Regarding Our Forum - No traffic - Your Thoughts Welcomed

Started by Siirist, July 08, 2016, 08:54:33 AM

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Siirist

Greetings All,

I am experiencing some challenges with a forum I built for someone.

As I understand it is not proper to post a link on this board (as that could/would be considered spam).
I had tentatively posted with a link on the ShowCase board, but was informed that is for where unique or grand custom layouts or such are to be presented, hence including a link to my forum did not qualify .

I would to my best ability, accurately describe the forum so that perhaps you could identify the things or lack of things that are keeping potential members from registering.

Is this permitted here?

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

nend

For honest feedback, not spam your allowed to post the link.

vbgamer45

You can include in your signature. But honestly most people here have their own forums they are running and probably not looking to join others.
Community Suite for SMF - Take your forum to the next level built for SMF, Gallery,Store,Classifieds,Downloads,more!

SMFHacks.com -  Paid Modifications for SMF

Mods:
EzPortal - Portal System for SMF
SMF Gallery Pro
SMF Store SMF Classifieds Ad Seller Pro

Siirist

Hey nend,

In my efforts to not aggravate my questionable behavior (my choices for where to post or following board guidelines have been challenged), I prefer to await for a request to the forum via PM so as to ensure complete and thorough compliance to the rules and guidelines in place for SMF).

That said, I am running a SMF ver 2.0.11 forum that is intended to be a training forum for both pet and Service Dogs through the guidance for certified trainers.

The purpose of the forum is to provide instruction on the training of your pet or Service Dog from basic commands and if desired, through AKC (American Kennel Club) programs such as:

  • STAR Puppy, Canine Good Citizen - Standard
  • CGC Community
  • CGC Urban
  • PetTech CPR, First Aid & Care for your Pets®
  • and specific task training for Service Dogs
.

Instruction may be either through the forum, email, telephone, or in person.

This service is provided by Certified Trainers overseen by our Head Trainer, who has:

  • a Masters in Science
  • PetTech Instructor #1981
  • Certified Professional Trainer - Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) by the Certification Council of Professional Dog Trainers
  • Member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT)
  • AKC Star Puppy Instructor
  • AKC CGC, Community Canine, and Urban CGC Evaluator
  • Kennel Club Accredited Instructor (KCAI) by the United Kingdom Kennel Club
.

The forum is offering a "Free 7 day Trial" after which, the member needs to go to their Profile and Subscribe to a Paid Subscription to continue their membership at a cost of $15.00/month or $100.00/year for Pet Training, or $18.00/month or $125.00/year.

I have installed the following Themes:

  • SMF Default Theme - Curve
  • Core Theme
  • Ostara - Compatible With:2.0.1, 2.0.3, 2.0.4, 2.0.5, 2.0.6, 2.0.8, 2.0.9, 2.0.10, 2.0.11, 2.0.12
  • Fresh Looks - MultiColor - Compatible With: 2.0.1, 2.0.2
  • Fumes- Compatible With: 2.0.7, 2.0.11

I have installed the following Mods:

  • SMF 1.1.21 / 2.0.10 Update    1.0
  • SMF 2.0.11 Update    1.0
  • Ad Managment    3.2
  • audiblepm 1.5    2.0
  • Board Icons    1.0
  • Board-color-and-icons    1.1
  • Copy Topics    1.6
  • Default_Membergroup    2.0
  • Enhanced Dropdown    1.3
  • Simple Menu Icons    1.0
  • SMF Gallery Lite    5.6.1
  • Tidy Child Boards    2.0
  • Topic Solved    1.1.1
  • Welcome Topic Mod    2.2

We have oriented the forum like a "house" and as a result have the following Categories:
(While we have many boards with in them, I will only include some boards)

  • Front Porch - Open to the public
  • Entryway ~ (Welcome, Events, and how to "get around")
    > Greetings From The Staff & About Staff Positions
    > Helpful Info & Questions About Our Dog Training Forum
  • Living Room ~ A great place to begin, get to know us, and chat about dogs
    > Welcome & Introductions
    > General Discussions about dogs
  • Training Room - an area for clients to ask trainers questions
  • Service Dog Training Room - Moving beyond standard training
  • Dog Training Library - Useful Articles
  • Service Dog Library - Useful Articles (Service Dog related)
  • Medical Considerations
    >> Things that are considered Dangerous, Toxic, or Deadly!
    > Items
    > Poisons
    > Plants
    > Conditions
    > Foods - Human
    > Medications - Human
    >>Why is / does my dog . . . What should . . .
  • Kitchen - Staff Members Area
    > About your staff position & How to moderate
    > Copies of Posts you have Moderated ONLY (Staff members, BEFORE MODERATING a post, place a copy of the UN-moderated post here)
  • The Back Porch - Where you can sit and chat about life
    > Generally Speaking (Where you can share anything you want)
    > When things go our way
    > When things don't go our way


We currently have 6 members, 5 are "for staff members"

There are 114 Posts in 98 Topics by 6 Members.

