8.5 KiB
8.5 KiB
Cost Comparison: Corporation vs. Community
The True Cost of Corporate Dependency
When movements choose corporate software, they're not just paying subscription fees—they're paying with their power, their privacy, and their future. Let's break down the real costs.
Monthly Cost Analysis
Small Campaign (50 supporters, 5,000 emails/month)
| Service Category | Corporate Solution | Monthly Cost | Changemaker Lite | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Email Marketing | Mailchimp | $59/month | Listmonk | $0* |
| Database & CRM | Airtable Pro | $240/month | NocoDB | $0* |
| Website Hosting | Squarespace | $40/month | Static Server | $0* |
| Documentation | Notion Team | $96/month | MkDocs | $0* |
| Development | GitHub Codespaces | $87/month | Code Server | $0* |
| Automation | Zapier Professional | $73/month | n8n | $0* |
| File Storage | Google Workspace | $72/month | PostgreSQL + Storage | $0* |
| Analytics | Corporate tracking | Privacy cost† | Self-hosted | $0* |
| TOTAL | $667/month | $50/month |
*Included in base Changemaker Lite hosting cost †Privacy costs are incalculable but include surveillance, data sales, and community manipulation
Medium Campaign (500 supporters, 50,000 emails/month)
| Service Category | Corporate Solution | Monthly Cost | Changemaker Lite | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Email Marketing | Mailchimp | $299/month | Listmonk | $0* |
| Database & CRM | Airtable Pro | $600/month | NocoDB | $0* |
| Website Hosting | Squarespace | $65/month | Static Server | $0* |
| Documentation | Notion Team | $240/month | MkDocs | $0* |
| Development | GitHub Codespaces | $174/month | Code Server | $0* |
| Automation | Zapier Professional | $146/month | n8n | $0* |
| File Storage | Google Workspace | $144/month | PostgreSQL + Storage | $0* |
| Analytics | Corporate tracking | Privacy cost† | Self-hosted | $0* |
| TOTAL | $1,668/month | $75/month |
Large Campaign (5,000 supporters, 500,000 emails/month)
| Service Category | Corporate Solution | Monthly Cost | Changemaker Lite | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Email Marketing | Mailchimp | $1,499/month | Listmonk | $0* |
| Database & CRM | Airtable Pro | $1,200/month | NocoDB | $0* |
| Website Hosting | Squarespace + CDN | $120/month | Static Server | $0* |
| Documentation | Notion Team | $480/month | MkDocs | $0* |
| Development | GitHub Codespaces | $348/month | Code Server | $0* |
| Automation | Zapier Professional | $292/month | n8n | $0* |
| File Storage | Google Workspace | $288/month | PostgreSQL + Storage | $0* |
| Analytics | Corporate tracking | Privacy cost† | Self-hosted | $0* |
| TOTAL | $4,227/month | $150/month |
Annual Savings Breakdown
3-Year Cost Comparison
| Campaign Size | Corporate Total | Changemaker Total | Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small | $24,012 | $1,800 | $22,212 |
| Medium | $60,048 | $2,700 | $57,348 |
| Large | $152,172 | $5,400 | $146,772 |
Hidden Costs of Corporate Software
What You Can't Put a Price On
Privacy Violations
- Data Harvesting: Every interaction monitored and stored
- Behavioral Profiling: Your community mapped and analyzed
- Third-Party Sales: Your data sold to unknown entities
- Government Access: Warrantless surveillance through corporate partnerships
Political Manipulation
- Algorithmic Suppression: Your content reach artificially limited
- Narrative Control: Corporate interests shape what your community sees
- Shadow Banning: Activists systematically de-platformed
- Counter-Intelligence: Your strategies monitored by opposition
Movement Disruption
- Dependency Creation: Critical infrastructure controlled by adversaries
- Community Fragmentation: Platforms designed to extract attention, not build power
- Organizing Interference: Corporate algorithms prioritize engagement over solidarity
- Cultural Assimilation: Movement culture shaped by corporate values
The Changemaker Advantage
What You Get for $50-150/month
Complete Infrastructure
- Email System: Unlimited contacts, unlimited sends
- Database Power: Unlimited records, unlimited complexity
- Web Presence: Unlimited sites, unlimited traffic
- Development Environment: Full coding environment with AI assistance
- Documentation Platform: Beautiful, searchable knowledge base
- Automation Engine: Connect everything, automate everything
- File Storage: Unlimited files, unlimited backups
True Ownership
- Your Domain: No corporate branding or limitations
- Your Data: Complete export capability, no lock-in
- Your Rules: No terms of service to violate
- Your Community: No algorithmic manipulation
Community Support
- Open Documentation: Complete guides and tutorials available
- Community-Driven Development: Built by and for liberation movements
- Technical Support: Professional assistance from BNKops cooperative
- Political Alignment: Technology designed with movement values
The Compound Effect
Year Over Year Savings
Corporate software costs grow exponentially:
- Year 1: "Starter" pricing to hook you
- Year 2: Feature limits force tier upgrades
- Year 3: Usage growth triggers premium pricing
- Year 4: Platform changes force expensive migrations
- Year 5: Lock-in enables arbitrary price increases
Changemaker Lite costs grow linearly with actual infrastructure needs:
- Year 1: Base infrastructure costs
- Year 2: Modest increases for storage/bandwidth only
- Year 3: Scale only with actual technical requirements
- Year 4: Community-driven improvements at no extra cost
- Year 5: Established infrastructure with declining per-user costs
10-Year Projection
| Year | Corporate (Medium Campaign) | Changemaker Lite | Annual Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,016 | $900 | $19,116 |
| 2 | $22,017 | $900 | $21,117 |
| 3 | $24,219 | $1,080 | $23,139 |
| 4 | $26,641 | $1,080 | $25,561 |
| 5 | $29,305 | $1,260 | $28,045 |
| 6 | $32,235 | $1,260 | $30,975 |
| 7 | $35,459 | $1,440 | $34,019 |
| 8 | $39,005 | $1,440 | $37,565 |
| 9 | $42,905 | $1,620 | $41,285 |
| 10 | $47,196 | $1,620 | $45,576 |
| TOTAL | $318,998 | $12,600 | $306,398 |
Calculate Your Own Savings
Current Corporate Costs Worksheet
Email Marketing: $/month
Database/CRM: $/month
Website Hosting: $/month
Documentation: $/month
Development Tools: $/month
Automation: $/month
File Storage: $/month
Other SaaS: $/month
Monthly Total: $____
Annual Total: $____
Changemaker Alternative: $50-150/month
Your Annual Savings: $____
Beyond the Numbers
What Movements Do With Their Savings
The money saved by choosing community-controlled technology doesn't disappear—it goes directly back into movement building:
- Hire organizers instead of paying corporate executives
- Fund direct actions instead of funding surveillance infrastructure
- Support community members instead of enriching shareholders
- Build lasting power instead of temporary platform dependency
Making the Switch
Transition Strategy
You don't have to switch everything at once:
- Start with documentation - Move your knowledge base to MkDocs
- Add email infrastructure - Set up Listmonk for newsletters
- Build your database - Move contact management to NocoDB
- Automate connections - Use n8n to integrate everything
- Phase out corporate tools - Cancel subscriptions as you replicate functionality
Investment Timeline
- Month 1: Initial setup and learning ($150 including setup time)
- Month 2-3: Data migration and team training ($100/month)
- Month 4+: Full operation at optimal cost ($50-150/month based on scale)
ROI Calculation
Most campaigns recover their entire first-year investment in 60-90 days through subscription savings alone.
Ready to stop feeding your budget to corporate surveillance? Get started with Changemaker Lite today and take control of your digital infrastructure.