Plans for Daily Zach Woods & Financial Transparency
My goal is to make DZW into an LLC within two years. I'm doing some light research to explore avenues for DZW to gain nonprofit status; nonprofit status would allow DZW to qualify for grants that focus on work being done by archives. Access to some kind of funding would be incredible and open a lot of doors for DZW to expand its work and create a fuller archive.
Case in point: sourcing editorial images sans watermarking is a fool's errand sometimes. I wish I could afford these prices but I can't.
Screenshots for Shutterstock and Getty Images licensing for up to 25 photos (Shutterstuck) or 10 photos (Getty) per month. A racket.
With that in mind, I want to assure you all that I take this site very seriously. It is not my intent to profit from Zach Woods's name or image; as I've mentioned on Instagram, I am simply trying to give the man his very, very overdue flowers. However, I want to be transparent about what that takes, so you understand the work and labor involved. I wish I could say it's as simple as finding images on the internet and posting them. Running DZW involves:
Sourcing images with attribution;
Spelunking through slow, archived pages to excavate lost media, such as archived tweets and snapshots of webpages;
Writing original content/relevant reviews for SEO to heighten site discovery;
Reviewing analytics in Google Search Console and GA4;
Cultivating and engaging connections for future updates and posts; and
Maintaining web and domain hosting for branded communications (we're taken more seriously with @dailyzachwoods.com emails than @ gmail)
At a glance, I pay for the following out of pocket:
Web hosting, domain hosting, email provider
IMDb Pro subscription (access to in-depth info about upcoming productions not available on the basic site)
Canva Pro subscription (social media posts, downloadables)
Rev.com subscription (transcription services for podcasts, audio recordings)
Meta verification on Instagram (fan pages/accounts get deactivated/suspended for mistaken impersonation; paying the fee for a dumb checkmark helps me get access to live support rather than be at the mercy of a form and automated systems)
Travel, lodging, and admission to events for coverage and original content
I don't know the exact number of this in aggregate, but ballparkāif you factor in travelāI'll say monthly expenses run about $270. All this to say, A) this is the best hobby ever! And B) if you enjoy the work we try to bring to DZW across many platforms, but in particular dailyzachwoods.com, I'd welcome a contribution to my tiny lil' tip jar on Ko-fi ā no obligation whatsoever. I get satisfaction from making DZW happen (alongside @pitsapitsa) and that is enough. I just know from past endeavors people get curious about the work and how they can contribute beyond sending news, photos, etc. The link is also in the footer of our site. My promise to you:
DZW will always be ad free (especially when we, one day, migrate off of tumblr to a site better suited for archival purposes ā don't worry, that day is not today!!)
DZW will seek out legitimate, citable sources for coverage, and
DZW will do its best to find opportunities to engage with Zach with respect, appreciation, and professionalism.
If you have any questions, email [email protected] and I'll be in touch. Thank you for reading and supporting DZW.
