To convert: Show don't tell
I have yet to come across another hammock camper down here (SoCal) in the wilderness, but I've met 1 or 2 in gear shops. We're out here and...
...be on the look out for a SoCal hang sometime this spring or early summer. (I hope to plan one with a few CA guys.)
I started using a hammock just about a year ago. Most people look at me sideways when I proudly announce I'm a hammock fan. They don't "get it" until they hop into one. If you want to convert someone to hammock camping, go on a trip with them and have them try your rig out. Then, when you sleep blissfully in your hammock and they sleep on the ground--voila!--you have a new convert. Everyone who has laid down in my hammock loves it. They just need to get around to buying/making one.
Michael (SoCal Mike)