I had NO idea!

[Kidsphoenixx]

Well, I've been here, reading thread after thread in this "Member& Staff" Forum, and I have to say......it's scaring me!
Obviously, I had no real idea just what is/can be involved in running a Forum. ( I didn't even know there were PAID forums, or that people paid people to be mods etc!)
Everything I have just read here has made me doubt my decision to have a Forum. I guess I am/was naive.............I have spent a lot of time, in a few forums. I thought I had a reasonable "grasp" of the behind the scenes stuff......boy, was I wrong! Or is it that I am/was not looking to create a forum for any other reason than to have a place where people who visit my site can go and "rabbit on" ? It seems that many here have a much higher goal........Google ranking/popularity/financial gain, etc.......whereas I hadn't even really considered those aspects in wanting my own forum. Please understand, I am NOT belittling/denigrating anyone here. I am just trying to come to grips with the realisation that my idea of a forum seems to be WAY off base....and that now, the whole thought of it really scares me.

 

[angry_rabbit]

not everyone has a forum to make money, or has ads on their site

 

[Mephisto]

Just relax man, is not as bad as it looks

Let's begin, say your knowledge about forums don't reach such issues as many have been posted here, so you have been just a moderator on some other communities. Right??

Well, having your own forum is a project that cannot be taken for granted, there are a lot of issues you'll find as soon as you start a new board. Even if you haven't started, there are such as choose the right host, your board software, the focus of your board and maybe choose your staff (if need). Scared?? Well thats just the beggining, then it comes the organization of the forum, skins, icons, logos, get launched (your forum might be look atractive if you want members), later comes the SEO, and get linked everywhere you can. In the future your forum will give you unique issues you'll have to deal with. So scared now?? Then let me give you a relief, I really doubt someone starts him/her first board knowing all of this I just told you and is just the experience of managin a forum will lead us to wisdom in this matters The top of this history is that you just have started your forum and you alredy are in TAZ, IMHO the ultimate board about........ boards dont be affraid to start a board yourself, here you'll get tips and all the answers you'll need to run a succesful comunity if your doubts are not alredy solved in the archive of solved issues by TAZ members, feel free to ask, because all the fellow admins in this place will be glad to help you welcome to the "Board Manage" Experience

 

[PalePhoenix]

Everyone has to start somewhere. (might as well be TAZ, right? )

Keep in mind, that if you're poring over the Members 'n' Staff section like it's the opening of a forbidden book in a secret library, you're bound to be shocked and surprised by these "mysterious, backstage goings-on" that make forums tick. Problems can seem blown quite out of proportion, and--as with most things in life--you're hearing the squeaky wheels that need grease, not the whole machine.

Additionally, I notice from your profile that you're among our more 'mature' members, a fact that can work to your advantage when it comes time to put certain interpersonal and staffing concerns into perspective. You have to remember that the demographic for many website operators and forum admins is (1) a good deal younger; and (2) somewhat more male (with all the advantages and disadvantages we both know that will confer).

Yours is not naïveté. You can use decades of plain ol' people skills and transpose them to the online world. It requires a few new schemas, or filters, to deal with people who are always at something of a physical distance from you, but it is essentially the same as the personalities and problems in the non-digital world. Albeit with more emoticons.

 

[Ollie1]

People generally come into the staff section when things are going wrong, so the things you read arent representative of the normal running of a forum.

You need to relax, and probably not read everything before you even start.
The best place to start is the articles section, then fill in the gaps by asking questions in the 'getting started' forum. This should cover everything you need to know to start off.

 

[Sikheadtom]

When you start a forum its easy and you learn the basics and then when your forum starts to get bigger, your knowledge will get bigger at the same time!

So when you when you face major problems you will be able to fix it with your knowledge!

 

[Kidsphoenixx]

To all who responded......thank you.
I think I need to sit back and look more thoroughly into what exactly it is I had in mind when I first thought " Hey, I'd like a Forum to go with my site!"
I will keep reading here......the articles, the other forums. This is certainly a great place, and I'm very glad I was directed to here.
Again, thanks.

 

[kitkat21380]

I totally understand what you are saying! I couldn't even fathom the idea of making a living off of a forum 2 months ago. I pop on here and am totally overwhelmed with everything and wondered what the heck I got myself into. lol

I had to mentally tell myself to calm down, learn things as I go, and take things one step at a time.

 

[Kidsphoenixx]

@ kitkat.
Yes, the last 24 hours has seen me step back and really look at my ideas/goals/motivation. I have started to sketch out some ideas, and have been surfing Forums, looking and learning................I am a little clearer in my design, but still quite a ways from the actual construction. I think I'm one of the lucky ones who can, if I need to/want to, be on my PC at least 8 hours a day ( it's often more lol). It's amazing though how often there still doesn't seem to be enough hours in a day!

 

[DaUnknownAdmin]

It's amazing though how often there still doesn't seem to be enough hours in a day!

Just wait until your site is up and running. Time will always seem to be against you. Luckily, TAZ has been a great resource for me as well as an enormous time saver. There are tons of articles and threads on just about every aspect of Forum Management.

Best of luck on your project!

 

[Prince Zagan]

Yeah, it isn't nearly as bad as it seems the first few weeks you get into it. I was more or less thrown into my first forum, of which I was a member first, then the owner gave it to me. I didn't know anything about the admin control panel. I was also given the webhosting account with it, and that was pretty scary too, because I didn't know what anything did, and I certainly didnt know SQL! Now after 2 years in it, I am fluent in SQL, and do fairly well at php, but you don't really have to even know those if you don't plan on doing modifications to your software. Don't think you can't do it, you can.

 

[Kidsphoenixx]

not everyone has a forum to make money, or has ads on their site

, yep, that's exactly what I said.....

It seems that many here have a much higher goal

@ WhatChaMissin.......thank you for the BOL wish.

 

[gsddiver]

Hi Kidsphoenixx,
I am a lot like you. I have a site about a TV show and most of the forums about this show have spun into questions about the stars sexuality, and people claiming to know/be the stars, and other garbage. So I created a forum, that's overly moderated, where fans can chat about the show and feel comfortable doing it. I have no desire to make a lot of money. Although, I'm certainly not opposed to it. LOL. People have come to trust my site, because we are ALWAYS accurate with our information, and now they are beginning to trust the forums the same way. I only have about 30 members but 99% of them are active and posting. So, I say begin small, make a forum where you can enjoy chatting and if you grow, great. If not, at least you have a place where you can make friends and enjoy the topic of your choice. Don't get bogged down in all the stuff that could happen. With a little planning and a lot of reading on TAZ I'm sure you'll do great.

Wendi
kylexy.net

 

[Kidsphoenixx]

What you've achieved is admirable GSDDiver.
Yes, I too am not looking to make money with my Forum, heck, I'm not even expecting to make much with my site either. LOL ( I had to find SOME way to "recirculate" all the body jewelry I bought wholesale, just so I could get the jewelry I WANTED ). The focus of my Forum, and my site, is and always will be, just a place to find stuff about a whole lot of stuff.
I'm feeling a little more "confident" about everything now, have tinkered with things, and am getting a better handle on it all. It only takes a few of those "AHA!!" moments for a lot of things to become a lot clearer.

 

[PalePhoenix]

I'm feeling a little more "confident" about everything now, have tinkered with things, and am getting a better handle on it all. It only takes a few of those "AHA!!" moments for a lot of things to become a lot clearer.

Very good. And to gsddiver: I've coincidentally seen your site before you began posting here. You would do well to continue customizing your forum's default appearance. The banner is appropriate, but huge. I am familiar with the "difficulties" you've been having regarding the orientation of actors, but I've found that this is most often due to their other roles and certain people's wishful thinking. Good luck to both of you.

 

[Kidsphoenixx]

TY PalePhoenix.
I visited your forum.... impressed, and bookmarked ;-)

 

[gsddiver]

PalePhoenix,
Yeah, I know I need to customize the forum more but honestly, I'm scared. LOL. I keep thinking that when we get bigger I'll do more with it. I know, it's just an excuse to not have to take the plunge and try editing the templates. But you have made me decide to take the plunge... If it all fails miserably then I blame you. LOL.

 

[PalePhoenix]

Wait, I'm dying for WHOSE sins?

PalePhoenix,
Yeah, I know I need to customize the forum more but honestly, I'm scared. LOL. I keep thinking that when we get bigger I'll do more with it. I know, it's just an excuse to not have to take the plunge and try editing the templates. But you have made me decide to take the plunge... If it all fails miserably then I blame you. LOL.

Go ahead and blame me. I'll remember to give myself fifty lashings that you finally moved beyond the out-of-the-box vBulletin look.

Never wait. Do what you want when you feel ready. If you want to take my notice as motivation, so be it. It's a well populated site with a decent forum hierarchy, good titles, and excellent activity. It would only be a shame if you didn't customize it enough to set yourself apart from the rest.

 

[Lisa]

Plus waiting until your site is bigger will make the job harder - do it while it's small. You'll have less people complaining about the change, less people demanding they have more input into the redesign than they actually deserve and only yourself to please

 

[gsddiver]

You guys are both right, it makes a lot more sense to do it now then wait until there are hundreds of people to complain. And, right now, most of the people that are posting are really great when we make changes. I heard nothing but good things when we ditched the ezboard for vbulletin. Also, when the main site changes, people are really positive about it so I should think they would be poistive about a change on the forums now. When we get a lot of new members, that may not be the case. Now is better.