A couple of weeks ago I found a new technical forum sponsored by a big industrial automation company. The site looked polished and professional. The forum was devided in different topics and included a download area, a calendar, a gallery and more.
It looked like a great forum. But there was one problem.
The forum was empty. Very empty.
There was nothing. Apart from a few posts by people trying to sell cheap medicine.
Empty
Do you know the feeling? If you go out for diner, there is a big chance you will not enter the empty restaurant. You are more likely to choose the restaurant where already some tables are occupied.
It is the same with a forum on the Internet. You don’t want to be the first one to post there. Because you have no idea about who reads your post or who (if anybody) is going to react. And the last thing you want is to be associated with people trying to sell cheap medicine.
Never
Therefore you should never start with an empty forum. Like you should never start with an empty blog or an empty Twitter or Facebook account or YouTube channel.
Always make sure there is something there when you open your new channel for the public. Write at least four or five posts in your new blog before you inform you customers about it’s existence. Upload a few videos to your YouTube channel. Never start with an empty Twitter or Facebook account. Do not promote them before you have at least written a few tweets or updates.
Likewise if you start a new forum. There is nothing wrong with entering a few topics or questions yourself. As long as the questions – and off course the answers – make sense, nobody will have a problem with that. The important thing is your forum looks like a forum and not like an empty restaurant.
Later
Last week the forum was still empty, apart from the cheap medicine. Today I found out they have done something about it.
The forum is now password protected. I was no longer to get in and see what is happening there.
I don’t think this extra barrier will add to the success of the forum.
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