I recently started a new webmaster forum and I am looking for tips to make the community grow and get more webmasters to join.
I am fully aware that they are litterally thousands of webmaster forums out there. How do I get a share of the webmaster community?
Bare in mind, I have a limited budget and can't spend much money on contests, advertising, etc...
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timjpriebe posted this at 19:10 — 25th February 2007.
He has: 2,666 posts
Joined: Dec 2004
So you're basically asking how to compete with this forum?
With any forum, the key is to get a handful of very active members initially and have them do a lot of posting, answer questions, be very welcoming to new members, etc. The hard part is just getting those 5-10 initial active members.
Tim
http://www.tandswebdesign.com
ablaye posted this at 02:05 — 26th February 2007.
They have: 140 posts
Joined: Apr 2006
I wouldn't dare compete with this forum
Getting those first few active members won't be an easy job, I know. I may need to offer incentives for them to stay active.
Any suggestions on what I can offer other than money??
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NetDebut posted this at 06:42 — 26th February 2007.
He has: 21 posts
Joined: Nov 2004
My suggestion is not to even have a forum until you have at least 100 customers, clients, members or participants in whatever you are doing. Without at least 100, you are actually destroying your business. I have given many people this advice but they neglect it and see the end result I told them. One of them gave up and started forwarding his members to my forum instead. I've even included a section in my ebook about using forums. It really is that crucial to your business.
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Megan posted this at 14:33 — 26th February 2007.
She has: 10,228 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
I agree with NetDebut - that's what has held this site so much over the years. Make a good blog or content site and then build a forum once you have a following going there.
Megan
My web design blog
micksss posted this at 18:55 — 30th March 2007.
They have: 5 posts
Joined: Mar 2007
Very helpful ideas guys. Thanks! I'm new here. How long has this forum been around?
Megan posted this at 14:20 — 31st March 2007.
She has: 10,228 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
This forum has been around since 1998! The previous owners didn't have time to promote it as much as they could have so it wasn't able to keep up with the competition, unfortunately. We've been working hard at improving the forum since we acquired it but unfortunately we're not very good at promotion
It is really hard to promote a forum without a content area, but we've got that started now finally!
Megan
My web design blog
eukben posted this at 19:00 — 31st March 2007.
They have: 3 posts
Joined: Mar 2007
There are thousands of Webmaster forums, and I have seen new ones being created daily and my advice is to not make a Webmaster forum. Basically you won't get a share in the Webmaster forums part unless you hire thousands of daily posters. Good luck with your new forum but that's just my advice.
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rcajht posted this at 14:50 — 1st April 2007.
They have: 12 posts
Joined: Jan 2007
I agree with eukben, its too later to start a new webmster forum.
Megan posted this at 15:28 — 1st April 2007.
She has: 10,228 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
I agree with that as well. We sort of fell into running this place after the previous owner disappeared. I don't think I would start one now if given the choice. If you want to start a forum it would be better to go with a niche topic that hasn't been done already.
I also find that the marketing type forums do much better than generalist ones. Why? I really don't know. The marketers seem to be way more interested in talking about things than designers and developers are. In either case, you need to have people who know what they're talking about.
Megan
My web design blog
webchat posted this at 14:22 — 5th April 2007.
They have: 15 posts
Joined: Apr 2007
I agree with Megan,
I can only think of one reason to start a new webmaster forum and that's in a niche area. For example. If there wasn't a forum for Ruby on Rails then that would be an opportunity. If you want to do this I would look for a new area of the web that's developing and which is niche enough to guarantee a few diehard users.
Also do what this forum does - force users to post a certain number of times before they can do link trades and stuff. It ensures the all-important post count is high. There's nothing more off-putting than a dead forum looking like a ghost town.
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ChadR posted this at 19:00 — 5th April 2007.
They have: 43 posts
Joined: Mar 2007
Unless you are going to offer something that is not currently offered, or a special niche. I would tend to say not to bother. I don't mean to damper your spirit but you have to have something the other forums don't. Why would I post on your forum instead of some one elses?
Personally I post on about 10 different Webmaster Forums, They have to have good SEO and PR (For the most part)
... It's all about the Signature.
Perhaps specialize in something like PHPFreaks.com
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