Adding a forum to your website is just one more way to attract new visitors and create a loyal following. For many years, forums have been used as a way to allow people of like interests to interact with each other and exchange their experience and useful knowledge.
Forums have long been popular with people who find this an easy way to create a social connection from the confines of their own home.
There are several theories as to why this is a good idea but also several drawbacks that you need to be aware of. Take a look at this overview of the pros and cons of adding a forum to your website before you decide.
Forum Pros
For one thing, adding a forum to your website will increase traffic. As you might already know, this is a good SEO tactic that will increase your page rankings. It is also a means of adding outbound links. A forum can increase your authority ranking, as well.
Popular forums such as internet marketing forums and the like, enjoy a number of devotees who will check in religiously to scan the topics and add their opinion or advice. These core members are the foundation upon which to build a community at your website. As the forum grows, it should take care of itself, for the most part, requiring you to check on it perhaps once daily while you select a moderator from one of the members to take over post management.
The key to making a forum work is to build up a sufficient following. If the forum has only a few members, it is unlikely to take off and become popular.
Forum Cons
Perhaps the most difficult part of starting a forum is attracting members. It is going to take some time and effort to build up a following and induce people to start discussions. You may have to create the first posts and outright ask others, perhaps your friends, to leave a comment or suggestion. Until a lot of posts on interesting subjects appear, visitors will not be likely to participate.
Installing the software that runs your forum can be tricky, particularly if you are not familiar with the platform or the code. That being said, there are many web hosts and other companies on the internet that will do it for you. You will want to familiarize yourself with the back end of it in order to troubleshoot and maintain the forum.
Forums require management. You must oversee registration, skim through the content being posted, and moderate topics as necessary. Obviously, you cannot let your members run wild and create posts that may be offensive or spammy. This takes time – time that could be spent developing your online business instead of managing the forum.
And then there’s spambots. It is difficult to keep them off your forum and from posting messages offering Viagra or dates with hot chicks. They try their best to get their links into the posts and if they do, it could be disastrous. Too many spam links and all your hard work at optimisation could be lost.
Adding a forum to your website is overall a good idea if are willing to work to build up a steady stream of traffic and have the time to devote to its management. It can provide many benefits, but beware the pitfalls. Some forums also make great revenue from online advertising so beyond increasing the ranking of your site, it can provide a nice stream of income to you.
See you at the top of Google!
Sean Rasmussen
SEO Australia Pacific
AussieSEO.com © 2007 - 2010
Hi Sean,
I am really grateful to be part of the YOTA forum. It is invaluable to my success and my sanity. It definitely is a huge advantage to have a group of people committed to helping each other succeed.
The sense of community in the YOTA forum is something very special. It’s not everyday you come across a forum with such a positive vibe and genuine caring for each other. I think that the right forum can definitely help you succeed.
.-= Jazz Salinger´s last blog ..Learn and Earn Competition – This is It =-.
Hi Sean
Adding a forum to my site is not even in the marketing plan as yet. That would be a huge step for me!
Being a member of the YOTA forum, it is the only forum I have ever belonged to and I would be totally lost without all the wonderful help and information. Besides being the hub of Internet Marketing education, the people involved are super smart, fun and supportive. I love the forum and would have never been able to learn what I have on my own.
I can see how well run forums that have a successful, creative and user friendly person driving them are going to nurture their members and see them become successful too and this is what I am enjoying in the YOTA forum.
.-= Elly´s last blog .. =-.
If you are using a content management system such as Drupal, Joomla, WordPress, etc. then adding a forum to your website can be a reasonably simple task. Most CMS either include Forum capability as installed or plugins, free or paid, are available to add the capability.
.-= Don White´s last blog ..Psycho- =-.
Hi Sean,
being a member of the YOTA forum the benchmark has been set extremely high in regards to what a forum has to offer to it’s members.
I can see the advantages of a (well run) forum on my website, but it has to be really well done to be a real success.
Thanks for setting the bar so high Sean
.-= Renee´s last blog ..10 Good Habits Worth Having =-.
Hi Sean,
I like the idea of a forum on my Website. I do have a great example to duplicate by being a member of the YOTA.
I agree with Jazz, Elly and Renee by saying that we do have something very special in the YOTA Forum. We have friends and we have community and more, …that’s very special. Credit for a well run forum has to go to you, Sean. Well done.
.-= Jill Brown´s last blog ..Couples Marry at Common Law =-.
I’ve never been involved in a better forum than the YOTA forum
Setting up a forum could work if you had a few moderators sharing the load of managing the forum. I would not start up one myself, just due to the fact that I would not be able to monitor or participate in it.
.-= Cemil´s last blog ..Squidoo PLR Articles Released =-.
I actually have a forum set up on my website but haven’t done anything with it. I feel I’m not ready yet to moderate a forum but I can see the benefits of adding a forum to your website. If you can get enough followers, the traffic alone would help your rankings.
.-= Jackie Stenhouse´s last blog ..Anxiety Separation in Children =-.