What's holding you back from creating a forum?

Cedric · Dec 17, 2022

We have many threads for forum owners, but not so much for our members who are debating to create a forum or not. So what's holding you back from creating a forum? Is it the funds you are lacking ? Perhaps you're afraid it would not gain much activity ? Have you check out my free xenforo license offer ?

What do you think is the reason not many people start a forum like they used to ?

Cory · Dec 18, 2022

Well, it's already created so I don't know if this counts, but I turned it offline. I'd love to own a Yu-Gi-Oh TCG trading board but it seems like a very hard niche to promote and for a lot of forum goers to take interest in. I had no problem setting up the board on Jcink, but it's just particularly hard to promote.

Shortie · Dec 18, 2022

I feel a lot of the reasons people choose not to start a forum at the moment could be because of the cost of living and the fact that it would cost quite a bit in so many cases to keep them up. I myself have been toying with the idea of bringing my general chat forum back that I had to close in 2017 but at the moment, the one thing holding me back is the time I have and also the lack of funds. It's something I will toy with and if ever the time comes, I may bring it back.

Arantor · Dec 19, 2022

The main reason that people don't make forums like they used to, really, comes down to the fact that a non-trivial slice of 'what used to be forums' are now handled by other, often better, alternatives.

Guild/clan sites for large games - Discord or Guilded are much better choices.
Local sites for local people/tour guides/local interest groups - probably more successful on Facebook.
Project sites - depending on what you're doing, could well be either a WordPress or a GitHub now, or some mutation of both.
Something based around calendar events, especially if people RSVP - again could easily be a Facebook solved problem.

A surprising number of forums back in the day weren't really *forum use cases* but there were enough plugins that you could get to somewhere useful without too much developmental drama, but in these more recent times where better tools exist, and often in a SaaS way where you don't need to work too hard to get it started, people will go there.

Kale · Dec 22, 2022

I fear lack of activity being a thing big time. Also the fact the niche/genre may not be as interesting. I wanted to still go with the life sim/farm sim genre of video games, but as a forum. Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons forums just are not really it nowadays. That was my last forum that was semi successful.

Besides that, lack of funds to make the XF license I want alongside getting a domain and name for this site.

Cory · Dec 22, 2022

Kale said:
I fear lack of activity being a thing big time.

I think a lot of webmasters have this fear of not gaining enough traffic for their boards. Unfortunately, it takes time for a site to grow, whether steadily or massively. Consistent advertising, word of mouth, and dedication to the forum at hand can do wonders in the long run.

Kale · Dec 23, 2022

Cory said:
I think a lot of webmasters have this fear of not gaining enough traffic for their boards. Unfortunately, it takes time for a site to grow, whether steadily or massively. Consistent advertising, word of mouth, and dedication to the forum at hand can do wonders in the long run.

It also doesn't help that with video games for a new title or entry the popularity dies out within like a month or so. That was why I figured just one place to discuss any old and upcoming ones would be great. Agreed, though. I'd of course contribute by posting threads, replying, etc. I do think work does have to go into it by yourself too. I'd even maybe consider asking friends online to help post or so too.

Arantor said:
Guild/clan sites for large games - Discord or Guilded are much better choices.
Local sites for local people/tour guides/local interest groups - probably more successful on Facebook.
Project sites - depending on what you're doing, could well be either a WordPress or a GitHub now, or some mutation of both.
Something based around calendar events, especially if people RSVP - again could easily be a Facebook solved problem.

Also this too is another big issue. There's almost zero need for a local city or state forum anymore when we have Facebook. Guilds/clans can just use Discord or Guilded too. Gaming forums are super a dime a dozen, but always have a special place in my heart. I feel that genre I adore a lot better than even anime/manga forums wayy back.

Shortie said:
I feel a lot of the reasons people choose not to start a forum at the moment could be because of the cost of living and the fact that it would cost quite a bit in so many cases to keep them up. I myself have been toying with the idea of bringing my general chat forum back that I had to close in 2017 but at the moment, the one thing holding me back is the time I have and also the lack of funds. It's something I will toy with and if ever the time comes, I may bring it back.

Yes, same here. Lack of funds to purchase a XenForo license and pay for things. I am on a fixed income with SSDI every month but cannot just go crazy with spending.

Forums Forever · Dec 24, 2022

Lack of motivation held me back for a long time, but I finally powered through it and was able to open a forum recently. The financial concerns are also real, but not every forum needs to be on XenForo or top-tier hosting necessarily.

Kale · Dec 25, 2022

Forums Forever said:
Lack of motivation held me back for a long time, but I finally powered through it and was able to open a forum recently. The financial concerns are also real, but not every forum needs to be on XenForo or top-tier hosting necessarily.