I have posted 70 of the posts in the forum.

I can give a link, username, and password that will let you SEE everything, except the Kitchen (Staff Area)

Thank you for taking the time to read through this. It shows you care, or are at least curious.   :)

Quote from: vbgamer45 on July 08, 2016, 11:33:17 AM
You can include in your signature. But honestly most people here have their own forums they are running and probably not looking to join others.
vbgamer45, Thanks for your input. I will put the link back into my signature. This isn't about getting SMF members to join, it is about finding out why others are not joining.


Again, what is blocking potential members from joining?   ???

Thank you for your thoughts, advice, and suggestions.

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Irisado

For a relatively new forum, my first impression is that there are far too many boards and that you need to cut down the number drastically.  This would make the forum look less empty.  Empty boards are a massive turn off to potential members browsing as guests, who like to see active boards and discussions.

Otherwise, the problem is much the same that many forum owners face.  What can you offer that Facebook, Twitter, and blogs cannot, and how can you disseminate the fact that your forum exists to people who may be interested in joining it?  Those are the two main questions you have to consider, in my opinion.
Soñando con una playa donde brilla el sol, un arco iris ilumina el cielo, y el mar espejea iridescentemente

Siirist

Quote from: Irisado on July 08, 2016, 11:52:48 AM
For a relatively new forum, my first impression is that there are far too many boards and that you need to cut down the number drastically.  This would make the forum look less empty.  Empty boards are a massive turn off to potential members browsing as guests, who like to see active boards and discussions.

Very well, I can set the boards that do not have posts to not show until members have 25+ posts, then it will be like a new world opening up for them. In fact I could do this in 2 stages based on the likelihood of the board's necessity - some additional boards show at 25+ posts, and some show at 50+ posts.

Quote from: IrisadoOtherwise, the problem is much the same that many forum owners face.  What can you offer that Facebook, Twitter, and blogs cannot,

Facebook, Twitter, and blogs are not staffed by Certified Dog Trainers, just experienced people. Thus, we offer a superior service than that which people get for free elsewhere.


Quote from: Irisadohow can you disseminate the fact that your forum exists to people who may be interested in joining it? 
Marketing / Promoting / Paying for links?

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Siirist

Quote from: Irisado on July 08, 2016, 11:52:48 AM
For a relatively new forum, my first impression is that there are far too many boards and that you need to cut down the number drastically.  This would make the forum look less empty.  Empty boards are a massive turn off to potential members browsing as guests, who like to see active boards and discussions.

Here is how it looks now

Guests (everyone) can see 6 boards on the Front Porch

  • Why you should join, How to join, and our FREE Trial
    There is a big difference between just looking on the Web, vs having a Certified Professional Trainer working with you and you dog.
  • Available Career-Changed Dogs
  • Guest's Questions
  • Links
  • Information and Questions about the Dog Auto-Dialer Phone
  • Registration Agreement, Terms of Use, & other legal stuff

Once they join the forum members will see 7 more boards

  • Helpful Info & Questions About Our Dog Training Forum
  • Welcome & Introductions
  • PetTech - CPR, First Aid & Care for your pets.
  • Things that are considered Dangerous, Toxic, or Deadly!
  • Generally Speaking - No posts yet
  • When things go our way - No posts yet
  • When things don't go our way - No posts yet

Small enough, or should I prune further?

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Kindred

Why don't you use an FAQ or knowledge base mod for the first board in each group? And the last board in the first group... Those seem to be wasted space, as boards, IMO...  For fixed content, pists are, IMO, not the way to go.

And a links mod instead of a board, as well...

Basically, you have a bunch of things as boards which don't actually fit well as posts and would be better done as a mod with a menu link instead of a board with posts.
Слaва
Украинi

Please do not PM, IM or Email me with support questions.  You will get better and faster responses in the support boards.  Thank you.

"Loki is not evil, although he is certainly not a force for good. Loki is... complicated."

Siirist

Quote from: Kindred on July 08, 2016, 09:50:53 PM
Why don't you use an FAQ or knowledge base mod for the first board in each group? And the last board in the first group... Those seem to be wasted space, as boards, IMO...  For fixed content, pists are, IMO, not the way to go.

And a links mod instead of a board, as well...

Basically, you have a bunch of things as boards which don't actually fit well as posts and would be better done as a mod with a menu link instead of a board with posts.

Thanks Kindred.  ;)

Will install these mods:
SA Knowledge Base
SMF Articles
FAQ

Then will make boards not visible until 100? posts.

EDIT: As I was "removing" (from sight) boards, I realized that without boards to post on, the members will not move up to different post count membergroup.
As a result, post count membergroups are for naught, or are moot.
Never had a forum without boards, this shall be most intriguing indeed.

Additionally, FAQ mod will not install as my database needs to be upgraded from ver 2.0.6 to ver 2.0.11 or something to that effect.
Forum looks odd. :-/ 


Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Siirist

Don't know how to use Knowledge Base, SMF Articles, or Ad Management, but I guess that will come with time.

I finally got what was trying to be conveyed to me, ie, I had boards that were only qualified as Topics (I think it would have been easier to understand if it was said that way).

Have done heavy pruning and all boards (except a few) have multiple topics.

Looking at suspending subscription fees (at least for a while).

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Siirist

Quote from: Siirist on July 09, 2016, 10:02:19 PM
Don't know how to use Knowledge Base, SMF Articles, or Ad Management, but I guess that will come with time.

Un-installed Knowledge Base and SMF Articles (for now).

Ad Management gave an error if Un-installed, so I simply "disabled" it (for now).

Quote
Looking at suspending subscription fees (at least for a while).

Subscription / Training fees have been suspended, hence anyone can register without approval, but they do need to activate their account.


I believe that I am saturating Our Dog Training Forum (10 weeks old).

Out of 11 members, 6 are accounts I created:

  • Sirist = Administrator / Site Custodian - 81 Posts
  • Forum Staff = for General Posting - 30 Posts
  • TestMember = used to give member's of SMF Admin permissions - 0 Posts
  • Part-Time Resident's View (so I know what a Member with 0 posts sees) - 0 Posts
  • Resident's View (so I know what a Member with more than 10 posts sees) - 11 Posts
  • Junior Member's View (so I know what a Member with more than 25 posts sees) - 26 Posts
and 5 are "genuine" members (one is the forum Owner, and she has 25 posts).


  • Member 1. Certified Trainer   Date Registered: June 23, 2016, 12:13:52 AM   Last Active: Never (there are 3 login errors for this member)
  • Member 2. Date Registered: July 17, 2016, 11:33:48 AM   Last Active: July 21, 2016, 08:11:04 PM   Posts=0
  • Member 3. Date Registered: July 25, 2016, 11:02:44 PM   Last Active: Never 
  • Member 4. Certified Trainer   Date Registered: July 18, 2016, 02:06:23 PM   Last Active: Never 
  • Member 5. Owner and Head Trainer   Date Registered: May 16, 2016, 03:37:39 PM   Last Active: August 01, 2016, 08:29:58 PM

Total Posts:
Out of 214 posts, 190 are mine (81 as Siirist and 109 through the use of the accounts I created)

Total Topics:
Out of 171 topics, 152 are mine (58 as Sirist and 94 through the use of the accounts I created)

I think the content is good, but something must be wrong, because regular members are not posting.

Should I continue to post as Sirist?
Should I post as Forum Staff (I have to be careful with this as posts from this "member" are considered the opinion of the forum's owner and staff)?

I await your thoughts. Thank you in advance for reading through this and giving your opinion.


Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

nend

I would suggest local advertising in vet clinics, salons or any pet related places.

On accounts, I usually have three accounts, one the sites name, mine and one named informer which mainly the adsense bot uses. I typically use all for testing. For posting site stuff like announcements, news or contest, I will use the sites account and more personal post use mine.

Siirist

Quote from: nend on August 02, 2016, 10:58:48 AM
I would suggest local advertising in vet clinics, salons or any pet related places.

Perfect.  :D
Don't know why I didn't think of that.   :-\

Thanks Nend.   ;)

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

Drunken Clam

I would suggest you seek out a domain name which reflected what the forum is actually about.  ;)

Siirist

Quote from: Drunken Clam on August 25, 2016, 02:32:46 AM
I would suggest you seek out a domain name which reflected what the forum is actually about.  ;)

Have two of them -  O:)

mylittledogtrainingbiz

dogsforinvisibledisabilities


Though I should check on how many visitors there are.   ;D

Thanks for the idea.   ;)

Be Well,
Siirist
Needed information:
- What's your SMF version?, What MODs are installed? What Theme(s) are you using? Have you backed up your database?

--> At least 50% of the questions asked are answered in the Online Manual <--
Mods for ver 1.x will NOT run on ver 2.x

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