Forums

[4Media]

Ive just had a forum built which I'm looking to promote in time. Problem is I'm unlikely to get anyone posting on a forum without any members/threads.
Can fellow forum owners tell me is it a good idea to 'seed' the forum with a load of posts via different logins to get things started?

 

[dw1973]

It's an option, although I'd look more towards getting friends to sign up (even if they know nothing of the subject) as their writing styles will be different and it won't look as contrived.

I'd also set up a facebook group for your niche and link to the forum from there as well as contacting other like-minded groups (ie if you have a geo-based forum contact local community groups.

 

[Gal]

if they know nothing about the subject set up a general chat section and get some banter going. as long as you've got good chat on the subject and good banter people will be more receptive to joining.

getting a forum going isn't easy so be persistent. I would also contact bloggers and general websites in the niche and ask them to join in the debate. let them link to their own sites in their signatures so they also get something out of it

do you mind me asking what its about?

 

[Alien]

Ive just had a forum built which I'm looking to promote in time. Problem is I'm unlikely to get anyone posting on a forum without any members/threads.
Can fellow forum owners tell me is it a good idea to 'seed' the forum with a load of posts via different logins to get things started?

I think it's generally not a good idea to inflate a new forum with fake posts/users, in the end it can be very risky for a number of reasons.

Forums take time to establish and create good reputations, they can be quickly undone with fake logins/posts, etc.

My oldest forum, NFHiB is now 7 years old this year and has grown year on year, forums are definitely very much a solid place of our internet usage today.

Try AdminFusion.com forums for lots of advice, tips and help from other forum owners.

Good luck.

 

[purg]

off topic but....Never needed to lookup information regarding Neighbours From Hell but nice ranking from the 773,000 hits.


Back on.... Ive tried a couple of forums but could never build the sites quick enough to attract daily users. After a month or two most people walked away. Keeping members posting on-topic I found to hard.

Good luck with your fourm.

 

[golddiggerguy]

2 types of forum as I see it.

1. You have a problem with something or need info, you join you get the info you leave. ( and maybe just maybe come back in a years time if it happened again)
   
2. You have an interest and want to know more, you join you like, you stay because of the interest in the subject.

#1 is a type of forum hard to grow and would need forums within it homing in on subjects that people will stay and post new info to.

I have a VoIP forum and find I get a mostly companies shouting about there company or spammers.

 

[4Media]

Thanks for all your help fellas - really good of you to take time out to offer your help/suggestions - much appreciated.
This is my first forum built for me by DW1973 off here - still only 60-70% done as I still need to tart it up a bit before I start promoting it.
The forum itself is for Interim Managers, its called (interimforum) dot co dot uk
Recognised an opportunity as an interim myself that recruitment firms were making a killing from placement fees (up to 35% of interims equivalentof first years salary). Thought if I could create a forum for interims and industry it would cut out the middleman and maybe present me with opportunities to sell advertising space or a subscription fee in the future.
Going to be a long, hard slog imo but hopefull.
All the best.

 

[Alien]

off topic but....Never needed to lookup information regarding Neighbours From Hell but nice ranking from the 773,000 hits.

Thanks purg - we've worked hard at developing NFHiB; really glad you've never needed to look up info ref. 'NFH' and long may it continue that way.

Thanks for all your help fellas - really good of you to take time out to offer your help/suggestions - much appreciated.
This is my first forum built for me by DW1973 off here - still only 60-70% done as I still need to tart it up a bit before I start promoting it.
The forum itself is for Interim Managers, its called (interimforum) dot co dot uk

Good luck with it, if you want to swap tips etc anytime, give me a bell. Did you join AdminFusion? - well worth it for help and ideas I reckon.

 

[crabfoot]

A friend of mine found ways to build up a forum by initially leaving comments on blogs, then approaching selected individuals on other forums by individual PM to become "moderators" (NB: keep it to a personal approach, even if you are approaching several people at one time).

If the forum works, you might be able to make a deal with an agency - not to cut the fee to the end employer, but to divert some of it your way. Altruism is one thing - but if somebody on your forum shows good ideas and initiative, their rating could be a definite plus to an employer - so you might be able to recommend candidates for their knowledge. If the Agency association is public, and known to be useful when jobseeking, it would encourage high quality posts. Conversely, you might be asked to defer such payments for six months (people with good ideas might also steal the cutlery). But the idea of associating with a particular agency would also allow you to get some of their staff helping you out with the admin and articles - and if they want to buy the forum later, the experience could allow you to do it again with a different agency, with a slight change of field.

When you are starting, you need some questions on that forum for people to answer - use a pseudonym to post the questions, and don't answer them yourself = let the new members answer. Four pseudonyms and four questions each, maximum.

LOL maybe I should charge , myself ...

 

[4Media]

thanks Alien - may PM you in the future if that is okay regarding forums. I'll certainly join that forum your recommended too - thanks for that.
Likewise Crabfoot - many thanks, some great advice there.
Still working on getting the forum ship shape before I start promoting it.
At the moment the site has a portal page and a forum page but I'm considering just having the forum only (a bit like Acorn).
Work in progress.

 

[retired_member4]

Even if you get a forum active, it will probably not be profitable. Forums are a nightmare to monetise. I ran quite a big forum a few years ago, plenty of members and plenty of posts, but they are not there to click on your ads, so adsense is a no-no for forums. Ad blindness is real.

How many times have you clicked an ad yourself on a forum? I've never done it.

I'm afraid forums are a labour of love, and should not be considered as a way to make money. Of course some do, but usually the ones that did not start out with that intention.

Running a (successful) forum can be a full time job in itself. Is it worth the effort?

For me it wasn't so I sold it, now it is dead

 

[jimm]

Even if you get a forum active, it will probably not be profitable. Forums are a nightmare to monetise. I ran quite a big forum a few years ago, plenty of members and plenty of posts, but they are not there to click on your ads, so adsense is a no-no for forums. Ad blindness is real.

How many times have you clicked an ad yourself on a forum? I've never done it.

I'm afraid forums are a labour of love, and should not be considered as a way to make money. Of course some do, but usually the ones that did not start out with that intention.

Running a (successful) forum can be a full time job in itself. Is it worth the effort?

For me it wasn't so I sold it, now it is dead

Its strange because a lot of people say the same but I have found the complete reverse to be true. Once you reach the critical mass where users come back and there is good regular activity I have had no problem making them earn their keep overall.
But give me a normal site and I only just make a profit...

 

[crabfoot]

I've been involved with a couple of forums, and yes they are a lot of work, and yes, the members don't click on the ads - in fact, they can be actively hostile to ads. But in some cases they work well, when attached to a blog or a front page with interesting info.

If you serve your members with ads they like, they will click - but you have to target those ads a lot closer to their interests than Adsense does. And you have to keep that blog or front page served with interesting articles - bearing in mind that the members often know a lot, that's why they congregate with others who have a deep interest in something. If you are able to generate those articles yourself, it can be a practical proposition, but getting Joe Journalist to review veeblefetzer servicing on the Historic Veeblefetzer Forum is probably a bad idea. Then there's all those posts advertising Chinese network servers to get rid of - and the porn merchants ...

 

[4Media]

...realise starting a forum from scratch is a challenge however my motive isnt necessarily for monetization on this project. Anyway, the site is pretty much 90% there now and I actually managed to attract a registrant via LinkedIn . If there are any interims out there then please feel free to register (InterimForum) dot co dot uk.
All the best.