Happy Thanksgiving everybody! I hope everyone had a great day and I am sure we all have somethings/someones to be thankful for!!
Here is a sign that I need a vacation, and probably a lobotomy, I was tired and I cooked today (maybe an excuse) but tonight at my dinner, there were times as I was talking that I found myself thinking about wether I was using keywords enough in my sentences, LOSER 
!! Anyway, on to better things...
As a follow up to my post 144 Do-Follow Forums, I wanted to offer some guidelines and tips to using forums effectively, to increase web site traffic, blog traffic and of course get the backlinks!
1. Read the TOS/Forum Rules and/or Posting Guidelines - Make sure to get to know the rules before you post because you don't want to get banned! Many forums have different and specific rules. Usually you can find these rules in the forum index itself, as one of the first threads.
2. DO NOT SPAM - This is very important, do not write posts about your products and blatant advertising, not only will this get you banned, it's also the fastest way to turn off the other members and NOT to increase web site traffic. People go to forums to look for information and answers to their questions, not to read ads.
3. Use Good Anchor Text for Signature Links -
Forums are great for website promotion and do-follow backlinks from your signature links. Make sure they are SEO friendly anchors that contain your keywords
BUT
Also make them provocative to get the click! For example, the anchor "Dog Food" may have your keywords, but the anchor "Top 10 Dog Foods" is much more click friendly.
4. Be an authority - Besides the benefit of do-follow backlinks, forums can be one of the greatest and quickest ways to increase web site traffic and this is traffic that is very targeted, as long as you're in a forum relevant to your niche. You want the forum members to click on your signature links and the best way to make that happen is to respond to posts like an authority in your niche.
- Be detailed, don't just give one word answers, try to offer more valuable and comprehensive replies.
- If there is a "newbie" section post there, newbies can be your greatest source of traffic.
- Know what you're talking about.
- Check your typos and missing words. I for one hate a post filled with errors and broken English and I won't bother to read it.
5. Many forums offer "Article threads" or "Guide Threads" or some such thing. This is where you can post your own informative guides, how-to's, content etc. Make sure to use an intriguing title for these posts to get people's attention. These posts are a great way to show off your knowledge and authority and deliver a click to your sig links, which of course means an increase in web site traffic for you!
6. Watch your reputation. Many forums use a "reputation" system that lets other members tag you with points when you deliver great posts, this is a good way to build authority.
7. Participate in the "Introduce Yourself" section. Many forums have a thread to introduce new members. Be active there, introduce yourself in detail and welcome others.
8. Check for new posts and participate often. The more you participate the more exposure you get to increase web site traffic AND the more backlinks you generate, since each page you post to counts as a backlink!
What works for you in forums? What tips can you offer for the best forum practices? Anyone have any no-no's to share?
Forum posting is one the best method to incrase website traffic. You have given some good guidelines to forum posting. This is a must read article to all those who want to go for forum posting.
Follow Me on Twitter @: AussieSire
(43 comments)
I’ve never really used keywords in my links, too slack I reckon, but I have found that if the comments you leave in the forum are always well thought out then it will lead to a click or two as people will click out of curiosity just to find out who the heck that smart guy is.
Sires last blog post..Blond Bombshell Finds The True Worth Of Vanity
Yup it really attracts click easily..
Ben Peis last blog post..Making Money With Residual Affiliate Income Opportunities
Follow Me on Twitter @: EuniceCoughlin
(25 comments)
Comprehensive post but one thing I will add…make sure you participate in an ACTIVE forum. I’ve wasted time before posting to forums that are getting a lot of activity but for whatever reason (moderators quit, etc), the activity slows to a trickle and there’s no one there to read your posts! I’ve found myself trying to raise the dead on some forums because I’ve invested so much time into it.
Eunice@Simple Internet Strategiess last blog post..Beginners Baffled by HTML codes
@ Eunice
Thank you that is a great tip!
I would usually look around a forum, to see who is who, what are unofficial rules and atmosphere for a day or two, then start posting
Hi Jr,
Thanks, as always, for your help and ideas. I checked out /dreamhorse and also had some fun on the bloggeries forum. I have also found myself talking”shop” in the middle of conversations…
http://meanderingwithmarilyn.com/flowers-are-they-edible/
@ Glenda
you are welcome, when I came across that horse forum, I thought of you right away
JR,
I’ve got to pull myself away from your blog…LOL! It’s very informative and valuable for any IM’ers. Good stuff!
