Internet Marketing Guide - Discussion Forum

Most Internet Marketing resources advocate participating in discussion forum/sites related to your business.

This is definitely a good idea since it is a way to gain some insights about your business and an opportunity to make a name for yourself in the Internet as an expert in your field.

But how do you promote your site in discussion

forums?

Discussion forums are not really the "get instant results" kind of medium. It will take some time before you gain some fruits from participating in forums. Veterans in the forum do not take too kindly to people who promote themselves or their products at the slightest hint of a need. I have seen some boards where the moderator actually scolds the open promoters.

Of course, we cannot be hypocrites. Just as their are participants who simply wish to participate, there must be quite a number who participate to drive traffic to their sites. The best tip I can share is: Don't just jump in to the discussion. Established forums have some kind of culture and accepted forms of behavior. Lurk first, see how discussions go. Start asking questions and from there, you can start making a contribution.

Gain maximum benefit with discussion boards

The best way to benefit from discussion boards is to treat it as your own help line. Share your expertise openly. Share knowledge openly. After some time, participants will acknowledge your expertise and would probably even recommend others to visit their site.

As a case in point: I once bought a nice, little software that was good but didn't have a proper manual written. In the vendor's forum, everyone was ranting about the lack of manual and threatening to get a refund. One participant posted a self-made manual based on how he managed to get around the software. As a result, participants actively sought his URL because they think he might be a good resource for other stuff.

How to find related sites

The most popular place to find groups related to your business is Yahoo! Groups and Google groups.

To go to Yahoo! groups, click here.

To go to Google groups, click here.

Another place where you can find groups is Topica.

The procedure for both is basically the same. You can join existing groups or you can start a new group. Obviously, it is easier to join an existing group than starting a new one. Join those groups where there are a lot of active members. Take time to observe which groups have a lively discussion and a lot of members participating.

The last time I took a peek at these groups, the participants were mostly posting ads for their sites, especially the unmoderated ones.

Alternatively, you can just search from your browser the specific discussion group that you are looking for. For example to find internet marketing discussion groups, type in:

"internet marketing: (bbs : "discussion groups")

and you will see a lot of alternative discussion groups. The ones that I looked at looked more serious and can be worth joining in. One particular site that had a lot of informative posts on it was led digest.

Basic Guidelines for joining discussion groups

1. Target your list

Don't just join any list for the sake of joining. After going through the lists, join one or two that you find worthwhile and those you think can benefit from your expertise.

2. Follow the rules

Forums, most especially the well moderated ones, have specific rules. Some do not allow self-promotion. Do this and you will be booted out.

3. Use a signature file

Most dicussion groups allow signature files. Again, there are certain rules on how many line you can include. At the very least, include your full URL address. However, if a few lines are allowed, include your email address and a one liner that best describes your business.

For example, my signature file will look something like this: