What percentage of chipguide submissions come from non-members these days? I would guess it's less than 10%.

What percentage of non-members would become members just to retain access to the chipguide? I would guess 75% (some people are simply cheapskates and want everything for free, regardless of the effort that goes into providing goods and services, and ignoring the value received).

The MONTHLY cost of membership is about the same as the shipping cost on a single eBay auction. If anyone is actively collecting, they're likely to be buying a chip or two on eBay. So, if they can afford to have a chip (or a hoard) shipped to them once a month, they can certainly afford to cough up $3/mo for the primary resource one uses to look up the items they purportedly treasure.

No one is proposing an additional charge to access the guide. If you're a member, you have access. No extra fee. If you're not a member, just become a member and you get to continue accessing it. If it's not that useful to you, then don't join. Simple. No one's harming you.

Advertising on the site is fine, but maybe membership gives you an ad-free experience?

All of the above comments are coming from a guy who's only been a member for 2 years. About the same amount of time I've known about the CCA (CC>CC) and this guide. Prior to that, I collected a chip here and there at casinos I visited, but I didn't consider myself a collector. Didn't take long for me to realize I wanted to support the organization and $35 was a super small commitment to make.

I would encourage all non-members to seriously consider becoming members for that reason alone. All of the unmoderated political crap and non-chip related discussions, pictures, etc. that happens on THIS board is separate from the guide and even the club. Unfortunately, it IS having an effect on membership and it's my suggestion that this board (which is owned by David Spragg, not the CCA) consider new software to allow categories so that non-related topics can be hidden from those who are offended by them.