Hi Hoosier205,
Well you're right about one thing which is that this site comes at considerable expense. The expense though hasn't been as much financial (the actual cost of running the site is not substantial) as it has been in time and effort and perhaps most importantly the cost to my DH and my family. Without their support, financial and otherwise, and their shared vision that the time would come when this site would be self supporting and produce an income that would support us and justify the effort ... none of this would have been possible.
Just to clarify as well ... there is not only "little" advertising support ... there is none at all ... and this was by choice and will continue to be this way.
As difficult as it may be for some people like yourself to understand or grasp this ... there really are people who are motivated by what they believe in more than immediate financial rewards.
As I've mentioned on the forum on several occasions ... the time is hopefully not far away that the income from the site and its business plan will provide the support for me and my family that will lead to a more "normal" life and allow it to continue and grow through its own resources. For now though that is an "almost" but not quite a reality.
Just to clarify one other point you tried to make ... this is not about "trashing" any particular company but about being a force for transparency in an industry that has degenerated to the point of a "used car" mentality and where the major companies refuse to provide meaningful information about the products they sell. If they decide to go in this direction and release meaningful information about their products and begin to provide real value and become accountable to consumers ... I will be the first to applaud them. For now though their commitment is to corporate shareholders, profit margins, and investment groups at the expense of consumers rather than because of them.
As long as consumers are left without any way to validate the stories that are being used to sell mattresses and as long as there are local and regional manufacturers who sell factory direct or through the better sleep shops all across the country, who are accountable to their customers, transparent about the real quality of their product, and who really do make and sell better quality and value mattresses ... I will continue to do what I am doing. These are the types of businesses that I hope and believe are the future of the industry ... regardless of their size.
I'm under no illusion that this site alone will change the industry but it really is encouraging that it has already made the difference that it has for so many people. This difference is not only for consumers but some of the better manufacturers and smaller retailers all across the country that can hopefully increase their market share in the face of the massive advertising and other "tactics" that have resulted in the dominance of the industry by a very few financial interests that have little real accountability or transparency.
Quite frankly ... one of the signs of it's success is when it is "noticed" by those who are the most threatened by transparency and the values of the site and have no other means to deal with this than to resort to personal attacks.
While your posts and personal attacks actually violate the rules of the forum and could easily be deleted ... in this case the agenda behind them is so obvious and transparent that they can serve as an example of the type of pressures that are faced by small businesses every day as they try to provide a living for their families, educate their customers about what really does make a good mattress, and sell products that are great quality and value ... in the face of efforts by much larger companies to put them out of business through "brand name" advertising that no longer has any substance and other business tactics that without consumer education and information will remain more common and effective than most people realize.
So I appreciate your posts and how they reflect the current state of the industry ... and I've transferred it to a new thread so our conversation can remain without hijacking the thread where it began.
Phoenix