All Poster Forum
Off-Topic Discussion => Board Issues, Suggestions, Updates, Questions & Fixes => Topic started by: Dread_Pirate_Mel on October 15, 2010, 08:57:39 PM
-
Should the forum name be changed to something clearly related to "movie posters"?
Being off the board for a bit has given me a bit of perspective:
(1) This forum overall is doing well. It has the best - and coolest - movie poster collectors on the internet. Spend a few minutes on Expresso Beans and you'll quickly how dorky other forums are. So the core members are the prime asset of this forum.
(2) However, a "catch all" poster forum was a noble idea but, given the specialized and well-established competition, has not and cannot work in practice.
(3) ExpressoBeans dominates and will continue to dominate general art prints. Given the vast database of posters on Expresso, this forum cannot compete in that arena. Indeed, Expresso is simply technically superior to this forum.
(4) Gigposters.com will continue to dominate music posters. This forum can never compete in that arena.
(5) 95% of the posts on this forum concern movie posters. The advertising, music, and theater sections are a dead zone. Plus, I suspect there are probably very few advertising/theater poster collectors anyway.
(6) This forum is invisible on Google. Type in any "movie poster ___" query and this forum does not show up. MPF shows up #1 on virtually every query.
(7) Very few, if any, new members are finding this site on their own. Most new members are poached from MPF.
(8) MPF is a dead zone but will continue to exist as long as the advertisers support it.
(9) This forum is very "top heavy" - the top 20 posters are responsible for 80% of the posts. (See attachment). A broader membership base is needed to sustain growth. (Perhaps this forum and NS4 could merge?)
Would a new forum name help the situation? Or possibly a "mirror site" of this site with a movie poster related name?
How sayest the rest of you?
(http://i691.photobucket.com/albums/vv275/Forty_Candles/Posters-1.jpg)
-
So because EB is the be-all-end-all for art prints, APF shouldn't have a forum for them? I don't follow that logic. Why should APF change their name? It hasn't been around a year yet. It takes time to develop a following and build a name. No need to overreact
-
Andy spent a lot of time with search engine optimization so that his site would pop up on the first page of google searches. So it only makes sense that they would find MPF first when searching. Plus the name in of itself is geared toward movie posters.
T and H wanted to keep it open to all posters as H has become a big collector of advertising posters and has brought a few others over that collect in that area. But yes this forum is mainly full of movie related collectors.
-
I wouldn't be adverse to a name change, but I don't think it makes a difference to anything. Andy markets his forum to make money - Thierry and I could care less about making money with the forum. Now, I would like to reach more people for membership only because it would be cool to increase diversity.
By the way, if you look at our registration numbers, we're over 2000 "members"! What a fucking joke that is. That number is derived from spambot registrations. Imagine how many bots Andy counts in his numbers when reaching 4000 "members".
Back to the point - search engine optimization takes a fair amount of effort. I don't have the time for it, and Thierry doesn't have the technical ability to do so. If anyone has suggestions, I'd be willing to hear them.
Also, we're not just about posters. We're prints, lobby cards, window cards, books and other things all movie related. Even the advertising posters and graphic art posters are for the most part centered around movies.
So, any new title would reflect that the site deals with visual arts memorabilia - including television, theater, movies and the like.
I'd like to hear what King Cheese has to say about this.
-
I think it's a pity that there are so little posts of non-movie posters. Then again with movie posters the collector market is already so diverse and enormous. The entire poster collecting area is huge and almost impossible to cover entirely.
A lot of shown movie posters don't interest me in the slightest, although I like to see them and sometimes they do stir. You guys even persuaded me in buying a Tyler Stout. I'm pretty sure most of you guys don't share my collecting tastes and I'm glad of it. I think that's the main reason for a forum in the first place, to see what you would not see otherwise and to show off the stuff you could not show off any other way.
I feel that the information value of a forum is subjective, fragmented and very user unfriendly to find back.
So I say Mel, continue to post and read posts and keep people enthused as you do and don't be too analytical about it. I say Thierry and Holiday keep up the good work and I say Mondo and all the others post a bit more, especially in the non-movie sections. I will beef up immediately.
Wim
-
I would just like to say that I dont think a name change would be of any use,the current name fits the forums diversity that i prefer.
Im a member of MPF NS4 but i hardly ever spend any time on them because i cannot stand being bombarded with ads while im trying to read.
