Pre-Launch Review
Site Name: Chat Arena
Site Type: General Discussion
Age: 3 days
Appearance
I really enjoy the theme that you are using, and always have. It is sleek, modern and easy on the eyes. The most important suggestion from me on the appearance is to get a banner made that matches your theme with your site name and maybe a logo and slogan on it. I would also request custom icons for the read and unread post icons on the index and subforums. This will add a layer of customization to your forum that it is lacking to stand out from the other communities that also use the theme. Other then those two suggestions, the appearance is great.
Layout
The layout of your boards is good. You do not have too many boards on the index page which makes it easier to get to the stats and information about your forum. I would suggest that you move the shoutbox to the bottom of the forum list, right above the statistics. This takes the focus off the shoutbox and puts it back where it should be, on the forum. I would even suggest removing it all together as it does take away from postings on the forums. If you are 100% against removing it, then move it to the bottom of the forum list. You have a lot of subforums in the "General" category, and most of them are empty. I would highly suggest removing most of the sub boards that are not active and moving the posts, if any, to the parent board. This will give your forum the appearance of activity before potential members even start looking at the content.
First Impressions and Interest
Upon first visit, there is nothing to grab my attention and make me want to look further down the page then what I can see when first opening your forum. The default banner is still in place, which gives the forum the feeling of being incomplete and makes me want to check back later to see the completed product. Overall the interest to join your forum is not there for me because I can see nothing that will set you apart from the hundreds of other general discussion forums that are already established and active. Visit some of the bigger general discussion forums for some ideas on things to add. But remember, don't copy what you see, but try to put your own spin on it to make it unique to your forum.
Content
Of the posts that I have read, most of them have decent grammar. There are a few instances where you and a couple other of your members use "i" instead of "I". It is not a big deal, but something that I notice on any forum that I visit. Most of the content is of a good quality and of a decent length. You and you staff are responsible for making sure that there is fresh content for your members to reply to every day, don't forget that. Members are a big part in making content too, but if the staff are not active and involved in discussions, it has been my experience that neither are the members. Keep adding new content daily, 2 to 5 topics a day would be enough at this stage to generate a good amount of discussion material for your members to really get involved in your community and its discussions.
Words from the Reviewer
You have a very hard and long road ahead. General Discussion is a very saturated niche and it will be hard to compete. Try to find new ways to be unique, stand out and make people want to join your forum. One of the most important things to get done at this stage is to get a new banner with your forum name on it at a minimum. I wish you the best of luck with your community!
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