Get leads by posting in forums?

An honest question:

How many of you get good quality leads by posting in forums? And how many leads (per however many posts.)

I am truly curious.

I am on a team that really pushes for posting ads in forums. I know that this is not one of those forums - thus this question here.

SO many people post ads - is it truly effective? What's your experience?

joyforever

Thanks, Vishal, your post and the discussions in the links make sense to me. I see your point about the quality of the leads, even if there are some leads.

That helps me!

Hey Joyforever
FIRST - I like your ID name!
SECOND... I enjoy posting in forums...because alot of folks come into these places because their home business is NOT working for them.... or they are looking for advise. I am VERY happy with the 1stepsystem. I have been with them since April 26th. I have NEVER made as much as I have with this company. They are a company of integrity. You will always hear GOOD and BAD about every company --- BUT it is so true that if you work the company the company with work for you. STAY POSITIVE and sooner than not your business will GROW GROW GROW!!!

Forum is a place where you can share your thoughts and experience with other members looking for the same. By posting in forums I am getting regular visitores to my site.

Hey guys i'm pretty new to this forum however I have been active in many forums for some time now. It is my basis for advertising. It seems to me that for about every 700 visits to my website I will get a sale. That seems like alot however, I was very surprised to see how many people just view that forums and never post anything. I would have to say they are worth the time and effort.

It makes sense that some people come to these forums because their home business is not working for them.

It does give one access to a wealth of information.

Hi joyforever

Blatant ads are annoying in a forum and just get in the way. I skip straight over them, or just stop reading the whole topic.

However if you participate in forums (rather than just advertise), and by your replies show people that you are somebody that can be trusted then they will feel more like developing a business relationship with you. That's when they will click on your sig, and see what you have to offer. The downside is that participating takes up a lot of time (a lot more time than just placing an ad anyway), but the upside is that any people who do click through to your site will be more receptive to your ideas.


By the way.... madetoprosper
Is that an ad for the 1stepsystem hiding in your reply?
- any good leads yet?

I make money by posting to forums. People read the posts, they check out my stuff, they see that I know what I'm talking about and they buy the products because they are clearly good stuff. It seems like a sensible formula.

If you are just selling a $35 thing though, it could be a lot of posting to make a little money. Its important to realize that it takes no more work to get people looking at a free-to-join program than it takes to get them looking at a $4,000 program.

It doesn't hurt if you have a lower cost product but believe me, there is serious money to be made marketing higher-end programs precisely because the advertising cost and traffic is the same but the income is much higher.

Many people struggle with marketing affiliate programs through adwords because the Return on Investment is sometimes very low.

I can afford to spend $999.oo on marketing a program where I make $1000.oo... but I don't have to, because when I was starting out I didn't have a lot of money to market I found a lot of cost-effective ways to do it. I still do them because it clearly demonstrates what is possible, and generates real, serious incoming traffic.

Forum leads are excellent in my experience. the product has to be excellent though, because making attention getting forum posts takes time, energy, and research.

The quality of feedback really depends on the forum itself. If it is a well managed anf high quality forum with a large number of active members then the concept of advertising on forums will definitely work. However you should not expect instant results and it takes a lot of patience to get the idea circulating around.

I think it's important to pick a forum where you have topics in common with people and can be of service.

From a book I'm reading right now:
"In networking, you're only as good as what you give away."

The way I use forums is with the intention of introducing ME and creating a funnel for people who are attracted to me to begin to build "know, like and trust".

So yes, leads that filter through to me are great and are VERY targeted to what I'm doing and where I'm going.

Forums are a great place to network ... or should I say great forums (there are plenty of crummy ones) are a great place to network. I get quite a bit of traffic from this one

So I guess it really depends on *Why* you're posting, *what* you're posting, *where* you're posting, *who* is reading and *how* you're going about getting people's attention.

Something like that

Beware though, it's easy to get caught up in the drama of others and waste a whole lotta time on forums too.

Be really clear what you're MWR (most wanted response) is and it will work for you.

hth,
Andrea

Forums just means live leads, although most forums do not allow (and rightfully so) blatant spam ads, you can always build a relationship with forum members, put up links in your signatures and try to give them general info as such, rather than just look at them as money making referral cash machines.

Building relationships in business is the key, and for me forums have been quite a good resource for genuine and interested leads.

It all boils down to people management.

W2I.

I am not sure if I am understanding what is being stated here? How in the world can posting to forums build one's business. In my case, I spend a bit of time explaining my business to folks. I have only been in an online business since July. All of my efforts have come from hard work promoting my business and building my organization. If there are some special tricks to this thing, I need an education. Best to all! Alta

You mean I can get leads doing this?

*Gets excited and starts dancing around his office......Just kidding*

Bob G.
Feel free to call me and chat about MLM (888) 630-9985

One thing you will notice posting in forums is your get more backlinks to your site. You also get curious people wondering what your site is all about. I know I've clicked on quite a few sigs on this board just to see what people are promoting. Plus, if you actually contribute to the forum, you are networking with others. They might approach you for help or ask you to test market a product.

I think it depends what you are selling. If your target audience is say, stay at home moms, there is a huge forum community built for them all over the net. These ads would be effective. If you sell shock collars for dogs or you do roofing, there are not too many forums built just for that target audience. So I think it all depends what you are selling.
Also if your posts are just straight spam and offer nothing but a commerical, I think people will ignore them. However, i fyou offer real information in a conversational tone, they may be interested to read more on what you have to offer. They say MLM's are really about building relationships. I uppose the same could be said for advertising in forums.

There are a lot of ways to generate leads, that are a lot more effective than posting on forums. Like was said above, especially when it comes to ads, we are often posting to other business owners, looking for people to join their businesses. lol Kind of humorous in a way. Most people are very involved in their business and that is there focus and then someone comes along and plays the mine is better than yours deal. Shake my head. What is needed are generic solutions to common business problems. Problems that a lot of us face, like finding leads, training, mentoring, coaching etc.

Keep in mind that a forum by definition is

Quoting: Dictionary.com"an assembly, meeting place, television program, etc., for the discussion of questions of public interest"


and is not intended to be a medium for advertising products, services or opportunities. It is meant soley to enlighten those who seek answers, guide those who are lost, converse with those who are lonely and light the way for those who are in the dark.

I like doing some occasional posting and have gotten leads doing so. I consider these leads to be very targeted and most of these people tend to be serios about business. All it takes is a good sig and a effective website.

The best way to get leads is building relationships and answering questions. Showing that you know what you are talking about and being willing to talk to people even if they don't sign up with you will get you leads in the long run. I must add tithing makes a difference also.