About Communities..

[Andre]

This is an article that I came over, read this over
and tell me what you think..

Did you know that posting in Discussion Forums
is a wonderful way to make a name for yourself
and increase the chances of your success? Well,
if you didn't know, you do now!
It's true! If you productively spend some time in
online business forums each week you may find
it quite profitable. When I say "productively" I
mean not aimlessly posting to any topic you can
find just for the sake of typing. You should actually
offer useful advice and information for people as
well as answering questïons that others have.
You will also learn a lot of useful tips to help your
business from other people's posts.

Here is a small list of some of the great reasons to post in forums:

1) Exposure to Your Website or Product
In most forums you can put a small information
box such as an advertisement below each of your
posts. This is a great way to tell people about
yourself and your business.

2) Making a Name for Yourself
If you consistently offer useful advice and answers
to questïons people will begin to notice it. Soon
enough you be seen as an "expert" in your field.
Needless to say, this is very good for your business.

3) Learning
A lot of people frequently post in discussion forums.
Many of them have been in online business for a
long time and know quite a bit about it. You can
gain vast amounts of knowledge by reading other
peoples posts. Or you can simply ask a question
and you are sure to get it answered many times over.

4) Meeting Other People
Having a home-based internet business can get
lonely at times. The people in discussion forums
can be a bit like your "co-workers" at a traditional
job. You might even make some great life-long
friends.

5) Entertainment
Often there are quite interesting topics and replies
for you to read. Every now and then someone stirs
things up in a forum and it can be pretty exciting
to read the responses.

Well, that is just a taste of why it is great to post in
forums. Of course, there are more reasons and you
may even have some personal reasons of your own.

Now lets look at some ways to get more out of them
so you aren't wasting your precious time:

1) It is best to post to forums that get a lot of traffïc.
There are many forums out there but quite a few of
them hardly get any visitors. You can get a general
idea of how much traffïc they get just by looking at
how many posts they get each day. If it seems to be
getting a lot of posts everyday then it probably gets
quite a bit of traffïc all the time.

2) Stay away from forums that aren't moderated or
that let you post just about anything you want. These
types of forums are generally full of blatant advertising
and sp@m. Don't waste your time with them! You won't
really get anything useful from these forums. Also, Do
Not blatantly advertise or sp@m posts. It will ruin your
reputation and could get you banned from forums.

3) Restrict your time in forums by setting up some sort
of schedule or time limit for visiting them. You can
sometimes losë track of time reading and responding
to topics. Obviously you need some time for other
business tasks so you don't want to use it all up in forums.
Trust me they can get very addicting so this is an
important step.

4) Do not post just for your own benefit. It is important
to offer useful advice and information to others. By
offering valuable comments you will get people to notice
you more thus increasing the chances that they will do
business with you.

5) Take full advantage of the signature paragraph that
most forums let you set-up. This is where you do get to
do a little advertising. Tell about yourself and/or your
business. Provide a link to your website or product so
people can get to it easily. Your link will also help with
your search engine popularity and ranking.

6) Be respectful and polite to others on the discussion
forums. Even if you don't totally agree with someone it
is best not to attack them. People will notice if you are
rude and obnoxious. It is better for you to just keep your
unnecessary comments to yourself.

I regularly visit quite a few discussion forums. I have
found that they are fun to read and post in and can be
very rewarding. Some are better than others but all
can be beneficial when used properly. You just need to
find the forums that fit what you are looking for. Become
a "regular" there and you will be rewarded.

[CHL]

I agree :D

I like forums!.. and when you have been on a forum for a short time.. then you ARE xpert hehe :D

[VamPvixen]

Great post Andre!!
It has some very valuable advice :)

[Andre]

Yes, that is what I thought too.

It is a helpfull "guide" for many. Good reading I think.

[D.Koenemann]

This is an excellent article Andre. It points out the many virtues of being involved in some forums.
As pointed out, you should be careful which forums you participate in and of course how you participate in them.

As pointed out you should be involved in forums that fit in with what you are doing online. Always keep an open mind. Be positive in your comments. Don't get caught up in the negative mindsets of some people. As you know there is always someone that can not see the silver lining, but don't let them kill your vision.

Participate in ways that reflect good on you. If there is someone needing assistance and you know the answer, help them, but do so with a pure heart. Always remember what you felt like when you were in their shoes. If they don't understand your explanation, ask them what it is they don't understand, then break it down for them. Helping and teaching others can have many rewards. Often times you may not feel like you are accomplishing much, but often there may be a shy person in the background that your information will make a difference for them. If you are kind and patient it shows and it will be remembered.

I always approach forums as a chance to learn, because as you know the opinions vary widely, as do the people. You will often times have your eyes opened to something that you may have taken for granted. Soak all these things in and you just might be surprised someday as to what you have learned from others while you were helping them!

Earlier I mentioned to help, but do so with a pure heart. What does that mean? It means listen and help, but don't worry about things like , I sure hope this person will go to my website and buy from me. That to me is the wrong reason to be helping. Sure we all need to make a living, but don't make that your only motivation. Be there and help because you want too, the difference shows, believe me!

For me, participating here at D4A, is a pleasure. I get to meet with people from all around the world, make friends with them, and if I am lucky maybe help them achieve their dreams. At the very least if I can help someone in some way that makes their day a little better, or their path a little less bumpy, that is good enough for me. Money can not replace the warm feeling I get when I get a heart-felt thank you from someone I have just talked with and made feel a little bit better or explained how to do something they need to do. The people I work with on my job in a factory think I am nuts to spend my free time here in this forum, they just have no idea. For the last several months I felt lost, but I am back now and all is well again. :lol:

D.Koenemann

[Lene]

I'd like to know where you found that article, but I guess you can't remember
that anymore :p

[Andre]

I am not quite sure, but I think it was in one of the
newsletters that I subscribe too.

If you head on over to goarticles.com you can search
for it there, not sure, but it is probably listed there.

[kmpisces]

That was definately a good article. Forums are certainly beneficial in many ways. There are a couple that I can usually find work by visiting their: offer/request services forums. But that is not the most important thing that I feel I gain from being active in forums.

I like to read through the various posts. It is important to hear a variety of ideas and opinions from many different people. Forums are a great place to learn what business/marketing/etc methods have worked well for people and what methods have not. If I see a post from someone and I think I can help them, I am always happy to respond.
I also like to share my own personal experiences and advice in the hopes that I offer something of use to others.

[followme]

Good article Andre. The main reason for me to post in a forum is to "Exposure to Your Website or Product", I think this is a good and effective way to promote my website or products, people will always click on it if you have a eye catching signature under your posts. But, please don't "over do" your signature, read the rule before you post :)

[kmpisces]

You make a good point about not overdoing signatures and always following the forum rules. I haven't seen any problems with that in this forum.

However, I have been in some forums where the signature is way to long with much too much information. And I have seen people get told about their signatures for various reasons that do not follow the rules. Your signature is a good way to promote your site. I have clicked on many signaturs that have caught my attention over the time I have been active in forums.