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New forum is it worth it ?

Discussion in 'HTML & Website Design' started by youhost, Mar 16, 2021.

  1. #1
    I'm thinking of creating a local forum site a project for my spare time and build on it over time to do more but I have so worries.

    1. Do people still bother with forums outside the big owns could I get members ?
    2. Would I be just wasting my time and money ?
    3. Would it need a lot of investment ?
    4. Would it need a lot of seo and money unlike in the past?
    5. would It be best to stay with a basic forum and not over do it ?
    6. if you think its worth a go what would be a good software to start with I have a idea of a few but looking for suggestions.
    7. too many big sites you can easily access which is my worry and people wont try a new site.

    I have built a few new sites it the past but did not outside my business sites.
    so im a bit worries


    I would also have one downside of a large forum site focused on the same thing.

    The other issue is are people even google or do they just go to facebook now or something they already know.

    I think the biggest up to the forum would be its local and will focus on people and area and around the local community.
     
    youhost, Mar 16, 2021 IP
  2. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #2
    Upfront - forums are probably not worth the effort but lets assume your idea has something novel and interesting enough to bring people back regularly.

    In NZ we have a forum called "neighbourly". It's pretty much dead but it's owned by one of the big newspaper companies and they promote it heavily and their journos use it to garner opinions for future articles.

    No. They want information quickly, they're not going to wait for your niche membership to return to the forum and reply.
    Possibly but you need to look at the big picture. Can you use the forum as a reference for future work? Will it provide enjoyment, community etc that you're not getting on other sites?
    Yes. Initially, it won't need much money but you'll probably have to upgrade your server if you get successful. Getting successful may require a marketing budget and your time "networking" to drive people to the forum.
    If it's a local forum you may not need the SEO because you'll be advertising locally. Be careful about the search terms you do optimise for. People won't be searching for "City forum".
    Initially, but you do need a point of difference so work out what that needs to be before you even start.
    I have no idea on that one. This site uses Xenforo, if that helps.
    A valid concern.
     
    sarahk, Mar 16, 2021 IP
  3. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #3
    Thanks for you reply that was very useful

    1. this is my biggest issue if people want info fast they wont bother to google for a new site with only a few members, just go to a site they know.

    2. I can I use the forum as a reference for future work? How do yo mean ?

    Will it provide enjoyment, community etc that you're not getting on other sites?
    yes and no
    What I mean is as a user I can use other sites and not care too much, but when it comes down to local community No I cant think of one site that covers the local area even the other site has become a little dead so you dont get many replies.

    3. Initially what kind of costs and work could i expect ?
    marketing budget I dont have how much should i expect this to be ?
    My time I would like to put in my time to get the started and running but i do have a serious illness so its not always possible but i was hoping the site gets running I would have a mod or 2
    I have never networking so I have no idea on how

    4. I may need so more advise on this if things point to yes

    5. could you share more info what you mean, road map ?

    7. this is my biggest issue, I have a built a site in the past went way out on the features but after a year it had little to no members, that's why i was thinking of going small this time.
     
    youhost, Mar 16, 2021 IP
  4. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #4
    If you wanted a career as a designer, developer, or digital marketer your forum could be engineered to showcase your skills.
    Is the other site suffering because people don't care, or because the owner has mismanaged it somehow?
    If people don't care about that site, they probably won't care about yours - UNLESS you are a local celebrity of some sort.
    That depends on your business plan. Do you just want to stand by the shops and hand out flyers, stickers on lamp posts etc, or will you need a sponsored slot (news? competition?) on a local radio station? Will you need online advertising? sign writing on your car? I don't know how the numbers stack up and what your local costs are.
    That's what we're here for.
    Probably wise, but download a free business/marketing plan and fill it in. Even if you're only giving your time away there's an opportunity cost to that. If you go too small it might not work either. Planning is everything.
     
    sarahk, Mar 16, 2021 IP
  5. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #5
    1. That is not my main job or my skill set.

    2. it was mismanaged at one point after they updated (revamped with new software) the site, thing stopped working, a lot of people had issues and the team did not care as much, people on the site do care and are showing the frustration.

    but to be honest I could not tell you for sure if its just down to that or If people don't care about that site.

    3. looking at your reply it looks like I will need a marketing budget I wont be able to rely on seo and a few members.

    4. where can i get the free business/marketing plan ?


    What are the running costs for a forum ?
    any other pointer or suggestion ?


    I do see some forums that work but I find thats down to members replying example this one, but most have been around 15-20 years before social media so it can be tricky to get my head around, will it work in this age.
     
    youhost, Mar 16, 2021 IP
  6. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #6
    Google will be able to serve you up lots of them, pick one, work through it.


