Like people with other hobbies, many car aficionados would love the opportunity to get together with others who enjoy the same interest that they do. And, in the age of the Internet, forming a classic car club is easier than ever.
In fact, starting a club today is a lot easier than starting any kind of club would have been twenty, thirty, or even five years ago. But, first, you have to decide what type of classic car club you would like to form.
Will it be a club simply where like minded hobbyists can congregate and exchange emails and pictures? Will it be one where members trade acquisition and industry resources with each other? Will the club be limited to classic cars of a certain kind? Will membership be paid or unpaid? In other words, what are you looking for?
There are many forums, discussion boards, and the like where people who love classic cars already congregate. So, before you start a club, you first might want to search the Internet to see if one or more clubs of your liking, already exist. If not, then there are a few basic steps that you can take to get started.
Undoubtedly, the easiest way to start your new club is to take advantage of social media. For example, using a platform such as Facebook or Yahoo Groups, you can actually have a club up and running within a day. However, if you choose to use social media, the growth and rules of your club will be largely determined by the rules of the particular social media platform on which you create it. Therefore, if you want to completely set your own rules for membership and operation, the best advice is to start your own classic car club website.
The basics are simple. First, choose a domain name that you like and register it. If you want your club to be local, then append your locale to the name. For example, if you live in Montana and want to form a local mustang club, you might choose a name like MontanaClassicMustangClub.com.
Next, find an inexpensive but reliable web hosting company to host your website. And, lastly, choose one of the many free content management or membership management software platforms to publish your membership site on. If you are technically challenged, you should have no problem finding a student in your area to help you get your site up and running.
Once your site is up, your biggest challenge will be figuring out a way to promote your web site so that people are aware of it. Once people become aware of your site, however, you can look forward to having years of enjoyment with your new community of friends.