Thanks,
Mike
Better Golfs last blog post..The Modern Golf Swing
Follow Me on Twitter @: DennisEdell
(224 comments)
I’d like to embellish a bit on #3, please bear with me…
If you are new to forums and in particular forum signatures, you may not realize most use their own form of code. BBC seems to be used most often…..take ONE minute to learn this code; please.
Otherwise you’ll be another one silently laughed at for having your plain text unclickable URL that reads. http://www.mysitethatyouwillnevereverseebecauseiwastoolazytolearnthepropercode.com
I along with THOUSANDS of others are not going to copy/paste your URL into the address bar…nor should we have too.
Dennis Edells last blog post..A Winner For The $5 Favicon Contest!
@ Dennis
Good point! Many of the forums do have a WYSIWYG box where you can create the hyperlink, it is important to make sure it is correct, and also click the preview button to make sure it is how you envisioned.
Recently a lot of forum become more strict by only allow their member to comment more and reject the short comment such as “thank you” or “great”. This is healthy development to increase useful forum thread for everybody..
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@ Kamek,
Good point and I agree!, I like the laundry tips by the way!
Great followup, hopefully people make the most of the list with these guidelines. I’ve been posting on forums since the local bbs days, and trust me when I say that forum posters can spot the difference between a spammer and a real, trustworthy member of the community!
If I could offer just one rule for forum marketing success, I would say to “Read more than you write – a lot more.” Read everything – go back in the forum archives and read the older threads that have become part of that community’s history. Every community has inside jokes and self-referential memes, and knowledge of these things will go a long way to prove you’re on the same page as everyone else.
And when you get a feel for a forum and the social community there, posting is not just more productive and well received, its also a lot more like fun than work.
John at WebsiteBuildingBizs last blog post..Magpie Pushes Twitter Annoyance to New Limits
@ John
First, welcome and thanks for commenting! Very good tips, thank you!
These tips + list of do follow forums is really usefull for any blogger to achieve his motive of huge traffic.
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@ Chetan
Thank you and welcome! Just checked out your Copy Protect plug-in, looks really good, I will install it today, it’s very original
Watching one’s reputation in a forum is a key item that keeps the person from going out of their normal character, and helps to keep the forum expanding as the standards of the discussion are maintained at a higher level. Forums can only be as professional as the individuals taking part in them.
Armen Shirvanians last blog post..Ways To Respond To Events Presented To You
Good tips provided here. Many forums have strict moderators that might banned us for promoting any sites. I guess, the only way to promote our site is from signature link.
Follow Me on Twitter @: DennisEdell
(224 comments)
Yep, that’s what it’s for. leaving a link inside a forum post is like leaving a self-promotional link inside a blog comment…not good, and more often then not; deleted.
Dennis Edells last blog post..UPDATED: Would You Like To Sponsor My *Best Blog Review* Contest?
Thanks for the help, I am new and it help me setup my site
I have just started on forum commenting and am getting some good links. It is in their with comment posting which has been a huge success. I started comment posting after following up on a poston another blog. I can’t believe it. I have nearly a thousand links in about ten days and a lot of them are from making a few comments a day.
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Hi JR,
I was just reading through all your back posts and I found the one on free directory listings. I checked some of them out and usually thay had a premium link (paid link) or a free link. The paid links were like 6$ – $10.
Is there any point in submitting to the free link? Do we get a good backlink? Or would it be better to get a few paid links?
Thanks for your help. I am blown away by the information you offer here. Hopefully, I can pay it back some day.
Andy@onlinechristianbusinessopportunitys last blog post..A Christian Online Business Needs Good Keywords
Hi Andy,
Thank you so much I appreciate your kind words. Yes submit to the free link, the paid link on most of those is just for featured listing, you don’t need that, they will still list you, sometimes it takes longer to get approval, so don’t worry. I always pick the free option on all directories, no recips and no fees! If they don’t list it free then they are worthless directories anyway.
I’ve also found that one most forums there are a few high pr threads that I can easily find
Simon – Site Flippings last blog post..Some Enjoyable Posts In The Blogosphere 3-12-2008
JR,
All very good tips! “If there is a “newbie” section post there, newbies can be your greatest source of traffic.”…this is something I haven’t tried or focus on so will give it some thought. What I like about forum posting is the amount of backlinks it generates. The more you post the more backlinks you get, besides all the other goodies like traffic, making your name etc.
Peter Lee
work from home ideass last blog post..How I Got Google Index New WordPress Blog In 3 Hrs
JR, Thanks for the reply to my question. It is great to have somebody to clear up these simple questions.
Also I was just reading a few of your old posts and found out how the name/anchor text works in the comments.
Thank you for the backlink.
