"Forums are dying"..

[Cierra]

Do you think forums are dying? Why or why not? I see a lot of posts on the internet saying forums are dying because of social media such as FB and Twitter, laziness, mobile phones/tablets, etc.. but I don't necessarily believe all of that.

 

[Tucker933]

They're great for niche subjects, but general communities have become less and less relevant.

 

[Reverse Flash]

Kinda, I suppose. But I still prefer 'em over social media sites. 🙂

 

[Geoffrey]

They're great for niche subjects, but general communities have become less and less relevant.

This is a pretty good summary of the current situation.

To add, I don't think forums are dying. We just need to rethink what we use forums for and how they're structured. Bulky forums with lots of categories and sections and loaded down with add ons won't work. Many people will hate to hear this, but forums need to be more like social media to make it.

Simple is in, minimal is in (on the web in general and forums are no exception) and we're starting to see that reflected in how forums are set up and themes are designed and coded.

 

[pandaa]

Forums have been around for quite a while, and I tend to think that all of these social media sites are just a phase. I don't think forums are really going anywhere, but I think things may need to change for forums to keep gaining new users.

 

[Migi]

They're great for niche subjects, but general communities have become less and less relevant.

This is a pretty good summary of the current situation.

To add, I don't think forums are dying. We just need to rethink what we use forums for and how they're structured. Bulky forums with lots of categories and sections and loaded down with add ons won't work. Many people will hate to hear this, but forums need to be more like social media to make it.

Simple is in, minimal is in (on the web in general and forums are no exception) and we're starting to see that reflected in how forums are set up and themes are designed and coded.

Interesting, in some points I agree. I also somehow feel that the two group of users will continue to be around for a long time. People may get bored and jump ships for a while, but there will always be people who keep on using forums and social networks. As webmasters we may need to push harder and be more patient to go through the 'bored' times.

 

[Ash]

I think that now they're is less chance that new forums get going. There are so many big forums out there for almost every niche possible that users just don't want to join new forums.

I don't think forums are dying as such, its just activity is much less because of all the social sites and chat apps

 

[Scorpio]

I prefer forums over social media as social medians niche is general talk and socialisation with friends, family and relatives however forums like ForumPromotion offer a unique topic for its users not only to discuss but also to promote there websites in a more large scale manner.

 

[Geoffrey]

I prefer forums over social media as social medians niche is general talk and socialisation with friends, family and relatives however forums like ForumPromotion offer a unique topic for its users not only to discuss but also to promote there websites in a more large scale manner.

In that case, would you prefer social media over a general discussion forum with lots of topics or would you still prefer forms over social media?

I thinking having a set niche (as someone mentioned before) is a key "ingredient" to making a forum these days, more so than before.

 

[Migi]

I prefer forums over social media as social medians niche is general talk and socialisation with friends, family and relatives however forums like ForumPromotion offer a unique topic for its users not only to discuss but also to promote there websites in a more large scale manner.

I think that's the nature of forums. Forums offer bigger space for longer, more complicated conversations, organized in manner that makes it easy for us to read and do many other things. Not that it's impossible to do it on social networks, but most social networks are for "updates" which tend to be short. As long as there are reasons or topics to discuss further, I think forums will still be used and not die that easily.

I thinking having a set niche (as someone mentioned before) is a key "ingredient" to making a forum these days, more so than before.

Also routine content for long-term run. So not just because a niche is "currently popular" but is a one-time event, but something that can last longer.

 

[Jeremy9001]

I'd consider forums and social media to be different. Forums are more for universal interaction while social media is on a lower level than that despite being more popular.

 

[Reddyash]

I dont think forums are dying because of social media or so. Forums go down because of no activity and users not returning back. I think its upto how you manage the forum and how you make users to be active in the forum.
These will always be the main reason for success and failure.

 

[VirusZero]

I kind of already talked about this over here... so I'm not going to bother reposting all of what I wrote there. (Just go read my post there...)

For the too long, didn't read version of that post...
1- Forums and social networks are not directly competing. They cater to different groups. (Some like forums, others like social networks and some use both.)

2- Individual forums are dying yes, but the whole forum scene is not.


Individual forums die because often times the admins get bored or give up. And we tend to see this a LOT on forum promotion. (Especially within the promotion genre because tons of people think they can just clone FP and everyone will move over. And we've seen this fail time and again, yet there is always some fool who doesn't get it and keeps repeating the failure. "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it" rings very true here. So we may be a bit more jaded in regards to new sites and their likelihood of failure because we've seen a ton of it here.)

Additionally, and I touched on this in that other post, we have far more options for making forums now. So it's stupidly easy to make a forum which means anyone can... And with the barrier of entry so low, naturally more people are going to try. Which also means more people/sites will fail.

 

[MrDawn]

No. I don't think forums are dying. They will be around for a very very long time.

 

[Yoda]

I feel that forums are not necessarily dying, but people are using a wider variety of platforms nowadays. I don't think you can beat a forum for a community feel and has got to be the easiest way to follow long complex conversations.

 

[Excommunicado]

Forums aren't dying, forum owners are just not as determined anymore. In some niche's there's no competition at all whereas in some it's the complete opposite.

 

[Thomasss]

They are not dying, they are just not as popular as most people think. I think many forums die because they do not have a general 'uniqueness' and if sites do and they become popular, people tend to create forums based off of them or similar niches, and it just cannot work that way.

Forums are awesome, however I think where people get the whole "they are dying" is by seeing all the forums newly created and then never get off their feet.

 

[Cody]

I think they're not as active as they once were, but I don't think forums are dying. Everything eventually loses traffic as new things are made. For example, Reddit is "killing" forums a little bit, but there are a lot of people out there who don't like Reddit. There's also more and more forums being made every day so it is basically saturating the market so to speak. Maybe forums will come back around at some point too.

 

[Grey Ghost]

They are not dying, they are just not as popular as most people think. I think many forums die because they do not have a general 'uniqueness' and if sites do and they become popular, people tend to create forums based off of them or similar niches, and it just cannot work that way.

Ha your telling me 😛

I think they're not as active as they once were, but I don't think forums are dying. Everything eventually loses traffic as new things are made. For example, Reddit is "killing" forums a little bit, but there are a lot of people out there who don't like Reddit. There's also more and more forums being made every day so it is basically saturating the market so to speak. Maybe forums will come back around at some point too.

Yeah im completely agree. Reddit has definitely taken alot of focus off forums I think, but I also think people still do both.

And yeah there are people who don't like reddit much like myself. Not really big on the way the whole community operates, but it's a great news source.

I too believe forums will come around again at some point.

 

[Twisted Fairytale]

They're great for niche subjects, but general communities have become less and less relevant.

I agree with this assessment. They've become less and less effective for starting and maintaining general communities that only meet on the board. However, I still know a lot of gaming organizations that have forums and play games together, making their community more than just a board.