ORIGINAL: Matt Kirsch
Yes, telling prospective pilots that they won't crash (what else are you going to say when they SPECIFICALLY ASK, "Do they crash?" which is a VERY common question), will help boost participation for a while, but it won't help RETAIN those members. They crash, you lied to them, so they're so disappointed and put off that they never come back. Don't give me that line about how, "they wouldn't have stuck with it anyway." BULL. Even today, $400 isn't chump change and for many people, it's still quite a sacrifice. Best to be honest with them and make sure they REALLY want to make the financial committment, rather than LIE to them to make a sale. If it means we lose some prospective one-time members, at least we have our integrity.
"Stating that crashing is all but certain doesn't help bring in newcomers"
No one said anything about lying to newcomers, but when asked "Do they crash?" Of course they crash, so do full size planes, but no one tells new full scale pilots that "You will most certainly crash" in the learning process, which is what so many newcomers RC pilots are told.
CCR