Ask Jamie: Forum Marketing

By Jamie Holt | July 20, 2008 .

Today’s question comes in and I will discuss the question, but bare with me because I will take it off topic a little, only because it requires it and you will see why at the end

The question is:

Jamie, do you do much forum marketing, is it worthwhile..what can I do it with and can I make money with it?

Now I won’t make a cut and dry response here because it just isn’t possible to. What I will do is give my take on forum participation and see if that helps….

As much as I would like to say to you that participating in forum’s is all about the marketing element of having a sig file below your words.. it isn’t. And the sooner you can see the greater value of participating in forums, the better you will do form it.

YES - you can drive traffic to the links in your sig file as a result of participating in forums, but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the traffic gained is only gained when actively participating in discussion, few days off.. traffic will drop.

What you should be aware of is the value of the forum itself, being involved in discussions and watching the people in their comfortable habitat. It’s fair to say that if you are looking at marketing in a forum, then it is your niche.. so reading and getting to know the people involved can be much more beneficial than only participating to get your site some visibility.

I know, I know …forum research is different than forum marketing, but when worked properly.. they can both gel really strongly and you can be killing two birds with one stone.

But above all else, you should see a forum for the community that it is, relationships are made, opportunities are created and more importantly.. the beginning of trust is built. Providing value to a forum will undoubtedly get your sig file link interest like nothing else, so if you focus on the giving rather than the taking.. you will see much greater results than if you are simply contributing for personal gain (clickthroughs etc).

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