Forum-Sites.com

Popular Forums
By Pamela Stevens

The most popular forum sites are focused on technology. These types of sites include several Linux forums as well as an Adobe and Java. Other popular forum sites include game sites and home/hobby sites that cover topics like gardening and photography. All the forum sites listed are high quality sites, in that they are well monitored and do not contain spam posts. Another commonality seen in these sites is that their main focus seems to be on people helping other people in an area that they are both enthused about – gardeners helping other gardeners and web designers helping out other web designers.

It does not matter what topic you are interested in, likely there is a forum available for you to join. Here a just a few popular online forums.

Gentoo Discussion Forums

This forum site is dedicated to Gentoo Linux, a unique and adaptable version of Linux. This discussion forum has nearly 4 million posts from over 100K members on numerous topics in many languages. This message board site utilizes phpBB technology.

Adobe Forums

These forums are hosted by Adobe and are intended for peer–to–peer discussions relating to Adobe products. This forum site is pretty active with over 100,000 posts about Dreamweaver and over 3000 categories for Adobe Acrobat.

WoW Forum Community

This forum site hosts message boards related to the game World of WarCraft. It has boards on a variety of topics from discussions on classes to technical support. This forum site supports its own markup language.

Ubuntu Forums

This forum site hosts nearly 400,000 threads and over 2 million posts relating to Ubuntu Linux. This site supports a beginners section, support forums, projects and community discussions. This forum uses vBulletin software for its forums.

Java Forums

Java Forums, supported by the Sun Developer Network, covers Java topics from New to Java to Solaris on x86. The forum technology used for this site is Jive Forums. These forums are very prolific with over 400,000 posts on Java programming alone.

mozillaZine

This forum is focused on the Mozilla FireFox browser. It has a user help support section with over 800,000 posts and the Thunderbird support category alone has nearly 400,000. This message board uses phpBB technology.

Chronicle Forums

The Chronicle Forums is for college and university professors. It has nearly 100,000 posts in almost 9,000 topics related to job seeking and nearly 60,000 posts on over 3,000 topics associated with teaching experiences. It is powered by SMF 1.1.1, a product of Simple Machines LLC.

Delphi Forums

This site hosts numerous paid and free forums on a variety of topics. It is extremely simplistic yet popular. It also includes chat rooms. One of their most popular forums, called The Isle of Whack has over 500,000 posts in the Off Topic section and nearly 300,000 in the Real Question section to total nearly 2 million in all.

SitePoint Forums

This forum site provides discussion threads on technology and Internet topics like web page design and PHP. In total it has over 3 million posts with about 450,000 threads. This forum uses vBulletin software.

WordPress Forums

This forum covers numerous topics relating to using WordPress blogging tools. It has nearly 250,000 posts on how–to’s and troubleshooting and over 75,000 on plugins. It appears that they probably use their own software to run their forum.

Digital Photography Forums

This forum, which has been running since 1999, has millions of threads and millions of posts on topics ranging from lighting technique to printing.

GardenWeb Forums

This forum covers all gardening topics, including International forums for growing outside of the US. The forum threads are organized by region, title, topic, plant and type of garden.

GenForum

This forum site is for genealogist and genealogy topics. The general forum has over 27,000 forums and nearly 25,000 in the Memory Lane section.

SL Forums

Forum for Second Life residents, Second Life reports to have over 4.5 million members from all over the world.

Pamela Stevens

Pamela Stevens writes for TopTenREVIEWS.com, a review site that publishes technology and entertainment reviews.

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Forum Marketing-How to Use and Not Use Forums to Drive Traffic to Your Web Site
By Sean Ray

The tens of thousands of internet “forums” that attract users who have common interests have recently become of interest to marketers – particularly niche marketers. There are forums for every imaginable topic. To see an example of the specialized nature of forums, look at www.big-boards.com. To be sure they represent a potent marketing opportunity and medium. But they can also be a negative force in marketing if used incorrectly. So before you invest in forum marketing make sure you understand the milieu.

An internet forum is a discussion room that operates via the internet. In a sense, they are an evolution of the newsgroups and email bulletin boards that were so prevalent ten to fifteen years ago. Topics get put on the collective forum table and discussion ensues via “posts” to the forum – essential via messages that get posted for everyone to see. Today, you can also consider chat rooms and interactive blogs as a style of forum.

There are two general styles of forum: moderated and unmoderated. Most long-lasting forums are moderated. That is, that all posts are reviewed by a “moderator” before being made public. In this way, the forum protects itself from undesirable spam, crazy people, and profane, obscene, or off-topic material. Unmoderate forums are just that, unmoderated.