Yep, that is one too I see a lot. It was an issue with my old forum Nipahchan. I just lost motivation for it as no one who said they'd post and join did so. I did get 21 members, but hardly any active. I feel like you have to pick the right kind of forum too, but feels like general discussion forums could be a decent niche still. I want to be motivated about the niche / genre I pick, and that type of forum just was not it.

blackballoon · Dec 29, 2022

I've been away from the "forum world" for too long and don't know that I could handle it. I'm also worried about the potential forum not taking off. I'm also worried that it would take off and I'd feel too overwhelmed.

Shawn Gossman · Dec 29, 2022

I think people look at existing new forums and see that many of them are slow growth and inactive.

A lot of people want success overnight. Forums will not provide that for them.

Social media might because of virality chances but a lot of influencers really make it look easy. I think that hurt people who jump in and think they'll be the next big thing.

I like the idea of a forum in 2022 because it's going to be a challenge. I'm into marketing and stuff like that so it's only going to help me learn more about developing an online community in the end.

Kale · Dec 29, 2022

Shawn Gossman said:
I think people look at existing new forums and see that many of them are slow growth and inactive.

A lot of people want success overnight. Forums will not provide that for them.

So true. I know it'll take time to get it going for sure. I plan to at least post content and everything else before opening.

Shawn Gossman · Dec 29, 2022

Kale said:
So true. I know it'll take time to get it going for sure. I plan to at least post content and everything else before opening.

That's what I try to do.

I'll fill a new forum up with content. Usually about 5 to 10 topics per sections. I'll write the rules and all that stuff. Get it all ready.

Then I usually work on some post exchanges.

After I get some content from others and get a good system in place, I'll launch it to everyone.

Arantor · Dec 30, 2022

Shawn Gossman said:
A lot of people want success overnight. Forums will not provide that for them

That's the thing... forums never did. Not even in the glory days was that ever true - and even the 'if you build it they will come' era was not as true as people remember it being.

Cedric · Dec 30, 2022

Don't forget forums take a lot of luck to succeed. Among many other factors. You may have the most brilliant looking, polished up forum around, it won't succeed if there's no user engagement. Forums have always been a work in progress, it's not successful in a couple of months. It takes years to establish a solid community and within that time it could fail numerously times.

If you as an admin lose interest within that time, the board will fail. User engagement will slow down as members will notice you losing interest. Same with influencers on social media. They work every day hard to build a community who's there for them and if they lack at one point, their community will go to their competition. It works like this in businesses too. Didn't pick up a phone call? The client will call your competition.

User-friendly design: A forum with a well-designed interface that is easy to navigate and use can help to encourage participation and make the forum more enjoyable for users. Sure, we have a lot of forums that look like *crap* and are still successful, but that's because they have quality content and a lot of luck.

Consistency: Consistently updating the forum with new content and maintaining a regular posting schedule can help to keep users engaged and coming back for more. Again, don't lose interest - keep working every day.

Kale · Dec 30, 2022

Arantor said:
That's the thing... forums never did. Not even in the glory days was that ever true - and even the 'if you build it they will come' era was not as true as people remember it being.

Exactly. It has never been easy to run a forum at all. I never could see forums being successful nowadays, sadly. People would rather post on social media, Discord, etc.

Shawn Gossman · Dec 30, 2022

Aerodynamic said:
Consistency: Consistently updating the forum with new content and maintaining a regular posting schedule can help to keep users engaged and coming back for more. Again, don't lose interest - keep working every day.

Nowadays, consistency is a big deal.

I rank it with my blogs when it comes to consistency.

I have two blog that I post on every single day. I try not to worry so much about who is reading but more about being consistent about getting a post out there every single day. I going on month 3 of doing it and so far it has been amazing.

Don't worry so much about who's reading your forum posts. Worry about creating content daily and doing things on the forum that is going to create community when community wants to start being on the forum.

Focus on small goals that lead to larger ones.

Strawberry · Feb 15, 2023

For me, it's very much the fear of failure. I wouldn't want to put a lot of effort into getting a new community set up for it to fall flat. I know it is what you make it, but I wouldn't even know where to start with a niche. I don't want to do something that has been 1000x over, I would want it to stand out.

Cedric · Feb 15, 2023

Strawberry said:
For me, it's very much the fear of failure. I wouldn't want to put a lot of effort into getting a new community set up for it to fall flat. I know it is what you make it, but I wouldn't even know where to start with a niche. I don't want to do something that has been 1000x over, I would want it to stand out.

It's really really hard to stand out, seeing everything pretty much is done before. But I guess it also depends who your competitors are in the niche you choose. Some just like a community and don't add innovative things to it, where others tend to take it a step further.

Strawberry · Feb 15, 2023

Aerodynamic said:
It's really really hard to stand out, seeing everything pretty much is done before. But I guess it also depends who your competitors are in the niche you choose. Some just like a community and don't add innovative things to it, where others tend to take it a step further.

That is very true. It would take a certain type of person to be able to think outside the box and come up with something completely different, and sadly I don't think I can work miracles like that! Plus, I think this time around I would want a 'big board', as I've had small/medium forums in the past, but I think that's just a pipe dream.

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