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Forum 101

by runningonjuice
11 replies
Hi all

I get a fair bit of traffic but not enough user engagement. I feel a forum could be a good way to go.

Just wondered what the most hassle free forum service is? I have no coding ability and want something that is easy to set up and maintain.

Any advice for a beginner from those of you who have built a forum before?
#101 #forum
  • Profile picture of the author TheArticlePros
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    • Profile picture of the author runningonjuice
      Hi Jay, I have a budget yes I don't mind paying for quality stuff. From a business perspective I am cautious as I do not know if this will take off, but yes happy with some financial outlay for this.
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      • Profile picture of the author TheArticlePros
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        • Profile picture of the author Troy_Phillips
          Originally Posted by JaRyCu View Post

          The reason I was asking is that, since you have a budget, you can look into vBulletin. That's what the WF is also built on.

          vBulletin - The World's Leading Community Software

          I just checked the site and they're up to v5.0 now, which runs $250.

          -- j
          If you pay someone to have it installed and get the plugins you need to be seen .. about $400 final cost.
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          • Profile picture of the author runningonjuice
            Thanks Guys, Troy do you know anyone who would be interested in that bit of work?
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            • Profile picture of the author Troy_Phillips
              Originally Posted by runningonjuice View Post

              Thanks Guys, Troy do you know anyone who would be interested in that bit of work?
              This is the only person I trust in my back office and she is very competitive price wise.

              Affordable Banners & Website Graphics - 5BuckBanners.com

              Absolutely no money in this for me.

              Her name is a Tera ... tell her Troy sent ya.
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  • Profile picture of the author Troy_Phillips
    I can tell you from past experience ... building up a forum, at least for me, was a lot harder than what I wanted to work. Anybody want to buy a full suite VB 4.0 lol. Just kidding, I might actually use it again some day and it is not eating anything.
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  • Profile picture of the author mlevenhagen
    I've run a good number of forums over the years (IM niche and outside the IM niche) A forum doesn't automatically translate to more money.. but I guarantee it will translate to more work. My suggestion would be to work on writing more engaging content and reasons for people to engage, building a list/fans/friends.. focus on social.

    ..then if it makes sense launch a forum down the road. By then you'll already have a way to populate it quickly (activity breeds activity) and people to help you with it so you aren't doing all the work and starting from scratch.

    It depends a little too on the market.. some forums it'll be like pulling teeth to get people to post and get out of lurk mode. Others, you won't be able to stop the flood of posts and signups. Neither scenario means you'll make money unless you have a clear plan and ability to monetize.
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    ~ Matt Levenhagen
    Blog: Niche Marketing
    Latest WSO: Check Out Conversions Academy!

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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Fulfer
      Originally Posted by mlevenhagen View Post

      I've run a good number of forums over the years (IM niche and outside the IM niche) A forum doesn't automatically translate to more money.. but I guarantee it will translate to more work. My suggestion would be to work on writing more engaging content and reasons for people to engage, building a list/fans/friends.. focus on social.

      ..then if it makes sense launch a forum down the road. By then you'll already have a way to populate it quickly (activity breeds activity) and people to help you with it so you aren't doing all the work and starting from scratch.

      It depends a little too on the market.. some forums it'll be like pulling teeth to get people to post and get out of lurk mode. Others, you won't be able to stop the flood of posts and signups. Neither scenario means you'll make money unless you have a clear plan and ability to monetize.
      Great post! ^
      I've run a few forums as well and 100% agree with that.

      It can be a LOT of work and not always much of a payoff. Really depends on the niche and the types of users you can get to post.

      The main thing with a forum is having activity, the more the better. If you don't have people posting and sharing then it's going to die very quickly. I've seen so many people start forums and go crazy trying to get people to sign up and post only to end up closing them down a few months later.

      I have one forum that's been up for about 5 years or so now that I pretty much put my entire life into for the first 2 years when I first got it. It did good for a while and grew fairly large but as soon as I didn't have the time to babysit it, the traffic and activity dropped quite a bit.

      As far as software goes, I'd highly recommend Vbulletin. It's only a couple of hundred bucks and well worth it if you're serious about running a forum.
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  • Profile picture of the author frankl
    Originally Posted by runningonjuice View Post

    Hi all

    I get a fair bit of traffic but not enough user engagement. I feel a forum could be a good way to go.

    Just wondered what the most hassle free forum service is? I have no coding ability and want something that is easy to set up and maintain.

    Any advice for a beginner from those of you who have built a forum before?
    I think IPB is a better choice than vBulletin. It's also a lot cheaper. And the new IPB (3.4) will now officially support (and include) the IP. SEO application. Also it will be very easy to create a bridge between the forum and a third party cms or blog.
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  • Profile picture of the author MarketingMinded
    Check out Simple Press. I use it and it works very well "out of the box"
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    The Solopreneur Chronicles
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    What is your goal by starting a forum? Is it the perception that you have a high quality, popular site... or do you actually plan on selling things on a forum? Furthermore, what's your plan for getting people to sign up to your forum once they reach your page?

    If your blog doesn't look like it has alot of activity on it... you're going to find yourself getting very few forum members until things start to really pick up. It's a catch 22.... do your best though.
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