As community leaders, we all want to see our forums active and growing, it's addictive! But it takes effort to get there—especially in the early stages. So, how many threads should you be creating each day to keep the momentum going?

 

Personally, I try to create 3-5 or more threads per day. Why? Because it’s important to lead by example. You can’t just count on your members to generate activity on their own. Fresh content keeps things interesting and gives members something to engage with, which can encourage them to start threads of their own.

 

A few questions to consider:

 

• How many threads do you make daily to keep your community active?
  
• What strategies do you use to come up with new topics?
  
• Do you think focusing on quantity or quality has a bigger impact on engagement?
  
• How do you balance creating threads without overwhelming your members?
  
• Would you consider using fake accounts to create threads ?
  

Share your approach and tips for keeping your forum active, and let’s discuss the best ways to keep the conversation going!

I'm pretty non-creative when it comes to thinking of unique thread ideas. Since I run a resource board the primary threads I want to create are resources. I usually depend on posting packages to bring fresh threads to the board for users to engage. How many threads you make daily can be dependent on your niche and how active your board is. If I owned a general discussion forum, for example, I would worry about creating more threads daily.

• How many threads do you make daily to keep your community active?
  

I generally make about 2-4 threads on a daily basis. I usually spread threads out amongst all my forum categories to boast activity throughout my forum.

• What strategies do you use to come up with new topics?
  

I use social media to come up with new ideas if I’m lacking inspiration. I also use Google trends along with Youtube.

• Do you think focusing on quantity or quality has a bigger impact on engagement?
  

I focus on quality.

• 
   
  
• Would you consider using fake accounts to create threads ?
  
• 
   
  
• No, I’m not a fan of this tactic. I’d rather use my own account to post new content.
  

I try to make a few new topics a day.

 

On my niche forums, it's easy because I'm passionate about it.

 

On my general/off-topic forum, it's a bit harder. Small talk isn't my best suit, LOL.

• How many threads do you make daily to keep your community active? I personally think about 5-10 threads a day is a great way to keep your community active. You don't want to be the only one posting but at the same time you want to set the tone as well. Obviously, in a perfect world you'd make and your others members will also make 5 but that is rarely the case. I also find some members tend to enjoy replying to posts more than they do creating threads so making more threads for members to reply to is a great idea. I think the amount of threads you should post on your forum daily also depends on how many sections/forums you have. In my opinion, you should be creating AT LEAST 1 thread per section/forum a day.
  

 

• What strategies do you use to come up with new topics? Sometimes I go on other forums or visit other sites, wiki etc. to get new ideas on what to post about. If I'm lost sometimes I will just learn more about the niche so I can then in turn have more questions/threads.
  

 

• Do you think focusing on quantity or quality has a bigger impact on engagement? I believe that it is more important to focus on quality posts rather than quantity of posts. You can have a forum with 1,000 threads but if they aren't engaging or well written it doesn't matter. Plus, if you only care about quantity that's all your members are going to care about too. By caring about the actual quality of the threads and posts you're going to be in turn getting your members more engaged with better quality threads/posts.
  

 

• How do you balance creating threads without overwhelming your members? That's a great question, you want to create enough posts so that the members have something to reply to on a daily basis but you also don't want to make 2 pages of new threads a day (by yourself or just from staff) because then it's overwhelming and the members will feel like it's too much. You have to come to a good medium where you're creating good quality content on a regular basis but not overdoing it so that the members can't keep up.
  

 

• Would you consider using fake accounts to create threads ? No, to me a fake member is a horrible idea. I want my members to trust me and trust that the stats are real. If I'm creating fake accounts to create threads not only is it not ideal in the long run but it isn't ideal because then the members won't trust you or the forum. Create threads under your own 1 account and it'll be so much more beneficial.
  

 

I loved this thread so thank you [mention=1]Cedric[/mention] for this ❤️

I try to make at least 1 thread per day on my forum. I do go days without creating new discussions, but I'm always responding to topics when I can add value, and interact with my members.

 

I like to have a good balance of topics started by more than just me on my forum.

I try to make at least 1 thread per day on my forum. I do go days without creating new discussions, but I'm always responding to topics when I can add value, and interact with my members.

 

I like to have a good balance of topics started by more than just me on my forum.

I also agree with that. Sometimes (and I've done this recently) is just to take a step back and let members create discussions. So it doesn't all come from one direction. I still stand firm with the expression "lead by example" but it's also important to let other take the lead.

Perhaps it's less about quantity and more about quality. Well thought out searchable content is better in the long run. I would rather one very good thread than four "what is your pet called" style threads - especially on a niche board.

Perhaps it's less about quantity and more about quality. Well thought out searchable content is better in the long run. I would rather one very good thread than four "what is your pet called" style threads - especially on a niche board.

I agree with that.

 

Too many "starter" or "filler" topics these days. I almost feel like axing the Off Topic section at times and just linking to my off topic forum, as an alternative.

"Need?"

I am not sure if there is something like the "need to create x number of threads daily" I believe a community needs new content and it could be threads as well as posts. A lot of threads without any responses also do not look good in a community.

I try to make around 5 each day - although, if other users have made several good threads that day, I might take the day off from it :P .

As a general rule, when first starting out, I'll want a minimum of 30 threads posted on the forum before I open it up for public access. Otherwise, the place just looks deserted, and there's no reason for any potential new member to view the forum and want to join. During the opening stages and the first few days or weeks, I'd be looking to create a minimum of 5 new threads daily - so if others weren't creating that amount of threads, I'd create however many needed to top up the number myself.

 

There needs to be a reasonable amount of activity and a reasonable diversity of topics to attractive new people to want to contribute, in my opinion.

I'm pretty non-creative when it comes to thinking of unique thread ideas. Since I run a resource board the primary threads I want to create are resources. I usually depend on posting packages to bring fresh threads to the board for users to engage. How many threads you make daily can be dependent on your niche and how active your board is. If I owned a general discussion forum, for example, I would worry about creating more threads daily.

 

You could just focus on getting rid of the "ghost town" look that new forums have. Someone just replying "What a cute possum, I hope it finds a good home!" is enough to make the place look like it has users. The replies can be very simple like that, as long as they are varied and relevant to the topic.

 

For example, the next reply in that possum thread could be "I would consider adopting a possum and giving it a good home, but what is their personality like? Would I have to worry about it ever biting"?

 

That's non-committal. They didn't say for sure they would adopt it, only that they would consider it. But it also gives the impression that they would probably do it if they learned enough about posssums. That's the kind of engagement you want in order to kill the ghost town look and retain new members. (when it comes to reply posts)

Edited December 17, 2024Dec 17 by bennylava

The quality of what you create is far more important than simply hitting a daily quota. In fact, focusing too much on output volume can lead to burnout or mediocre content, especially in areas like forums, blogs, or even SEO-related projects.

The quality of what you create is far more important than simply hitting a daily quota. In fact, focusing too much on output volume can lead to burnout or mediocre content, especially in areas like forums, blogs, or even SEO-related projects.

 

It really depends on the purpose of your forum and the areas you’re posting in. A well-written article or two can be far more impactful than a casual chat thread, but creating quality content like that requires more time and effort.

 

 

Focusing on output volume can be helpful if you’re working toward a specific goal and want to generate a lot of content. However, it’s not essential to set a strict output target.

 

 

It’s always best to focus on sharing your genuine ideas and thoughts, rather than fixating on numbers or stats. That kind of pressure often leads to burnout and less desirable results.

I'm just getting into the groove since I'm new at administrating, so I only make 1 or 2 per day right now. Hopefully I can bump it up to 4 or 5 depending on how many threads my final user base is making.