Article in Forum Building

There is only one place on the Internet that allows you to join a community of people that have a similar passion, learn from them and profit from it - a Forum. A Forum is an important website that you can find in almost every niche. The are two ways to make money wit a forum – you can either own one or be a member in one.

In part 1 of How To Get Started Making Money With A Forum I covered some monetization methods for forum owners along with the first two tips for members to make money in a forum. Thos tips covered how to find a forum in your niche and how to choose a forum with a good community to join.

Another thing to look for before joining is if you can have a sig link. This is a good way to link back to your site and have other members click your link back to your site. This isn’t always necessary, but HELPS A LOT.

Join a forum that allows for you to edit your profile. Your name, signature, and avatar can all promote your product or service. You may not be directly allowed to advertise and promote your product but your name will say it all. For Example, if you ran a DogTrainingTips101.com that could be your username and your avatar (profile picture) could be your picture in the forum. However, if I was running that site, I’d be sure I was posting in a forum relevant to my niche.. I definitely wouldn’t join a weight loss forum and promote my dog tips.

Now that you’re a member, answer questions of other members, greet new members, and join in on all the action. By being an active member you’re slowly becoming a part of the trusted community where the other members will trust what you have to say and what you promote. You do NOT want to go in on day one and start pushing product, product, product - you’ll be denied in a heartbeat.

Once you’ve established a little credibility, create a new thread that will be controversial, or a “hot topic.” This will show you’re up on current events and care about the niche and their opinions on the current event – establishing even more credibility and authority for you and the product you’re promoting in your username, avatar, and sig link.

Post your forum to other forums. Don’t be afraid to share and welcome others to join your community. Find Yahoo groups, Myspace groups, and Facebook groups in your niche and share this valuable forum that they can come chat in. And if there isn’t a group for your forum make one and then share that you create a “group” that members can join in other social networks.

Create more value… if the forum has a “special offers” section, sell your product or a portion of your product in there at a discount for the forum members. Or if you find a new technique that works in your niche start a new thread about it and then tell them that if they want the full story they can come back to website or blog – driving them back to your site allows you to pitch them there because you’re not in the “friend” state of mind – the website is your business. BE forwarned – do not do this immediately after joining. Be sure you’re establish some credibility as a “trusted member” before trying this out.

Hope you’ve learned a few ways to monetize your memberships o various forums. Please, please, please never spam a forum. No one hates it more than when a new member posts, pitch, after pitch. This will do no good and will waste your time. Your goal with monetizing forums is to become a member and build a relationship.

My Name is Chaunna Brooke, I work side by side with my Husband Justin Brooke on our home business SiteFlipAcademy. SiteFlipAcademy is the largest single source for website flipping information in the world. All of the information provided in “How To Get Started Making Money With A Forum” has been used successfully by us and many of our coaching students.