Advertising revenue would be the only way that this forum could compete with the others and raise its profile on search engines,but then i feel it would lose its individuality and become just another Java loaded flash dazzle forum.
Simple is best for me.
The majority of posts do seem to be about movie posters but also the Alamo/Rolling thread is hugely popular too, that part of the forum holds no interest for me but i can choose not to read it.I am however glad that it is there to read because it keeps the forum active,there is nothing worse being a member of a forum that has very little topics and discussions per day.
Stew
-
Interestingly, I would have said the same about the Alamo threads and other graphic prints discussions. Recently, though, we've got this fella producing posters for Blade Runner and there's a few others that I've picked up in the past that have slowly brought me around to liking a lot of this material. I now find myself referencing the old posts of the people that have been there for a long time.
The point is, I think it is diverse, but I also agree that we've likely reached the natural limit of that diversity given the other forums that are out there dedicated to things like concert posters, av equipment and the like.
And I truly agree that only advertising revenue could fund increased awareness of the forum, and going in that direction would sorta defeat the purpose of why Thierry and I started this place to begin with - as an escape for the bullshit-driven views of one owner who had his eye more on the dollar than on the membership. Thierry and I have to come out of pocket a few hundred a year for this place, and we can live with that.
Word of mouth is a good way for us to get known. It keeps every tom dick and harry from joining. By the time people find this place, they have to dig a bit, and those who are willing to do so are likely to be better members for us than the idiot with a passing interest in what we do here.
-
Have we not heard the saying "If it's not broken, don't fix it". I don't know what the problem is here? Not even a year yet and your thinking of changing the name, or joining up with another forum!!! I think the site is doing fine. Maybe there aren't enough posts in other area's, but they are there if needs be.
I like the "Family" feel the site has, and you cannot buy that. In time the Family will grow, and as Zorba said some where, "there's always more Guests on than Members", well when they realise this site is more fun than MPF, they'll be jumping ship. People get in a comfort zone, and change is a slow process with them, Time is the key.
I say leave as is for now. Holiday and Thierry are doing a Jollyfine job, and Ted works his arse off for this site; and Mel........He's Mel. ;)
-
I can see both sides of the argument .. But I agree its way too soon to be judging the success or demise of this forum .. as far as coming up in searches .. outside of purposely working for high search engine results (like embedding key words and tags and all that fun *rolls eyes* stuff) all we can do is keep posting .. Our topics have the keywords in them .. I did a google search for "movie poster alamo forum" and APF was number 8 on the page due to the number of times those words appear on some of our threads .. Obviously MPF and EB came up before APF but we were still there on the 1st page with a fairly general search phrase ..
So all I can say is keep posting about what we love and that along with word of mouth will increase awareness ;)
Now it would be awesome to have a movie poster database like EB .. and as I mentioned in another thread it could be built solely by members .. If only the structure was there so that we could upload images and info .. I know its not an easy task to incorporate but Im also not aware of the options available from the forum hosting side of things either. It could be a simple add on that they handle on the back end then again it may be a totally custom job too .. :P
PS
GLAD TO HAVE YA BACK MEL !! :D
-
A few quick thoughts...
First of all, I love the fact that this forum is free of both sponsors and advertisers. It is truly a site by collectors and for collectors! However, I realize that means Holiday and T must be dealing with some out of pocket costs for all this so any changes will cost money. That said, I don't think it would be a waste of time to promote APF more as it would bring more people, more discussions, and more posters to our community. Yes, we have a great core group of people, but we need to grow that if we hope to stay relevant through the years. With that in mind...
NAME CHANGE: Changing the name from APF (to something more Movie specific) would change the vision that Holiday and Thierry have put forward. I think a lot can be done within the existing vision so I don't think it is necessary to change the name just yet...
PROMOTION: Do yourself a favor and search on something like "eBay" on Google. You not only get a link to the site, but a short paragraph describing the site and a few of the sublinks (eBay Autos, etc...) as well. If you search on "all poster forum", this is what comes up:
(http://img580.imageshack.us/img580/3452/apfr.png)
Now contrast that with what comes up when you search on "movie poster forum":
(http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/611/mpf.png)
Quite a difference I think. In APF's blurb, it just takes text directly off the site which doesn't help explain at all what we do here. There are also no sublinks. I'm not sure how much SEO (search engine optimization) costs, but I do think it would be a worthwhile endeavor. I think the APF name would be totally fine if the blurb mentioned movie posters, concert posters, advertising posters, etc... and there were sublinks to each of those sections (which might require different landing pages for each).
