How does a custom homepage (not a CMS like vbadvanced) affect the traffic and feel of a forum? I was going to add a custom homepage to add a guide and helpful links for the specific industry. Any experience with a custom homepage? Good or bad idea?
I don't understand why people is afraid of trying useful solutions just because it could affect search engines. Obviously, whatever is useful for you and your surfers is a step ahead, not a reason to worry about unless your world is limited to pagerank matters.
My concern is not the search engines. It is the navigation for my users. Does a homepage affect the user experience? Do users want to land straight on the forum or one click is not a big deal.
It shouldn't really negitively affect your users experience at all, however this is could very well depend on your niche. As long as you clearly outline where everything is, and refrain from cluttering it, you should have no problem with user navigation.
I think either look great but personally I like to go straight to the forum. Im not sure why, I guess Im just impatient and just want to get straight there lol. If you have some good info on the front page then it may help your site alot. Maybe you could trial it and ask your members opinions.
Yeap, ask your community first. IMO It's a good idea to have a flat custom page upfront if your forum is not new.
Because I used to have one custom made non-dynamic home page prior to the vbulletin migration of my forum. It helped me showcase the services I had to offer back then. I am now using vbadvanced portal for my vbulletin forums and my members like it.