Why Start Your Own Forum Is The Next Big Thing!
by Michael Green

It seems like every Tom, Dick and Harriett now owns their
own Ezine or Newsletter. So where are savvy marketers
looking to gain their next competitive edge?

Here's the answer...

.... They're setting up their own Discussion Forums!

Almost overnight discussion forums have become an essential
weapon in the armory of every successful online marketer.

And that's no surprise when you consider that some of the
big marketing forums are now attracting 4 million page
visits per month.

Just before Christmas I set up my own forum and within a
matter of weeks was receiving thousands of visitors per
day.

To start your own forum, consider using Vbulletin

BUT HOW DO FORUM VISITORS EQUATE TO PROFITS FOR YOU?

Okay I hear you say... so forums can drive a massive amount
of traffic, but how does that help me make money through
internet marketing?

Actually in pretty much the same way as owning a credible
Newsletter can build your wealth and, over time, generate
a healthy income for you.

You see, as the owner and moderator of a forum, your
credibility will grow fast and before you know it...visitors
will be hanging on your every word.

From that point onwards, it doesn't take a massive leap of
the imagination to appreciate how this kind of POWER can
lead to increased profits for you.

All you now need to do is quietly talk about the right
products and services and others will likely pile in. If
you like, it's a subtle form of product placement.

Plus of course, since you own the forum, you have the
opportunity to include your own banner ads or text links to
every thread or page. You can see how this is done on my
own forum http://www.howtocorp.com/forum

BUT... just like the responsible newsletter editor, you
MUST ensure that you are recommending only the BEST products
and services. Otherwise you'll quickly lose all your
credibility . Oh and your forum audience and regular posters
will disappear too.

OWNING YOUR OWN FORUM CAN HAVE OTHER SPIN-OFFS

* WITH A FORUM YOU CAN ANSWER ANY QUESTION JUST ONCE
If you find yourself in the position of repeatably being
asked the exact same question about your product or
service, then a forum can provide a place for you to post
the answer once and for all. After that you'll just refer
people to your forum thread on the subject.

* OTHERS WILL ANSWER QUESTIONS FOR YOU
A bunch of enthusiasts will most likely gather at your
forum and act as an external customer services facility
for you. Your forum can cut your workload dramatically.

* SHOWCASE NEW AND UPCOMING PRODUCTS
I often release information about my forthcoming projects
to the folks at my own forum before anywhere else. It's a
trusted community where I can get valuable thoughts and
feedback before launching a toolkit to the public at
large.

SO WHAT ARE THE DOWNSIDES TO RUNNING YOUR OWN FORUM?

Well you'll need to devote a certain amount of time to
monitoring the posts and ensuring that SPAM isn't turning
up on your forum. Naturally it will, so you'll need to
delete it. Ignore your discussion board and you'll quickly
discover that it has been filled with worthless JUNK posts
and this will immediately devalue the board.

To start your own forum, consider using Vbulletin

Newsgroups have been around since before the dawn of the
internet - so you may well be asking yourself: "Why are
they really *hot* now?"

Traditional Newsgroups used to require special software to
access and even though they have been popularized through
Google, they're gradually losing their importance.

At the same time anyone who can set up a website can now
set up their own forum - so they're hear to stay and
naturally "switched-on" internet marketers are taking full
advantage.

I look forward to posting in your discussion forum soon!

Michael Green
Founder "How To" Corp
http://www.HowToStartAForum.com

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The author has created the web's first ever eGuide tutorial
which shows you precisely how to establish your very own
online Discussion FORUM. Discover everything you need to
know in order to create and draw visitors to your very own
FORUM today at http://www.HowToStartAForum.com