The ADAA Website
With the recent changeover of Webmaster it is worthwhile reflecting on the initial setting up of the Associations website and its development up to now by our first ever one, Iain Morrison.
The benefits of the Association having its own website was widely recognised for a number of years, but it wasn’t until then Committee member Iain volunteered his assistance to set up and become the Associations first ever Webmaster that we finally went on-line in January 2004.
The effect it had on the whole culture of the Association was immediate and dramatic. Up to this point the main communication between the Committee and potential and actual members was word of mouth, the AGM, the annual diary, and the occasional newsletter over the years (usually instigated by Iain!). This had led to the management of the Associations affairs being perceived in some quarters as remote from the membership. The website has significantly helped to address this through for example the use of the forum and the posting of Committee meeting minute extracts. Decision making is now much more open, transparent, and accountable.
One of my main recollections from those early years was being stunned by the statistics produced from the site on the number and whereabouts of where pages were being hit. The website was being viewed by persons from all over the World! The Association has now become global and the website has played a major role in helping to continue and enhance our reputation in the wider angling community.
Of course in those early years there was not too much content but thanks to Iain’s persistence and perseverance persons can now learn all the benefits and fishing’s available of Association membership and can apply to join on-line, visitors can find details of fishing’s available and details of where to obtain permits, members can pay their annual fees on-line, book beats on-line, find out about what tactics to use on different beats and the best time to fish them, view fishing reports, check the weather and tides before they fish and so on and so on.
I would finish up by thanking both Iain for his substantial amount of time and effort he put in to setting up and developing the site over the years and Len Watson for volunteering to take the reins up. I am sure I can speak for all in wishing the both of them all the best for the future.
Paul Toseland, Secretary.
August 2008