Rebranding and Merging: The Hot Trend in Communities?

[frm]

I never said everyone, but I won't go back and forth here. Good luck with your merges. I'm not hating. I do wish you success, but I don't see how merging smaller communities helps, and I stand on that.

The only way I see it helping is if they are in the same niche and don't have a membership base with a ven diagram like this, which has been the case with the most recent mergers that I've witnessed.

 

[JoelR]

Some of the rebranding feels lateral, but this is the power of running your own forum - your vision, your inspiration, your privilege to choose a new domain and design and name.

Excited to see the future of these communities!

 

[Mac]

Merging can be good. Merging can be bad.

Depends how it's done and who's judging whether it's good or bad.

 

[Arantor]

You're using an emotional argument and applying it broadly to all mergers

Not at all. I'm specifically against the attitude of standing back and being all smug about choices other people made, without any understanding of why that choice was made.

My point appears to have eluded you as well, I see: it doesn't matter why it happens. It matters that you don't take a dump on choices other people made without knowing why they were made.

 

[frm]

It’s not about agreeing with it, it’s about how insulting it is to some of the people who chose to merge, because you think it’s only ever about how weak they are, that they can’t stay the course. Don’t laugh about people I’m situations you have no understanding of, because it makes you look like an arrogant fool, with limited empathy.

Some of the people that have merged forums over the years did so to ensure that the information wouldn’t be lost before they died. Some of the people I have called friends over the years have died, and you think it’s fine to laugh at the idea that they want some of their legacy preserved.

My point appears to have eluded you as well, I see: it doesn't matter why it happens. It matters that you don't take a dump on choices other people made without knowing why they were made.

The basis of your argument here was an appeal to emotion, especially when this is a rare circumstance.

It's as simple as that.

 

[Arantor]

You should probably have read my very first post on the matter first where I laid out the exact same thesis - don’t dump on what you don’t know. Yes, there are emotional ones in my case, but there are people who merge for financial reasons (namely they can’t afford to run the site any more), some merge because they’re moving on, some merge… there’s any number of reasons, far more than just the ones you and Bawse are pointing to.

People invested a lot of time and energy into forums. Giving them up for any reason is not trivial. Don’t sneer at it just because you find a subset worthy of derision.

 

[frm]

You should probably have read my very first post on the matter first where I laid out the exact same thesis - don’t dump on what you don’t know. Yes, there are emotional ones in my case, but there are people who merge for financial reasons (namely they can’t afford to run the site any more), some merge because they’re moving on, some merge… there’s any number of reasons, far more than just the ones you and Bawse are pointing to.

People invested a lot of time and energy into forums. Giving them up for any reason is not trivial. Don’t sneer at it just because you find a subset worthy of derision.

You're still arguing the same point. Let it go.

It’s not about agreeing with it, it’s about how insulting it is to some of the people who chose to merge, because you think it’s only ever about how weak they are, that they can’t stay the course. Don’t laugh about people I’m situations you have no understanding of, because it makes you look like an arrogant fool, with limited empathy.

Your main counter-point is an appeal to emotion as to why some (minuscule in the scope of things) merge. But, you're arguing for the minority, stating that it's insulting not to understand that. I understand it quite well, and to be Frank, I guess I'm an arrogant fool because I don't care. I'm not invested in those communities, and I wouldn't expect anyone invested in my communities to care either.

Sorry you got butt-hurt over an opinion more than just Bawse (might) hold(s).

 

[Arantor]

I'm sorry I happen to give a crap about people in different situations to me. But that seems like a solveable problem.

 

[frm]

But that seems like a solveable problem.

It was. You just had to not reply.

 

[2TonWaffle]

One area I think not covered often is in the process of before the merger/rebrand. Did one person reach out to the other forum owner in wanting to merge the two? Would the benefit of letting your forum go, to be merged into another effect your willingness of creating another forum down the line or do you tend to stick around in the new merged forums?