I would really put effort into recruiting if Couchers was set to “invite based only” at the beginning, like Trustroots was at the beginning, because an invite based only membership gives the feeling of being part of something really cool, unique. It gives the feeling of having a privilege that many others don’t have.
Is hardwired in our genetics to consider what is scarce a lot more precious than what is in abundance.
I think right now and when the app is released we’ll actually just appeal to people with experience that are looking for alternatives by their own initiative. And we shouldn’t decline anyone with such a background, especially as we certainly want more users to give feedback on the app. To be honest, I also don’t see how I would have been part of Couchers if it was invite only, as I wasn’t related to anyone on the initial team.
If we really hit a spot where we couldn’t accommodate user numbers, we can always switch to some form of signup restrictions I guess.
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Good point! I definitely think we should have a robust invitation system and referral system. Printing out post cards or business cards would be (relatively) expensive compared to other electronic referral methods. However, a physical card that you could give to people you think would be interested would be a great way to encourage brand new people to get involved. It would have a higher CPA but would probably also lead to a higher conversion rate and quality traffic for the platform.
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It seems that there is an “inside war” going on here between those who want some things and those who reject the very same things :)))) Guys, make a decision and release this platform faster! By January is likely it will already be possible to travel here in Europe!
I just mentioned couchers.org in the cs Rotterdam group. And now I visited cs again and have this: ‘Your account has been temporarily suspended.’
You may have to also consider paid advertising, that is if you can afford it by a wealthy benefactor
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Another account casualty 
. We can never link to couchers.org in CS, I’m sorry you weren’t told. Where should we put his message so it’s visible and no one links without knowing the potential consequences?
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Ohh I am sorry to know that but I am sure they will lift this temporary suspension within a couple of days.
They dont have a reason to suspend your profile
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I have done some binge watching:
Promotional movies from CS
Casey Fenton last week telling about CS
Someone from hobotraveller says they are ready to take over cs clients.
The only travel influencer who clearly spoke out about the paywall. It is a very eloborate video Maybe she would like to join our community?
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Around the time when CS was introducing drastic changes, ads, no groups, etc, was that about 5-7 years ago? from the perspective of old-timers the platform was dying but the reality was different, they were actually growing their user base.
I think the main factor is that they had plenty of Youtubers doing promotion for them, maybe some paid, but most probably unpaid, it was around the time when Youtube was exploding in popularity.
I think couchers will have to get into the influencer game as well.
And @coboat I can’t believe Fenton is still talking about CS, what a shameless guy.
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If I may:
- Casey Fenton is mute in the vid
- Andy, from hobotraveller, in general sounds like a delusional person to me
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Have you tried using bitly link shortener?
I’ve heard of people’s accounts being blocked for sharing WhatsApp links, but if you use bitly it doesn’t get flagged.
Could be a possible solution.
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In China, most of the Couchsurfer groups have separate WeChat CS groups for each major city. A common frustration I heard is that many people got locked out of their CS accounts due to the new required payment. But of course, WeChat is totally separate from couchsurfing, and so, along with others, I can start recruiting people to join Couchers.
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I was just asked how come Couchers doesn’t have FB 
I understand MVP is ready, any plans to open accounts on social nets?
We actually do have accounts, and we’ll be ramping up activity over the next couple months 
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Oh! Thanks!