Most forums have rules that govern the content that is acceptable to the forum. Violating these rules will draw the contempt of the entire forum. There is no better way to shoot yourself in the foot than to have your forum marketing efforts earn the disdain of the entire forum membership! In newsgroup days, this was called “flaming” (as in ‘shot down in flames’).

On the other hand, if used carefully, forum marketing can be a great way to boost website traffic. Many forums while banning overt advertising or self-serving posts, do not mind a little appropriate discussion or referencing of products, services or features. Many forums also do allow the author to include a link to their own site.

To make sure you don’t run afoul of forum policy be sure to check out their rules, avoid overt selling (forum members are very sensitive to even subtle selling), and make sure that your posts offer good reasons to refer to off-forum content in your site.

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Jump-starting Your Forum Community
By Dax Christopher

Forums are an excellent addition to a website to attract visitors to interact with the site and to return to the website freqeuently. While there are many other website additions that can retain visitors and have them coming back for more, forums are perhaps the most engaging for visitors to your website and offer the most benefits to both the website’s owner and the visitor.

Unfortunately, having a forum addition to a website does not guarantee its success and usefulness in gathering the hypothesized attention and attractiveness. A new forum with no content, no members or no active discussion is like an empty hall. Anyone who steps into such an empty room would most definitely get the creeps and run away as fast as they can. Similarly, your forum can quickly lose its purported usefulness if it is empty and bare.

Starting and building an active forum on your website is no mean feat. It requires a lot of time, patience, and hard-work. Why is that so? Well, there are several important factors that scares away visitors and you have to remove these factors in order to convince visitors to stay, read, and then post and join in the discussions. If there are no discussions in the first place, no one would be around to discuss! It is exactly a chicken and egg question that you have to answer. There are several methods to overcome these issues and to get content/discussions started on your forum.

1. Write good content and request feedback

Having good content draws visitors to read and if they have questions or concerns, they can always find a link to discuss it on your forum. Make sure you provide them a link and the outlet to voice out on your forums. The hard part is in writing quality content on your site.

2. Offer free incentives

Some forums offer active members special advertising opportunities such as banners or text links on the website and in the forums. Members are then encouraged to start threads and post and participate in order to obtain free advertising. Other than free advertising, you might want to consider giving away a free copy of your product to the top poster or hold a lucky draw for active posters. Nothing beats promotion than free products and competition. On my webmaster community (www.buildtolearn.com), I provide free cpanel web hosting for members who have accumulated 50 posts. This incentive has been in use for the past 2 years and our community now has close to 10,000 members!

3. Exchange posts with other forums

There are many other new forums started on the net everyday and you could work together with other websites to generate content on your forums. It is a ‘I’ll post in yours and you post in mine’ exchange where both webmasters participate in each others forums in order to get the ball rolling in the forums. This exchange makes it more interesting for both parties.

4. Pay for posts

If you have deep pockets or have a budget from your website, you can always get people to come to your forum and start discussions. Quality checks are in order to ensure that your ‘free-lance posters’ are not simply submitting 3 word posts or copying posts from other forums.

5. Talk to yourself

If all else fails, due to low budget or having nothing else to offer, you can create ‘virtual copies’ of yourself and start discussions with yourself. To new visitors to your forum, they see an active community and discussions, which helps them overcome the inertia. Once you have a handful of active members talking, you can stop talking to yourself and let your community grow itself!

The above are just some tips that I have gathered from participating in forums and from building forum communities on the net for the past 2 years. The tough part in setting up a forum is in the initial stage. Once you have overcome that hurdle, it gets easier for the forum to grow and mature.

Dax Christopher maintains a two year old webmaster community at http://www.Buildtolearn.com, a forum community that discusses web-hosting and webmaster related issues such as web-design, page coding, SEO and many others. Visit www.buildtoLearn.com to learn more about developing and growing large communities.

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Sploggers Ruining the Internet Forums
By Lance Winslow

It is so unfortunate that Forums and Blogs require so much security these days to prevent people from splogging? Splogging is posting things like Viagra ads on Internet Forums and Blogs. In addition to the security that must be put into place to prevent this rules are also often accompanied as people apply to participate online. Many folks choose not to participate due to Identity Theft and even use fake names when posting.

Yes very interesting indeed and thus we are getting to the very heart of the subject. It is the Sploggers, Spammers and such that cause most of the rules on the most important Blogs and Forums on the Internet, regardless of the Industry sub-sector. It simply does not make sense for the Internet Forum Operators to allow a hacker in Eastern Europe or a Splogger in metro-China to wreck what they have going there, as the communication process is disrupted.

With regard to a Splogger on a Think Tank forum with 8,000 posts it is nearly impossible to keep them off without the barriers to entry, thus rules are made and this slows the creative process and communication interaction. Talk about “ruining the experience for everyone” yes true, but think about a think tank which is working to solve the problems of the Planet and Human Civilizations.

