Hi guys, I've recently started a site and forum dedicated to discussion and debating. My thoughts were that most sites/forums dont allow people to say what they really think...or they moderate it. I wanted a site with as little moderation as possible. Anyone can start a debate/discussion, and there is a weekly featured debate/discussion. There are polls for people to vote on the topics, and users have the ability to vote on individual posts within threads (to rate their peers responses). So, my problem, is marketing. I've added sitemaps, the site is listed on a lot of search engines, I use social bookmarking......but I'm just not getting anything. I am not sure where I should go from here....or if the site was a good idea/poor implementation type thing. The site is in the sig, if you have any ideas, suggestions, comments....please let me know.
I love the idea of your site, i think it just has to be promoted more.. If you thought it didn't have enough features etc. I think it looks great, and that the site is amazing now, but in the future could possibly get better, but even the best of things can get better! Keep it up buddy, your site will pull through
Thanks for the kind words. I've been banging my head against the wall trying to figure out an angle for marketing it. When I categorize it at various search engines, and places like StumbleUpon and DIGG, I usually go for "People" or "Society", or something like that. Another thing I'm having a hard time with is associating my site with other sites. I know affiliation is a big deal, as is exchanging links and such.....but I can't seem to find sites I should be asking to exchange links with, or sites that might direct people to me. Any suggestions here would be so appreciated.
As a writer and researcher on webmasters of big sites, the following is how webmasters of blogs and message boards got their sites big. I also included my own ideas. If you are looking for the very best tips to get your blog and or message board going, the following tips is what will work for you. ONE: Find interesting, funny, weird, money-making or inspiring subjects to write about. And then advertise them! If you want a lot of members, I mean A LOT, you are going to have to advertise anyway, so.... Like a reporter, go out and find related stuff out there that you can post on your board. There is a lot of good stuff out there on other boards, content sites, your local newspaper, your monthly magazine, TV, radio.... How about this thread a blogger noob started… http://www.sitepoint.com/forums/showthread.php?t=518730. You can talk about his success. It is a small one, but it is still a success. Find some really good stories to advertise. Such as: AD: "Local girl quits high school to do her Internet full time. Was she stupid to do this? Would you quit school if you made a lot of money?†If you can afford it, advertise them in newspapers, and, other sources outside the Net. Also, spread it to all the networking sites out there. Talk about successful people, advertise it, and soon you will be too. Wherever you go, keep a pad and pen with you, in case you hear of a good piece to write about. THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX! TWO: To get word of mouth going, put small "send to a friend" form either off to the side or put it in between the posts in a thread. Put it right in front of their face! Make it easy for them! A lot of people are lazy. But don’t over do it! Save the forms for only the real good threads. THREE: You could put in a small how-to article or an Internet success story in your paper, and tell them that there will be a new one every week. After awhile the paper may give you a feature story. Once you have more money, repeat it in other newspapers. Have a weekly column. If you are successful enough at it, the paper might give you the spot for free, providing you keep submitting good stuff. FOUR: Did you get your site critiqued? Did you ask them if this is the kind of site that they would come back, time after time??? FIVE: Get an account going in sites like MySpace, and put sort of a duplicate of your blog, message board in there. Get people talking about it over there also. Then bring them all over to your real blog, message board. SIX: Invite your present visitors to submit a piece of their own, start a thread of their own. Many times that's all it takes. Give them a push to submit something. Get them involved! SEVEN: This is a biggie.... Put aside at least one hour every day to contact members of message boards out there. Tell them that you like their comments, butter them up, and tell them that you have a discussion going on over in your board, and you would "value" their opinion. Do this enough times, one hour a day, and keep at it, and you should, SHOULD have a good list of posters who will come back, time after time. Make the thread a good one, a hot topic that really gets people talking. You've seen such threads. Start several over time under different usernames. Advertise the threads, not JUST the board. Talk about it in social networks. Create articles derived from that and submit them.... EIGHT: Go to big-boards.com to