If you are serious about building an online business that will bring in a solid income and allow you to give up your day job then you should seriously consider becoming a member of a forum. Internet forums exist for almost any niche you can think of and they allow you to build relationships, build your business and increase your website traffic.
Do you want to build your credibility?
Forums are full of people who have problems, and are looking for solutions. If you know the answers to their questions you can build credibility in your niche by getting stuck in and helping people.
People are suspicious of the internet these days so you need to take the time to build your credibility and help people to trust you. Once they know that you really know what you’re talking about they will be more likley to buy your products.
Do you want to get great product ideas without spending a cent on customer research?
If you’re stuck for your next product idea then log in to the forum and spend an hour or so looking for the hot topics. Which threads get the most views, what topics are people talking about, what problems do members need to solve? You’ll probably see a pattern forming and should be able to make a list of the top ten issues.
Now all you need to do is create a short report, an ebook or even a membership course that tells people, step-by-step, how to solve the problem.
Do you want to increase your web traffic?
Most forums allow members to add an outbound link in their signature and their profile. The mistake most marketers make is that they post to as many threads as they possibly can in order to build backlinks to their site.
The problem with this method is that not only can it get you banned from the forum for spamming, it’s also the least effective way to benefit from forums. If you want to drive traffic to your website you simply need to take the time to write helpful responses to people’s questions. Think of that signature in the same way you do a resource box on an article. You need to give the other member useful information to help them solve their issue, and then they are more likley to click on the link in your signature to see what else you have to offer them.
If you want to build credibility in your target niche, find product ideas without paying a cent for research and increase traffic to your website then you should definitely invest some time and energy into forums.


You said: I agree – I hate building html sites and can build an Xfactor site in WP in less than half an hour with content added. I also have it set up via a plugin to drip feed content over time so its set and forget. I think it all comes down to personal preference though. Clare Swindlehurst
May I ask what plugin you use for the drip feed?
Your post above, good info, cruising hot topics and making a list of the top ten is a great tip!
- spam
- offensive
- disagree
- off topic
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