Design Party
Membership: Open to all, but have an application process so the leaders can know more about their members. This way we can have a better database of where everyone works, what industries, the breakdown of gender, age, geography, interests (within and out of design) so we can provide better networking opportunities.
Services:
Networking for designers.
Mentorships between professionals and students.
Virtual critique (students can upload projects, and professionals could go through and critique)
Workshops, tutorials, web live stream events.
Work showcase.
Well written blog (see Fastcompany Design) and press for members who do good work (work may be submitted through the site for review).
Conferences (for both students and professionals, separate and together)
Resources for designers: learning resources, business resources (manufacturers by industry, rapid prototyping, etc), freelance tips
List of firms/specialties with members who are in those respective firms.
International outreach.
Public enlightenment (about what we do via public events/showcases)
Organization:
Executive members (Pres, VP, Treas, Sec, etc)
Regional leaders (Per city/area: 2 professionals, 2 students) who lead their respective chapters
Revenue stream:
With the services the website could provide, ad revenue should be a main source
Membership fees
Event fees (including web events i.e. 15 bucks a pop for a live stream of a tutorial)
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I think the main thing I’d like to see more as a student is web events such as the live streams, or discussion, work submission. I think we can tap into the professionals and raise revenue that way. Websites such as conceptart.org charge amounts like $95 for a 3 hour lesson, and that makes a lot of money. I’m sure that a sketching or 3d modeling live stream (that can be recorded and sold as a virtual DVD later on) would raise a lot of money if the pricing was right. Students gobble that stuff up.
Better networking between the schools, too.