Anyway, as mentioned, I know any changes cost time and money. I don't have time, but I do have money and I would be happy to donate to the cause (within reason of course). I think it would only benefit us all to help grow the hobby and our community in particular.
My $0.02.
-
Harry, if each of us only donates 2 cents, that won't add up to a lot!
Seriously, put me down for being willing to contribute some cash for upgrades or improvements (and it can come from Bruce the collector of pressbooks, travel posters, 1939 World's Fair items, reverse painted glass frames, gga paperbacks, and more, and not from Bruce the owner of eMoviePoster.com (http://www.eMoviePoster.com), so that this will still be a forum by collectors for collectors!).
Bruce
-
Spoken from the heart Bruce,but should the forum not also be about the collectors,the dealers,the novices,the curious etc?
No way a jibe at you bud
Stew
-
I'm happy to promote this forum - and have recruited a few members here - but the fact remains that "allposterforum" is a misnomer because this is a de facto movie poster forum.
I think that one of the reasons that NS4 never really grew is because it has a long-winded, not particularly obvious name "Not Suitable For General Exhibition" and a TERRIBLE website address (http://stylec.yuku.com) Huh?
So right now this forum is like a little cool island that nobody can reach or find out about unless invited. Wouldn't it be great if people could find us the way most of us found MPF - a Google search?
How about just a mirror site with a "movie poster name" to start? I bought the domain "moviepostercollectors.com" a while back. I was going to use it for my own site but I'm happy to donate it to the cause. Or really any other "movieposter______" name will suffice.
And just as importantly, this forum and NS4 should merge - much of the membership overlaps, the growth of both forums has stalled (because MPF is sucking up all the new hobby members from the Internet), and both forums need a more apropos name.
And of course we can help out if $$$ will be required.
-
Mel,wouldn`t the mirror site need just as much promotion as APF ?
Stew
-
Mel,wouldn`t the mirror site need just as much promotion as APF ?
Stew
Well, I'm not a website design guru like Holiday but I think a mirror site would facilitate a smoother transition to a "movieposter____" name.
-
It just seems to me that no matter what a forum is called,it wont guarantee a higher position on Google.
Search ranking must surely be a cash revenue generator for the various search engines in use.
Stew
-
Why does this need to be some kind of popularity contest? If you have a quality forum, which I believe APF is, people will find it eventually. Let the forum grow at its own pace. Not everything needs to be about instant gratification. There are things worth waiting for.
As for donations, I'm all for this. If there was some kind of "Donation" button or link, I'm sure many of us would be more than happy to send some funds to offset costs.
-
Doc, for some reason i have started to read your posts in the style of Groucho. Much fun is had thumbup
stew
-
Why does this need to be some kind of popularity contest? If you have a quality forum, which I believe APF is, people will find it eventually.
That is what I was trying to convey with my post... My thoughts of SEO were specifically so collectors of movie and other posters can find us. As long as we get on equal footing with MPF I think the quality of our community and our content will speak for itself.
-
I think that one of the reasons that NS4 never really grew is because it has a long-winded, not particularly obvious name "Not Suitable For General Exhibition" and a TERRIBLE website address (http://stylec.yuku.com) Huh?
So right now this forum is like a little cool island that nobody can reach or find out about unless invited. Wouldn't it be great if people could find us the way most of us found MPF - a Google search?
And just as importantly, this forum and NS4 should merge - much of the membership overlaps, the growth of both forums has stalled (because MPF is sucking up all the new hobby members from the Internet), and both forums need a more apropos name.
Mel, with all due respect - APF and NS4 will never merge (unless Ari or Phil gets sick of running the forum). The two forums are disparate, with clearly disparate memberships. Many of the most active posters on NS4 are not even members of APF. NS4 has a unique charm and is a place where basically ANYTHING goes. Many do not appreciate this and so choose to avoid it. But those of us that do "get" it would not want it to change at all...
