Why do members lurk?

[Cedric]

Have you ever wondered why some members of your community seem to lurk in the background without ever posting or engaging with others? Are you curious about the reasons why someone would choose to lurk instead of actively participating in discussions? Let's explore this phenomenon together and discuss the possible reasons why members lurk. Is it shyness or a lack of confidence in expressing their opinions? Do they simply prefer to observe and consume content rather than actively engaging with others?

What is your opinion?

 

[Tracy]

Because that is a majority of society now? They are more consumers than producers, especially when it comes to information.
Part of the problem may be that the ability to communicate intelligently in a written process is not as well taught in schools (especially here in the U.S.) as it once was.

Some may feel that they don't have anything of "value" to put into a discussion, especially one of technical nature. One thing I have found in those type of discussions.. the only stupid/dumb question is the one unasked. ALL can learn from the answer of a question.

 

[Cory]

Some people are just forum introverts that like to read content and not necessarily reply to content. I've become that way on Reddit, I use to comment on things but now I just browse for the sake of reading interesting content and perhaps learning something new.

 

[Clarice]

Some people who have boards that are in the same subject manner like to "check out the competition."

 

[Cedric]

Some people who have boards that are in the same subject manner like to "check out the competition."

Yeah, sometimes I go on a few forums for this reason. Checking competitive forums can be really helpful to grow and manage your forum better. You can gain useful insights into what other forums are doing well, what their members are interested in, and what opportunities exist in the market for your forum.

Competitive forums can give you ideas on how to improve your forum, including features, content, and community management strategies. They push you to be better. It's also important to approach competitive analysis in a productive and strategic way, instead of getting caught up in direct competition or copying other forums.

 

[Clarice]

I've noticed a few use the ideas of other forums for there's.

 

[Sarah]

We get them on our forum from time to time. As staff, we don't mind really. A large part of our board is graphics where members can browse thru and take for their own. If they choose to pop in and say hi while they are there, then cool. But on the other head we have a good flow of active members on there also.

 

[Clarice]

We get them on our forum from time to time. As staff, we don't mind really. A large part of our board is graphics where members can browse thru and take for their own. If they choose to pop in and say hi while they are there, then cool. But on the other head we have a good flow of active members on there also.

I pop on there to say hello and check in from time to time.

 

[ZandraJoi]

I think most just want to check out a forum before committing. I don’t mind people lurking. My forum is closed to guest posting except in the Affiliates section so a lurker can’t turn into a troll & demean members & their posts. I don't give rules as to how many posts they have to make in X amount of time otherwise they are deleted. Some of my forum is for informative purposes so if somebody gets something out of it holistically without posting a reply, that's fine with me! Some forums too you can't see most of the forum until you join. Then members need to get a feel before they dive in.

 

[Strawberry]

I would say that some people feel like what they contribute won't be of value, or perhaps whatever they might have said in the thread has already been said before. They might not feel like they have enough knowledge to get involved in the discussion either.

One thing I have observed in the past is when people feel like there is a 'clique' on the forum, they feel intimidated and are less likely to post.

 

[Arantor]

There's definitely an element of people checking out a forum before committing - checking the attitude, the tone, the vibe of the place. Also especially for forums that have support or Q&A angles, definitely an element of people coming, getting their answer and going again without needing to interact.

 

[Reverie]

I think users lurk frequently because they may only use the community to find answers they might be looking for. Perhaps they don't enjoy participating fully in the conversations going on, but want to read the articles and participate that way. Perhaps if they can't get their question answered they might create a topic to help get that question answered.