    Hosting - if you are successful the costs can be significant. I'm frequently stunned at what it takes to keep this one up and running.
    Paid Services - you might choose to outsource email comms via a service like Mandrill or MailGun, you might need a paid SSL certificate, you might need a paid Cloudflare plan.
     
    sarahk, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  7. c1lonewolf

    c1lonewolf Member

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    #7
    You're over thinking things, I do that a lot. The first question you need to answer, is why you want a forum, "I'm thinking of creating a local forum site". If you're just looking to display your skills or play around a website would be better. If you're a photographer and don't have a lot of time to be on the web you could create a single paged website to show case your talents and bring in business. Forums are more for question and answer sites like this one. Once you can answer why you want a forum, everything else will fall in place.
     
    c1lonewolf, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  8. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #8
    Thanks most of that should not be a issue but the question is would it cover its cost or even make a little money ?


    The main reason I wanted to create a forum
    1. I wanted a local community outside facebook, I feel facebook is not really a community its more of a place most just post silly things sometime you may find something useful, mthe other issues is nothing is easy to find unlike forums, only the latest post will be on top.
    its a bit random unlike forum where thing are simple easy to fine.

    I hope you understand what i mean.

    2. Forums don't need to be dated, you could have a decent forum and add more options as you grow which I would like to do.

    3. I want a place to be able to help the local people, easy to find topics unlike facebook
    I mean, local news, local groups like web & design, Business, sports, entertainment
    instead of using google ads offer real local ads to help business, over time add a local classified, local jobs section. a lot could be done.



    my issues
    1. Will people even search for something like a forum in this age ?
    2. Most people are using big platforms like facebook would something like a forum even interest them, most people may not be like me.
    1. Will I be able to get members ? if so how.
    2. The investment to start, the site would be simple to build, hosting I have, I would only need a domain. the problem is after advertising the site, Im not sure what the cost would be what else would I need to pay for which may make the site a loss?
    3. I may not be able to rely on seo
    4. It may need a lot of work which i've not even considered outside the setup.
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  9. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #9
    1. Yes, I would like to play around a website and the software in my time as project but only if I can get it to work and become a reasonable success, it would be disappointing if I put in the work and could not get the members

    2. i'm not a site developer or photographer so that would not be the case.

    3. Question and answer site is what I was hoping for but without members it will not work.

    4. if successful, a decent community hub, which is making some money and a site I can be proud of.
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  10. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #10
    Ill put it another way what would make you try out a new site
    what features would you like to see ?
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  11. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #11
    I'm in a local neighbourhood watch group on facebook - and on neighbourly that I mentioned above. We all use our real names, and neighbourly verify your address. If your forum is really going to be local then that might be needed. We post info about anything dodgy that goes on in the NW group. There's a FB page and a group (same content) for the same area that posts info about local businesses, school events etc. Can't think of anything else that I'd want.
     
    sarahk, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  12. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #12
    Thanks
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  13. c1lonewolf

    c1lonewolf Member

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    #13
    You already answered your own questions in your replies!
    What?
    A Community Hub
    Why?
    To help the locals, both the people and businesses connect.
    How?
    Create an easy to use website that helps people find out about local news, sporting events, businesses, where to go for entertainment and connect them to their websites for more information.
    A different type of web directory.

    Even CraigsList started out just to help locals sell used items online, then over time it grew because the platform was so easy to use.

    c1lonewolf
     
    c1lonewolf, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  14. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #14
    Thanks that helps

    Now a confusing question from my point, should I name the forum ("location" in the name or go for something wider ) (board, Forum or go for something like hub or community ) even something else like .com ,

     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  15. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #15
    go with the location, you're in the UK so you want to use .co.uk or .uk

    So I'd be looking for S60hub.uk, S60Locals.uk, S60chat.uk, something like that
     
    sarahk, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  16. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #16
    Thanks but should I not go my wider community
    should I not go with for something like the city or county instead of s60 which in my mind will restrict me to a small number of members,
    Also I could also have sub forum for smaller areas.
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  17. c1lonewolf

    c1lonewolf Member

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    #17
    not sure what pm is or how it works in this forum, but if you pm me I'll help to understand better.
     
    c1lonewolf, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  18. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #18
    Back when I lived in the UK postcodes were "everything", that and is your phone number an 071 or an 081. If city and county are too restricted, what do you mean by "local"?
    You don't want to compete with reddit eg https://www.reddit.com/r/england/
    We call them conversations.

    But no need to take them offline, surely?
    Others will learn from this thread
     
    sarahk, Mar 17, 2021 IP
  19. youhost

    youhost Active Member

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    #19
    I mean local as in town, city or county so your city and surrounding,

    I mean most city's have lot of post codes a but they are not very big, s1, s2, s3, plus no one I know searchs for the post code unless they know what they are looking for is in that post code. most normally search for the city, thats why I was thinking maybe something like cityhub. or countyhub. this way I can have sub areas based on the post for or local area (sheffield/ totley or something of the sort)
    if im wrong please correct me

    No I dont want to compete with https://www.reddit.com/r/england/ I have no chance.

    my other question is how would the seo work, I mean would I need a good domain with one or two key words, or could I get a get a domain name that's is short and sounds good and still get the same results ?
    seo is confusing for me.
     
    youhost, Mar 17, 2021 IP