For those members who have requested not to receive mails from us, here's a copy of a mail that went out last night.
Dear Mumsnet member,
This is just a quick mail to share a bit of good news: there are now 10,000 of you. According to the omniscient Tech, we quietly edged past the magic 10,000 mark when katierocket signed on as a member at 2:30pm on 23rd Jan. (How does he know these things?) It seemed too important an occasion to let pass quietly so we thought we'd let you know - and, more importantly, thank you all once again for making Mumsnet what it is.
Of course nowhere is the old saying about "lies, damned lies and statistics" truer than on the web. Some of you will remember the lively discussions on the talk boards last year about whether it made sense to make joining mumsnet a sufficient condition for competition entry. Wasn't that encouraging cynical types to join purely to enter our competitions, never to be seen again, some wondered. We thought that was a good point and since then we've used other entry requirements. We think we've filtered most of the prize hunters out of our membership records now. So we're pretty confident there really are approaching 10,000 bona fide members, give or take a few hundred.
And though you are the Mumsnet users dearest to our hearts because most of you have contributed to the site's content in some way - whether with a late night query about teething or a withering review of a Corsican hotel - you are in many ways the tip of an iceberg. We know that in any given month around 25,000 different people look at parts of the site. Many will hang around the talk boards like wallflowers for months before plucking up the courage to join and contribute; many will never join. That's fine by us: as long as there are plenty of users contributing to our discussions and sending us reviews, we think the more people who benefit from their (your) wisdom, the merrier. All of which is a rather long-winded way of telling you what you probably know already if you have visited the site recently: Mumsnet is humming. The Sunday Times acknowledged as much last month when they named us as one of their 50 best sites on the net, describing Mumsnet as an "exceptionally lively, welcoming site for both prospective and experienced mothers that never preaches but offers practical relevant help from parents who are going through similar experiences."
There's more good news too. Mums on Babies, the first of a series of Mumsnet parenting guides, which will be published on March 30 (Mothers Day), is already attracting lots of media interest. The Times magazine, which ran a feature about Mumsnet's first six months in 2000, is going to run a lengthy article on the subsequent progress of the site and a number of other magazines, including Good Housekeeping, Junior Pregnancy and Baby and Prima Baby, have already said they want to cover the book and the story of the site behind it.
If the picture is pretty rosy on most fronts, it's still pretty grey on the financial one. Thanks to the 350 or so of you who have (most generously) become voluntary paid subscribers, and a slight pick-up in advertising, the future of the site is secure for the next few months. But our accountant still looks distinctly peaky when he tots up our balance sheet. So while we're writing mostly to thank you for your support in getting this far we'd also like to urge you once more to do what you can to keep the wolf away from Mumsnet's door.
What can you do? We'll if you've already subscribed (see www.mumsnet.com/s/supporters for the list of subscribers), badger someone else to take the leap. And if you haven't, ask yourself whether it's altogether fair that a relatively small number of members are stumping up to keep the site running for everyone else. If you think the answer is no then subscribe now by going to www.mumsnet.com/s/mn.SubsIntro to subscribe.
While we're at it, make sure to buy at least one copy of Mums on Babies - they'll be available from the site at a discount to members from the end of this month. Better still, buy two. We'll also be asking you to spread the word about the book by printing out posters from the site and pinning them up anywhere and everywhere mums meet (but more of that later). And if you can't manage any of those things, please, please just spread the word.
Thanks once again for all your support,
Justine, Carrie and Rachel