The importance of welcoming new members

Making a new member of your community feel welcomed and valued is crucial in encouraging their participation and contribution to your site. A great way to achieve this is by adding a personal touch through welcome messages.

For forum owners, it's important to send a standard welcome email to new members upon registration. However, many forum developers overlook the opportunity to customize this email. It's a small gesture, but it can make a big difference in how a new member perceives your community. Wouldn't you prefer to receive an email that appears to be more personalized rather than an obviously automated one?

Additionally most forum softwares have the option to post something on their profile wall. While an automated PM may feel a bit generic and not personal - take the time to write on their profile with a more personal welcome note.

Sending a personal message to new members welcoming them to the community is also a nice touch. You can start with a message like this:

"Hi (name),

I just wanted to drop you a quick message to say thank you for joining the (your site name) forum. I appreciate you taking the time to register and really look forward to reading your posts.
If you need help at any time, please contact me by replying to this message. Similarly, if you ever have any questions then please do not hesitate to send me a message or email.
Thanks again for joining!

Regards,

(Your name)"

It's a good idea to include a question or a call to action within your welcome message. For instance, you can link to a popular thread on your forum and ask the new member for their thoughts on the topic. This will not only add a personal touch, but it will also encourage the new member to get involved in the community and start interacting with other members right away. Many members need a little "push" to become a part of the community and therefore a valued asset to your community.

 

[Reverie]

I definitely always try to welcome members! I love that you can send PM's to new members! I think it can come off as sincere as long as you're just as welcoming within their welcome topic and maybe even on their profile! I like to include the welcome area in a welcoming PM so they know where to go to introduce themselves as well as they begin to navigate the forum.

 

[Ravenfreak]

I always welcome new members on my forums. I have a welcome email set up for one of my communities, though I never set up welcome PMs. It's definitely 100% important to welcome all new members to your site!

 

[joelr]

A better question would be: how do we craft a welcome message that is impactful?

In other words, how do you provide a custom welcome message that addresses the reasons of why a new member joins?

For example:

• 3 Things every new member should know
• Links to the best beginner guides and articles
• How to get started

 

[Cedric]

A better question would be: how do we craft a welcome message that is impactful?

In other words, how do you provide a custom welcome message that addresses the reasons of why a new member joins?

For example:

• 3 Things every new member should know
• Links to the best beginner guides and articles
• How to get started

I believe it's important to be warm and friendly. Starting with a greeting that shows your excitement to connect with your audience. Trying to make it personal by using their name or mentioning something specific about them that caught your attention. This is however not possible with the first automated message, thus this needs a personal follow-up.
Keeping the message clear and concise. And avoiding using technical terms that a member may not understand. Showing gratitude for your member's time and attention. Making them feel welcomed at their new community home. That's definitely the first step whatsoever.

Then you can start playing with the facts why they're at that forum. In our case, it would be resources for webmasters, discussions, content, articles, or helping them build out their exposure, etc. So in our case links to articles, linking a forum to promote their forum, and indeed a forum starter guide. - We don't actually have a decent guide yet. I started writing down one a while back but haven't had the chance to complete it yet.