The art of "lurking"

[Roy Hersh]

Reading the Squires' BB, there was a posting about lurking as it seemed that out of nearly 8400 registered guests, only 1100 or so, had actuvely posted. Mark Squires came on the topic and mentioned it was his experience that the ratio of people who "lurk" and just read, versus post on the bulletin board there and elsewhere is normally about a 7:1 ratio.

So I took a look at what has transpired here since the launch on Saturday.

There are now 51 registered voters, and 22 of us have no yet posted. Although that is a better ratio, there is still almost 40% of the guest here who are just coming to read.

Looking at this another way, there have been 165 posts so far (of which 1/3 are mine and Stewart's so far). So lets say there have been 110 posts by the guests over 4 days so far. Compare that to the nearly 1600 "views" of the posts and subtract the actual posts and there are about 1500 "views" compared to the 110 actual posts.

I have no suggestions how to make this a more friendly environment so that guests will feel more comfortable to post. Maybe they it is just a matter of time. But if anyone has a suggestion, I am all ears.

[Alan Rath]

I have no suggestions how to make this a more friendly environment so that guests will feel more comfortable to post.

How about a monthly giveaway? Member with most posts gets to choose a bottle from your CellarTracker inventory

Seriously, Roy, I was actually thinking that your forum has done remarkably well, considering it's more focused scope and the fact that it's been just a few days. Give it a chance for word to spread more widely outside just the eBob forum, for 2003s to actually hit the shelves, etc. I run a forum of my own for users of the equipment my company makes, and I would be very happy if I got even the traffic you have so far Admittedly, mine is a very narrow community, and a private forum by invitation only.

I've been impressed with the quality and thoughtfulness of the posts so far, looks to me like a great start.

Regards,
Alan

[Roy Hersh]

Alan,

I very much appreciate your enthusiasm and I guess I'd like to see the Forum take off even more than it has. I have reached out far beyond the eBob site, so my expectations are high.

I am very pleased with the progress so far and moreso, when I look at the list of 50 something ppl who have signed up so far on this Forum, I know the quality of many of these individuals in terms of their knowledge and palates. I hand picked a half dozen "content experts" from the USA and overseas to participate here and know that in the future, we will be having some amazing discussions with some of the most astute Port aficionados around.

I am confident that this site will be a big success and the Forum will be the driver, beyond the monthly additions. So, I am looking to the participants here, to offer their insights and suggestions ... as it is very likely that their ideas might be ones I have not even considered. I like to listen to others, especially when I can learn something new.

My sincere thanks for your post!

[xxxMonique Heinemans]

Well Roy, I woudn't be to concerned about it. There are people who like to talk (write) and there are people who like to listen (read). Also I think that a lot of people ( me for instance) are not that much or long into Port.
I don't have many information or TN's to share, on the other hand I do have a lot of questions, and they will follow.

[Harris Ueng]

So I took a look at what has transpired here since the launch on Saturday.

There are now 51 registered voters, and 22 of us have no yet posted. Although that is a better ratio, there is still almost 40% of the guest here who are just coming to read.

Looking at this another way, there have been 165 posts so far (of which 1/3 are mine and Stewart's so far). So lets say there have been 110 posts by the guests over 4 days so far. Compare that to the nearly 1600 "views" of the posts and subtract the actual posts and there are about 1500 "views" compared to the 110 actual posts.

Those are great numbers, Roy. Especially, as green as this site & forum is! Don't sweat the lurkers; it's just like getting people in a group meeting -- you'll have the quiet ones and the vocal ones. With forums, you may have lots of interested readers and/or people who just don't have the time or interest to post, but are interested in learning more.

Realize, that your core audience will broaden over time as your site grows and as more curious people sign-up and lurk because they are learning. I imagine, right now, you're getting more absolute port fans than just the curious -- especialyl since your site is a mere days old. As your membership grows, don't see it as a bad thing when those ratios start to decline (such as a 60% active population), even as your forum activity grows. It's a natural behvarioral phenomenon with web forums.

FTLOP is doing phenomenally for just a few days since your newsletter announcement! Just give it some time!

BTW, thanks for pulling in such insightful industry insiders. I'm looking forward to some lively discussion and content!

[Roy Hersh]

Thanks Alan, Monique, Harris (and Stewart),

I will chill out and let it grow in a natural progression.

[Andy Velebil]

Yeah, chill out Roy.. Just kidding...Actually, I'm sure a lot are like me. Still relatively a newcomer to port and Madeira (I've only had one of the latter and that was about 2 months ago). I've had a couple of postings so far, but, for right now anyways, it is more important for me that I read and learn and if I have any questions then I will post.

However, so far it seems everytime I think of a question, someone else beats me to it. Which is great! Tells me the forum is doing what you intended. Education and enlightenment

I really thank you and everyone else for this site. Like I said I really wanted to find out more about port and especially Madeira and this site is helping more than any other. On some other sites I feel intimidated by the sarcastic responses to most questions (IMO, actually most posts degenerate into arguing back and forth just for the sake of posting). Because it it just port and madiera I don't feel intimidated at all.

THANKS

Andy V

[Roy Hersh]

Andy,

Welcome aboard. I am totally chilled now. We reached the 100 member milestone, have readers in over 50 countries already, and it is not even two weeks yet.

Even though there are more than 130 views for every individual post, I now understand the value of reading here to learn. I hope that in the months to come, others will feel comfortable enough to post. That is why the "PORT BASICS" Forum was created. So that no question would be too simple to ask.

Thanks for the kind words and again, I hope you enjoy your stay here!