Your Forum Review
First Impressions & Appearance - (Out of 20)
I actually like your theme quite a bit. It's simple, but it still looks good. It has a nice color scheme; it's not too boring nor too ostentatious. However, I think that the header looks a little awkward. It might be a good idea to add an image with the gradient on the buttons that stretches across the entire screen. In other words, the background of the buttons should be stretched across the entire screen (but not over the darker gray background image, of course). Another thing that is a bit awkward about your theme is that you do not have any borders. It may be a good idea to add borders (perhaps light gray ones) to the forum list; right now your forum list just looks like a giant box. I think it would look better if it were separated. Your header is also very large; it takes up an entire page on my screen (1280x800 resolution). I would recommend getting rid of the search bar at the top. If you can condense your header in any other ways, then I'd recommend that you do it. Other than that, though, I like your theme; I don't think that you should change it. You have to remember that the opinions of your members are more important to your forum than my opinion is, though. If a lot of your members are telling you that the theme needs to change, then it may be a good idea to switch. If only a few members are telling you this, then maybe you should stick with the current theme.
Your forum also looks decently active at a glance. Your statistics are solid, and I do not see any empty forums on your index.
Overall, though, my first impression was positive.
(Scored 18/20)
Site Layout - (Out of 20)
Overall, your layout appears to be concise and organized. I do not like the way you advertise your FOTM contest using a forum, however. The banner stretches the forum table out awkwardly (also, the link that the banner points to is dead). I would recommend putting a simple text link in the description of your "YPA Contest" forum. You could always send out a mass PM, too. I think having the banner in the middle of your forum list just makes it look cluttered. Another issue with your layout is that it isn't focused very well on the main theme of your site. I don't normally recommend this, but I think that you should actually
add a forum or two to your graphics category. Perhaps you could add a forum for tutorials. This would focus your layout more on graphics by making your graphics category have more forums than the others. It may also stimulate more discussion.
(Scored 17/20)
Statistics and Activity - (Out of 20)
According to my calculations, your forum currently receives about one hundred and twenty-five posts per day, and you have about twenty-five posts for each of your ninety-one users. Those statistics are fantastic considering your forum has not been open for very long! Don't get lazy now, though. You need to keep up your advertising to ensure that your forum continues to grow at this pace. A mass e-mail may be nice; you have ninety-one users, so it doesn't seem to unreasonable. Just let everyone know that you're doing really well so far. Services on Forum Promotion and abroad may also be a good resource for you. Signing up on other graphics forums and posting around wearing your forum's signature banner may also catch the eyes of some prospective members (be sure to advertise your impressive statistics). Also, post exchanges are a great way to make your forum appear more active to prospective members.
(Scored 19.5/20)
Staff Moderation - (Out of 20)
If I can count, your forum currently employs two adminstrators, one moderator, and one graphic designer. This seems like a good amount of staff members for your current activity level. However, be prepared to hire more staff members if your forum continues to grow. If you're offering graphic requests, I anticipate a need to hire another graphic designer in the near future. All of your staff members appear to be posting actively thus far. You may want to ask your staff members to be more active in welcoming new members. I see several introduction threads that only have one reply. It may make members feel more welcome if all or nearly all of your staff members replied to their introductions. Other than that, though, I do not see any staffing issues on your forum.
(Scored 19/20)
Spelling/Grammar & Professionalism - (Out of 20)
Your descriptions do not serve your forum well. The descriptions of your graphics forums need to make them sound more useful. Make your graphic team sound fantastic. Make it sound like the graphics will be amazing! The descriptions of your forums in "The Lounge Area" are very bland. I would recommend making them sound a tad more interesting. I can spot some grammar mistakes in your descriptions, but since I want you to change them, I'm not going to point them out. If you choose to take my advice and change your descriptions, then request a follow-up review. I'll help you with grammar there.
(Scored 13/20)
Score - 86.5 (Out of 100)
Closing remarks: Your forum looks great so far, but there are still a few things that could be made better.
Forum's strong points: Your activity and theme are your strong points.
Improvements to make: Your descriptions are your primary problem at this point. There are some very minor issues in other areas that could be corrected as well.
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