[wysteria]

I think the raffle to win a musician's friend gift cert is a capital idea! If it's a 50/50 raffle, that kind of encourages more participation, because the more tickets sold, the bigger the take is for the winner. And the odds are surely better than buying a typical lottery ticket.

If you have a paypal account, you could add a button to purchase raffle tickets. It's a fast, convenient & secure way of buying tickets (though paypal would take a portion of the funds in fees). But that method is quick and efficient.

It's hard to tell what time frame would generate the best interest & return (annual, quarterly or monthly). Maybe do a trial raffle to see how it goes.

I haven't contributed to this forum very much. But reading the forum and 'listening in' on your online conversations has helped me a lot. I'm thankful to have that opportunity, and I would gladly kick in a few bucks to the site. After all, you folks have saved me a ton of time, trials and mistakes.