Help

Starting: Launching Your Community

Tips For a Successful Launch

Build your ezboard community around a specific subject

If your community is about music, for example, it is suggested not to have the community dedicated to music in general, as there are many communities about music and having yet another new one about music may mean that your community will not get many members. In this case, it is suggested to narrow your community's subject from "music" to something like "Britney Spears" or "Violins".

Start off with only a few forums

Having many forums may intimidate new members and discourage them from posting. As your board's popularity grows feel free to add more forums.

Don't expect instant popularity

Creating a successful community takes time and work. Don't expect hundreds of members or even hundreds of posts in your first few days -- as this will just set you up for disappointment. As weeks and months go by, activity (views, members, and posts) will slowly increase, and you will be on your way to running a successful community.

Promote but don't spam

Promoting is very important when it comes to running a successful community. Be sure to submit your board to Forum Find (go to your Control Center, My Community, and click on Forum Find Settings), advertise it at the Public Showcase, and submit it to search engines. Don't go around to tons of other communities and post in several forums saying "come to my ezboard" - this might be deemed as spamming and get administrators upset at you. It's okay to go to communities and advertise, but only do it if they have an advertising forum and be sure to check their advertising policies before posting.

Have a good design

If you aren't very skilled with HTML & CSS, feel free to use one of ezboard's themes or get a custom made one ready for use at the Community Center. Of course, you can always change themes around and customize them to your liking, but always be sure that text is readable and that colors are easy on the eyes. If you are good with HTML & CSS, it is recommended to create your own unique design, with good navigation, a clean look, and more.

NEXT: Organization: Effectively Using Categories & Forums »