As others have said and I am sure Ari might chime in at some point - I seriously doubt the goal of NS4 has been or ever will be to have the largest member base or be considered THE poster forum. That's just simply not what it is all about. As for the web address it is simply a product of the forum host - YUKU. I am not sure what it costs Ari to run the site but it is probably less than what it would cost to have a dedicated URL. Again, bells and whistles are not what a discussion forum should be about.
I would also loathe the day when those factors become the driving goal of APF!
I also do not necessarily feel more members is good for the forum - it really should be about quality people, quality collections and quality posts. The numbers simply do not matter in the end...
In my opinion, this forum is doing just fine and I see no reason to change anything at all!
-
I was curious about the distribution of posts on this forum, so I ran a quick analysis in Excel. We've made 16,505 posts in 10 months. The top 10 posters are responsible for 54% of them, the next ten 24%, so the top 20 are responsible for 80% of the posts. The top 50 posters are responsible for 95%.
So I'd say that's pretty good, especially for a 10 month old forum. I still think it would be ideal to consolidate all the forums into one advertising free forum to be even more viable in the long term.
(http://posternirvana.com/0DNE/ANALYSIS.jpg)
-
I now have more posts than corky-suck-my-ass. ;D
Mel is and has always been my favorite poster but I must echo thoughts of others as to the aint broke dont fix it idea. Though NS4 is full of great info and I do enjoy reading it on an almost every day basis I have NEVER posted there for a reason. I prefer the um lets say respect others have for each other here.
This is just a nice place to share a common love of stuff without having to worry about shit that has nothing to do with posters.
-
Funny you should mention that Zorba,if i stay awake another hour,Carson gets dumped down to number ten "most time online"
Stew
-
To me it is working fine... The top 20% of posters adding 80% of posts is probably the same in any forum.
Multiple forums offer different qualities. Consolidating might drive some people away. I know this forum is bordering more on the recently issued posters rather than the old eg 50's stuff for my liking, and posts I make here myself wont really change that. NS4 is concentrated more on my poster collecting style.
Are you Mel thinking of starting your own forum, taking members with you, running it your way? ;)
Raising the awareness of this forum I support.
First thing is to make this site more search engine friendly:
There are some forum 'mods' available to install eg for:
metadata: http://www.simplemachines.org/community/index.php?topic=230321.msg2538787#msg2538787 (http://www.simplemachines.org/community/index.php?topic=230321.msg2538787#msg2538787)
creating a sitemap: http://custom.simplemachines.org/mods/index.php?mod=755 (http://custom.simplemachines.org/mods/index.php?mod=755)
and then get as many links to this forum as possible from popular sites (many will be free to get links added)
eg on, emovieposter - Bruce may even put it in a prominent position on the site if it is seen this forum can foster interest in poster collecting ;) ,
and maybe add to this list: http://www.vintagepostercollector.com/ (http://www.vintagepostercollector.com/)
-
Im a member of MPF NS4 but i hardly ever spend any time on them because i cannot stand being bombarded with ads while im trying to read.
What ads? (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/Smileys/default/huh.gif) I haven't seen ads there for a long time.
NS4 is the #1 website for viewing quality daybills. ;)
-
What ads? (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/Smileys/default/huh.gif) I haven't seen ads there for a long time.
NS4 is the #1 website for viewing quality daybills. ;)
cheers
-
You get ads on NS4 when you aren't logged in.
If you want to still view in guest mode ie by not logging in, but want to disable the videos, follow my instructions here: http://stylec.yuku.com/topic/6702 (http://stylec.yuku.com/topic/6702)
-
Its very nice here...no ads, no self absorbed better than thou assholes....just nice. ;D
-
what makes us really cool, just like ns4, is that we could care less about whether people participate or not (don't take that harshly people). That's why I just don't care to go to the effort of ranking up the forum or trolling for new members or whatever. I have a core group of people, and somewhere somehow over time it will continue to grow. Or it won't. C'est la vie!
-
what makes us really cool
We're not nearly as cool as the Expresso dweebs:
(http://i691.photobucket.com/albums/vv275/Forty_Candles/Dweeb.jpg)
-
We're not nearly as cool as the Expresso dweebs:
(http://i691.photobucket.com/albums/vv275/Forty_Candles/Dweeb.jpg)
That's a pretty cool set up, IMO. I guess I am a dweeb after all. ;D
I almost got this bus shelter (http://scificollectables.ecrater.com/p/1691167/star-wars-bus-shelter-poster) a few months ago.
