On forums, sometimes the General sections of the site do much better than the other parts. That's probably because it's more relatable. Do you see it as a downfall of the site, and something to try to curb, or do you embrace it?
General sections of forum do better?
- Thread starter Katrina
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Uncrowned Guard
Resident
I would see it as a bit of a warning, but something expected. It likely means that your niche sections are either lacking in content or setup in a manner that is discouraging conversation and your members are finding the off topic section much easier to use. Granted, it is often a situation that many new forums face as friends, post exchangers, packages, etc. will generally not be involved with your niche and fall back to the off topic sections. This increased activity drives your organic users to the activity and that leads to the iff topic section growing faster than the rest.
So it isn't really a major problem or sign of an unhealthy community, but it should be looked at as perhaps a reason to revamp your niche areas and admins should be aware that users not well invested into the site's niche are less likely to stick around over longer periods of time.
So it isn't really a major problem or sign of an unhealthy community, but it should be looked at as perhaps a reason to revamp your niche areas and admins should be aware that users not well invested into the site's niche are less likely to stick around over longer periods of time.
If a forum is not majorly a general discussion forum but most of the traffic is getting drawn to the general sections, the admins shall look into ways of making their niche sections more visible and interesting to engage within. Sometimes a slight change in the order of the sections (how they appear on the homepage) or posting easy discussion topics that don't require the members to brainstorm or think much before posting, fixes this problem.
Dismal_Bliss
Reputable
I have 2 niche forums. My established one, the niche areas get more attention than the general areas, which is good. On my fledgling one, I only have one "general discussion" forum for now. I don't want to open up too many off-topic areas and then have them overrun. My communities are niche/purpose oriented.
Off topic areas are normally super broad. They typically just have a board called “Off Topic”, or something, and as such, almost all the conversations that aren’t directly in the forum’s niche happen there. I personally wouldn’t be super worried about it, unless the off topic area was greatly larger than the main part of the forum.
Kennysplash
Acquaintance
To buttress @Uncrowned Guard’s point, if a forum is not a ‘general forum’ and the members gravitate to general topics then something should be done.
Let’s face it, the fact that a forum’s niche is website management does not mean all the members have enough knowledge of it.
So in that case you can create topics that are pretty basic that members can relate to. You should not focus on the more advanced aspect always, it can discourage the newbies.
There is a first time for everything, give them time to learn and adjust.
Let’s face it, the fact that a forum’s niche is website management does not mean all the members have enough knowledge of it.
So in that case you can create topics that are pretty basic that members can relate to. You should not focus on the more advanced aspect always, it can discourage the newbies.
There is a first time for everything, give them time to learn and adjust.
I have to agree, I do find that in some cases the general section does better than the other sections on a forum but I find this happens on a multi-niche forum.
A single-niche forum you are less likely to see one section more popular than the other, especially the section that is not related to the niche of your forum.
A single-niche forum you are less likely to see one section more popular than the other, especially the section that is not related to the niche of your forum.
Software Miscellanist
New Arrival
When I originally had a gaming forum, the general section was very active compared to the gaming sections. Over time, the forum became a general/entertainment forum.
In my case I embraced it, but I have seen it happen on other forums. As some others have mentioned, revitalizing the stuggling areas with new content and changing the setup could help.
In my case I embraced it, but I have seen it happen on other forums. As some others have mentioned, revitalizing the stuggling areas with new content and changing the setup could help.
Yes, off-topic does indeed get more love than any other boards, but I'm lucky that most gaming boards do get content going ;0 but yeah at times those who are not into gaming or don't have the knowledge end up posting in the none topic locations, I'm fine with that
I find a lot of the community relationship building happens in the off-topic sections of a forum, not that it can't happen in the main topic sections, but I think the off-topic sections are more laid-back areas for people to converse.
I definitely see off topic sections getting more activity on specific niche forums, this either happens because the topic the niche is based on is dead, or is dying. I personally don't have a problem with the off topic sections getting activity. I know not everyone thinks this way though.
I've always noticed the off topic boards get more attention than the niche boards. I believe it's easier for anyone to participate in discussion in the off topic boards because they're geared towards topics on just about anything, not just what the forum's about, whereas the niche boards, you have to know at least a little bit of something about the topic to be able to participate in any sort of meaningful conversation about it.
That said, I don't think off topic boards getting more love than the niche boards is a bad thing necessarily. Sometimes, the niche topics just don't really have much going on for them at the moment in terms of new conversation. Sure, old threads could be revived or remade to bring new life, but eventually, even those get run into the ground. It's a lot easier to generate new discussion on off topic boards because there's more room to bring in new topics because you're not just geared towards a specific niche. I think it's worse when there's clearly room for new discussion within the niche boards (new news about a game, for example), but no one's really interested in talking about it and everyone's more interested in discussing what they ate for lunch that day.
That said, I don't think off topic boards getting more love than the niche boards is a bad thing necessarily. Sometimes, the niche topics just don't really have much going on for them at the moment in terms of new conversation. Sure, old threads could be revived or remade to bring new life, but eventually, even those get run into the ground. It's a lot easier to generate new discussion on off topic boards because there's more room to bring in new topics because you're not just geared towards a specific niche. I think it's worse when there's clearly room for new discussion within the niche boards (new news about a game, for example), but no one's really interested in talking about it and everyone's more interested in discussing what they ate for lunch that day.
This. It’s also the main section where members can hang out and relax.
It’s also where bonding happens and relationships form.
D
Deleted member 31696
I embrace any activity in any section of the forum. As long as people are returning and active, have at it.
King Belieal
Acquaintance
The thing is that most members of a forum can easily relate with discussions in the general section. That's why it does better than niche sections.
Claraviolet
Paragon
I used to think so. If it's a niche forum, the focus should be on the core forum's topic but you just can't restrict people.
My forum has an off topic section. I have it labeled as off topic instead of general discussion for that reason. The majority of the posts are spread out in my community, but there was a lot of time where a good chunk of our posts were in general discussion areas.
BeautifulAngel
Resident
I mean obviously I'd want my members to focus on the niche that the forum is about though I do understand that everyone needs a break sometimes. I would encourage members to post more so on the other forums and in the other categories but activity is activity nonetheless.
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