to make MUFON even better. These won’t happen without your help. They require not only volunteer hours and know-how, but also the funding and resources to bring them to fruition. Several of these projects and underwriting opportunities are listed below.
MUFON Underwriting Opportunities;
MARRS Archive System – We have built and are now testing an online system for storing and retrieving UFO sighting information from multiple sources (MUFON, NICAP, Project Blue Book, private researchers, etc.) and source types (paper, electronic, photographic, video, hand written, etc.) This system will be used to archive both computerized UFO reports as well as mountains of paper and digital documents stored at MUFON headquarters and in other researcher’s files to allow correlation of reports based on location, date, and type of case. This will be the database for UFO Research Projects worldwide. MARRS stands for the MUFON Anomaly Research and Reporting System. Underwriting Opportunity - $12,500.
NEW MUFON Website – We are in the process of redesigning our website to be simpler and easier to use. It will provide basic information on UFO sightings to the public and have a member’s only section where detailed information on UFO sightings and other perks will be available to MUFON members only. Once logged in you will be able to manage your own MUFON account, membership renewal, and personal profile, as well as access special members only content. Underwriting Opportunity - $15,000.
MUFON Research Library – MUFON would like to create a UFO research library second to none. Currently we have over 3,000 UFO titles in-house as well as photographic and video files that need organization and a physical location to house them. Estimated cost to set this up and make it available to the public is in the range of $8-$10,000 per year. Underwriting Opportunity - $8K - $10,000 per year.
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH - MUFON has acquired a science-based questionnaire that will help with determining what exactly is going on with experiencers reporting other worldly contact. This needs to be computerized and put on our website. Once this is done it will allow our Experiencer Research Team to better understand those with a true abduction experience versus those who require different follow-up and support from our team. Underwriting Opportunity - $4,500.
Mobile Friendly CMS Front-end – Today over 50 percent of our UFO reports are coming to us via cell phones and tablets versus traditional computers. To make it easier to report a UFO to MUFON the front-end to CMS must be re-written so that it is responsive for these devices. The blue-print for doing this is at mufonredesign.com. Once there, just click on Report a UFO to see what the new design will look like. This will increase the quality and quantity of UFO experiences being reported to MUFON and hence communicated out to the world. Underwriting Opportunity - $9,500.
GENERAL FUND – MUFON is the oldest and largest UFO Research and Investigative organization in the world currently operating in 43 countries and all 50 states. It takes money to have a headquarters with full-time staff to run an organization of our size and be responsive to our membership. These costs include computer systems, phones, Internet, and other support required to keep MUFON running on all cylinders providing the valuable services we provide on a daily basis to the world. Underwriting Opportunity - $50k - $80,000 annually.
I hope at least one of these resonates with you, to the extent that you want to get involved as either a volunteer and/or underwriter. Thank you for your kind consideration. A great future awaits just ahead for all of us. Let’s create it together.
But most importantly, and exciting for me, is the number of projects that are both on the drawing board and in-flight to make MUFON even better. These won’t happen without your help. They require not only volunteer hours and know-how, but also the funding and resources to bring them to fruition. Several of these projects and underwriting opportunities are listed below.
MUFON Underwriting Opportunities;
MARRS Archive System – We have built and are now testing an online system for storing and retrieving UFO sighting information from multiple sources (MUFON, NICAP, Project Blue Book, private researchers, etc.) and source types (paper, electronic, photographic, video, hand written, etc.) This system will be used to archive both computerized UFO reports as well as mountains of paper and digital documents stored at MUFON headquarters and in other researcher’s files to allow correlation of reports based on location, date, and type of case. This will be the database for UFO Research Projects worldwide. MARRS stands for the MUFON Anomaly Research and Reporting System. Underwriting Opportunity - $12,500.
NEW MUFON Website – We are in the process of redesigning our website to be simpler and easier to use. It will provide basic information on UFO sightings to the public and have a member’s only section where detailed information on UFO sightings and other perks will be available to MUFON members only. Once logged in you will be able to manage your own MUFON account, membership renewal, and personal profile, as well as access special members only content. Underwriting Opportunity - $15,000.
MUFON Research Library – MUFON would like to create a UFO research library second to none. Currently we have over 3,000 UFO titles in-house as well as photographic and video files that need organization and a physical location to house them. Estimated cost to set this up and make it available to the public is in the range of $8-$10,000 per year. Underwriting Opportunity - $8K - $10,000 per year.
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH - MUFON has acquired a science-based questionnaire that will help with determining what exactly is going on with experiencers reporting other worldly contact. This needs to be computerized and put on our website. Once this is done it will allow our Experiencer Research Team to better understand those with a true abduction experience versus those who require different follow-up and support from our team. Underwriting Opportunity - $4,500.
Mobile Friendly CMS Front-end – Today over 50 percent of our UFO reports are coming to us via cell phones and tablets versus traditional computers. To make it easier to report a UFO to MUFON the front-end to CMS must be re-written so that it is responsive for these devices. The blue-print for doing this is at mufonredesign.com. Once there, just click on Report a UFO to see what the new design will look like. This will increase the quality and quantity of UFO experiences being reported to MUFON and hence communicated out to the world. Underwriting Opportunity - $9,500.
GENERAL FUND – MUFON is the oldest and largest UFO Research and Investigative organization in the world currently operating in 43 countries and all 50 states. It takes money to have a headquarters with full-time staff to run an organization of our size and be responsive to our membership. These costs include computer systems, phones, Internet, and other support required to keep MUFON running on all cylinders providing the valuable services we provide on a daily basis to the world. Underwriting Opportunity - $50k - $80,000 annually.
I hope at least one of these resonates with you, to the extent that you want to get involved as either a volunteer and/or underwriter. Thank you for your kind consideration. A great future awaits just ahead for all of us. Let’s create it together.
