Community Advice and Snippets (1 Viewer)

When building a forum, it's easy to become fixated on getting as many members as possible. After all, a successful forum requires a large number of members, right? Not necessarily. The number of members a forum has doesn't necessarily make it a good one. It's easy to come across a forum with thousands of members, but many of them might be automated spam registrations or fake members who were created to encourage others to join. They might not even visit or contribute to the forum at all. So, having a large number of members doesn't guarantee that a forum is popular or of good quality. What really makes a good forum is having members who are passionate about the community, enjoy contributing, and produce posts of high quality. If your...

As an webmaster and forum owner, it's easy to get carried away with adding new features to your community website. However, adding features that aren't used by your members can be a waste of time and money. Admittedly, I have had to rethink many features or disable some after realizing the time was not right. While it's a good idea to ask your members if they want a specific feature, many will say they want it, but won't use it when it's implemented. To avoid adding unnecessary features, keep an eye on your competitors. Finding competitors is easy - search for similar keywords on Google, and you'll find plenty of results. Once you've found some competitors, take a look around their site and consider a few things: Which sections of...

Throughout my previous posts, I have emphasized the significance of asking your members for their input. Whether it's about redesigning your website or engaging with your audience, it is essential to make it effortless for your site's users to express their opinions and feedback. But have you ever considered how much valuable feedback you may be missing out on because your forum isn't feedback-friendly enough? If your users find it too difficult to report an issue they've encountered with your site, they may simply leave without you knowing why. Making your site feedback-friendly will help you identify and resolve any problems your users have with your site before it gets to this point. Continuously tweaking and improving your...

As your community website grows, you will inevitably get to know some members better than others. But what really makes one member more valuable than another? Some people might say that the most valuable member is the one who posts the most content. This may make sense, especially in new forums, where active members tend to stand out the most. However, posting frequently doesn't necessarily equate to being the most valuable member. It's important to consider the quality of the content being contributed by members. The person who posts the most may be writing low-quality content, while the member who contributes fewer posts but of a higher quality may be more valuable. The value of a member is subjective and varies from person to...

An online community is not just a static website, but a dynamic entity comprising of individual human beings with their own unique opinions and tastes. Therefore, making unilateral decisions that the majority of your members do not agree with could be catastrophic. The best way to avoid this outcome is to involve your members in decision making. Remember, you do not run your online community, your members do. Your job is to keep them happy, engaged and involved. It is important not to forget that your members are the lifeblood of your community. Without them, your community will cease to exist. So, when it comes to large-scale changes to your website's design or functionality, do not make the decision in isolation. Always involve your...

Post exchanges, where forum admins agree to post on each other's forums in order to boost activity and engagement, are a common practice in the world of forums. On the one hand, it can be argued that post exchanges are a great way to build relationships between forum owners and help each other grow their communities. It can also be a good way to get exposure for your own forum and reach new audiences. However, there are also some potential downsides to post exchanges. Some argue that it can lead to unethical behavior, such as artificially inflating post counts or creating fake accounts to post on other forums. It can also create a sense of obligation, where forum owners feel like they have to reciprocate even if they don't really want...