Your Forum Review
First Impressions & Appearance - (Out of 20)
First impression. The welcoming message is a bit long. You say a lot of stuff that you include when they sign up, but there is a bit too much. I think you should cut down on the list of features. You should list the best features and think have a like that says 'Click for more...' and that link would take you to a thread that lists all the features that members get.
I really like the style. It is Imagine, is that by the same author who made Imagination?
Another thing I would change though is your banner. The description should be placed differently. If you are going to keep it centered then move it a little bit down so it isn't touching the main text (extremeteenforums). Personally I think you should keep it touching, but slide it to the right. The last letter of the description should end exactly when the last letter of extremeteenforums ends.
It may not work out, but at least try it and see if it looks good.
Your banner still looks good, but there is always something you can do to make it better. So just play around with it until you find an almost 'perfect' placement of the text.
Another thing with the banner. The outline almost looks purple. You should change it to a less purple looking color and a more blue looking color. Try to match it with one of the colors from the rest of your style.
(Scored 18/20)
Site Layout - (Out of 20)
You should definitely make your descriptions a little longer. You should also change some. For example, with your announcements... Find all the latest news & announcements on the forums here.
You should change this to something like: All the latest news and announcements will be posted here. Please read them as they are very important. Also, you should add a rules thread in your announcements. You only have one thread.. vBulletin is here!
Main Office / Suggestions. This should be changed to Suggestions / Feedback or Suggestions & Feedback. You say Main Office. This kind of makes it sound like you have two announcements area. If you like the phrase Main Office, then put that in your News and Announcements area.
General Discussion. You should NOT have this private. You should make it public. The only reason for making something private is if it is staff only or a place where you need to earn the right to enter (VIP, etc.)
Your site is mainly a teen advice forum. You should put The Lounge at the bottom. You should move the Boys and Girls room below Psych 101. Psych 101 should be placed after your announcements. It would encourage users to post more in that section and it is what your forum is based around, so it deserves to be at the top half of your forum.
(Scored 17/20)
Statistics and Activity - (Out of 20)
Well great statistics! It would be even better if those posts were all from after the vBulletin switch, but looking at some of the post dates it doesn't look like that.
Your stats when I did this review:
Threads: 474, Posts: 8,429, Members: 185, Active Members: 108
Good amount of active members which is really good. And that is a LOT of posts! You have roughly about 17 almost 18 posts of replies. However, some threads probably have much more replies than that and some have close to none.
Your forum looks active and no section is dying or anything. The Girl's Room could be filled up a little more. You could do this by posting articles or studies on girl problems and things of that nature.
The Clinic and The Rant Room could also do with a few more threads. Again post some articles in the Clinic or post a FAQ thread there.
(Scored 19/20)
Staff Moderation - (Out of 20)
Four admins. That is a lot of admins. I notice that you call them Managers there. You should cut this in half. You should have two managers. These people will make the final decisions. They have the final say. Then you would have two admins. The two admins would do a lot of administrative work, but would 'bow down' to the managers. They would go to the managers for help however, the admins would do the most community work.
By doing that it would cut down some of the work load and separate the work load a lot.
I also see that you have three mentors. That is perfectly fine because they are mentors and are there to help the community out.
I also don't see any content that shouldn't be there. Of course, there are some threads that are not little kid friendly, but they all directly relate to your site's purpose.
(Scored 19/20)
Spelling/Grammar & Professionalism - (Out of 20)
No spelling or grammar mistakes made! Site looks very professional and if I ever need some advice or help I'll come your way because of the way you present yourself. Your forum looks very nice and looks trust worthy. 20/20 for having nothing wrong!
(Scored 20/20)
Total Score - 93 (Out of 100)
Final Remarks:
Site looks very professional. If I were you I would just change some of the descriptions and cut down on all the writing in the welcome message. Good luck with your site!
What was most liked about the website/forums:
I like the professionalism of it. The site talks about touchy topics, but handles it in a very mature way. I have read through some of the content and it seems very helpful for the members there. Very mature! A+
What was disliked most about the website/forums:
Didn't like the outline in the banner (also known as an outer glow). It should be changed to match your style's colors.
How could I get you (The Reviewer) to join my website?
I am already a member there, and will come your way if I need some advice.
After you have read your review, please click the following link and rate our service to help us make it better for you.... [
Click Here]
.
Thanks for choosing me again !
Hope you liked the review. My fingers are killing me (turf burn).
Good luck with your site, and see you around!