Andy@onlinechristianbusinessopportunitys last blog post..A Christian Online Business Needs Good Keywords
I’m afraid tip #1 is by far the most ignored one. And this is when problems begin. If everyone took the time to read forums’ rules, they’d avoid countless problems. Many claim it’s not possible to drive much traffic from forums, but the first question that must be asked to these people is: did you follow the rules?
Follow Me on Twitter @: DennisEdell
(224 comments)
BRAVO! I like Karen.
On the flip-side though, some need to make the rules more visible. I’ve been surprised a few times at how many weren’t, and then the owners bitch about it.
Dennis Edells last blog post..How Do You Check For Incoming Links?
I totally agree with you. I’ve been through a very embarrassing situation in a forum whose rules section was extremely confusing and disorganised. I thought I had read everything, but after being punished for infringing a rule that wasn’t visible anywhere, I realised that wasn’t a good place to be. Funny thing is that the mod who punished me pointed me right to that disorganised section, instead of giving me a direct link to the part where that rule was mentioned. Apparently he couldn’t locate the link either.
Follow Me on Twitter @: DennisEdell
(224 comments)
Wow, now there’s a sign. It sounds good that you got out.
Dennis Edells last blog post..How Do You Check For Incoming Links?
I had join some forum and only one forum I actively participate in discussion. But I’m guess it didn’t give backlinks to my site because we need to login to see any links inside the thread. I’m not sure whether Google bot can crawl the links or not.
@Romzi
@ Romzi
Google definitely crawls inner forum pages, as well as Yahoo, MSN and Live
Another great post. Traffic is the most important thing next to content as far as building your web site.
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I have been hitting the forums lately. As you say, it’s a great way to build backlinks and get targeted traffic. But it’s also a great way to accumulate lots of new, original content.
Everything you write is kept there in your membership. So after a while it’s a good idea to just cut and paste it all to a file on your desktop. If you organize it into subjects, a dozen or so posts will give you the raw material for a couple of articles. You can just re-jig these so they become unique and you can submit them to article directories, generating still more backlinks.
@Matt@Article Writer Australia: Matt that’s an interesting idea. I did once slightly different. I asked a controversial question and there were lots of interest. I decided to make it into a post with the same title as the question I posted I quoted many of these answers crediting them and it was quite a good way to hear what people have to say first hand and share it with my readers.
Peter Lee
work from home ideass last blog post..100 Subscribers For Work From Home Business Blog
@ Peter
Great innovation, getting creative is the way to go in this biz, and controversy has so many benefits on so many levels.
Hi Matt,
Very good tips, it is always a good idea to bleed the most you can from all the efforts, there is so much to do that anything that saves time and brings value is a plus!
I’ve been using Do-Follow forums for many years, particularly the ones that have relevant key words that match my anchor text.
As I’m a wedding vendor that performs Disc Jockey services, the best place for me is a Disc Jockey (DJ) Forum. There are a couple of them who are Do Follow, and I make sure to post there on a regular basis.
An added bonus is that I get to discuss topics with folks who are in similar line of business, which makes the forum posting even more valuable — truly a win-win.
Interesting thoughts on how to increase web traffic using forums and forum marketing. Interested marketers should learn what this strategy can do.
You must have a lot of things to talk about in the forums you join in order to be successful. Also, you should have fun with posting in the forums as if you joined for the sake of sharing.
.-= Romoel Cano´s last blog ..Traffic Ultimatum – Why I Trust George Brown =-.
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Great tips on the “Not Spam” people part.
The only way to earn credibility is by contributing to the forum and not merely trying to sell your products.
.-= Jerry Larach´s last blog ..Viral Submitter Pro Review – The Full Review =-.
-;. I am very thankful to this topic because it really gives great information “;’
Forums are a good way of promoting your website and for it to work for you, simply obey the forum rules.
Every foru has:
no spamming
keep contributions clean etc rules.
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Follow Me on Twitter @: spectraelite
(11 comments)
I think reputation will come from your comments and the value you give away to your community. In this case inside your forum. I personally use this approach to increase my reputation faster. One blog that I use a lot is the Warrior Forum and my niche Joomla Forum.
Definitely Spamming won’t take you far away on the road and specially in a drive community website.
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I am not that familiar with using Forums for traffic and backlinks.
This is a new learning curve for me, thanks.
Although there are many similar articles and blog posts as this one, there is always something you can take from them. In particular I like point 6 about reputation. When you see the same posters coming up time and again, it adds weight to their comments, especially when they are well constructed posts.
It’s all too easy to get the wrong reputation on a faceless forum.
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Hi Beth,
Welcome, glad it could help you!
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