(http://i766.photobucket.com/albums/xx303/NeoLoco80/jangofettbusshelter.jpg)
-
Let's get real if you google poster forum APF is number 4 behind only 2 by MPF and one for NS4 not bad for a forum started in the last year. All things considered this forum is above the fold so people who need to find this forum will and people who go to the first entry alone will not. If that how it will be thats how it will be.
-
what makes us really cool, just like ns4, is that we could care less about whether people participate or not (don't take that harshly people). That's why I just don't care to go to the effort of ranking up the forum or trolling for new members or whatever. I have a core group of people, and somewhere somehow over time it will continue to grow. Or it won't. C'est la vie!
Well said.
I just don't know what mel's after!! Is he unhappy here?
-
I just don't know what mel's after!! Is he unhappy here?
It's Mel being Mel.
-
No I'm not "unhappy" here - like I said the forum is doing relatively well. That's great that APF is coming up 4th on the "poster forum" Google search. But most potential members probably type "movie poster ____" when searching and APF doesn't come up. Furthermore, we shouldn't be satisfied with the status quo and everyone wants to see more active new members.
Thierry has repeatedly posted that he's "tired of seeing the same 5 people post."
A couple of people (including Holiday) posted that this forum "might fail" if I left. Which is certainly not true but we have lost three major contributors - Carson (dare I speak his name?), Wonka, and Jeannie. If 4-5 more major contributors left, the forum could fail, given how top-heavy it is.
As great as they are, I think the reality is that NS4 and MOPO have been stagnant for years. They all have a great core - but relatively small - group of contributors. If you read over those forums, you'll see a good number of complaints about the lack of new members. Some NS4 members dismissed MPF as a "bunch of newbies" but clearly there was a hint of jealousy in those remarks.
I checked Expresso Beans. They have 700 members who have made more than 100 posts. Of course, it's been around several years and the general art print hobby is larger than movie posters, but it's indicative of what could have happened if this hobby weren't split into four forums.
I received this message on Ebay from an MPF member this morning. How many of you have seen something similar?
"Check out allposterforum.com - everybody left MPF and went there a year ago. MPF is a dead zone now."
"funnily enough i was going to post on MPF last night and ask why the hell nobody ever responds to anything! then thought better of it as i didn't want to upset anyone. that explains things. thanks!"
Given all that, it's hardly outrageous to suggest that the forum might benefit from a name change reflecting what actually interests members and what might draw in new members. At minimum, 50s excellent suggestions should be followed.
-
I have recently discovered the "who's on line button" and the times I've been on, there alway's seems to be Guests registering for membership, but the number of members doesn't seem to rise. Are most of them being rejected?
-
Those are some good points, Mel.
Your comment about APF not showing up when "movie poster _____" is googled is a good point. Personally, I would have never found APF if I had not seen a post about it on MPF.
That is cool how Expresso Beans has that many "regulars". Clicking on MPF is usually a pretty boring experience for me, since it seems it is just a collection of random posts from some random people, and like Archie has said, it's all somewhat censored there.
-
You get ads on NS4 when you aren't logged in.
If you want to still view in guest mode ie by not logging in, but want to disable the videos, follow my instructions here: http://stylec.yuku.com/topic/6702 (http://stylec.yuku.com/topic/6702)
Thanks for that link 50`s i had a look,i tried to follow the instructions,however im only using the standard IE8 firewall and the solution did not seem to apply with that firewall. Can you help out with some more info?
Thanks
Stew
Sorry Mel for dragging this off topic somewhat.
PM please 50`s
-
Great points all around.
Search engine optimization should be explored...
What I really dig about APF is the diversity of it's membership. That is where our strength lies.
I don't see any reason why any forums should 'merge.' Each has it's own identity and there is cross pollination going on all the time. Seems healthy 'as is.'
The APF community seems to be growing slowly yet steadily. Some recent new contributors have added awesome dimension. I don't want to be specific and alienate any one that I accidentally overlook, but I really enjoy seeing what everyone collects.
Slow and steady growth. I like it. thumbup
Now...if we could get more of the many guests to register and contribute...
-
Now...if we could get more of the many guests to register and contribute...
