This is more of a ranting post than anything.

Somedays I feel like starting over....from the groud up... just loose everything and start over... but I know its not a good thing to do.

I have about 8k in posts... and its been a slow time getting there, I know its been slow and I know some of the reasons... one my site is for Teens and 2 I knew nothing about forums when I started. I made some big mistakes and from that my forum is still suffering today.

I have just about 500 members, and I am not doing adverts to get members to my forum.

day after day the same ppl come and post... don't get me wrong thats great... but I want my forum to grow... I hate seeing the same ppl I want to see new ppl, new posts, different feeling.

So a few qustions for you.


1.) when you started out your site.... did you make a lot of mistakes, and 2 did it effect your site now....Mebers and etc. ?

2.) How do I really make my site grow... I am spending a lot of money and have nothing coming in on my site.. I can't just pay 50 bucks a month for adverts... b/c I simply don't have it.

3.) How hard was it too get a stedy base of members to post and get new ppl in ?

4.) Would it be theasable (sp ?) to dump 8k in posts, and almost 500 members for a new site... templete and etc. (prob not I am won't do it any time soon I don't think)
I understand a admin forum is going to grow faster than a Teen forum and etc. I am just trying to see if any other admins are having the same problem that I am.

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Did I make a lot of mistakes when starting AF? I made some, yes, but not a whole lot...the reason is that I had been through a few communities before and had already made many mistakes which I had learned from. This is only normal. Nobody is going to make no mistakes starting their first forum...even if you research and do a lot of asking questions, some of this stuff just has to be learned first hand. The biggest mistake I made with a previous forum was not really having a good "business plan" for it. I had no idea where I wanted to go with the forums when I created them...I just created them and went from there, which proved to be a bad thing...because 6 months down the road, it still wasn't clear where I was going with it. So, yes, mistakes in the beginning can have a huge impact on your forum a long way down the road - but nothing lasts forever...so no mistake is going to doom your forums until the end of time.

Content, uniqueness, friendliness. Invest in your current members. Even though you're sick of seeing the same people post and come back every day...you need to build loyalty in them. Word of mouth is so important to growing forums - it's the strongest advertising you'll ever see and it's absolutely free. What it requires is a lot of time and commitment though. Encourage your members to invite their friends - just dont shove it down their throats.

Very

Would it be possible? Sure it would...it's just up to you whether or not you do it. Realize that any forum is going to be hard to build and promote...so don't get discouraged by this...no forum is easy, regardless of the topic. If you haven't enjoyed your forums for a while and think you could do better with another subject/forum...then perhaps you should do it....but nobody really knows better than yourself.

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...some super-sweet signature

I think thats my biggest problem right now, When I started I knew nothing, and just made a forum set it up and said... ""where is all the ppl at ?" Now I know what goes into it and etc, I am getting a busness plan (perse) together and I hope that will help




Not talking about making a new forum wtih a different topic, I am talking about keeping my domain and just starting over... from top to bottom.... Software, skin, members Etc.

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I wouldn't do this if I were you then. You can always convert the software and skin if you don't like it, and I know I would never quit after getting 500 members and 8000 posts.

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If there is a path to migrate from your current software / skin etc to where you want to be then even if the migration path is painful it is best to not let down the users you have now by wiping away the work they have put in.

Users have a way of considering post counts as badges of honor - that the greater post count they have the more involved and important the forum becomes to them because they value their own contributions more as well.

If you have a core group of folks repeatedly posting then you have gold in your hands - this is EXACTLY what you will want after you change your forum so try to find a way to get from A to B without destroying all the efforts made by others.

I think there are even programs available for migrating forum software and you may want to google that.

Good luck! I wish I had an 8000 post problem =)

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