Attracting the new generations

[Diane]

Really pleased to see the interest this has generated.
Im glad Jaybird and finchbreeder247 gave us their take on the various suggestions in this topic.

My thoughts on interactions with schools, kindys and the primary schools, that is the age of children we need to make contact with. This is the time where kids are the most impressionable and the schooling curriculum is the most flexible, and the teachers would be looking for interest areas.

I also do not belong to any club, my only regular contact is the AFF.

My suggestions for aviary displays within a shopping center would only be as an addition to an already established other display day or weekend, such as orchids, other plants or maybe even a petting farm display. So there would be a short time, intense time at the beginning and the end where build and dismantle would occur and then a roster of people willing to sit with the display, chat to the public about the aviary and birds and hand out flyers and have other items of interest on show.

[finchbreeder]

Would suggest that any flyers cover as many bases as possible, while being concise. Being difficult as usuall am I. Put the name and contact details of the local club, because even if people join and leave (yes me too) they gain contacts, put the details of AFF because the young are more computer inclined, put a few basics about birds e.g. that birds need grit to digest food (how many times have you heard of someones pet dying in a sandless cage?) that birds need sunlight and protection from cold wind (again how many times?)
LML

[fincher]

being in a birds dealer for te last 9 years now and have noticed a huge drop in the amount off people getting into birds and its just not me thnking that either the boss has had the same business for close to 40 years and noticed the drop in numbers. there are the kids that are interested but parents wont allow or they just don't have the size back yard to fit a aviary in the backyard with the smaller house blocks now offered in most new estates in perth so there either getting a pet bird for inside like a budgie or canary and that's about it nothing else. thatas just my 2 cents worth

[finchbreeder]

they just don't have the size back yard to fit a aviary
Sad but true. So we have to think smart. And start them off with a 1.5m cube if possible and specialising in one pair/type of finch. This is where the seller needs to explain how easy it is to fit these "cute litte" avairys in. And how nice it is to be an expert in a particular type of finch.
LML

[Niki_K]

There is probably also the perception that birds are noisy (mostly as a result of people being in contact with budgies and poorly-behaved parrots), so many parents may not want to buy birds for their children. My own family were very surprised when they came to my house and realised that the sound of my finches is actually quite pleasant So, the promotion of a pair of finches as a quiet, charming, low-maintenance pet would probably be very beneficial.

[BluJay]

I need to put more thought into this. Will edit another time. Regards.

[Lachlan1]

I just read through this for the first time and I'm 22 so at the very least I though I could offer a point of perspective.

Like almost everyone I got into birds through my dad/uncle but the real clincher was when I saw Gouldians for the first time. I believe the key way forward is through the improvement of the hobbies online presence. Clubs like the Hawkesbury and FSA are obviously making an effort to do this and from what I read in newsletters (I am a Hawkesbury member) the websites are working well in attracting new members. It was stated earlier that there is probably a large amount of people out there breeding finches that we don't know about and I completely agree, the days of going to a club/meeting for anything is slowing down. So how do we attract them? make websites more interactive and far easier for people to contact the people they want to e.g. have a for sale section that can be updated at anytime for all members to display their for sale birds and rough location so people from not only the club but exterior can view. Have the pick ups occur at the clubs meeting place before the monthly meeting so newbies can not only get their birds but suss out the surroundings and possibly give the club a shot.

Others ways to improve:
- Don't sell your old birds to pet shops as some poor kid is probably going to get their first pair of finches and wonder why they either dont breed or drop dead in a short space of time
- Reply to emails/texts/calls. As a younger guy I found it very hard to get into contact with people who would make an effort to get back to me. The two or three guys that made the effort to respond to me and help me out have had my business for years now and will continually as long as they breed birds (easy way to make consistent money and offload young)
- If you see a younger person at a meeting dont let them sit there by themselves all night without even saying hi, the likelihood of them coming back is nearly zero. Even if its just introducing yourself and offering your details so they can contact you if they need help and before you know it theyll be calling you to buy your surplus stock
- I love what Sam Davis and the FSA are doing with video recordings of meetings and I think this is a great way of making our hobby more interactive. Moving forward incorporating videos with finch articles is the way to go! Make the articles more interesting rather than 5 block pieces of text. Have more pictures and videos of the birds and how they interact/sing/mating dance etc as this will clinch a lot of newbies because you cant see any of that stuff at a pet shop.
- I liked what the older bunch of FSA blokes did in their articles by giving the birds an out of 10 rating in how hard they are to breed and how in depth in regards to information those articles were. I think promoting working up through the easier species is essential because to many people have bought a pair of the "prettiest" bird they can find and wonder why they dont breed or die and get upset and leave the hobby.
- Finally, never underestimate helping out a kid by simply giving them some birds.I gave a bloke a pair of normal Gouldians to help start him out a few years ago which I usually sell for around $50. He now buys usually 2 pairs off me a year and has done for about 4 years = $400 (every heard of ROI?)

[Painted4]

I would have to agree with everything Lachlan1 has said, 100%
This is the way to interest more younger people in the hobby, and keep the ones already interested in the hobby.
I started attending bird club meetings a few months ago, 1 person has actually engaged and spoken to me. I've now bought multiple birds from this guy, and will continue to do so.
If we want to attract new generations, we have to be proactive about it.

I'd also like to highlight one of Lachlans points. The video recordings Sam is doing are fantastic, imo.

[Shane Gowland]

What bird club do you go to Painted? I'd be more inclined to attend if I knew there was someone around my age group.

[Painted4]

What bird club do you go to Painted? I'd be more inclined to attend if I knew there was someone around my age group.

Lower Murray, (they have no website or anything) Chose them because my Uncle is a member.
They have meetings on the third Tuesday of every month at 7.30, in Murray Bridge though, so its not a short trip, even for me.