I agree thats crucial Brude,come on guests, sign up! Dive in and let us get to know you ;D
Stew
-
I have recently discovered the "who's on line button" and the times I've been on, there alway's seems to be Guests registering for membership, but the number of members doesn't seem to rise. Are most of them being rejected?
Yes, most are rejected -- spambots. If we used the number of actual registrations as our "membership" tally, we would be over 2300 "members". I could then say that our growth is more aggressive than any other forum out there! Except, that would be a lie. Actual meat registrations are at 196. The rest are all spambots.
-
Its pretty sad that they all fake numbers....
Another reason this place kicks ass. ITS ALL REAL.
-
Bloody Spambots gun1 spam gun2
-
Now...if we could get more of the many guests to register and contribute...
There is a forum setting that presently allows guests to browse the forum. So, membership is only required to post to the site, not to view anything on the site. My thought was that I don't want people registering just to view the forum, if they don't want to participate in the forum. It seems to me that forcing membership on those people is nothing more than a surreptitious attempt to boost membership numbers. The only reason I'm pointing this out is to do a reality check on my thinking. Is there any reason to require all who wish to view the forum to register for membership?
-
That line of reasoning makes perfect sense. I have always browsed forum for many months before registering and eventually posting. I like to know the tone of the major contributors before putting myself out there as a new poster.
-
Is there any reason to require all who wish to view the forum to register for membership?
No, guests should be able to view to their heart's content.
Those who want to contribute will join when the mood strikes them.
I just want to see what they collect. hitself
-
As great as they are, I think the reality is that NS4 and MOPO have been stagnant for years. They all have a great core - but relatively small - group of contributors. If you read over those forums, you'll see a good number of complaints about the lack of new members. Some NS4 members dismissed MPF as a "bunch of newbies" but clearly there was a hint of jealousy in those remarks.
Maybe it's time for a membership drive... "Please visit NSFGE, we serve punch and pie!"
BTW, 'sympathy' would be a more apt word than 'jealousy'...
-
BTW, 'sympathy' would be a more apt word than 'jealousy'...
Funny. No, I think this discussion has made clear that we're doing just fine. Also, I wouldn't call NS4 stagnant. They are just as happy where they are. Some would say that NS4 is like going to graduate school for poster collecting.
-
Funny. No, I think this discussion has made clear that we're doing just fine.
There are too many new posts! I can't keep up with them. We need to start randomly kicking out members to keep down the post count! (Naturally, yours truly would be exempt!) 8)
-
Funny. No, I think this discussion has made clear that we're doing just fine. Also, I wouldn't call NS4 stagnant. They are just as happy where they are. Some would say that NS4 is like going to graduate school for poster collecting.
That comment was with regards to MPF, not the fine folks at APF...
-
I'm happy to promote this forum - and have recruited a few members here - but the fact remains that "allposterforum" is a misnomer because this is a de facto movie poster forum.
I think that one of the reasons that NS4 never really grew is because it has a long-winded, not particularly obvious name "Not Suitable For General Exhibition" and a TERRIBLE website address (http://stylec.yuku.com) Huh?
So right now this forum is like a little cool island that nobody can reach or find out about unless invited. Wouldn't it be great if people could find us the way most of us found MPF - a Google search?
How about just a mirror site with a "movie poster name" to start? I bought the domain "moviepostercollectors.com" a while back. I was going to use it for my own site but I'm happy to donate it to the cause. Or really any other "movieposter______" name will suffice.
And just as importantly, this forum and NS4 should merge - much of the membership overlaps, the growth of both forums has stalled (because MPF is sucking up all the new hobby members from the Internet), and both forums need a more apropos name.
And of course we can help out if $$$ will be required.
Just to clarify,
NSFGE is an old Aussie Film rating, and it made/makes sense in the why and how the forum came about.
Style C, gosh now Im feeling old, many will know about an older forum, called STYLE B, that was spawned out of MOPO, which had some very interesting times.
And NS4 did take off, members come and go, and always will. NS4 has been slower of late, one reason is most of us on there have talked and talked for years, young blood and contraversy is what seems to make for lively discussion.
Re Advertising on NS4, I think you only see it if you arent logged in, as I sure dont put any up, or see any myself.
APF is good for me, as it seems there are a lot of collectors of newer posters (which previously was the domain of MPF), NS4 has always been MAINLY (not all) Vintage stuff.
Re name change, I like it as is, as i come across other stuff, Ill post in the other areas.
