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Ask HN: How do you get a user forum off the ground?

11 points by thewordpainter ↗ HN
A forum can be key to user retention and connection (helping establish that family-like community). Anybody have experience building one from the ground up?

How do you kickstart the conversation? How do you keep it going?

If done properly, I think it can be just like game mechanics, where it may not be the core competency, but it can have a world of impact.

3 comments

[ 2.5 ms ] story [ 14.3 ms ] thread
tst_
http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/ev2zb/i_run_thathighco...

Shortly, fake it until you make it

veb
Or, simply have the content. Then start conversations about said content. Seriously, it's easy.
thewordpainter
@tst_ - i hear ya. thanks for sharing the link.

@veb - yeah, at this point we've begun topics and are just hoping that the conversation will build around us...then we can let it grow from there.

we actually started a VIP listserv for some of our most active members to start the chatter. we were hoping to transition them over to the forum once it was set up.