6 Forum Management Essentials

If you are tasked with managing a forum, congratulations to you. If you find yourself weighed down by mundane management tasks, you are not alone. Let's examine some essentials to help you run an effective and vibrant message board community without the hassles of micromanagement.

1. Find a forum you like and stick with it. Yes, not everyone will be using vBulletin or one of the other wonderful PHP or ASP message board sites. If you like EZBoard or if you like making your own site up with PHP open source, then do it and stick with it. By now you know the pitfalls of the particular sites; can you really afford to regularly change to the latest and greatest technologies? Probably not, unless your site is already generating plenty of income through Google AdSense or similar types of PPC advertising. I am not saying to never update your site, rather weigh the costs of whether your site has to have a certain site or feel to be successful. Even ugly sites can prosper, witness Craig's List!

2. Find moderators who want to moderate. Not everyone who volunteers to moderate a particular forum on your message board is fit for the task. Some will sign up and then not moderate; better to go without a moderator then to have a "name in place." Keep your standards high and only the best will volunteer.

3. Envision long term. Unless you plan on rapidly growing your forum and then "flipping" it in a quick sale, you are better off looking at keeping your site for many years. Yes, in the land of the internet, everything changes so rapidly; still there are forums that can and do thrive the longer they are online, with proper management of course!

4. Reward your core constituency. Chances are your site is dominated by a small group of people who post regularly and are generally most helpful overall. Consider having a private forum viewable only to them on your site. Out of this group will likely come your moderators; run contests for this group only. Find advertisers to fund the prizes.

5. Ignore the squeeky, vocal minority. Yes, there will be the small amount of people -- usually less than 10% of your members -- whose demands on your time far exceed what is normal. They are the ones who want extensive hand holding and technical assistance...if they would only read previous threads or pay attention to announcements, your problems with them would be resolved. As much as it cuts against the grain for some administrators [heck, you are all about helping people, right?], you must cut them loose. You need not do it directly, but by not promptly answering their questions they will either figure things out themselves or move on.

6. Be well funded. Have a treasure chest or Paypal donation box on your site to welcome contributions. Run banner ads and join a successful PPC program. Find an advertising plan that works well for you. Seek grant money if your site is geared toward helping raise awareness about a particular health or social issue. You want to reap some monies from your site and you should pay yourself for your hard work.

Not all forums are meant to succeed on the internet, nor should they. The successful sites are well managed and positively impact members and guests far beyond the internet. If you have one of these sites, congratulations and good management to you!

Matt runs two successful forums which can be viewed at http://aviationemploymentboard.net/forum and http://corporateflyer.net/forum

---

Promoting in Online Forums

Forums can be a useful tool if you`re doing business... Read More

Why You Should Use (Not Abuse) Forums to Increase Your Traffic

There are dozens of reasons why you should look up... Read More

Forum - A Free Way to Get Traffic

Forum is a gathering of people normally have a common... Read More

Whats The Deal With Discussion Lists For Writers? (Part One)

Are they really free? Are they actually helpful? Why do... Read More

Whats The Deal With Discussion Lists? (Part Three)

Why Do People Start Writing Discussion Lists? Angela Gillaspie, who... Read More

Marketing Via Messageboards & E-mail Discussion Lists - An Alternative View

One of the most suggested means of getting traffic to... Read More

3 Reasons Why PHP Message Boards Rock

If you are web designer, chances are you include forums... Read More

Forum Signatures to Build Back Links - Helping Your Search Rankings

Building Backlinks! There are several ways to build backlinks. We... Read More

How to Market on Forums and Message Boards Without Upsetting Anyone

Believe it or not, you can market on forums and... Read More

Dont Over Accesorize Your Forums; Give it Community Content

Have you been to those forums where when it opens... Read More

How To Maximize Your Profits With Forums

Forums are one of the most effective free internet marketing... Read More

Forums ? Should You Have Them On Your Website?

Forums have become a common feature in many websites. With... Read More

Forum Software 101 - Why It is Vitally Important to Choose the Best Software to Run your Forum

When you go through all of the work and trouble... Read More

How to Sell Your Product on the Forums?

1. Your signature file:Most of the forums allow you to... Read More

Whats The Deal With Discussion Lists for Writers? (Part Two)

What Are the Advantages and/or Drawbacks of Subscribing to Discussion... Read More

Forums: What They Are And WHY Theyre Essential For Anyone Considering Starting An Online Business

Well... first off, let's define exactly what a Forum is... Read More

The Value of Forums

There are literally thousands of online forums that cover a... Read More

Forum Traffic - How to Get More Members on Your Forum

Getting more traffic on your forum can be hard. But... Read More

How to Build a Forum That Doesnt Fall Apart Two Months Later, Part 1

If you can get a big enough following from customer... Read More

The Importance of Forum Participation in Promoting an Internet Business

Many internet business owners are really lost when doing anything... Read More

The Demise of EZBoard

For years, EZBoard was a community that offered relatively cheap... Read More

Some Quick Tips to Easily Improve the Success of Your Forum!

It is difficult to define a 'successful forum'. However, all... Read More

Forums - Why You Might Want One And How To Get One...

Several people have asked me about setting up a forum... Read More

Search for Business Partners Effortlessly

With the internet revolution ushering in new modes of communication... Read More

Business Forums

Forums are a community where a group of webmasters can... Read More

Milton Keynes - A City For The Future?

The two main features of Milton Keynes which distinguish it... Read More

Using Forums to Promote Your Business

When is work not really work? When it's fun!Using online... Read More

Join A Songwriting Forum - Its A Good Idea!

If you are a songwriter looking to get "plugged-in" to... Read More

Reward Your Forum Moderators

If you are a forum administrator and you have moderators... Read More

How To Get Free Advertising By Participating In E-mail Discussion Lists

Posting messages to e-mail discussion lists is a great way... Read More

10 Commandments To Maximizing Your Time In Forum Participation

1) Gain an idea/keep in touch of what is happening... Read More

11 Ways To Increase Forums Activities

Getting people to post in your forum is probably the... Read More

Intro to Health Forums

Health forums are great for gathering information, resources, advice, tips... Read More