Worst things you can do when starting out..

What are some of the worst things you can do when starting your forums out.

I notice alot of new forums that open up and have about 100 seperate sections to them, and then wonder why the place looks so dead for so long and no one wants to post. I feel this really scares newbs and even the vetern forum members. Also creating forums that every single member requests, and even making some private or that you need permission to access for no reason. :rolleyes:

I've seen places ask for donations non stop to upgrade the server, when they probably don't need it and people seem to get sick of it and quit posting. :eek:

Ads on your forums when you are starting out, Most people hate ads and won't click on them and i think they are rather pointless for your revenue if you only have 20 members anyway :confused:

This is some of the things i've learned in starting my own forums, Please share your ideas and thoughts as well.

Not having a core group of 10-20 members posting actively right away to fill up the forums. Very important.

I agree with having too many forums. It makes the site look dead. You need users to fill them up.

Core users are a great benefit, however, unless you are 'in' with some social circles, that's also hard to do.

I disagree on ads. As long as they aren't obtrusive, they aren't a big deal. They can help support the site in its infancy. How many sites have you been on that add advertising later to the dismay of the users? If it's there in the beginning, you don't take the chance of annoying veteran users. As the site grows, so do the costs. Ads help offset this.

I disagree on ads. As long as they aren't obtrusive, they aren't a big deal. They can help support the site in its infancy. How many sites have you been on that add advertising later to the dismay of the users? If it's there in the beginning, you don't take the chance of annoying veteran users. As the site grows, so do the costs. Ads help offset this.

Interesting point. Touche' ;)

i think a fine balance of forums is needed...have too little might be a bit restrictive for some visitors or potential members;)

exactly. There has to be enough to appear as if your serious about your topic. But you also need to get posts in them ASAP - a hard thig to do sometimes.

I have to agree with these points made above, as for the ads this is something I will have to deal with soon.

My site has been open for a month or so now and I am just now starting Premium memberships to help with cost and further production of the site. My only semi-fear is that once I make this change members will usnderstand that there is cost and really the greatest part of the site is the community and that will always and forever be free, however if they would like to contribute by all means please do and enjoy the extras.

Right now we really only have one group and I do believe they will accept this change, however you can see the concern if they do not.

So just to make it solid I would also say to avoid pushing people away these are the type of things that need to be set from the start.

Don't give away server/bandwidth intensive features lightly. As your site grows it's going to end up costing more money, and it's very difficult to take things away from members. Then you'll have some perks you can offer to premium members. Ads are a major source fo revenue. Hosting a large forum can be quite expensive. The route we've gone with ads is to give premium sponsors the option to view the board ad free. How to add this option is explained here: http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101597

Installing way too many hacks, alot of webmasters think that if they have hacks and features members will come what you need is quality content and it will get quality visitors to your site, a core group of members is a plus but it is not necessary. As far as Ads are concerned honestly I dont think why that should be a problem, best ad placements should blend the ads with rest of the content and when that happens why would anyone complain infact it tends to look better if a site has better ad placements as compared to no ads.