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Forums - Why You Might Want One And How To Get One...
Several people have asked me about setting up a forum on their website recently, so I thought it might be helpful to cover this topic for the benefit of all my readers. But before I explain how to set up a forum, let me cover some of the reasons as to why you might want a forum in the first place... For those that don't know, a forum is simply a web page which allows visitors to interact with each other by leaving messages and responding to messages made by other users. To see a superb :-) example of this, check out my own forum at: http://www.traderonlineforum.com Ok, so why might you want to put a forum on your website? 1. A forum helps to build a sense of community. People, by their very nature, like to be a part of something and if your website makes them feel like this, then they will come back time and time again and of course, the more times someone comes back, the more chance there is that they might buy something from you :-) 2. It can save you time. I get emails everyday asking for advice on many different aspects of running a business and I simply don't have time to answer them all. If I am a bit pushed for time, I often direct the sender of the email to my forum since I know that their question has either been answered before or because I know that another member may be able to help them. 3. A good forum can get your customers/subscribers to love you! Ok, maybe that is a slight exaggeration BUT if your customers are able to ask questions, get help, build relationships with other people with similar interests and even advertise their own businesses on your forum, it won't do you any harm especially if you offer all of this for free. 4. Free search engine traffic. Search engines love regularly updated websites with relevant content. If you have an active forum with a specific topic of discussion, then you may well find that your forum postings are soon appearing in the free search engine results on Google and other popular engines. 5. An excellent source of new ideas. Forums are a superb resource when you are trying to think of new ideas for products to sell or create or new services to provide. They also give members the opportunity to brainstorm their own ideas with other, like-minded individuals. I have personally obtained numerous ideas for newsletters and other articles from posts made within my forum. 6. Forums can earn you (and your fellow members) money! Forums are like any other web page in that you can advertise products that may be relevant to your visitors, such as your own products or services or those that you are affiliated with. In addition, if you wish, you can allow your members to advertise their products and services either by way of a 'signature file' at the bottom of each post they make or within a specific forum board provided for the purpose of advertising. 7. Finally, owning or participating in a forum is FUN :-) Discussing and debating the topics that are close to your heart with other people that share the same interest is fun and it is amazing how you can pick up on an individual's personality simply by the messages that they write. In the impersonal world of the Internet, forums are an excellent way to get some 'real' human contact. So how do you install a forum on your site? There are countless scripts available that you can simply install on your web hosting server and that will set up and run a forum for you. All have step by step instructions and the scripts are often available free of charge (you can usually upgrade to a more advanced version if you pay a license fee). I will detail a few useful links in a moment. However, if you are not comfortable installing scripts or would just prefer to take the easy option, then you should consider buying an 'all-in-one' hosting and forum package. As I say, there are numerous forum scripts available but here are a few of the more popular ones that you may like to consider: http://www.invisionboard.com, http://www.phpbb.com, http://awsd.com/scripts/webbbs/index.shtml, http://www.vbulletin.com. Copyright 2004 Richard Grady About The Author Richard Grady has been helping ordinary people earn online since 1998. He writes a free newsletter which is published every two weeks. To subscribe (and claim your free gifts), visit: http://www.thetraderonline.com/newsletter.html.
MORE RESOURCES:
Forums - Google News |
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Forums - Should You Have Them On Your Website? Forums have become a common feature in many websites. With good free scripts available, and paid scripts being relatively cheap, it seems that every new website has its own forum(s). 5 Reasons You Should Market Online If you've got a website you'll need to let the world know about it. This is called internet marketing. Forum Traffic - How to Get More Members on Your Forum Getting more traffic on your forum can be hard. But don't get discouraged yet! Here are some ways that you can increase traffic, or better yet, keep the people who are already going through your forum from closing out their window. How to Sell Your Product on the Forums? 1. Your signature file:Most of the forums allow you to carry a 4 - 6 lines of signature files with your name. Reward Your Forum Moderators If you are a forum administrator and you have moderators on your site who are doing a stellar job, consider rewarding them for their assistance. No, I am not necessarily talking about financial compensation, but other recognizable forms of showing your gratefulness. Join A Songwriting Forum - Its A Good Idea! If you are a songwriter looking to get "plugged-in" to where the action is, consider joining a songwriting forum. This is a great way to meet other songwriters, share your ideas, promote your songs and/or lyrics, find resources and much more! As the Good Book says:"iron sharpens iron," which simply means that we grow and learn from the exchange of new ideas with others. Should You Add A Forum To Your Site? I was recently reading a message board thread on a popular SEO site and the question came up whether this particular person should add a forum to his site. I appreciated the honest answers from those who replied and I mulled over several points myself that I thought would be beneficial. 5 Reasons Why Participating in Forums can Benefit Your Business Did you know that by simply participating in various forums and posting your various views and ideas, can potentially bring new growth and life to your online business?Let's look at some of the positive aspects that forum participation can bring to your business.1. Whats The Deal With Discussion Lists For Writers? (Part One) Are they really free? Are they actually helpful? Why do writers subscribe to these lists? Why do people start lists for writers? While there's no definite answers to any of those questions, I can share some opinions of other writers, who have participated in discussion lists, and links to websites with more information so you can make your own decision! First let's start with the basics. An email discussion list is not the same as an ezine, an email newsletter or an announcement list. Why You Should Use (Not Abuse) Forums to Increase Your Traffic There are dozens of reasons why you should look up the forums that are related to your market and post to them often. Here are 3 to get you started. Forums: How DO You Get People to Post!? Running a web forum is no easy task. If you own one, you know how labor-intensive it is. Forum Signatures to Build Back Links - Helping Your Search Rankings Building Backlinks! There are several ways to build backlinks. We have discussed Directory Submissions, Article Submission, & Press Releases. The Demise of EZBoard For years, EZBoard was a community that offered relatively cheap and easy to maintain forums for managers. Virtually anyone could register, design, and layout a site and invite their friends to participate. 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. How to Market on Forums and Message Boards Without Upsetting Anyone Believe it or not, you can market on forums and message boards without pissing anyone off. In fact, not only can you market this way, you SHOULD market this way, and I'll tell you why later in this article. 11 Ways To Increase Forums Activities Getting people to post in your forum is probably the hardest thing to do. First, not all of your readers will post messages. Dont Over Accesorize Your Forums; Give it Community Content Have you been to those forums where when it opens up you are blasted off your seat by the stunning colors? Sure you have. We all have. 8 Tips for Starting and Maintaining a Successful Online Forum Nothing promotes a business online better than staying in touch with prospects. The more interactive the continued contact, the more of a relationship that is built with a potential client. Get Traffic & Sales Using Discussion Forums Message boards, discussion forums and newsgroups can all produce very profitable results for you and your business. Most of us already participate in one or more of these and the more you participate the bigger the benefits to you and your website will be. Milton Keynes - A City For The Future? The two main features of Milton Keynes which distinguish it from older towns are:1)The town was built with motor vehicles in mind and so has a structured road network.2)A significant amount of land was set aside for green space, from the extensive network of park land to the sizeable margins planted with trees and shrubs by the side of the road system.
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