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I usually post quite a few in the beginning and then wait it out. If I have a huge amount of ideas and don't want to post them myself, I ask one or two people to post a couple topics each. That usually gets people going because I won't be the only one posting.
Many Members do seem hesitant to start a new topic. I think it's a combination of factors but that's for another thread (which I will start momentarily). You asked for suggestions to make people post new topics more. The first thing that comes in mind is a ranking type system that "rewards" post count and new topics especially. I have to tell you, I am not a fan of rewarding post count. It promotes more lame posts instead of focusing on quality. It also often produces more annoying post whores that post just to get those points. I think one solution comes down to making people comfortable. It's the PEOPLE that make it. The forums I've been on (not for post exchanges, but just because I want to) that I find myself wanting to create new topics on, are the ones where I like the PEOPLE there. Other than that, don't know. I think a very many people like the easier route - to just read and respond. It's more "work" to take ownership of a new topic. Maybe people are just lazy.
I find that my members are generally very good at posting topics most days but there are periods of say 3 or 4 days where hardly a new topic appears (lots of replies but not new topics) and its then I go look around the millions of forums online and nick inspiration for a couple of good topics being discussed elsewhere. (I dont actually copy and paste, I mean i look for discussions going on and start a similar discussion myself on my site)
If find that it runs smooth for about a week, and then i need to just "top up" a few new topics at the end of the week to get them all excited and posting again.
Another solution I used to use, but not so much now, was that if I found that as an Admin, all new topics were made by Admin (which doesnt always look good) I would register an alias and do a few topics under that name. It just made it look like someone other than Admin was posting on the site so it didnt always show as desperation!
I find that you need to check your boards (i havent looked by the way) and see how they are laid out and designed. If you have a few new ideas and twists for the boards rather than the same old Generic CHAT BOARD and SERIOUS CHAT etc, it might get more people posting topics. I have found that giving a board a theme or a twist can sometimes produce some fantastic opportunities for members who are becoming bored of similar forums around the net, somewhere to post something different and fun.
Finally... members..... the best 2 or 3 members you got need encouraging to post topics. Chances are if they post loads already they are happy to post and make topics. So offer some reward for helping such as a bigger file upload limit, or some other perk for being great posters.
I don't really think it's about how many topics are posted, either. Sometimes, especially in our debate area, we get only a few topics but those topics are real winners and get the members excited and posting a lot. I would rather have one or two of those than ten topics with three replies each.
Yeah.... topics getting lots of activity is the best way. I only get 5 or 6 topics a day started on my site on a average day but it gets around 100 - 150 posts a day replying to some of the quality threads already started weeks ago.
I only add new topics personally if there hasnt been any at all for 4 or 5 days because i find you do still have to keep adding a small amount of new topics otherwise members get bored with the same discussions over time and yearn for something new, preferably on your site than someone elses.
A healthy amount of new topics or a healthy amount of useful new topics? To be honest seeing more topics in my chit chat forum doesn't make me nearly as happy as seeing them in video games or the debate area.
I think you just got to keep recruiting until you gain members with enough confidence to start their own topics. Members vary in personality and you might have members who never gain the confidence to start their own topics. Just remember never to complain or attempt to force them to post. That will just scare them away and you will be worse off then before.
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One suggestion I had heard of before was to make an alternate account and post from there occasionally, either in topics or to make topics. That might help too as long as you don't give away who you are.
Wow. That would actually work too. I created a alternate account with a different email. (And I only log in from a different computer.) I created it to see if any members were spamming other websites through private messages. But I also use it to keep threads going . But just be careful not to go crazy or abuse it. ^_~
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Worst thing you can do is to moan at your members about the lack of posts generated or moan that the forum isnt getting used enough.
Until you get a good 150+ ACTIVE members on your site a day your not going to get many topics being started. You will just have to do it all by yourself and hope that they at least post replies to your topics.
Eventually as the number of active members increase, so will the chance of an odd one or two starting to post their own threads.
It also helps if your boards are very clear, accesible and simple to add new threads to. If someone doesnt know where to post something or fear it will get moved, they are more than likely not going to bother in the end. But if they know exactly what is expected from a new topic in a certain board it will give them the confidence to make a move and post something.