What if we miss a discovery, what if someone gets shut out and cannot participate. Everyone loses big time in that case. A participant may have held a clue to the puzzle on Malaria, safely removing Landmines, a new Alternative Energy, crossing the digital divide, stopping international terrorism,

preventing auto accidents, protecting a nation or any number of human challenges. Yes, it truly sucks.

Thus Internet Forum Operators make rules to attempt to shore up the flood of malcontents attacking the system, yet in the end we cause a slowing of innovation. I just cannot accept that. So we press on! Forum guidelines are indeed one way to put folks on notice and the code system for posting is good idea too. It’s a start. It is just unfortunate that humans do not understand what a valuable resource the Internet is and how everyone is hurt when folks abuse it. Perhaps this will propel thought in 2007.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs

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Forums for Every Niche or Need
By Denise Nuttall

Make me a baby forum topics, key aviation forum, Delphi forums, chat forums, forums for every body and anything. Whatever your niche or need, there is already a forum set-up for you.

forum

1: a public meeting or assembly for open discussion

2: a public facility to meet for open discussion

3: a place of assembly for the people in ancient Greece.

Search “forums” on Google and there are over 2 billion web pages. On Overture, you can come up with tons of searches. New forums are sprouting every day. Some forums are way more active than others. Forums help us to connect the way we used to connect at work, play and other social events.

Forums are used as a tool to promote your business. Whether it be a chat forum, business forum, political forum, people use there signature at the end of there posts to lure people to check out there business or future promote their ideas. There is big business in being active in the right forums. A forum membership is more valuable than all the Internet marketing eBooks, training programs and membership sites you could ever join. In fact, most of the people publishing Internet marketing eBooks, training programs and membership sites are active forum members. If you plan to be a successful Internet marketer, there is no better place in the world for you to hang out than the forums.

Almost every marketing guru has their own forum to promote there status and grow there list of potential customers. When you connect with them several times in the forums then there is a certain amount of trust and respect built up. Now it is easier to promote another product or idea to you. A forum is a place to share ideas, find answers, make friends and develop partnerships. The forum is an organic, always growing, support resource for your entire Internet marketing business.

Forums are also a way to give back to the community of people who helped you. There is always someone more knowledgeable than you, but there is also someone who is in need just as you were. For the forum to work, giving back is just as vital as taking.

Forums are a great tool. Use them. But just like anything else on the internet, use caution. Forums are here to provide another form of information to us. For every niche or need, there is a forum.

Denise Nuttall owns the “Online Turnkey Business Opportunities and Ideas” where you can find everything you’ll ever need to start, run and grow a home business at: http://www.djnuttall-enterprises.com/

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How To Make Money From Forums And Message Boards
By Fabian Tan

Many types of marketing exist on the Internet. There is no doubt that the Internet has given birth to a wide range of new marketing techniques. The truth is that for a businessman to maximize his profits these days, he has to look online for ways to increase his business cashflow. More and more people are spending time online nowadays, and a business stands to lose if it ignores the online market.

One way of marketing on the Internet is to use forums. Forums are one of the most populated places on the Internet. People from all the over world visit forums of their interest and engage in interesting discussions about all kinds of topics. Do a search on any major search engine, and you will find forums catering to every niche and whim.

It is important to have a wide and deep marketing strategy in order to succeed on the Internet, and forums definitely have to be included in a well-rounded marketing strategy. Many Internet marketers have used forums to even launch businesses, after meeting new business partners in forums. It is also a way to communicate with target audience and find out their needs and wants.

You can’t lose from marketing on forums! All you need to do is spend a few minutes each day posting on forums. Another upside of forums is that you’re able to keep in touch with the latest insider news in your niche. You can capitalize on this information whenever possible to create a new product or a new service.

Fabian Tan is the author of the free 51-Page Report:

“Murder Your Job: How To Build Cash Sucking Autopilot Businesses In 30 Days Or Less!”

Head over to http://www.MurderYourJob.com to get your free copy now before it’s gone!

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Using Forums to Make Money and Drive Traffic Online
By James Krawder

In the online world today the marketers are busy in developing newer ways of generating web traffic. There are some customary ways which are used by almost every web site but as the competition amongst the websites is on a rise it is no more a possibility to attract the attention of web surfers without putting extra efforts to work. Forums are used by many websites t o promote themselves. The internet marketers are always looking for newer ways to generate traffic. The content in the forums is generated by the users. Now if a user wants to comment on your product, he or she can do that by using a forum. The forums are thus an important source of leaving a feedback about the product or service you are providing to the consumer. Most of the companies have forums on their websites. As a result they are able to get the consumer feedback. As special marketing effort the companies also try to locate those websites which have the forums with large readerships. It is beneficial for these websites to use those forums to their advantage.

