The usefulness of a gambling forum?

Hello operators and affiliates :D

This is really a huge forum, I'm still learning, so whenever I'm starting a thread I look around to prevent creating something similar to already existing topics. Hope I didn't overlook this subject.

From your perspective, either as an Affiliate (or PR or Marketing) Manager either affiliate website owner, is it important for one affiliate to have gambling forum?
Would you recommend it as a regular part of affiliate site? How useful forums are to both sides?

I personally really love forums and when I see affiliate with a forum, it's a big plus from me!
They are great place to read about what players like, prefer, desire, don't like or would like. Great place for comparisons, for news and also for promotional posts.

Also, what's your favourite forum (except this one :D )?

I love forums, but the importance of forums is decreasing in my opinion. Not just gambling forums, all kind forums, no matter if it's about gambling, legal things or IT things.

I do think a big forum is a useful addition to your website and it can help you. But, I also do think that a forum without users and posts, damage your website and damage your authority. Community building and community management is also quite another kettle of fish than managing a website.

forums are a thing of the past, said it before and i'll say it again. social media has taken over the role of forums, well twitter and facebook have anyway.

forums can still be useful and decent still but think you'll see them keep declining

Forums ARE social media....

Facebook is just an extension of a forum....and in reality forums are just an extension of the old BBS message boards and if you did enough digging it is the road map example, that was looked at and improved upon that the internet was designed after. (anyone remember fidonet?)

Rick
Universal4

I think that forums are brilliant. There is so much knowledge and information, and a great way to find and interact with people in the same industry, but the amount of work and resources that it would take to maintain and grow it would be too much for one person.

I love forums mostly because I'm a social butterfly. I'd prefer face to face interaction of course but without that, forums or social media are the next best thing.

I have to agree with triple7 though. If the forum has no posts and no users it could ruin your authority.

Face to face?

You mean actually SPEAKING to another human...... in the same room....? wow what a concept.

Sheesh, next thing you know Renee is gonna suggest we actually be social......lol

I prefer actually talking with others too, I think it is sad to see to people sitting side-by-side and texting each other rather than actually speaking, and yet, between facebook and text messaging, that is what the new social media is attempting to teach people that it is better to communicate that way than talk.

Rick
Universal4

It is very hard to start up a new forum. Doesn't matter in which niche. It probably already has a good forum where all the interested people are on. For new topics people prefer to start a Facebook group.
Facebook groups are taking over the "old forums".

GPWA is the only forum I am still an active member on. In the past I was active on more forums but Facebook took over.

I am 100% for forums .. They give people a place to share knowledge and ideas , Gives people the chance to express opinions and theories that may not be understood elsewhere . a Place to meet friends and chat to acquaintances .. Keep them going as long as we can there is a place for the good old forum

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Originally Posted by Christiaan

It is very hard to start up a new forum. Doesn't matter in which niche. It probably already has a good forum where all the interested people are on. For new topics people prefer to start a Facebook group.
Facebook groups are taking over the "old forums".

GPWA is the only forum I am still an active member on. In the past I was active on more forums but Facebook took over.

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exactly, people are or have moved away from forums in the whole. doesn't mean some aren't useful but they are on the slide in general

Exactly. I am 100% into forums too, it's a great way to share knowledge, but forums are losing ground as people more and more discuss things on social media instead of forums and people less and less want to share knowledge.

Just take a look at the thousands of users that have signed up or lurk, just to get a seal or to get some info when they need some info, but do not share or review themselves at all. Killing for a forum.

And I do not like this trend. I do see the advantages of a forum. Like Miles is saying.

I don't have a forum. I had a (non gambling related) forum years ago, during the golden times for forums. It's quite difficult to build up a community and even more difficult to maintain a community. Building upp is a "chicken-egg"-story. People do not post on a empty forum. Without posts, no other posts. And... if a forum is active, you'll always have to balance between giving people space to debate and keeping up the atmosphere, as there were always some people that just want to flame around.

