Marketing Idea

[dave9713]

I have thought of a way to Market a new forum i am developing.

Start a competition on NamePros.com and offer $1000 to whoever can refer the most members to the forum (all have to make a minimum of 15 posts) from there site. I could make banners and links for everyone to put on there sites aswell as installing deep analytics to make sure every vote is counted. It would be done over a 3 month period (plenty on new members to my forum)

I know its a lot of money but do you think it would be worth it? Would people take notice and put banners on there site etc.

thanks

 

[deleted984054565403]

It sounds good on paper, but it's really unlikely you'll earn the $1000 back. Forums aren't usually very profitable when it comes to banner ads. Ad blindness really sets in on forums.

If these referrers recruit people to post 15 times for their own incentive, it's just going to encourage spam and useless posts on your forum. As soon as someone's fifteen posts are up, they'll most likely stop posting; you'll be stuck with a forum full of inactivity and spam, while you're in the hole $1000.

I found that referral and posting contests bring nothing good to new forums. It's better to offer prizes directly to members, not the people that refer them. It builds more loyalty and usually keeps people around a little longer.

:imho:

 

[dave9713]

Thanks Etab i see your point.... what if there were strict regulations in place about quality of posts? Any spamming would result in disqualification and all sites the traffic comes from would have to be listed in the competition by me otherwise it would not count. I thought maybe such a huge sum would attract interest of a lot of people which is usually hard to do. Loyalty obviously comes with time but first the members have to find there way into the forum and i see this as a way to get an instant boom. The site visitors would not know of the competition only the webmaster who owns the site.

I'm not really interested in making the money back instantly i know forums are ad blind but its just a hobby of mine i would love to develop.

Just an idea. Would be good to here other peoples opinions.

 

[deleted984054565403]

OK. If you don't mind me asking, is this more of a "general" forum, or is it based on a specific topic?

In terms of limiting or restricting post quality, I'd expect that to be difficult. You want to welcome members in, but at the same time, you don't want junk posts. You'd hate to scare your new members away by telling them their posts aren't good enough.

 

[dave9713]

Not at all... Its is for business ideas, business marketing and generally making money online... i see it as a thing everyone wants to do online and offline and i'm sure a lot of people would be interested in reading and signing up. I had a little crack but before deciding to do anything i realised its pretty crap and if i was going to do it I would do it good. Im waiting for payday then im going to get vBulletin and do some proper work and research into it so probably won't be until the new year.

I see what you mean, what type of competition would you reccomend? I see people paying for the most posts but surely that encourages spamming more... ??

 

[deleted984054565403]

Not at all... Its is for business ideas, business marketing and generally making money online... i see it as a thing everyone wants to do online and offline and i'm sure a lot of people would be interested in reading and signing up. I had a little crack but before deciding to do anything i realised its pretty crap and if i was going to do it I would do it good. Im waiting for payday then im going to get vBulletin and do some proper work and research into it so probably won't be until the new year.

I see what you mean, what type of competition would you reccomend? I see people paying for the most posts but surely that encourages spamming more... ??

It's better that it's based on an actual theme, rather than a general forum.

In terms of a contest or competition, something as simple as a general raffle for people that have at least one post (or x posts per day, x logins per day). Give out a few over a period of time so the visitors don't stop visiting after the first contest is finished. I suggest you check out the NamePros Contets Forum and "borrow" or build upon some ideas there -- there are a number of contests and competitions that draw a lot of people without building spam.

Alternatively, you could hold Member of the Month/Week/Quarter vote that awards prizes for the member with the most votes, as decided by other forum members. That would encourage people to post constructive things.

I've never used a paid forum posting service, but I think they're good to get a brand new forum off the ground. I know I would never post in a forum that has one or two registered users and five posts. I've got to have a good reason to visit.

Something like an article submission contest for a prize would be attractive to outsiders, too. You could offer an iPod for the best original idea for a new web business from submissions from site members. That, of course, would get members thinking, acting creatively and constructively -- not to mention the number of people that would be drawn in to participate because of the iPod. It builds solidity in the forum and keeps members you've built up.

I think you're on the right track, Dave, and I like your thinking. :tu:

 

[dave9713]

Sounds like a great idea. It would promote the site, gain registrations and provide brilliant content (and save a lot of money :O) . I could have an idea of the month competition for the first 3 months, using a system were the people who read the articles get to choose who will win the iPod.

Thanks very much Etab your advice has been brilliant.

 

[deleted984054565403]

Good luck, Dave! :tu: Once you get the site going, be sure to let me know! I'd love to take a look around, or perhaps get involved.