I just started a new forum and I have no idea where to find members? What are some good steps at getting some members to populate your forums?
You could try buying a database. Not always the best option but I've done it before look at the other sections on DP for people selling.
Write articles on your forum topic and submit them to ezine articles. Create free viral reports and give them away. Post relevant comments on blogs relevant to your forum topic with a link back to your site. Any regular promotional method should work. Oh, and be sure to allow guests to read a lot of the posts. This way the search engines will spider the posts and soon your forum will be all over the search engines.
You're not alone in this at all. Many times I have seen high-volume websites with few posts in their forum. It's a slow start, because the "community"-like aspect takes time to build. You could somehow "acquire" visitors or databases, but you certainly can't make them post. Try adding some threads that may entice uses. Perhaps get it going on your end with some help.
You have to buy and pay forum posters to make your forum popular but you also have to offer informative materials to keep your members loyal.
You must have good poster at forum before you can successful recruit forum member You can paid existing member to encourage them to recruit member to your forum
Starting a forum these days is very difficult (trust me, I know)! You have a couple of options, get paid posters or run a competition etc. Unless the forum is based around a topic which there is no other set-up forum, you will struggle to get people join. Good luck.
In the beginning you have to make it look populated by making alot of users or getting all your friends to post and than when people come and see theres some life there, they will join
Here are some options: Pay people to post on your forum Post on blogs with a link back to your forum Create multiple accounts for yourself and post under all of them Post in other forums with a link in your signature Make your forum different than other forums Viral market it MOST IMPORTANT Be patient!