I agree that social media are starting to become more prominent than forums, but I don't believe that forums will go away entirely. They serve and important purpose and can keep discussions on track in a way that is difficult in social media, as one person or organization is "in charge" of all the primary content. A good forum will have multiple users contributing topics of conversation. As a result, traffic and participation are vital to forums.

I've gotten to know some people in real life thanks to being a member of a poker chip forum, and I've made some great friendships through the group. I joined on the recommendation of a friend, and I can't recall anyone ever saying "Hey you've got to check out this Facebook group," nor would they have shared anything with the group on their own FB page. I think finding the right niche -- and filling a gap that hasn't been filled -- are the most important keys to success.

What a great discussion! ^_^

I adore forums, so I'll join that side :) Also, I can see that some of you might understand that I was primarily thinking about industry forums, like this one. But I didn't - my question was about forums where members are gamblers. And we all know that gamblers are still not so open to social media. Think that they still like to stay under chosen registered nickname and avatar picture, rather than a real Facebook profile and everyday life.

Forums are like small worlds, gathering people with same interests or/and habits, where each of them can express true opinion and experience or seek for a good advice. In my opinion, they are still irreplaceable and precious. Themed communities!
Social media is unavoidable marketing tool nowadays, but still not a place for passionate gamblers. And also, I'm pretty sure social pages are still not the biggest traffic source to anyone in this industry. They are still just an amazing thing to spread the word about your company and website.
Because playing casino games is still kinda taboo and "accusing" in everyday environment. It's actually not easy to start and maintain your product Facebook page, if it's related to gambling. Not to even say advertising and promoting it. Even if you succeed, you have to really really work hard for likes, shares, comments, reaches, engagements.

Building a good and useful forum is also not easy. I know it from my experience - gambling one especially aaaand especially especially if you don't have any gambling related knowledge to share or to start poll or discussion with. It requires at least one or two fully dedicated people, who know what they are talking about.
But if you get your forum live, it will grow and you'll learn so many good and useful things. It's like having a survey about anything you want to know from your members and users. Just ask them and they will gladly reply, especially if you ask about their preferences.
If you add some achievements to it, they will be happy to participate.
I'm always saying that everything I've learned about players, their favourite games, bonus types, casinos - is thanks to forum!

And yes, I noticed so many times that if you're an operator, it's really good to be active on forums and write. Not only promotions and news related to your brand, but also in other topics. Members start paying attention to you and the brand you're representing, considering you step by step, as one of them and as a person they can rely on. They get to know you a bit better and they might start liking you, together with your brand. Or at least, if they criticise your post or promotion, you get a direct feedback and even a suggestion for improvement.
Gamblers definitely know better what they want than casino staff.

I use many forums, I still think there is a place for them but the posts above are right, they are diminishing. I've watched countless forums die a quick death.

In the past I've managed to save myself hundreds of pounds in car repairs and successfully challenge a number of parking tickets all through using forums. Not to mention meeting you guys on here ;).

Starting a new forum today, would not be a good idea for me.

I had a forum in the past. It was a major pain in the ass. Never do it again. About 4 years ago we shut it down and moved it to a facebook group. Now adays why would you build a forum when you can build a subreddit on reddit or a group on fb? I get 'owing' the content to your own site or whatever but unless there is a huge group of people actively commenting and talking on your posts like crazy already then it is probably a very uphill battle best left unfought.

I am not sure why people keep wanting to draw a distinction between social media and forums.

A forum is where people post stuff, people can read stuff and people can reply to stuff posted.
A social media site is where people post stuff, people can read stuff and people can reply to stuff posted.

But many absolutely refuse to call forums social media.

And yet almost any discussion of, or explanation of a social media site, a forum will match.

In my opinion Facebook is nothing but a forum that offers a few different features, and the media gave it a new name to create more buzz, it seemed to have stuck.

Twitter, as one example is quite different, in the scope as well as functionality and way in which the media is distributed, but if you group facebook and twitter together, certainly forums fit within the same category as they existed first, and have much longer experience distributing the media people are being social about.

In fact forums are easier to use, are more organized, and much easier to find the kind of information one might be looking for on specific topics.

Rick
Universal4

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Originally Posted by universal4

I am not sure why people keep wanting to draw a distinction between social media and forums.

