What can we do?

MoonShadows

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Hi All,

I have been a member here at SS for a little over 2 months, and I really like this forum. BUT, I would love to see it injected with many more ACTIVE members as I am sure you would to.

What can we do to attract more members? What do we have to do to get SS as popular as BYC?

I just posted a "plug" for SS in the BYC "Homesteaders" forum. Heck, I was a member of BYC for 3 years before I ever checked out SS. Maybe we'll get a few more from my plug.

So, how do we grow this forum? I am more than willing to work at it, so let's put our minds together and come up with some ideas.
 

sumi

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I like your thinking and really appreciate your "plug", thank you! I love this forum myself and have been trying, when time and life allowed, to generate some activity here. Some of our efforts have been starting contests, new threads, polls… The thing with online communities is giving the potential and signed up new members something to do, somewhere to participate.

Getting them here is one thing, but keeping their interest? We need to get more discussions going, more activity to get and hold people's attention. When I have time, I scour the net for topics that I think may make good conversation starters here.
 

Mini Horses

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Right now, some of the lack of participation is seasonal. You have babies being born, gardens to get started, milking to crank up, winter "issues" to fix, busy time. Nice to get out of the house after winter hibernation.

Some show and have those schedules & prep to work on, there are a FEW who actually sell :hide new babes and many who buy:ya

Of course, it's always nice to get those who have slowed participation to get back into the groove of posting. Maybe we can all email anyone whom we know has slowed and try to pump up their "past" posting habits. Newbies can find a wealth of information, be it farm or otherwise. Not just newbies, either....old ideas & new ones are helpful.

I find it nice to have a little community of friends to exchange hellos & ideas....even if we've never met in person! Mornings are nice to have that coffee and a look at what your day, week or future may be/have been.

It is disappointing to look at the site & see nothing "new" posted -- no matter the content.
 

MoonShadows

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Certainly agree Sumi; we need to attract new members and then keep them interested. I have started to look for other topics of interest to post as well as you can see from a few I posted yesterday: Good Gardening Videos; World's 10 Oldest Trees; Ultimate Tomato Cage. And, spreading the word to friends who enjoy the lifestyle is a good idea, Mini Horses. I think I will also put a link in my sig at BYC. I'm sure Nifty won't mind.
 

Denim Deb

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Getting people to not only sign up, but to also participate is something that has plagued many forums I'm on. For some, they get involved w/Facebook, and stop posting. I'm on 3 forums where I'm basically the only one that still posts. I hope you're able to find a way to do something.
 

Mini Horses

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Facebook has taken many from many forums! I'm just not on Facebook...Don't fully understand it because I haven't gotten involved. Know that other forums have mentioned such losses to that though.
 

MoonShadows

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You are right about Facebook. I just did a quick Google search and there are many Facebook pages about Homesteading with big followings, not to mention those who would rather 'chat" with their friends via Facebook than an "old fashioned" forum. I know some people who are "surgically connected" to their smart phones and spend most of their waking day "connected" on Facebook. Never could understand that.
 

MoonShadows

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I have never used FB for personal social contact and resisted it for years for my business. It was only this past January that I created a Facebook page as another means to "advertise" my home business (https://www.facebook.com/MoonShadowsFarm/). I find it a chore, and not sure if it is worth the effort.
 

Mini Horses

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Well, it does seem to work for many businesses, especially the "smaller, home-grown" ones. It has it's place and I have considered opening a page for my Goat Milk soaps, etc. Just another thing to keep up with......but, a method to sell. Then, you can still do that with the old website, right?

Heck, tech world moves so fast that it changes before you can put together a site.
 

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