Forums generally have the discussions saved in chronological order. Due to this reason the companies and websites which want to use the forums as a marketing tool have to remain on the top of the forum. As a result they need to enter a new post after every few hours. Only those forums are suitable for marketing purposes which have a huge readership. Otherwise they may not be effective as a marketing tool.

Want to learn more about it? Download the free ebook, Steps to Article Marketing Success.

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Forums - A Consumer Centric Approach
By Scott Lindsay

If you’ve participated in a forum lately you may have stumbled across blatant advertising from individuals who obviously have no interest in the forum, its members or the subjects being discussed. Many forums not only frown on this type of spamming, but when they catch you they will likely ban you from future involvement on their forum.

If you want to use a forum to market your business you need to make sure you follow a few netiquette tips.

If you are going to involve yourself in a forum make sure you actually have an interest in the subjects being discussed. If you have a business selling die cast model cars you may find a forum that deals with model cars. Your personal interest in the subject can have positive marketing potential.

When you register to participate in the forum make sure you actually participate. Don’t use the forum as an ongoing platform to promote your business. Be involved in the forum and contribute in a way that forges connections between yourself and other members.

Take full advantage of your signature line. You will typically be given a specific limit of characters you can use. Some have found the use of introduction text coupled with a tasteful business banner code to be a positive way to consistently promote their business while concentrating on building trust with other forum members.

Check the forum to see if there is a section specifically designated for advertising. If so, make sure you provide a professional overview with appropriate links.

As the growth of forums has exploded so has the need for quality site moderators. It is possible to seek a trade with the site owner. Simply put, you offer to provide moderator services in exchange for banner ads on the forum pages. This will serve to blend your personal interest in the forum with a quality marketing opportunity.

Forums remain a great way for individuals to connect on subject they are passionate about. Most forum members are happy to welcome new members to the forum and are grateful when these new members add to the forum. When new members simply post an attention-grabbing subject and then fill their post with messages only related to their business the response is usually very cool from forum members.

It may be hard for some business owners to come to terms with the need for a consumer-centric approach to marketing, but when you use a forum it is virtually mandatory.

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many other web projects. Get your own website online in just 5 minutes with HighPowerSites.com at: http://www.highpowersites.com Start your own ebook business with BooksWealth at: http://www.bookswealth.com

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How To Use Forums To Advertise Your Affiliate Link

Its one thing to get setup as an affiliate with a certain program and quite another to actually start making money with your affiliate business. Generally speaking, money can only be made online with traffic. If you don’t get any traffic to your website or affiliate link, you will not make any money. How do we get that traffic? There are many ways, but let’s focus on the use of forums.

One of the things that make forums such a useful traffic gathering location is that someone else has done the targeting for you. We all want our ads and links targeted to people who have an interest in our products, that’s the idea behind Google’s Adsense program and many others. When you find a forum that is target towards the same industry that you are in, then that means that the bulk of those forum members already have an interest in your product or service. Any ad you place in front of their eyes is already targeted to the exact audience you’re looking for. If you sell lawn & garden accessories, look for a landscaping forum. If you provide information on a particular vacation site, look for a travel forum. If you have a program that allows you to access your office computer from home, look for a site for busy professionals. Once you find the forum that matches the product or service you have to offer, you’ve found your targeted buyers.

Now, how do you capitalize on these forum members that all are wanting your product or service, but just don’t know it yet? Ad placement is the next step. Don’t just make a post saying “Need flowers? Visit this website”. These ads are generally regarded as spam and are removed quite quickly, in fact if they are not they are not successful anyway as people tend to view them as ads and skip over them to get to the next posting with valuable information. Put your affiliate link in the signature file or profile that most forums have available to members. In many forums, at the bottom of every post you make will appear whatever is in your signature file. Then, every time you make a post or share a thought or idea, boom – your affiliate link is right there. Now, be careful as some forums do not allow affiliate links in their signature lines or profiles. The easiest thing to do in this case is to setup a website with some nice information or enticing looking splash page and have the affiliate link there. Now, when people read your thought provoking post, they see your link at the bottom, and then they check it out. There, you’ve got the traffic.

One of the hardest parts of web marketing is getting your site, affiliate link, or product in front of the eyes of the people you’re targeting. Forums have already found your target audience for you, now you just have to find the right forum.

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If you’d like a great example of a well run forum on the subject of domaining, visit Namepros. Namepros has established a large community with many members and a growing number of moderators. There are places for newbies and experts as well as everyone in between. They hold live auctions in the chatroom as well as forum based auctions too.

Though you can buy and sell domains at Namepros, quite easily at times, the emphasis is not on that as much as it is on the networking of domain professionals. Truly a wonderful example of a forum based community.

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