A forum is where people post stuff, people can read stuff and people can reply to stuff posted.
A social media site is where people post stuff, people can read stuff and people can reply to stuff posted.

But many absolutely refuse to call forums social media.

And yet almost any discussion of, or explanation of a social media site, a forum will match.

In my opinion Facebook is nothing but a forum that offers a few different features, and the media gave it a new name to create more buzz, it seemed to have stuck.

Twitter, as one example is quite different, in the scope as well as functionality and way in which the media is distributed, but if you group facebook and twitter together, certainly forums fit within the same category as they existed first, and have much longer experience distributing the media people are being social about.

In fact forums are easier to use, are more organized, and much easier to find the kind of information one might be looking for on specific topics.

Rick
Universal4

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tell you what, you get 1000 under 30's together and try and tell them a forum is social media and at least 990 will laugh at you.

i know you love this place, that is your choice, i come on as sometimes there is useful and decent info to find but to keep banging a drum saying forums are on a par with social media, and lets be right here, when most people say social media they are normally referring to twitter and facebook you are well out.

trouble forums have it is so hard to build, then keep an online community, just look at this place, loads of registered users but hardly anyone posts. twitter and facebook are completely the opposite as people are already there, look at BBC news they can get a news story to millions within seconds using social media, not a chance doing that using forums as forums aren't social media, they are forums.

I never said that the management or promotion of a forum isn't difficult.

I also never said that the under 30's have not been convinced the the general media that there is a distinction between a forum and the "new" social media sites.

The fact remains, except for functions provided, most would be very hard pressed to give any kind of definition of a social media site that a forum does not fit. (not counting functions that some site possess that others do not)

In fact, you mention communities, well most social media sites attempt to create successful communities, and yet any successful forum has already accomplished that.

It is the general media's fault that they seem to have wanted to attach some sort of stigma to the word forum, and yet not attach it to any other form of forum (social media site using slightly different software with slightly different functions).

Rick
Universal4

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Originally Posted by universal4

I never said that the management or promotion of a forum isn't difficult.

I also never said that the under 30's have not been convinced the the general media that there is a distinction between a forum and the "new" social media sites.

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I never said you did, to either points

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The fact remains, except for functions provided, most would be very hard pressed to give any kind of definition of a social media site that a forum does not fit. (not counting functions that some site possess that others do not)

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Social Media has got it's name because it is simply that, social, it can be shared to the masses, quickly, worldwide, quickly. Not just to 6 users sat logged into a forum.

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In fact, you mention communities, well most social media sites attempt to create successful communities, and yet any successful forum has already accomplished that.

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Lost for words with that one LOL

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It is the general media's fault that they seem to have wanted to attach some sort of stigma to the word forum, and yet not attach it to any other form of forum (social media site using slightly different software with slightly different functions).

Rick
Universal4

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No one wants to attach any stigma to forums, they just aren't viewed as useful and/or popular as they were, because things have moved on in the whole.

Forums are an excellent tool for many purposes.

For starters, it increases the stickiness of your site. Forum users tend to hit a bunch of pages and spend long periods of time on your site, both which help your analytics which in turn give you better search engine rankings.

Forums started tanking out a few years ago when social media got big, but many are starting to come back after getting bored with seeing a plethora of selfies and Aunt Edna's lastest cooking creation.

It's a great way to connect with your readers as well. You'd be surprised how many people view website owners/forum admins as authority figures. I've had numerous people tell me they couldn't believe I'd take the time to email them or converse with them. What's funny is that I'm just an ordinary guy, just like them.

Forums are a great place to run contests as well.

Lastly, (I'm giving away some secret sauce here) If you have a forum that is getting good traffic, google/bing see this and will increase the frequency in which they crawl your forum threads. This is an excellent resource as if you have a new article, you can post the link within your forum and get it crawled within 15 minutes and indexed within a half hour or less. I understand that there are other tools out there that accomplish this task, but this is a great resource for the less technical webmaster such as myself, to get their stuff indexed quicker than if I were to post it on the site and hope that it gets spidered and indexed 3 days later.