[Speysider]

The welcome message doesn't look very different at all.

The best thing to do is have something like this:

Welcome to the Harry Potter Community Forums. We hope that you enjoy your time here.

It appears that you are not registered on the forums, which means you cannot take advantage of what the site has to offer. Take a look around and if you like what you see, register on the forums, which is absolutely free, and you will get an extended range of features, including:

1. The ability to post new scrolls (threads)
2. Be able to reply to other user's scrolls (threads)
3. Edit your posts
4. Receiving email notification of replies to posts and threads you specify
5. Sending private messages to other members
6. Creating albums of pictures and comment on others' pictures
7. Adding events to the forum calendar
8. Setting up a 'contact list' to quickly see which of your friends are online.

And More!

Note that entering your email address will not leave you open to 'spam', as you can choose to hide it from other board users. You'll probably be able to allow other registered users to contact you via email, but the system won't display your email address to them unless you give permission.

That's my welcome message and it tells everyone the benefits of registering.