I would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the hundreds of you who participated in our recent reader survey. The results gave us helpful insights into the demographics of our readership and what you appreciate most about Mainstreet.
In open comments at the end of the survey, three themes emerged: Lots of you appreciate that Mainstreet coverage is 1) local, 2) unbiased, and 3) upbeat.
“It’s refreshing to have local journalism back in Gainesville,” one reader said.
“I have found your reporting to be factual, unbiased, and appropriately sensitive,” another said.
“Typically I try to avoid the news, but your news is not negative or ugly,” another reader said. “It’s just simple truth about relevant situations in my community.”
This comment touched me the most: “Keep up the hard work, Mainstreet. We would be supporting y’all as paying members right now, but just had our second child. We look forward to being at a place financially where we can contribute in a sustainable way.”
We are proud to provide access to strong local news to those who cannot afford it—and we thank those readers and advertisers who make it possible.
The survey responses also yielded several questions and requests. Since we have no way of matching up responses and readers in the anonymous survey, please send any specific requests to editor@mainstreetdailynews.com. I will answer a few questions publicly here for the benefit of all readers.
How do I subscribe to the print edition? Our model includes home delivery in the 32605 zip code and distribution through single copy locations (boxes, racks, stacks) around Alachua County. The idea is for no one to have to go far for a free newspaper.
We do offer a paid mail subscription as a courtesy to those who may live outside of Alachua County or have limited mobility, but we do not want to grow this service. There are three reasons for that:
1) Mailing papers is expensive, especially since we do not mail enough to qualify for a bulk permit.
2) It takes longer to get the paper than stopping by one of our 70+ single copy locations (which are listed online).
3) It creates an administrative burden for our small team, and we do not make anything on this service. The $39 per three months ($3 per issue) only covers our hard costs. If you want to support Mainstreet, the way to do it is through membership.
I can’t commit to membership, and I didn’t see an option for a one-time donation. If you click on our Become A Member page, scroll down and you’ll see the “Donate Now” button. This allows you to make a tax-deductible gift to Mainstreet through the Florida Press Foundation.
What does Mainstreet membership include? We launched Mainstreet membership last December with four benefits: an exclusive monthly newsletter, special event access (tickets, gift cards and other valuable giveaways), occasional member meet-ups, and—most importantly!—helping build a stronger community through independent, local news.
I’m already a member, so why do I keep getting a pop-up asking me to become one? We’ve been working to solve this without requiring a login to our website, and I’m thrilled to announce that we rolled out a solution for members in mid-September. Now, the latest benefit of Mainstreet membership is a pop-up free experience on Mainstreet’s website. We’ll send you instructions when you join.
That brings us to five benefits of Mainstreet membership—just as we’re closing in on the big milestone of 500 members. As I write this, we need 25 more. Would you help us get there by the end of September? Just use the link above or the button at the top right corner of this page.
To celebrate this occasion, Mainstreet is giving a $500 advertising credit to a local charity, and the 500th member will get to choose which one. It may as well be you.