Big Board site content

If i were to create a potential "Big Board" what sort of content would it need to have?
And how would i go about getting the first few sign ups on the board?

In the long run, maybe the next 4 -5 years i would like to achieve owning a big board with a fair income + adding an E-shop to it eventually, But i just find it hard setting to a specific content.
i would like a board, where you chat about everything. But there also comes the point where it becomes to broad and people dont sign up, because there's nothing on there that they want at all.

So if i was to Create the perfect board what would i have?
how would i market it...
and how would i keep people active whilst still having a life of my own.

[Yours]

I find that it isn't always just about content. Remember conent isn't your number one thing.

Lets say you have the greatest content in the world, but your staff are all stuckup +++++++s who ban people for no reason, bash people, and all around aren't very nice. People will notice this and not want to sign up/stay. For me I think the best thing to go with would not be at first content but staffing. Make sure you have active staff members who are nice, helpfull, and don't go off the deep end over stupid stuff.
Now you state you don't want to spend a lot of time on this soon to be "big board", but i'm sorry you have to be on the site a considerably large amount of time, or atleast make sure a few staff members are being active around the clock. Without staff, your site is nothing.

Make it a warm environment, make the site look good, both in content, and layout. Never lie about your statistics with the "fake community statistics" mods, and NEVER overcrowd your forums with 10 billion mods. Try to keep it basic. "the more the merrier" is not the case.
I would also suggest not changing too much too often. If you go through 10 different skins every month people will get confused. My suggestion: make a foundation of the site make it how you want it get mods and templates, make sure its all working, before you release it to the public. That way you don't make huge changes throughout your website's life.

For me, simplicity is best.

[hotcouponworld]

Friendly is the key - people want to come to a site where they feel welcome. We have a rule that no question is a stupid question - even if it's been asked before and they could have searched. We are high customer service that way.

And then lots of content. Actually, I think our new members are at times overwhelmed with how much there is, and we're trying to find a way to condense, but the quality of it is there.

[goddess_dix]

you're best off with a topic you're interested in. you spend lots of time surrounded by it when running the board, you'll end up learning a lot about it, and you'll do a better job of managing your board if you're knowledgable about the topic at hand.

i wouldn't even bother with a "general chat" board because there is absolutely no reason for anyone to register for something they can go two million and two places on the internet for, often without registering squat. people register for forums because they find them interesting or useful. unfocused discussions are usually neither. think about when you register for a forum, and why. when you want to ask a question? when you're interested in learning more or discussing a particular topic, right? not just to chit-chat, most likely.

not to mention if you hope to make money with the board, you need a sense of community. a random traveller may or may not shop in your store, but a member who likes the community and wants an easy way to support the site will often do so if you make it easy for them, and feel good about it in the process.

in order for this to happen, your subject needs to be something they care about, enough to sign up to begin with, enough to particpate, and enough to want to support what you're doing.

add supplimental content, at times perhaps driven by the needs and issues you see taking shape on the forums, and you've got another way for prospective members to find you plus you're serving the community at large.

in a way, i think you have the questions kinda backwards. find a way to serve a community, and the members will come. make the topic related to something you personally feel some passion for, and you won't regret the hours you spend working on the site. plus, chances are you'll have a much better site because your personal interest in the topic will help guide you in your decisions.

and as far as the time commitment...well, yeah, there is a time commitment. but it's not reasonable to expect to have this big board you want to run just take care of itself. you expect it to make money for you, so you have to keep things running smoothly, add content, manage memebers, upgrade software, add features, blah blah blah. there is no free lunch.

[wtrk]

Originally Posted by dooch

Simple but hard to think of something that hasnt been done yet.

it doesnt matter if its been done, all you have to do is do it better.