Chicken and the Egg syndrome

Scott Ames · 08-11-2008, 11:58 AM

Chicken and the Egg or Catch 22, I don't know which.

If you want to start a site, a community or forum on a subject what would be the best way to get people to start interacting on the site?

The more people there the more people are attracted to it, but at the start very few are there. With very few people at the site others look once and never return.

I admit I've done the same with sites. I look at the user count or number of threads and decide that its not worth my time. What can the site owner do to boost involvement and excitment?

Ryan_Taylor · 08-11-2008, 02:32 PM

Hey Scott,

I've never really ran a successful forum, so I don't really have an answer for you, but my observation from watching forums flop or become huge successes had a lot to do with the moderator. You have the responsibility to set the tone and the standards and make it a valuable place to "hang out."

I think this can be achieved by loading up the forum with some ultra-high quality material that people would normally be willing to pay for, then announce the launch to your list or other contacts.

Look at what Allen did with the War Room. He invited some of the biggest contributors here to get in early. By the time it was launched publicly, it was loaded with great content. So much that people felt an obligation to give back with things they normally charge for.

I hope that helps some or gets the creativity going.

tommygadget · 08-11-2008, 02:35 PM

Dude, that's an easy one. Run a contest! Get some threads out there and use a contest to get people posting. For $50 you can wind up with hundreds of posts. Make sure you key the reward to the most interesting thread/creative solution depending on the forum type.

TomG.

Tirmizi · 08-11-2008, 02:53 PM

run a contest, pay forum posters, start intresting topics, have a freebie section, give quality info, add links on other forums ... that should keep you busy for a while ...

Tirmizi

SpeedDemon · 08-11-2008, 03:59 PM

Good suggestions there.

To expand on what Ryan said, the 2 forums I've started (for fun, not profit) both began with a core group of posters who built up the initial material. We were all just friends screwing around, but maybe you could email a few people in your niche and get it going that way.

Keith Boisvert · 08-11-2008, 04:14 PM

When I started my forum back in Jan of this year, all I did was put a link in my Sig file here.

Once I had it up and running, I just started posting. I was a posting fool. If someone signed up and filled out an intro, I responded. If they replied to one of my posts or created their own, I responded.

Make the members take pride and ownership in the forum. They will create the content for them. First thing I did is make some of the more active members moderators.

As an admin, you have to constantly be on the forum posting, answering questions...ASKING QUESTIONS. All of this leads to activity.

And like you said, activity breeds new members.

Keith

08-11-2008, 11:58 AM	#1
Scott Ames Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: West of Rockies Posts: 5,556 Thanks: 363 Thanked 665 Times in 325 Posts	Chicken and the Egg syndrome Chicken and the Egg or Catch 22, I don't know which. If you want to start a site, a community or forum on a subject what would be the best way to get people to start interacting on the site? The more people there the more people are attracted to it, but at the start very few are there. With very few people at the site others look once and never return. I admit I've done the same with sites. I look at the user count or number of threads and decide that its not worth my time. What can the site owner do to boost involvement and excitment?
	Action is the foundational key to all success. - Pablo Picasso

08-11-2008, 02:53 PM	#4
Tirmizi Advance Warrior Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Islamabad, Pakistan Posts: 410 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Contact Info	run a contest, pay forum posters, start intresting topics, have a freebie section, give quality info, add links on other forums ... that should keep you busy for a while ... Tirmizi
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08-11-2008, 04:14 PM	#6
Keith Boisvert Blue Collar Marketer War Room Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Taxachusetts Posts: 2,036 Blog Entries: 7 Thanks: 167 Thanked 253 Times in 93 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	When I started my forum back in Jan of this year, all I did was put a link in my Sig file here. Once I had it up and running, I just started posting. I was a posting fool. If someone signed up and filled out an intro, I responded. If they replied to one of my posts or created their own, I responded. Make the members take pride and ownership in the forum. They will create the content for them. First thing I did is make some of the more active members moderators. As an admin, you have to constantly be on the forum posting, answering questions...ASKING QUESTIONS. All of this leads to activity. And like you said, activity breeds new members. Keith
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08-11-2008, 02:32 PM	#2
Ryan_Taylor Advanced Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 660 Thanks: 10 Thanked 17 Times in 9 Posts	Hey Scott, I've never really ran a successful forum, so I don't really have an answer for you, but my observation from watching forums flop or become huge successes had a lot to do with the moderator. You have the responsibility to set the tone and the standards and make it a valuable place to "hang out." I think this can be achieved by loading up the forum with some ultra-high quality material that people would normally be willing to pay for, then announce the launch to your list or other contacts. Look at what Allen did with the War Room. He invited some of the biggest contributors here to get in early. By the time it was launched publicly, it was loaded with great content. So much that people felt an obligation to give back with things they normally charge for. I hope that helps some or gets the creativity going.

08-11-2008, 02:35 PM	#3
tommygadget Banned War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Up North, USA Posts: 2,517 Blog Entries: 11 Thanks: 88 Thanked 288 Times in 157 Posts Social Networking	Dude, that's an easy one. Run a contest! Get some threads out there and use a contest to get people posting. For $50 you can wind up with hundreds of posts. Make sure you key the reward to the most interesting thread/creative solution depending on the forum type. TomG.

08-11-2008, 03:59 PM	#5
SpeedDemon Active Warrior Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: California Posts: 51 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Good suggestions there. To expand on what Ryan said, the 2 forums I've started (for fun, not profit) both began with a core group of posters who built up the initial material. We were all just friends screwing around, but maybe you could email a few people in your niche and get it going that way.