Priestess Angel

Hi guys! I have been thinking about how to attract more active members to the site for a while now and this is an option that I have come to and this is how I came to that option.

Now, many of you would agree that AO is not nearly as busy as it used to be. As a result, there are not as many new threads that get made daily and because of this it is a bit difficult for a new member to get those 100 posts. So what’s a new member to do if there are no other threads to post on? Well, if you are new than your only options are really just the arcade, PMing someone, or look and/or upload in the gallery. Not everyone likes playing arcade games though and not everyone is willing to just PM a random person and say “Hi! What’s up!” For some it can get very tedious just looking at gallery pics as well and not everyone is an expert or has a passion for making wallpapers and the like.

So for many newcomers a major turndown is the lack of freedom and the lack of activity or new threads which prevents them from increasing that post count as quickly as they would like. This ultimately leads to many leaving the forum and searching for another. Thus we lose a lot of potential active members.

How could we solve this problem? I have come up with two options. I think we should either reduce the amount of posts it takes to become a community member (maybe to 50?) or give newcomers more options than just posting, PMing, arcading, or viewing and/or uploading in the gallery. Like maybe opening the flashchat to newcomers. Many like that sort of stuff and it would be a great way for newbies to get to know the members. They also wouldn’t be forced to PM some random member.

So do you think my idea is legitimate? Or do you think that I need to be sent to the crazy house? Also, I would like to hear ideas from you guys. Any suggestions would be helpful.

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kenso

nice idea i didnt know that until today and that reason is why i cant get help to get my story ideas.

!The GunGrave of Trigun

No i dont like that its not cool because theres a reason that we have that stuff like really you have to earn being somebody who can play the arcade games and if they did this they would have to change the whole system .

Luminous

Clearly, your idea is legitimate, and you need to be sent to the crazy house.


I hate to beat the drum of the oldest argumentative tune that's been brought up with regards to this, but maybe even basic stuff like custum avatars from the get-go could work. Seriously, even the most rudimentary invisionfree forum comes with that feature out of the box. Its like new people are being punished for being new, and they must earn the trust of the coven before being granted the various features of AO.

I can see the logic in saying that there should be benefits for members who have stayed longer, posted more, etc., but perhaps the barrier of entry is a bit too high, and I think that can drive people away. Should it really take a month and 100 posts to be considered a Community Member(I agree with the 50 posts suggestion)? Or is it supposed to be a weeding process?

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Violent

I wouldn't say just 50 posts rather something a bit more better since most will spam any old message just to get that post count as with 100 posts. I would put it to around 25-30 quality posts that will contribute towards that topic.

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Priestess Angel

Yes, that’s a good point. My only question about this suggestion is how we could have a system that would be able to differentiate a high quality post from a low quality post. All I can think of is if the post has more than a certain amount of words and no spelling errors than it would be a quality post. Or maybe the moderators could look a newbie’s post and decide for themselves if it is a high quality post than use something to mark that post if it is high quality. Then that mark would add to the new member’s quality post count.

I’m pretty sure you could do the first option but I’m not sure about the second one. My knowledge of computers is not the best in the world so I don’t know if the moderator thing would even work or if there is a system like that. Not to mention that it would add to a moderator’s load of jobs.

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Luminous

Doesn't the Credit system take into account how many words are typed in a given post? Perhaps something that requires a certain number of credits, or some such. Although a long post doesn't guarentee high quality(For an example, check out that Luminous guy), I suppose on average they are probably decent quality. Although that might be a bit confusing for some, and a solid post count is easier to understand.

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Priestess Angel

Yes, it does. That would also give the credit system more of a use. It is true that the length of a post doesn’t necessarily equal a high quality post. That’s why I added that the suggested system wouldn’t just take into account the length of the post but the spelling as well. Usually, if a poster is willing to actually spell out their words and use spell check than they actually care if their post is good or readable for that matter. By the way Luminous, your posts seem like high quality to me. They’re definitely better than some I’ve seen.

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Violent

Well not only the moderators have to look out for this members can also to help out moderators / admins. I mean if it looks like spam just like

" L0LZ! Th@t w@$ tottallyz p00ned lol you r0ckzors! "

Then obviously its spam... I mean if it looked along the lines of what a normal post should and was mostly done in correct grammar and no typos then thats fine by me.

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Chiefblackhammer

I came in here hoping to see something fruitful yet nothing was mentioned on how to get new members, have them active and stay active. I mean how does lowering the post count limit on community status help the site...at all?

Does it really do anything to attract and KEEP members active on the boards? No it doesn't, if anything it is just the opposite. If we lowered the limit on community status it would only allow them to see aspects of the gallery or play in the arcade or enter the flash chat area SOONER...all of which are rewards for actually being active. Doesn't it seem dumb to lower the amount of activity to get those things (which currently remove you from posting here I might add) in an order to "boost site activity"?

100 posts isn't hard and there is so much on this board to post in/on it isn't funny. Like an anime? Freaking section on it. Like politics/debating yep section for that as well. Graphics/computer stuff your deal? Covered. Poetry/Lit? Yep that too. Games or music? Heck yeah!

A better question is why do the older members not post anymore and why do noobs only want to come here and spam and get all of the sites content while giving nothing to it?

IMO I think we should move to a perpetual limit where you have to post at least once in the last 24 hours to see any aspect of the gallery, arcade or flashchat

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Silverskater145

Ouch! I think we're being a little too drastic there, Chief.

I agree with everything you say. The problem here isn't giving new members more access to things. If people want access to certain features, they need to participate and show they are a member of the community. This is, after all, a community.

Some people are more popular than others, but we all know each other, some way or another. That's part of being a community. You post, you participate in other parts of the website, you remain active in the community, and doors will eventually open for you. This is the way that is has been, and personally, the way that it should be.

I remember back when I first became Community Member. That alone meant alot. I'm not sure we had too many more Member statuses back in 02-03 at AO. In fact, and correct me if I am wrong... But If I remember correctly, it was actually the staff that got together every month to vote in new Community Members after watching participation. I might be slightly wrong here, maybe an older Vet can comment on that.

Either way, 100 posts isn't that much. Some people are like chatterboxes and post frequently. Some don't, and that is OK too. All anyone could ask for is that people remain active in their own ways, and, most importantly, bring forth intelligible and high-quality posts. It's not so much for the benefit of the staff, as much as it is for the community, so that it may mature and broaden itself.

Chief's suggestion is interesting. But having to post once a day is too drastic, in my opinion. lol Bump that up to a month, and we'll talk.

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