Danke,
Ari
-
Just to clarify,
NSFGE is an old Aussie Film rating, and it made/makes sense in the why and how the forum came about.
And NS4 did take off, members come and go, and always will. NS4 has been slower of late, one reason is most of us on there have talked and talked for years, young blood and contraversy is what seems to make for lively discussion.
Fair points Ari.
"Not Strictly for General Exhibition" is a cool name but unwieldy as an internet address and unfamiliar to us Yankees. But the real issue is the web address "stylec.yuku.com." Your forum comes up near the top on Google searches but it possible - perhaps probable - that the obscure web address is a significant disadvantage in attracting new members, which you agree is essential to keeping a forum going.
(http://i691.photobucket.com/albums/vv275/Forty_Candles/Google.jpg)
Likewise, "allposterforum" is too generic. Given a choice between "movie poster forum" and "all poster forum" don't you think that the vast majority of movie poster collector newbies will head straight for MPF? And I suspect there are very few people looking for a "catch all" poster forum. Most collectors specialize in a particular area - movies, music, art prints, etc.
However, "expressobeans" has succeeded with a generic, untargeted title.
-
What difference does it make if MPF comes up first in searches if it does not result in posting members? Take away For Sale posts and it likely averages a couple of posts per DAY. And most of the visits are likely from advertisers.
It is the quality of the members that counts, not the quantity.
Bruce
-
What difference does it make if MPF comes up first in searches if it does not result in posting members? Take away For Sale posts and it likely averages a couple of posts per DAY. And most of the visits are likely from advertisers.
It is the quality of the members that counts, not the quantity.
Bruce
The danger is that newbies go to MPF, see that everything is dead, and lose interest in collecting and/or participating in forums.
-
The danger is that newbies go to MPF, see that everything is dead, and lose interest in collecting and/or participating in forums.
I think if they lose interest that quickly, then screw 'em - they don't belong in the first place. When I started, I had such zeal about it that I turned the net upside down looking for places and information and sales.
-
What difference does it make if MPF comes up first in searches if it does not result in posting members? Take away For Sale posts and it likely averages a couple of posts per DAY. And most of the visits are likely from advertisers.
It is the quality of the members that counts, not the quantity.
Bruce
Bruce, he doesn't even get for sale posts that much. But, I still remember Rich saying that he gets more traffic via his MPF advertising than elsewhere, so someone must be visiting the site. I wonder if the other advertisers feel the same way?
-
Truth is, the expenses for the forum are not that big - it costs Thierry and I a few hundred a year, divided between us, to support the forum -- all spent on registrar fees, forum hosting fees and domain registration fees. We also registered other similar names to this domain so that we don't run into the problem Bruce faces (emovieposter vs. emovieposters), and under different extensions like .biz.
Truth also is this: if I had time on my hands, I would love to promote the site far and wide. Fact is, I just don't have the time to do it. I'm glad we have some good moderators to help out with the day to day. As you have seen, I can be absent for quite awhile when I have cases going to trial or a lot of deadlines to meet. Thierry spends a lot of time here, but he doesn't have the technical know-how, and while his wife does, she's properly busy with working her day job to support Thierry's crack (er, poster) habit.
There is an interesting idea though, that perhaps we create a sister site - not a forum per se, but perhaps a blogging site or some such, and use that as the vehicle to direct more traffic here. I'll dwell on that a bit.
One more thing - Mel's absolutely right that as much as we'd like not to be, we are a mostly movie poster forum. Even the ad posters I collect for the most part relate to movies and movie theaters. Much of the graphic art posters are the same too, relating to movies. Having seen how this place goes for almost a year now, I think we'd have a hard if not impossible time catering to "all posters".
food for thought.
-
Well I mainly collect film stuff, but I also have Circus, Railway, Pantomime, music, and other posters, as I'm sure most other collectors will have. I also have non-paper movie collectables. The point is this site covers most base's, they are there to use if needs be, and it's why I joined. I joined MPF after this site as I thought It may be good to join the two, but have Hardly been on MPF. This site at the moment may have a Small core of people who post more than others, but they are all first rate Fellows. That's better than having 1000 wankers posting shite.
It's a great site, enjoy it. This jollyfine atmosphere maybe gone soon!!!!
As for attracting more members, " Slowly slowly catchy monkey".