Crumpsall Folk Club
- Client: Crumpsall Folk Club
- Services: Website development and h:osting
- Website: CrumpsallFolkClub.co.uk
Crumpsall Folk Club meets monthly for folk music sessions. They wanted their own website to post events, share news, and grow their community without relying on Facebook.
My Solution
I set up a Ghost-powered website on PikaPod, giving them a proper online home with really low running costs. The site has everything they need - event listings, a newsletter system, and a contact form.
The club members can update content themselves without any tech knowledge. Adding events, news, and photos is dead easy with Ghost's simple editor. Their newsletter helps them build up a subscriber list and talk directly to their audience, so they don't have to depend on social media algorithms.
Technical Details
- Built on Ghost CMS (open source and hackable)
- Hosted on PikaPod
- Contact form via FormSpark
- Spam protection with BotPoison
- Newsletter delivery through Mailgun
- Daily backups to IDrive E2
- Domain registered with Krystal
- Fully responsive design
- SEO optimisation
- Google Search Console integration
- Performance monitoring with SerpBear
I deliberately chose options with low ongoing costs and ease of use rather than using a bunch of expensive WordPress plugins that need constant updates and maintenance. This approach is fairly bombproof and affordable, perfect for a community club. The Ghost platform is lightweight and secure, while the supporting services provide reliability without complexity.
Ongoing Support
I help out with tech bits when needed and keep an eye on security and performance. The club gets access to my Patreon marketing club for promotion ideas. We keep track of their search rankings and visitor numbers using Google Search Console and SerpBear.
Results
The site has helped the club break free from Facebook and establish their own online presence. Members can easily find out about upcoming events, and the newsletter connects them directly with their audience. The organisers can update the site themselves without much fuss.
Similar Solutions
I can build Ghost sites for anyone who wants a newsletter platform or blog. It's a brilliant alternative to Substack or Patreon, and you can even set up paid subscriptions if you want. Ghost is open source, so it's customisable and you're not locked into a proprietary system. It's perfect for creators, clubs, and small businesses who want to own their audience and content without all the technical headaches.