FOOD FOR THOUGHT

[Mortblanc]

I have been thinking about this worry over participation, joining and such and decided to do some checking.

I belong to several forums of outdoor nature or prepper leanings. They are big forums and have been on the internet for 8-10 years and would seem quite successful by normal standards.

Some of them have as many as 15,000 members. 500,000 posts in thousands of threads.

Looking at the statistics just this morning I see that they are averaging about 100 people on line at any time and about 10% of those are members.

Here we are averaging 25-30 at any given time and the same 10% being members.

This forum is averaging a better % of the population viewing and participating than the very successful American forums.

This forum is really doing OK and you just do not realize it!

Here there are fewer posts because there are fewer people available to post. Once a topic has had all 10-12 active members post they are out of things to say and the thread sits untended for months. (On a US forum that number would be 30-50 active members making it look like there is more interest in the topic.)

The really strange thing I see is that the US forums are commercial. They have adds in the sidebar and on the headings. A post on a specific subject will be followed by adds for products related to that topic.

The owners of the forum get paid for each of these adds and promote the products and supporters of the forums.

There are many outdoor topics (fire starting, outdoor shelters, navigation, best backpacks) one can google search and the first hits will direct one to the forums rather than to an Amazon, You tube or Ebay site due to repetitive use of content on the forum.

The forums are heavily moderated just to keep the visitors looking and bring them back directly to the site the next time they have a question, because each time someone hits on one of the sidebar adds the forum gets financial support. Many people register on the forums just to ask one single question and never return. Others join, send specific members PM notes and read daily, but never post on the open forum.

But every time they click the forum owner makes money.

Holding oneself above the nastiness of commercialism and avoiding that dirty word called profit sometimes holds one (and a forum) back, redefines "success", and changes the attitude toward the forum's usefulness and value.