Reply #69 SEAJ's post
RE: Forum/community building
I started a website with my friend about 2 years ago based on a Japanese anime. We also have a forum and it's grown quite fast actually. The audience for my site are between the ages of 13 and 23, it's quite a bit different from this community.
What I've found that worked well for us is to have a few "champions" in the forum. Champions are like moderators except these folks are more proactive about reaching out and meeting new members, making them feel comfortable, and contributing to discussions. (Kind of like you SEAJ)
A community needs critical mass to get going, but so does each and every individual that joins the community. What I mean is that people won't just register and become active. Getting them interested and active is like building a fire. You need fire starters or champions who can fuel the fire. If a new member makes a first post and someone actually made a personable reply or sent a PM to him, it makes him feel good and more confident to post another time.
A lot of forums get big and they don't have enough champions to continue growing. What happens is that moderators become overwhelmed, a lot of rules and regulations are enforced, restrictions on viewing are put in to decrease spamming, and what happens is that a community is no longer a nurturing community. People are intimidated with all the rules and won't feel the connection.
I just woke up and typed this, hope that made sense. | |
