As I noted in my AMA yesterday, much has changed over the four years that Skyd has been around. But one thing that has never changed is our commitment to the ultimate community. We don’t see ourselves as an outside resource, but rather a reflection of the struggles, voices, and opinions of the wider ultimate community itself. As Elliot noted in the very first Skyd article ever published, we were created to serve as a “centralized resource for the latest in the sport and the culture“. That means that although we, the staff, direct the future of the publication itself, everyone has a say. Just like anyone with an idea is free to contact us and work with our editors to turn their story into a polished article, anyone with a suggestion is encouraged to weigh in and shape the direction that Skyd takes.

This year, we want to open up not only Skyd as a publication and resource, but also make public our budget for the next year. If we are to be community-supported, the community must have faith in what we’re doing. Here is a summary of our budget for 2015:

Compensation for Staff and Columnists:

Editor in Chief (25 hours/week) – $10,000

Staff Editor (10 hours/week) – $5500

Social Media Manager (5 hours/week) – $2500

Advertising Manager – $3000 (plus commission)

Columnists – $12,420

Expenses:

Features – $2500

Skyd Film (Documentaries, Short Films) – $5000

Design – $1500

Web Development – $2500

Yearly Ultiphotos Subscription – $750

Hosting Costs – $750

Debts (money borrowed to pay staff after budget shortages last year) – $3500

Total Required Budget: $52,420

Expected Advertising and Sponsor Revenue: $20,000 (2014: $7000).

SkydFund 2015 Campaign Target: $32,000

This is a meager budget. Our staff salaries, when hours worked are considered, are close to minimum wage. Our columnists are getting much less than they would at similar sports publications. It’s a reminder that we still do this for the love of the sport.

Yet even as we plan to aggressively pursue $13,000 in new advertising, there is still a $32,000 gap in the bare minimum we need to run Skyd this year. This is where the Skyd Fund comes in. We’re asking for readers who have enjoyed our content over the past year and plan to follow Skyd next year to contribute whatever they feel is fair. Please help us make Skyd a possibility in 2015: