Marketing 101

[ICE]

I started checking profiles and found that half of them enrolled and never came back for a second look. One day was enough for them. Many others stuck around for a week or two and haven't been back. The counter shows 1815 members but the actual number that still come around is a small fraction of that.

Shirley, there must be some creative ways to ***** performance. 1000 active members equates to 50,000 members if only 20% get involved. I don't know the actual numbers, but I'm guessing 20% is a stretch.

Here's an idea. Open the entire forum up to advertisers with two requirements. First they must pay Jeff and second they must pay the rest of us. For every visit to the forum, a member earns points. For every post...points. Start a thread and earn points. Post a picture for triple Gold bonus points.

All the points would be good at the retailers establishment. Hell, retailers send me coupons daily for up to 30% off just because I live on planet Earth. What I am talking about is targeted advertising. They spend a fortune on targeted advertising. Google is targeted advertising. We are the crowd Home Depot, Ace Hardware and Geico want. This forum is the bull's eye. {we'd have to be nice to HD for a while} GMC and Volvo....Target and Bed Bath & Beyond.... REI would love us. Theater chains would eat it up.

Name a retailer and I bet they want us.

Why? Because we have money, that's why. We are the demographic they clamor for. We have the right income, age range, education and we look damn fine too.

Name a retailer that doesn't spend a ton on advertising. The points here are just another coupon without the USPS. There could be some bodacious giveaways because they hit the target instead of a half million mailers.

There are creative ways to allocate discounts that would encourage members to stay active.

There's no doubt that the current forum host, software or whatever it is, isn't up to the task. So Jeff, you may need to take out a second on the ranch, but I'm :butt you all the way. If it works out you might get a day off in 20 years or an IPO in 3.

A free forum that pays you for being you and doggone it, you deserve it.

Oh! Forgive me for calling you Shirley.

Tiger

My first reaction:

This place would be populated by a bunch of screwballs looking for a free cup at Starbucks.

Upon reflection:

OK by me, as long as the place catches fire.

 

[Francis Vineyard]

To generate traffic from bargain hunters will contribute little if any towards the intent and purpose of this site.

 

[ICE]

To generate traffic from bargain hunters will contribute little if any towards the intent and purpose of this site.

Bargain hunters aren't going to put much effort into getting the bargain. For that matter, how many of you clip coupons? That's what I thought and I don't either. I like freebies that come from what I do naturally. Recently I discovered that a credit card I use awards points. I had no clue and I've got 42,000 points to squander. Pep Boys just sent me a certificate for $165.00 and that was a surprise. It doesn't take much thinking to realize that I'll use the credit card for more purchases and Pep Boys for all of my vehicle maintenance needs. If either one of them required callisthenics's, it would be a nonstarter.

I am an astute shopper and I do look for bargains. I would be tickled to find out that my 508 posts here have garnered $15 off on a $100 purchase at Lowes, $12 towards anything at Wallgreens and a dozen other goodies for something that I am inclined to do anyway. Would I join a forum and post 508 times for that? Well no and I doubt anybody else would either.

Would those retailers participate? They send me that in the mail at random. Would they feel better about it if they new I was sitting on the bullseye?

Being one that's interested in learning from a forum, would I pay more attention to a free forum that rewards me? I think so.

It would work. Do I expect anyone to pay any attention to my ramblings? No. Did I enjoy dreaming up the business model? Yes. From the beginning of this forum I recognized, that if done right, there's a pot of gold waiting to be found.

In the early days there was a suggestion that a non-profit association be formed. I cautioned against that because I saw the gold.

I put this in the OP,

"My first reaction:

This place would be populated by a bunch of screwballs looking for a free cup at Starbucks." for the specific purpose of eliciting your comment. I already had the response and didn't want the OP to be too lengthy.

Tiger

Shirley, it's your turn.

 

[mjesse]

Reducing the "goal" of this site to "hits" or "traffic" or "member count" sounds a lot like the "goals" of the ICC board (which is DEAD by the way)

I come here to get answers and feedback from my peers on both sides of the counter. And I find it everyday.

I appreciate your enthusiasm and participation in this forum. Just like every other member, you bring a certain perspective to the mix that enriches the experience.

But let's leave it at that.

I don't think our goals should be defined as highlighted above, rather you tell your friends and I'll tell mine, and we will continue to see the site grow as a quality destination.

[analogy]

When I want a good hamburger I don't go to McDonald's, I go to the place that cares about good ingredients and customer service (insert your favorite local place here)

I don't want to see this site become McDonald's, i.e. "We have 1,000,000,000 active users!"

I come here because the folks who frequent this site really know their stuff, and I can learn something every time I visit.

Please don't take offense, none intended. Just sharing my viewpoint.

mj

 

[fatboy]

Spot on mj......I am in total agreement. To me it's the quality of posts, not the quantity.

And no disrespect to you Tiger, JMHO

 

[cda]

Those are better stats than church attendance and membership

 

[AegisFPE]

I think the incentive to post should be the individual's care and commitment; this is the value this forum provides. Posts are generally by people who want to improve the built environment while sharing and growing their knowledge by raising or responding to specific questions or field conditions.

IMHO we already have an incentive - it's the "Thanks" button. Each of user shows a running total of how many times they've been thanked in how many posts.

If the goal is to to have quality posts, then accumulating "Thanks" is the way to do it. Public officials and engineers are generally prohibited from receiving gifts, lest they be considered bribes, but there is no limit on receiving "thanks," though the latter may be harder to come by and require greater thought and work!

I appreciate the humbleness with which Jeff maintains this forum. There are multiple forums out there, and I'm sure there's another domain that could be had if someone wanted to try to build what they considered to be a better mousetrap (wait, didn't that happen at least once already!?), but let's not break this one!

 

[ICE]

I got 20 minutes of fun out of it.

 

[ICE]

I could get a solid hour of fun with this on the public side of the forum.

I sure got the numbers wrong in the OP.

If anybody has the actual numbers, well I am curious.