Website Review and Suggestions

**pikus** · 06-14-2009, 05:14 AM

Hello,
it's 1 year or so that I am running this forum, but there are very few visitors. The only visitors I have are watching 1 or 2 threads and that's all!

I would like them to write something, to ask...

Please tell me what is wrong and how I can start troubleshooting it so that more visitors will come and start to use it.

I am paying a lot of money and I have just earnet about 10 dollars in 12 months!

**World** · 06-14-2009, 05:45 AM

Well, you just missed a few more visitors by not posting your web address.

**pikus** · 06-14-2009, 05:53 AM

hehehe, sorry

The site is here

**d1zl3** · 06-14-2009, 01:55 PM

it took me a long time to load that page, maybe thats why?

**pikus** · 06-14-2009, 02:10 PM

it is hosted in USA, from Europe when cache is empty it takes about 2-3 seconds to have the page fully loaded, with cache much faster. Maybe you found just the bad moment... you can try one more time

**d1zl3** · 06-14-2009, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikus

it is hosted in USA, from Europe when cache is empty it takes about 2-3 seconds to have the page fully loaded, with cache much faster. Maybe you found just the bad moment... you can try one more time

yeah its much faster now. Maybe you could invest some money into advertising?

**Precision** · 06-14-2009, 06:43 PM

did you try link exchanging with other forums, creating a newsletter, etc..?

**GeekSpecialties** · 06-15-2009, 12:39 AM

First time it loaded slow for me too, seem to be waiting for something, probably your ads.

Also this should be hour home page.
http://www.security-exchange.net/forums/index.php

I'm interested in this topic but am mostly interested in the technolgy I work with, and didn't see any sign of it from the link you posted. Then with some reluctance I decided to poke around anyway and clicked the forum link on the left.

Also the text size may be too small for some.

The content starts down too far. Get rid of the long Hello Everybody paragraph and simplify it too something like: join our IT Security Community today...It's FREE.

A great way to generate traffic is forums and blogs. Find a few you are interested in, participate regularly and put something like this in your signature. (you should have one on here)
Security Questions? visit the
Security Exchange forum (<- this would be the link to your site)

**pikus** · 06-15-2009, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d1zl3

yeah its much faster now. Maybe you could invest some money into advertising?

I cannot do this for now, I hope in the future. I have a 50$ AdWords coupon, but I would like to use it when it's time to use it and in the right way.

What do you suggest? AdWords is a good way for publicity or you suggest something else?
When do you think it's the good time to spend for sponsor? Even now? Or I have to wait for something concrete?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Precision

did you try link exchanging with other forums, creating a newsletter, etc..?

I heard about this... but I don't know where to search, where to start and how to start. Do you have any example, idea, suggestion to share, where to find those forums, and maybe 1 or 2 examples that can work?

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeekSpecialties

Also this should be hour home page.
http://www.security-exchange.net/forums/index.php

The content starts down too far. Get rid of the long Hello Everybody paragraph and simplify it too something like: join our IT Security Community today...It's FREE.

A great way to generate traffic is forums and blogs. Find a few you are interested in, participate regularly and put something like this in your signature. (you should have one on here)
Security Questions? visit the
Security Exchange forum (<- this would be the link to your site)

I followed your suggestions and I made a redirect to the forum, you can check if you want. I also changed some signatures and the Notice message for the guests.
What is missing now, is the font size... I will see if I can do it...

I don't know if you have other suggestions, or maybe somebody else would like to add something, it would be wonderful.

But I would like to thank you all, for those good suggestions you gave me!!! It was not just good, but it made me happy and let me hope for the future of the forum. In other words you gave some vitamins to my hopes

**pikus** · 06-23-2009, 05:25 AM

I have changed the default to one that for sure works...

For this kind of forum, what would be the best practice to get visitors and writers?