There are thousands of camera models from hundreds of manufacturers. Covering the costs of testing even a small number of them is daunting, especially since most people are not interested in 95% of the cameras on the market. Most camera tests deliver very low reads. On the other hand, the small number of people who are seriously considering using those cameras might find significant value.
This is the challenge I find. It costs far more to test a camera than any other type of report (like 10x - thousands of dollars vs hundreds) but most camera tests deliver very few reads compared to educational, news, trends, or survey posts.
The tests that do the best are shootouts and new technology ones as they have broad appeal. Those we see deliver significant value.
Thought
What if we charged a separate fee to access niche camera tests? Shootouts and new technology tests would remain available to all members but individual camera tests would cost extra.
The reality is, even as we continue to grow robustly, spending on niche camera tests, is a bad investment for our members because most do not care for them. On the other hand, a small percentage would find them valuable and this would be a way for us to deliver them.
Btw, under no circumstances will we accept payments from manufacturers to do test. That's not negotiable. IPVM has to be able to cover costs of tests by ourselves.
What do you think?