A well constructed thread title is important to grab users’ attention. To achieve this goal, we can examine research about email subject lines and apply it to crafting topics for forum threads.

In his book “To Sell Is Human”, author Dan Pink cites a 2011 study by CMU professors that analyzed email subject lines. He summarizes this study by saying that people open emails for either (1) extrinsic reasons (i.e., it’s work-related) or (2) intrinsic reasons (i.e., to satisfy a curiosity). The researchers concluded that subject lines should either be obviously useful or mysteriously intriguing (but not both at the same time).

Mr. Pink book goes on to say that in addition to utility and curiosity as the primary drivers for getting someone to open your email, there is a third principle: specificity. He then gives this example: the subject line “Improve your golf swing” is less effective than “4 tips to improve your golf swing this afternoon”. Obviously, the editors at Men’s Health, Glamour, and any other magazine that promise readers “X Ways To Improve Your Y in only Z days” understand this principle well.

When seeding a forum with new threads or posting a thread to liven up the conversation on an existing forum, we can apply any of the three techniques mentioned above to get users’ attention. In summary:

• Craft a thread title that is obvisously useful.
• Craft a thread title that is mysteriously intriguing.
• Craft a thread title that is specific.

Even the best forum software can’t create something out of nothing. A website with few visitors means a forum with even fewer visitors. This leads to the ’empty restaurant problem’, where a forum languishes without activity, and this lack of activity makes the forum even more unappealing to others. No one wants to eat in an empty restaurant, and no one feels compelled to participate in an empty forum.

To address this problem, Mike Pascucci writes that Community Moderators must take a proactive stance:

Moderation services can assist with the seeding of content and active facilitation of interactions within a community to get it on track and moving forward. While some communities may need more than others, these services can be tailored to meet any companies needs.

That being said, even the most proactive moderators in the world will have trouble launching a forum community that doesn’t have any traffic. For any site owners considering a forum, they first must ensure their main site garners enough traffic to make a forum viable. We will discuss specifics in subsequent posts.