Scott
12-11-2005, 05:57 PM
Once you've got yourself a new member, you want to try and keep a hold of them. Even better than that would be to get them posting on your forum. Ultimately, the best you can do is make them feel welcome and if they feel like contributing then you've done a good job. There are certain things you can do to make your forum more welcoming, this is what I'll try to outline in this article.
Before they register - A few points
How often do you log out and see what a guest sees? Try it, you might find some major things you need to sort out straight away. If not, always check that someone who had no clue what your forum was about could work it out without going further than the first page. I dislike ending up on a forum which doesn't tell me the main topic it's discussing.
Secondly, can the guest see how to join and is the registration form simple enough to understand? Important here, if guests can't find the sign up page, they simply won't sign up. Nor will they be happy if they have to battle with your registration form. Keep it simple!
Welcome Email
Someone has registered - excellent. Most likely your forum software will send them an email at this stage. Have a read through this email and most likely you'll find it isn't very personalised. Reword it and make it more welcoming. This is your first contact with your new member so don't let first impressions let you down. Include a link to your Introductions forum (see below).
Welcome PM
Some forums send a PM instead of an Email, some send both - whichever you prefer. Again, welcome the member and make this personal. Show them where to make that first post and let them know who to ask for help. This need not be a manual process, there is likely a mod out there that will automatically send a PM to new members. VBulletin 3.5 - here (http://www.vbulletin.org/forum/showthread.php?threadid=91729) IPB 2.1 - here (http://mods.invisionize.com/db/index.php/f/5370)
If you're using another type of software, you'll know better than I where to look.
Introductions Forum
This is probably the easiest way to get new members interacting with the community. Simply create a new forum for members to introduce themselves. Direct new members here to make their first post and maybe ensure that staff are on hand to give them a warm welcome. Hopefully your other members will greet them too. Try to keep this forum easily viewable so those who haven't been told about it can find it.
New Member Guide
Something I've added to my forum recently and I'm not sure how useful it is. Basically, what I've done here is outline the main forums and their purpose. Where social chat is encouraged, where to advertise, where to find the guidelines, introduce the arcade, etc. If you are going to make something like this, try not to overcrowd it with every little thing your board offers. Let them explore, just give them a little push. I'd be interested to hear views on whether people think these work or not.
Staff
Mods have a role to play in ensuring that they are both welcoming and understanding towards new members. Nothing worse than signing up to a forum, posting something and finding your post gone. Fair enough, mods need to enforce their rules but I would always send a PM to a newbie explaining why their post was deleted and how they can prevent it from happening again. There is always the hope that new members will read the guidelines, but we mustn't get too optimistic.
The *Fun* Factor
Make sure your forum has some sort of fun distraction. Arcade, shop, etc, they all help to keep members on your forum - which is what you want. Places for members to advertise tend to go down well, however they can be a nightmare to mod which you might not want to deal with. At this stage it largely depends on your type of forum...the more casual the topic, the more fun you want to introduce.
Well, that's pretty much everything I could think of for trying to welcome new members. If you have any suggestions I'd be glad to hear them :)
Before they register - A few points
How often do you log out and see what a guest sees? Try it, you might find some major things you need to sort out straight away. If not, always check that someone who had no clue what your forum was about could work it out without going further than the first page. I dislike ending up on a forum which doesn't tell me the main topic it's discussing.
Secondly, can the guest see how to join and is the registration form simple enough to understand? Important here, if guests can't find the sign up page, they simply won't sign up. Nor will they be happy if they have to battle with your registration form. Keep it simple!
Welcome Email
Someone has registered - excellent. Most likely your forum software will send them an email at this stage. Have a read through this email and most likely you'll find it isn't very personalised. Reword it and make it more welcoming. This is your first contact with your new member so don't let first impressions let you down. Include a link to your Introductions forum (see below).
Welcome PM
Some forums send a PM instead of an Email, some send both - whichever you prefer. Again, welcome the member and make this personal. Show them where to make that first post and let them know who to ask for help. This need not be a manual process, there is likely a mod out there that will automatically send a PM to new members. VBulletin 3.5 - here (http://www.vbulletin.org/forum/showthread.php?threadid=91729) IPB 2.1 - here (http://mods.invisionize.com/db/index.php/f/5370)
If you're using another type of software, you'll know better than I where to look.
Introductions Forum
This is probably the easiest way to get new members interacting with the community. Simply create a new forum for members to introduce themselves. Direct new members here to make their first post and maybe ensure that staff are on hand to give them a warm welcome. Hopefully your other members will greet them too. Try to keep this forum easily viewable so those who haven't been told about it can find it.
New Member Guide
Something I've added to my forum recently and I'm not sure how useful it is. Basically, what I've done here is outline the main forums and their purpose. Where social chat is encouraged, where to advertise, where to find the guidelines, introduce the arcade, etc. If you are going to make something like this, try not to overcrowd it with every little thing your board offers. Let them explore, just give them a little push. I'd be interested to hear views on whether people think these work or not.
Staff
Mods have a role to play in ensuring that they are both welcoming and understanding towards new members. Nothing worse than signing up to a forum, posting something and finding your post gone. Fair enough, mods need to enforce their rules but I would always send a PM to a newbie explaining why their post was deleted and how they can prevent it from happening again. There is always the hope that new members will read the guidelines, but we mustn't get too optimistic.
The *Fun* Factor
Make sure your forum has some sort of fun distraction. Arcade, shop, etc, they all help to keep members on your forum - which is what you want. Places for members to advertise tend to go down well, however they can be a nightmare to mod which you might not want to deal with. At this stage it largely depends on your type of forum...the more casual the topic, the more fun you want to introduce.
Well, that's pretty much everything I could think of for trying to welcome new members. If you have any suggestions I'd be glad to hear them :)