For example, I have a discussion board that has a twist to it. I have had a LOT of positive feedback on how great the twist is and every thread in it receives a good deal of replies, and yet only 1 of the 15 topics started in it is by a member, the other 14 is by me. But as i bang out the odd new thread in there every couple of days or so, and the more the current threads in there get more and more replies, the more my members will understand the principle of the board, the way it works, what other members will chat about and they start to gain confidence to start making their own odd little topic too.
It was the same with my Jokes board, I had to add a good 40 or so jokes to the board over 3 or 4 weeks before anyone started to post their own jokes. Now the board is getting 5 or 6 new jokes a week posted on it by members and that is adequate enough for me to withdraw from adding any new topics in that particular board now as it is running nicely on its own. I keep an eye on it every few days tho and if for any reason nobody posts a new joke for a week, i will add a couple of new jokes to it just to bring in a little more variety and new content for people logging in to have to read. Which in turn keeps them on the site a few seconds longer.
I hate to say it , but it's like "monkey see, monkey do". You have to keep "showing the example" over and over until your regulars follow.
The word game forum gains the most clicks because their is less of chance of "screwing up". But this isn't a bad thing, because it's their way of "becoming comfortable". And really, the most important thing for me isn't the "new posts / threads", What's really important is "will they stick around?".
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I used to have a separate account because posts were so low but I haven't had any problems with new posts or topics.
What I really hate is when admins complain about the lack of posting but their post count is very low as well. There is one forum I used to go to where neither of the admins logged in for a week, and one came back and complained activity was low. That's ridiculous in my opinion! That would be like a parent leaving their small child for a week and then asking why the house wasn't clean or a boss wondering why work wasn't done when none was delegated for a week.
But everyone on my forum feels pretty comfortable, so I think their confidence about posting, especially new topics, is pretty high. In little less than a month we've had over two hundred new topics posted and a couple thousand posts, and everyone feels like a community of friends. I think that's the most important part.
Totally agree. If you dont post some content yourself, why should you expect anyone else to?
Looking at my own site i can see that there are only a small select few that start topics but a lot that reply to them. I guess the main thing to look for is active members that like to start topics. I guess I am fortunate to found at least a dozen or so willing to post some new topics now and again each week. So i guess its a social thing really. Just as in life, you get the big bold and brash sort (topic starters), then you get the chit chat nodding their heads and laughing along sort (the post repliers) and then you get the quiet shy types that sit at the edge of the crowd listening in and hardly saying two words (the lurkers that hardly ever post a thing) and occasionally you get the drunken reveller with a bit of an anger issue (the troublemakers who just want to stir up problems).
Wow, well I didn't think I'd get this many responses. haha I'm trying to steer away from making more than one user for myself and starting threads that way. I did it with a previous board I ran and not that there was really anything wrong with it at first, I felt like I was talking to myself. I'd get a lot of visitors, but they'd never make any posts because there were already users (all me) making new content. I think making more than one user discourages posting.
What I've been doing is posting myself and people respond. But I'm running out of post ideas haha.
kensh wrote: Wow, well I didn't think I'd get this many responses. haha I'm trying to steer away from making more than one user for myself and starting threads that way. I did it with a previous board I ran and not that there was really anything wrong with it at first, I felt like I was talking to myself. I'd get a lot of visitors, but they'd never make any posts because there were already users (all me) making new content. I think making more than one user discourages posting.
What I've been doing is posting myself and people respond. But I'm running out of post ideas haha.
Kensh - relating specifically to your forum since I am a member there and like the forum and the topic - i think sometime you add a ton of new threads all at once. so sometimes I will come to your site and there will be 5 or more threads that you started with no new responses beyond your first post.
Maybe it would serve you better to come up with a list of new topics, like 10 or more, and then slowly add them. For example 2-3 a day every other day. And between that just work on driving existing threads for more posting by adding to each existing discussion with questions, comments, and other specific info that encourages additional responses.
Just a thought.
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I agree with TVDinner. That to me discourages posting more than having more than one username does. At least with the other username no one should know it's you; the alternate username wouldn't have admin access or anything.
Thanks for the suggestion TV. I had that in my mind too but again, sometimes ideas are hard to come up with. But I'll start a list and make posts more regularly.
