Retention Your first 10 members, aren't your first 10 active members

[Cedric]

One of the challenges I’ve experienced when starting a new community is realizing that the first 10 members and the first 10 active members are very different. It’s easy to get excited when people start joining, but you’ll quickly notice that many will join and disappear without a word. In fact, I've found that to get 10 consistently active contributors, I’ve often needed around 100 members in the community.

Why is this? Sometimes it's simply because people are curious or sign up on impulse but never fully commit. It might also be because your forum is still growing and doesn't yet have the content or interaction level to retain them. But that's okay - this is all part of building a community!

Here are a few things that have helped me get those first active members:

• Strong Onboarding: Make sure new members know how to get involved right away, whether by sending a welcome message or guiding them to an active thread. You might remember my welcome PM and occasionally a welcome message on your profile.
• Personal Interaction: Reach out to new members, not just to thank them for joining but to ask questions and show a genuine interest in their input. Their introduction topic is often perfect for this. Don't just say "welcome" and be done with it. Involve them.
• Content Seeding: Ensure there’s already valuable content on the forum that members can engage with, so they don’t feel like they’re shouting into the void. If you don't have the content, remember to create content on a daily basis.

What’s been your experience with getting those first active members? How many sign-ups did it take before you got a core group of contributors? Let’s share tips and ideas!

 

[Bryn]

Back when I first had my forum, out of the first ten members I have, six were active. Since reopening however, it's only three. Not fussed really.

 

[Cory]

Owning a resource board, I experience users registering and disappearing on a weekly basis since I have my resources hidden from guests. I view the online list a lot when a new user registers and it seems like some of them view the board index only and leave after that, so I have no idea why they registered in the first place.

 

[InMyOpinion]

I think a great way to get your first 10 active members is to quotes their posts and reply to them. No one really wants to continue posting on a forum that is dead or that doesn't really get any replies. Keep your members active by quoting their threads/posts and building a friendship with them. You don't have to PM them all the time but a "Hey thank you for joining" does go a long way.

 

[Bawse]

Personally, I don't concern myself with what members are active. I've had members that were lurkers, and contributed more as they seen the community grow.

 

[KatBookTrailers]

That's interesting that you've had a different experience than I have. On one of the forums where I'm Admin, most of the beginning registrants are still active today. I think it's because the place was built especially for us and is like a second home. Not all of the first 10 are still around though, but that's because some of them were only there to "build" the forum.