see some of the largest boards out there. Now, one at a time, send each one an e-mail asking how they did it. Yes, practically all won't reply back, obviously, but a few here and there will be enough to give you what you need to know. Most of them advertised. That is partially how they got to be so big. You can have a dead site on, say, sports, but if you ask for help from a board owner who has thousands coming in every day and it is on, say, video games, the odds are better that he will help you out. Devote another hour each day sending those e-mails out. NINE: Start threads asking for help, advice. Don't just say, "comments, anyone?" This will get you more posts. If you can get many of them to post at least one time, that will be a jumpstart for you. And they will then be more likely to post again, which, in turn, will have others wanting to join in with their help. Get the posts and threads breeding like rabbits this way. On a side note: Do NOT force your visitors to have to sign up so they can read the rest of a thread or your board! In fact, in the beginning you should make it easy for them. Don't have them sign up at all. Once they get into the grove of things, THEN have them sign up. Give them, say, 30 days of posting without having to sign up. Even help them sign up. Go as far as suggesting a really cool username and avatar they can use. This is how many webmasters of super boards got to be so big. Do all of this, and give it time. Say, over a year, if not longer. What Does NOT Work... I have heard of two of the most ridiculous ways to get a message board and blog going. The following will not only waste your time, but your money! ONE: Contests. Talk about a waste of money. There are too many moochers who will take it and not come back, while all the others who also came in will rarely post, if at all, and then they will leave soon after. GOOD threads and posts is what brings people in, and it is what keep them coming back, time after time! TWO: Paying people to post. Jesus, you talk about stupid advice. Your goal is to have quality threads and posts in your board. Not mediocre stuff from some slug who will throw just anything out there so he can get his few cents. And isn’t your goal to make money from your blog and or message board? More of your money will be going out paying these unenthusiastic posters who could care less what they post than what will be coming in from your ads. And remember, if others read boring threads and posts that are just thrown out there, you think that will help your blog or board any? If you are an avid reader of message boards, you have read about this method, time after time. Like a mindless parrot, they repeat this over and over again, not really knowing for sure if it works. They have heard this from others posters, so, naturally, they think it works. And so on and so on…. It’s just bad advice repeated time after time after time. Then you have actual message board owners who say that they have used it, and that it works. You want to have some fun? Do like I do. Ask them for their url to their board. They more than likely will not reply back. My bet is that their board is VERY slow, or almost dead. There is more to marketing a board and or blog, but that is the jest of it. The main thing is to have very intersting, weird, funny, hot item of the day that is in the news, etc., and then advertise it.
How would video promotion work? I'm all for doing anything to get people involved. MasDebaters is a hobby, its not something I'm doing to make money.....I honestly just want to give people a place to share their opinions and what forms them. I really want to know what makes people think the way they do. I've been trying to think of places to exchange links, or places to submit our polls (I already do DIGG, Facebook, Yahoo Buzz, and all the other social bookmarking sites.....but haven't generated a single new poster from any of them. What types of sites should I target for partnerships (link exchanges and news submissions)?
Haha, I like your site. Copper made some very strong points. Other than all the methods he posted you can go through all the normal methods of promotion such as back link building. Also, with some of the articles, such as the one concerning marijuana, you could submit that to Article Directories, or Social Bookmarking sites. Especially with a controversial topic such as marijuana, it is likely to draw attention.
No, there is some fantastic information posted, and I really appreciate you all taking the time to give me some help. Other than the social bookmarks I've already mentioned, where should I submit my news/ new debates?
You could always write up a report on recent debates and add them to article directories. This also seems like a fun site (compared to a more serious blog site), so try and make a facebook group for the site and invite as many friends as you can and tell them to add their friends, but do not spam. I think facebook will help because the target groups are younger people and I think a fun site like this would interest them. Just a few tips. I say you listen to copper, that is some valuable advice. Hope it helps