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What do you look for in a Webmaster forum?
09-12-2006, 11:51 PM
| #1 |
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 Title: Apprentice
Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 204  | What do you look for in a Webmaster forum? Just as the title says: "What do you look for in a Webmaster forum?" I'm currently developing one and am trying to get a few ideas.  | ||||
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09-13-2006, 12:33 AM
| #2 |
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Title: Veteran
Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 920 Location: Alberta Canada  
| Well, one of the reasons I joined here was to get fresh ideas from other people in my situation. As well, look for lots of information and content on the issue. If your going to make a forum of it, I'd set it up like a Q&A place, with lots of archived information. Content before everything else | ||||
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09-13-2006, 12:56 AM
| #3 |
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| Title: Apprentice
Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 204 | Quote:
I'll keep that in mind, thanks a lot! | |||||
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09-13-2006, 01:12 AM
| #4 |
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Title: Veteran
Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 652 | Good luck, There are way too many of those out there. You'll have a tough time, rather than what I would look for, let me give you the detailed list of EXACTLY what you need to do. Pre-Opening Expensises VB - If you want your forum to compete, VB is a must: $85 for one year Paid hosting - If you don't want your forum to die (with a free host, it will die, I know all too well): About $5 monthly A really good custom skin - Again, you're in a very competive market, so you need looks on your side: $100-500 Tons and tons of useful, easy to respond to and informative topics: Priceless  (could be free if you make them yourself, but you might want to split the load by paying for some content)As soon as you open Several paid posters - You need at least 10 active members to get your forum off the ground. Depending on your activity, you could make quite a few "fake" members, but the rest would have to be friends or paid posters: Around $30 Advertisements: Can't stress this enough, you need ads, and lots of them. Advertise on related websites that get plenty of visitors: (at start) Around $50 monthly Contest: As I said a million times, you're in a VERY competive market, so you'll need something special to grab members. Contests tend to work nicely. Bigger contests bring better members, so make sure that you offer a good prize and promote the contest. | ||||
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09-13-2006, 01:36 AM
| #5 |
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| Title: Apprentice
Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 204 | Yeah I am in a very competative market, this is my main reason for not going with vB. Vanilla is by far the most different forum software out there(this can be good and bad) Paid hosting... I've got it. I've already hired some paid posters and am still looking for more: Need 2 Forum Posters For Webmaster Forum 12cents/Thread & 10 cents/post All I really need now is a custom skin and some more content and an original idea or two. Quote:
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09-13-2006, 09:47 AM
| #6 |
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Title: Forum Addict
Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 1,913 Location: Australia
| htmlmaster has covered a lot, but thats his opinion. As a moderator at a webmaster forum, i actively participate on this forum because of what it has to offer. But then again it could offer more. -Have a Directory on your forum. -Points, Shop and Bank mod and possibly consider a paid to post program. -Webmaster+Forum Resources, codes and anything else you think you could offer have it there available. -Friendly and helpfull staff, possible support team for the young webmasters. -Unique Skin, always good to look nice and...Unique. -Some sort of trade program on the forum, whether it be post exchange, link exchange anything like that. I love that in webmaster forums. -Forum software doesn't really bother me, but IPB or Vb i tend to favour. -Paid Posters? you could, but having tight rules with the paid to post program will get members to strive for money making them create quality posts and threads. thats if you go with that, with past experiance in that, it does work and made the forum terrific, it was a success. Good luck with your webmaster forum pfgannon, hope it all goes well. | ||||
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09-13-2006, 10:09 AM
| #7 |
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Title: Forum Enthusiast
Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 2,479 Location: Alabama  
| Information that helps me improve my website for starters. A place that I can go to and monitor trends with Search Engines and find services being offered that can be useful to my sites (directory submissions, graphic desings etc) Basically information is the biggest part. | ||||
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09-13-2006, 05:40 PM
| #8 |
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Title: Veteran
Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 709 Location: Romania | I have a webmaster forum and I started it to look and function as my ideal kind of a webmaster forum. I want to see articles (unique, not those copy-paste articles we see in all other places). I would rather have 50 unique ones that 500 copied articles. Tutorials to help people understand some of the "basics" and also articles to help them develop better sites/forums. Intelligent talk. I just cannot stop wanting good topics. I love a good thread: I get information from it and can discuss something smart. A balance between "content" threads and ads. I hate the forums with 700 topics of "buy/sell" and 3 content topics. Stopped seeing some webmaster forums who just turned into huge "market" places. Friendly people. Cannot stant people who are arrogant towards the new members or to those that ask a "stupid" (in their opinion) question. When someone asks you: what do I need to have a forum? should we kill him? Mock? Why? Few years ago I recall asking the same kind of questions and was happy when someone gave me a good direction. Even now (as I consider myself advanced) I still ask some "doh" questions in areas I start working at. So .. friendly knowledgeable members is a must too.
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09-13-2006, 10:33 PM
| #9 |
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| Title: Apprentice
Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 204 | Thanks so much guys I've gotten tons of insight from this thread. I've decided to go with vbulletin, as soon as I can afford it. At that point I'll try to incorporate a majority of the things suggested/requested. | ||||
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