How can xenforo compete against the big companies like vBulletin and IPB?

[Princeton]

competition breeds excellence

- vbulletin will be forced to create a better product
- xenforo will be forced to create a better product

In the end, we all win.

vbulletin does have the upper hand

• a trusted brand; even with the current problems people still trust the name
• member base is huge - most don't even know about the problems
• resources

xenforo greatest advantage is that it has no restrictions. It can build from the ground up with features that work.

The question we should be asking...
How can xenforo compete against the big companies like vBulletin and IPB?

1)__ Start building your Brand - the biggest asset it has is the staff. But this can only take you so far...

• make it easy for people to spread the word - send-to-friend email?
• offer a newsletter? Why force people to register / subscribe to forum?
• banners to share on sites, etc ... it will help others become aware of the brand

Remember: It's not about xenforo - the great software. It's about getting people to trust xenforo - the company - the brand.

2)__ Build for those who can spread the word - developers, programmers, web designers, etc. Start working on a marketplace, on new policies, etc ... even if it's just on paper or just taking input from members. It's important to show them how serious you are in working with them.

3)__ Ensure that a smooth upgrade is possible. (eg. SEO ) Changing features and interface is one thing but making it difficult for people to transition from one software to another because of indexed pages, URL rewrites, etc can be detrimental to growth. (Not everyone will have the knowledge to do this on their own.)

4)__ Get many eyes on the software. This is possible by targeting large sites. If you can convert large sites you will...

• expose the brand to many people.
• increase word-of-mouth.

(for education purposes only ... the same can apply to other endeavors)

 

[v7web]

I think the answer to your question is answered just by looking at this new forum script, it will compete with "the big boys" because it looks so much better.

 

[Brandon_R]

I think the answer to your question is answered just by looking at this new forum script, it will compete with "the big boys" because it looks so much better.

So true, Just by visiting this forum, you have answered this question.

 

[dutchbb]

Yes, and the fact that I personally couldn't find any bugs in XF alpha.... just compare that with other software in alpha. *a certain forum software* is now gold and believe it or not it still has visible bugs in the layout using Safari. XF may not have every feature ATM, but it is solid and I believe it has a big future.

 

[Chromaniac]

hah. i like the performance part. but this this forum is probably running on very high dedicated server powered by The Planet i believe.

I can only find how smooth it is on my server when i install it and import my old database.

 

[Ashley]

Ideas and suggestions are good and we have posted so that all can see our plans, as they are. We are saying what we are doing and a little of our intentions. We are not making comments on any of the suggestions that have been made, wisely I think

 

[DoctorWatsOn]

XenForo is about passion and care and has been created with much love. <snip> We believe that others will also love XenForo

Bloody hippy.

 

[Ashley]

Bloody hippy.

I know...there is no other (truthful) way to explain it. Imagine how the business guy feels about having to present this...wait a minute - that's me
Feel for yourself (shrugs).

 

[Floren]

vbulletin does have the upper hand

So did UBB.

 

[HydraulicJack]

It was a sad to see a special community that had developed the software over many years destroyed by greed.

The good news is, we weren't destroyed (try as they might!).
We just moved over here!

 

[dutchbb]

So did UBB.

And M$ (vs Apple). All it takes is a better product (line), the right approach and enough time.

 

[Shamil]

hah. i like the performance part. but this this forum is probably running on very high dedicated server powered by The Planet i believe.

I can only find how smooth it is on my server when i install it and import my old database.

Here's the server specs:

 

[Jethro]

It's impossible to keep up with the trolling in all these threads.

A lot of the suggestions being made are by people who have never had to earn a living writing software, marketing it, or handling customer service for it. Obviously people are welcome to post whatever feedback they want, but when people say XenForo needs search feature X, a certain price point, a certain privacy feature, a certain FaceBook-like feature, or "it will not survive the marketplace" and other such inflammatory nonsense, it's not constructive.

People are using the Suggestions forums as a soapbox to preach from.

You won't be taken seriously with a $1 offer. You can't market the quality of a product and sell it for $1 in the same breath. It doesn't work.

Frustration with vBulletin 4 is such that XenForo doesn't need to lower their price, at least at first. 2-3 months down the road, they could offer a competitive switch price once sales slow.

Then there is what appears to be quite a sizeable minority, over 40%, who don't use vBulletin 4 and who will match features against price in making a decision to go with Xen or not. I'm talking to a number of people in the SOHO area who are interested but are weighing up their current investments, written off, as against the speed and simplicity of the Xen model. Considering most of these folk if they switch will lose currently functionality it really will come down to TCO over the first year or so.

The feedback I'm getting is
- how does the price compare to product "x", what will be my initial investment.
- how quickly will themes begin to appear.
- will modification "y" be available for Xen anytime soon.
- is there a stable conversion tool available, and does it work.
- will the insane upgrade path I currently have to contend with be repeated in Xen

Clearly I have zero answers on pretty much all of those questions and like most folks on here am waiting on pricing and availability announcements. It's clearly going to be up to Xenforo how they position their product against the current Commercial and Free forum options.

In simple terms a price that doesn't give an advantage to owners of other software, in my case most Admins are very happy with what they have, will not appeal to SOHO operators that generally don't have large budgets and who also have to divide what budge they do have between a number of avenues.

Wonder if Xenforo have thought about all those sites that haven't upgraded to the latest versions of the various software packages and who have no intention of doing so? May be some fertile ground there.

 

[feldon30]

vB enthusiasts will be the early adopters of XenForo. We'll take the plugin and styling system for a spin and see just how far we can stretch it. If 3 months after the release, we've produced a ton of customizations, then you'll have your "killer app" to bring to folks who are on the fence about another forum package.

The brand of vBulletin was so powerful that people didn't ask a lot of questions, they just bought it. It had a rightfully-earned reputation. Nowadays it's "show me the money". People are asking to see example sites which take advantage of vBulletin 4. And there just aren't many.

If we see XenForo sites which break the cookie-cutter mold of "forum + portal page" and really include a lot of great functionality, with a cool style, then that will be better marketing than a thousand vB4 sites with the default style and just a different logo slapped up there.

I would strongly urge XenForo (or XenFans) to do articles and writeups interviewing people about how easy it is to customize XenForo and how they were able to extend the software to do things people have never dreamed of before.

 

[dutchbb]

BTW I'm going to put XF in all my signatures, if everyone in this thread does the same, this can have a pretty strong impact. (But make sure you read the rules of where you do this first).