Calling All Successful Admins Of Your Forums..

by GG2012 March 15th 2010, 11:16 am

I'm still in the process of perfecting my forum and it's been open for 2 months now to the public. But, there must be some serious flaws with it as I only have 50 members, poor traffick, and the traffick that does come stays on average of 5-10 minutes tops. And among the 50 members, only about 4 members are posting and visiting.

Any useful information, critiques, tips, and if you see any red flags and how I can improve them. Because I'm beginning toreally feel burned out because I'm not seeing the fruits of my labour, Need to know where I am going wrong shaking

. What will spark people's interests to encourage them to join and post?
Thanks!

by NancyB March 15th 2010, 12:16 pm

Hello.

My forum is the forum interviewed this month. So I may be able to help.

First, is your forum open for all to read, even guests? At first, I think this is important. Then maybe have a members only section for personal stories.

Second, you theme is attractive but is it right for your audience?
I would guess most of your readers would be women. Is it attractive to female readers? Perhaps a more feminine look would help.

Finally, keep it simple. Sometimes "less is more". It look like a lot is going on on your homepage and portal. One thing I do is pay for "no ads" for my members. They really like that. It's not too expensive to do either.
I tell visitors in my register message that if they sign up, they will be able to view the site ad-free.

Good luck. It takes a while to build membership, so hang in there.
It looks like you are doing a lot that is right.

by GG2012 March 15th 2010, 1:25 pm

Thanks NancyB, I really appreciate your feedback and congrats!

How do you think I should simplify the look of the forums? Does it look too busy and maybe a distraction to viewers? I'll try to find ways of simplifying it.

Yes, most of the members who sign up are women. A forum for beauty, skin and hair care. But, the few who post it's about 50/50. Should I neutralize the colors and photos?

The forum is open for all. I only hid the link, photos, and members list. Is it best that I make these available instead?

You mentioned a member's only section for personal stories, can you give me examples for this please?

Thanks again, I really appreciate it.

by GG2012 March 15th 2010, 1:32 pm

I'll reduce the ads as well, and hopefully also make it an ad-free forum.
Do you think the forum is too dark in color for a skin care/beauty forum?
And should I allow guests to post in certain areas or none?

by BLUElearnings March 15th 2010, 2:04 pm

Hey there, i suggest you do some link exchange to increase your traffic.

by NancyB March 15th 2010, 3:56 pm

GG2012 wrote:I'll reduce the ads as well, and hopefully also make it an ad-free forum.
Do you think the forum is too dark in color for a skin care/beauty forum?
And should I allow guests to post in certain areas or none?

I would put ads on your portal page only.
No, don't let guests post. That could get out of hand.

Let's see: after it gets going you could set up a hidden forum for members only or "special people" so they can share personal problems they might have. Some people would like the safety of a forum like that. It could be a touchy subject for some.

The color of your forum is a personal preference, but for me, I think a lighter theme would be better. It's great for some forums... young men, gamers, spooky stuff etc. I just think a lighter, brighter look would attract more women. It doesn't have to be all pink or anything. I'd experiment. Also ask your members what they think if you change it. After all, they are your best resource.

by GG2012 March 30th 2010, 1:50 pm

Thanks NancyB for all of your assistance. Well, I have been pushing myself to advance the look of my forum to make it more user-friendly (although I still have a lot of work to do w/ it). I'll have to wait on the ads for now, butI have been able to deactivate it for members though.

Yes BlueEarnings, I have done more link exchanges.