Send a yearly sponsorship request

[danirabbit]

Problem

Funding is an eternal battle 😅

Proposal

Send a notification once a year asking to considering sponsoring the development of elementary OS

Prior Art (Optional)

KDE seems to have a lot of success with their new donation notification: https://pointieststick.com/2024/12/02/i-think-the-donation-notification-works/

[teamcons]

Very fair, though id even advocate slightly more often. Maybe not every six, but every nine month

Do the notification system support actionable buttons ? I dont recall.

i would suggest a first notification shortly after system install. Like one month after account creation.
when user ironed out what they needed, their settings, got used to quirks and eventual bugs, and is set on regular usage already with a standing install.

[alainm23]

I find it a very good and interesting idea. I agree about the frequency, but it would be ideal to analyze it so it doesn't count as spam. Regarding the notifications, they do accept action buttons.

I did something similar in Planify, and when you select the Donate action, it redirects you to a page where you can find donation links. It would be great to have something like that in the settings, where the donation links are displayed.

[teamcons]

One year seem safe, though. We can take it from there.
imperfect is better than not at all

Can we use the "elementary but with a heart" logo as notification icon?

I did something similar in Planify, and when you select the Donate action, it redirects you to a page where you can find donation links. It would be great to have something like that in the settings, where the donation links are displayed.

Kinda like another in the list?

I threw in another issue the idea of a "Contribute" plug, or more reasonably tab in System..
I get the worry of nagging the user too much, but also considering how eOS survives, it is also fair to have some

EDIT: How would the plumbing on this work ?
A dconf-key "date account created" and the daemon checks against it ?

And if difference is
-1 month: Send notification
-Any multiple of 13 (1 month + 12 months): Send notification

[teamcons]

I went with the community logo - It has a heart connected with the logo. It seems fitting
And the popup offers to join the community.

The wording was made to show enthusiasm, and not be too cold.

"Become a sponsor" sounds like joining a super secret club, but the button doesnt have space
It could be in the main body, but i wanted to emphasize on the effect rather than the action. "Why yes lets help making it better they look enthousiastic" rather than "Ooo i want to be one of them sponsor people"
"Sponsor us!" has the call to action anyway

"contribute!" is a second call to action, but if people dont want to sponsor they may fallback on this one rather than... nothing. Out of curiosity they can always click it and check the website and maybe for some decide to do a step further

[danirabbit]

@teamcons I like the direction, community logo is definitely better here. A few notes on copy:

• We don't use the word "donate" because elementary is not a 501 nonprofit and you can't deduct your sponsorship on your taxes. There's specific tax implications for donations and in the past folks have felt misled about that when they see the word "donate"
• The notification title should be a call to action, not a question
• We typically use the phrase "Get Involved" on the website, in system settings, etc.
• I think I'd leave off "monthly" since you can also do one-time sponsorships and folks will probably be more hesitant to add a subscription than to do a one-time

[teamcons]

Possible titles:
Sponsor elementary OS!
Support elementary OS!
Become a sponsor!
Get Involved!
Join the community!
Support us!
Help make elementary OS even better!

[IanHead]

I've worked in the nonprofit space for a long time and have some ideas on what makes people want to give. This paper here has a lot of good ideas that I've seen to work.

https://www.rhf-frh.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Giving_Behaviour_FNL.pdf

Just a few thoughts that bubble up for me from skimming over this:

• Make the copy reinforce a sense of urgency, i.e. sponsorships don't just help fund infrastructure, the project can't survive without them
• Have the sponsorship action point to a future date, rather than right now (because people are easier-going about parting with money later than they are about paying now)
• Reinforce idea of becoming a part of something, maybe make the existing sponsors appear in the popup
• Suggest an amount to contribute in the call to action, so the user doesn't have to think about it
• If the user is already sponsoring (I know that's a lot of work involved to get the answer to that question), tailor the message to them - say thanks and suggest upping it. If they were a one-off sponsor, suggest making it regular

[teamcons]

I've worked in the nonprofit space for a long time and have some ideas on what makes people want to give. This paper here has a lot of good ideas that I've seen to work.

Hmmm

any suggestion?