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wellington womble
Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 15051 Location: East Midlands
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Lloyd
Joined: 24 Jan 2005 Posts: 2699
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selfsufficientish
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 364 Location: Bristol
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jema Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 28115 Location: escaped from Swindon
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selfsufficientish
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 364 Location: Bristol
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judyofthewoods
Joined: 29 Jan 2005 Posts: 804 Location: Pembrokeshire
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Gertie
Joined: 08 Jan 2005 Posts: 1638 Location: Yorkshire
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judyofthewoods
Joined: 29 Jan 2005 Posts: 804 Location: Pembrokeshire
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Marigold123
Joined: 06 Feb 2005 Posts: 224
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Posted: Tue Feb 08, 05 5:49 pm Post subject: |
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As a newly joined up member, I'd like to say that I'm in favour.
I'd love to have pointers to articles that I might find interesting but which I might have otherwise overlooked, perhaps with carefully selected extracts to whet my appetite! (People who have been here a long time have probably read everything on the site already, and so may not appreciate how exciting its unexpected discovery might be to the new visitor. *crawl, crawl* )
Having just come from a large, heavily used site like Money Saving Expert, (where Bugs kidnapped me ), it was very surprising to discover how small the membership and daily traffic here actually was - as, in terms of professionalism and content, it gives the impression of being a much bigger operation!
You compare very well with the big boys! And though I don't know much about website design or management myself, I wouldn't have thought you'd have trouble satisfying a larger membership here.
If there are members who don't like newsletters or are worried about spam, perhaps you could put a link in a prominent place on the site, giving visitors the opportunity to sign up for (or unsubscribe from) the newsletter independently of registering. ie, You could sign up for the newsletter without registering, you could register without signing up, you could do both or neither, and change your subscription options at any time from the main page, your personal profile, or via the newsletter itself, without changing your membership status.
MSE, (which is one of the few forum sites that I really know, to be honest), does this, and encourages recipients to forward the newsletter to anyone who might find it interesting. Although there are a number of other factors involved, in the last 6 months their membership has gone through the roof. And that's not counting hits from people who just visit without registering.
Obviously MSE is a completely different kettle of fish from Downsizer, but I do think a well-constructed newsletter with links to latest articles, upcoming events, or interesting discussion threads, (perhaps with an invitation to add their opinion or contribute their experiences), would be an excellent tool to increase membership and the number of people visiting. If it contains material that recipients want to pass on, then it WILL circulate, and hopefully increase the number of hits.
I for one would certainly read it, AND pass it on. I have told a few people about Downsizer already, but IMO having something physical from the site to pass on, ('physical' in a cyber-sense, of course ), rather than just the URL, beats a verbal recommendation every time.
Just my two penn'orth!
Last edited by Marigold123 on Tue Feb 08, 05 6:43 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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jema Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 28115 Location: escaped from Swindon
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tahir
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 45431 Location: Essex
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Posted: Tue Feb 08, 05 5:58 pm Post subject: |
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Marigold123 wrote: |
If there are members who don't like newsletters or are worried about spam, perhaps you could put a link in a prominent place on the site, giving visitors the opportunity to sign up for (or unsubscribe from) the newsletter independently of registering. ie, You could sign up for the newsletter without registering, you could register without signing up, you could do both or neither, and change your subscription options at any time from the main page, your personal profile, or via the newsletter itself, without changing your membership status.
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Good idea, but then someone's got to write it... |
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Marigold123
Joined: 06 Feb 2005 Posts: 224
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Posted: Tue Feb 08, 05 6:13 pm Post subject: |
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judyofthewoods wrote: |
What about a short email with a readily recognised logo, with a contents list and a link to a webpage with the news? That webpage could either be set up specially for the newsletter, or could be linked to from the main site. |
I like the idea of a separate newsletter page, where either casual visitors who arrived by other routes, or regular visitors who don't want to receive a newsletter by email, can pop in and view it. If it is good, it might encourage others to sign up to the emailed newsletter itself!
I think it should be identical to the newsletter that gets emailed, though, as I don't find a plain link with no jam very enticing.
I actually quite like the format of the MSE newsletter, as an example. It usually has a good balance of plain text, clear links and tempters, and usually isn't too long and doesn't have too much garbage.
I think that a newsletter which is being used partly to sign up new members, as well as to keep current ones in touch, does need a few 'samples' of what can be read on the site, to draw people in. I expect that if current members are aware that the newsletter they receive is being harnessed to this purpose, they will be prepared to put up with a certain amount of 'icing', and hopefully pass it on! |
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judyofthewoods
Joined: 29 Jan 2005 Posts: 804 Location: Pembrokeshire
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Marigold123
Joined: 06 Feb 2005 Posts: 224
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Marigold123
Joined: 06 Feb 2005 Posts: 224
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Posted: Tue Feb 08, 05 6:24 pm Post subject: |
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judyofthewoods wrote: |
On the subject of forum traffic/size I think this one seems to be the optimum size. I have been on a few, and some have so little traffic, that visitors get bored, move on, and then the traffic gets even less...viscous circle. Then I've been on a forum which had so much traffic, that any post is immediatly swamped by masses of new threads, and actually gets very little viewing. A delicate ballance indeed, maybe tide and ebb? |
Actually, I think this site is perfect. Enough stuff being written to be interesting, but small enough to be cosy. But I thought I read that people were hoping to increase the membership a bit. If that's the case, then a forwardable newsletter is a good way to do that. |
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