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Why A Private Forum Makes Sense For Many Organizations

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Mike W.

Private forums appeal to many organizations because they provide an environment that is safe and secure from prying eyes but accessible to approved members from virtually any device. If your goal is to help employees connect with one another and … Read More >

Posted in Why Ninja Post | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Lower The Bounce Rate On Your Forum

Posted on September 23, 2013 by Mike W.

One reason popular forums have high bounce rates is because they draw in so many users from Google. We theorize that many users who land on a forum after a Google search leave the forum without clicking around because they’re … Read More >

Posted in Misc. Forum Discussion | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Funneling Users From Your Main Site To Your Forum

Posted on September 17, 2013 by Mike W.

We recently discussed why users from your main site are likely to become contributors to your forum. Therefore, effectively targeting these users, and shaping their path from the main site to the forum, is essential to growing a vibrant forum … Read More >

Posted in Marketing Your Forum | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Finding Contributors For Your Forum – They Might Be Closer Than You Think

Posted on September 10, 2013 by Mike W.

Participation inequality is a tough nut to crack. Tough, but not impossible. In fact, contributors (and possibly even some “heavy contributors”) might be closer than you think. We have found the best users—those who we can count on to register … Read More >

Posted in Marketing Your Forum | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Forum Software And The Power Of Weak Ties

Posted on September 3, 2013 by Mike W.

Thanks to inspiration from the book, The Power of Habit, we recently examined how strong ties, weak ties, and a sense of identity can be used to understand how forum communities start from a small group, grow to achieve critical … Read More >

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Achieving Critical Mass: How Lessons From The Civil Rights Movement Can Be Applied To Forum Communities

Posted on August 27, 2013 by Mike W.

In The Power of Habit author Charles Duhigg analyzes how social phenomena evolve from nothing into powerful movements. There are three phases: Start. A movement starts because of the strong ties between close acquaintances. Growth. A movement grows thanks to … Read More >

Posted in Misc. Forum Discussion | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Why Does The Participation Rate Matter? (Hint: It’s All About The Network Effect)

Posted on August 20, 2013 by Mike W.

They say “excellence” can be defined as a lot of little things done right. You could say the same thing about achieving a high Participation Rate. There are countless “little things” that draw users into a community. Some are obvious, … Read More >

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Overcome Participation Inequality With A “Bottom Up” Approach

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Mike W.

A couple months ago we examined the Minimum Traffic Requirements For A Successful Forum. The economics of forum participation are downright brutal: only a certain percentage of users will click through to your forum from your main site, and only … Read More >

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Five Things That Cause A Low Participation Rate On Forums

Posted on August 6, 2013 by Mike W.

Whenever we see a forum with an abysmal participation rate, we cringe. It makes us feel embarrassed because it indicates missed opportunities for serendipitous flukes. In the screen cap below, you can see the percentage of registered users is 1.73%. … Read More >

Posted in Forum Architecture & Design | Tagged | 1 Comment

Forum Software, Variable Rewards, And Serendipitous Flukes

Posted on July 29, 2013 by Mike W.

Last week we examined how Nir Eyal’s Hooked Model applies to forum software. We acknowledge the power of the Hooked Model and argue that as more and more users make a habit of using a given forum, powerful network effects … Read More >

Posted in Misc. Forum Discussion | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment