Forums are dead
- Thread starter jauburn
- Start date
MacSeah
Well-known member
I asked my 14yo daughter does she knows what a forum is, and her answer was "not really." After showing her to one, I asked if she will join, and her counter question was, what's the point?Facebook Explains Why They Banned Newly-Made Gold Star Mother After Posting Criticisms of Joe Biden
I'm pretty sure private forums won't go anywhere......and it's because of ***** like this. Millions of people are getting tired of FB. TW and IG disgusting behavior.
I think that says something.
Last edited:
Nicolas FR
Well-known member
Clearly the age group of forum users is not 12/18 or even 18/25, but over 30 at least. But that still makes a few hundred million potential users ...
JamesBrown
Well-known member
I'd have probably answered the same.
However, let's say your daughter was mad keen on a particular breed of dog...
...and you told her about an online community focusing solely on those particular dogs and their human fans. A place where they share information, show their dogs off with photos and videos, they benefit from discounts on gear, food and veterinary supplies. That they have regular seminars with experts on the breed; who will show you all about the best care and training along with the right food, exercise and supplements that will definitely add years to the life of her pet. Then tell her about the new friends she and her dog could make attending regular fun meetings up and down the country. Then ask if she will join.
Nicolas FR
Well-known member
Frankly ? She would have fallen asleep before you even finished your forum description !! The only thing that might interest her is seeing pictures of this type of dog on Instagram......
A 14 yo daughter ???
Last edited:
JamesBrown
Well-known member
Frankly ? She would have fallen asleep before you even finished your forum description !! The only thing that might interest her is seeing pictures of this type of dog on Instagram......
So you think a 14-year-old couldn't be passionately interested in anything to make them look past a shallow Instagram.
If you can't sell a special interest forum to your own daughter who is passionate about that interest then I doubt you could sell anything.
wedgar
Well-known member
Golly, back in the day, I remember 6th grade girls being very passionate about the Beatles...and they weren't 14 years old.So you think a 14-year-old couldn't be passionately interested in anything to make them look past a shallow Instagram.
If you can't sell a special interest forum to your own daughter who is passionate about that interest then I doubt you could sell anything.
Nicolas FR
Well-known member
Find me a single active forum, really active, populated by teenagers who have in common a specific passion ... good luck!
JamesBrown
Well-known member
No luck required. One of the largest forums in the world is populated mostly by youngsters aged 14 to 24
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/. So to say that the young won't register and use forums is just rubbish. 240,000 posts a month active enough for you?
Last edited:
Nicolas FR
Well-known member
Well done.
I admit defeat.
I admit defeat.
sbj
Well-known member
To be fair, I think there is truth in both sides.
Because like any big forum, if you were established in the "glory days", then it is no surprise to have a successful forum going. Even when it is for a young audience.
The Student Room forum was created in 2001 (20 years ago)... Let that sink in. So this is more the exception than the rule. So, yes, you will find here and there some very big forums to showcase as examples, but in reality they are the exceptions. So, you found that rare exception to the rule.
We don't need to kid ourselves, young people don't care about forums in general. IMO mostly because we dont have a centralized app like all the social media giants. If we solve that problem, we might get our audience back.
Because like any big forum, if you were established in the "glory days", then it is no surprise to have a successful forum going. Even when it is for a young audience.
The Student Room forum was created in 2001 (20 years ago)... Let that sink in. So this is more the exception than the rule. So, yes, you will find here and there some very big forums to showcase as examples, but in reality they are the exceptions. So, you found that rare exception to the rule.
We don't need to kid ourselves, young people don't care about forums in general. IMO mostly because we dont have a centralized app like all the social media giants. If we solve that problem, we might get our audience back.
Last edited:
Marcus
Well-known member
Forums which are an extension of a solution that provides content (rumors on macrumors.com, study tips on the student room.co.uk) are visited first for this content.
Teenagers waste time browsing TikTok. They do not need a forum for chit chat. They post pictures on Instagram (few years ago) or make videos for TikTok (that happens now) which are much better for communicating on a personal level. There are so many better solutions out there in 2021.
Teenagers waste time browsing TikTok. They do not need a forum for chit chat. They post pictures on Instagram (few years ago) or make videos for TikTok (that happens now) which are much better for communicating on a personal level. There are so many better solutions out there in 2021.
JamesBrown
Well-known member
Marcus
Well-known member
That is exactly what works also 2021: content.
I just think there is much unused potential to find and display good content in an ocean of meaningless conversations.
sbj
Well-known member
Yes, I agree, but I find "seasonal" forum examples a bit like cheating.
Seasonal forums are like leeches. They don't provide much within themselves in core, they leech off of the main product from "outside". What does this mean?
Every year millions of young people apply for school/universities and have exams. So this creates a lot stream. So there is a season for it when young people look out for info on the internet, and this forum leechess off of that.
Or other ones are sport forums, like football/soccerr. So when it is match day, you see activity and during the season. And when the season ends, the forum activity drops down and the cycle begins again.
So, yes, people register in large numbers on there, but if you look closely, the numbers are misleading. Most of the accounts are there once or twice and you'll never see them again when "their season" ends a.k.a like when they have applied to a university or whatever. So bringing up them as example is like cheating, cause the numbers are hyperinflated. But still what you say is true of course, it is just as an example not a good one cause again, it is the exception to the rule. Most forum owners don't have such "evergreen seasonal forums" like school stuff. That cycle never ends, there will always be new people grow up and go to school, so you will always have an audience. But for example if you have a forum for the latest call of duty (or whatever), well, good luck when that game dies and the next one is out, cause its "season" is only for a limited of time.
So most forums either have such short-lived seasons like games or they are outside of that "evergreen" stuff.
Last edited:
JamesBrown
Well-known member
But they are not seasonal, they evolved their forums into different year-round divisions. For months it will all be about university entrants, but they also have exam and revision sections that are year-round. They all also have a large year-round social element.
Simply. like it or not, they are youngsters using a forum.
Dixie McCall
Well-known member
The mother of all arguments re: Teens? LOL
www.teenhelp.org
TeenHelp Mission, Values & Action Plan
TeenHelp is an international not-for-profit organisation who provide anonymous support and advice to anybody who needs it. We help users of all ages and from all walks of life, all around the world. Our staff members are volunteers, regular people just like you, and they're here to listen and to...
Dixie McCall
Well-known member
I know. I know.. VB but still... LOL Someone buy them a Xenforo license pleeeeease... LOL
Marcus
Well-known member
They do not need one, two users are online right now: one registered 2013, the other one this summer with 3 posts. No one else is logged in now. Today no one registered even.
Dixie McCall
Well-known member
TeenHelp
TeenHelp is an international not-for-profit organisation who provide anonymous support and advice to anybody who needs it. We help users of all ages and from all walks of life, all around the world. Our staff members are volunteers, regular people just like you, and they're here to listen and to...
Similar threads
