the primary marketing effort should be on gaining and maintaining the userbase...each is as important as the other.
For signups, the top banner should be the "sign up and get paid" message.
As for maintaining, that is off-topic for your post.
I just wanted to restate your main point ;>
Well that is the message currently being delivered, however my point is - it is not reaching the desired end point because it is... how to say this - ugly, boring and not in any way eye-catching. EFFECTIVE marketing is a tricky game... one which FEW grasp.
Maintaining the current userbase should ALSO be high priority, but all I am saying is, that when outsiders click on our content... there is not much THEEERRREEEE to make them want to JOIN US!
Changing the look, feel and impact of that footer is not going to break anyone's bank.... but could have a largely positive impact.
I think it should be the header, to address how hard the message is to find, but otherwise I'm in full agreement
yes, placement I was not in argument with - simply the content matter... so agreed too :)