Seldom seen members!

[Shaun Hopkins]

Have just been perusing the members directory and was amazed at how many people belong to this forum but never interact in anyway shape or form, wondering whether they just never log in or maybe feel intimidated in some way or just prefer to cherry pick advice if anyone has any ideas as to how we can encourage more members to speak up then lets have it.

 

[Chard]

Same on most forums. Huge membership and about 10% ever contribute :.:

 

[ExSCA]

Maybe we could run a huge free competition - that might bring people back ;-)

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

Maybe we could run a huge free competition - that might bring people back ;-)

Great idea maybe we could get some prizes donated from the industry giants

 

[ExSCA]

I'll give it some thought.... see if we can squeeze it in before Christmas.

 

[Harley]

Sound like a good idea

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

If your one of the sleepers on this forum and reading this then i really want to see them fingers tapping :wink: lets have twenty new first time replies by tomorrow night DON'T BE SHY

 

[Jan Powell]

Their lack of involvement could have something to do with the topics discussed. An awful lot have been done over and over again on this and other websites.

 

[Darkside]

A lot of people just like to listen...

 

[Chard]

A lot of people just like to listen...

Whereas others like to listen to the sound of their own voice... :yell:

 

[RobertBeard]

Their lack of involvement could have something to do with the topics discussed. An awful lot have been done over and over again on this and other websites.

Yes but with new people coming along all the time this has to be expected. Only some will trawl back through the old posts.

Perhaps some more topics ought to be pinned to stop them being repeated like first gun, chokes etc

 

[Madmillie]

Here's a post from me. relatively new Member and definitely a lurker rather than a poster at this stage. Not intimidated, just don't have a lot to say at this stage. Will keep reading though and will post whenever I can.

Steve

 

[Al-Nitro]

Yes but with new people coming along all the time this has to be expected. Only some will trawl back through the old posts.

Perhaps some more topics ought to be pinned to stop them being repeated like first gun, chokes etc

Or maybe have a section dedicated for newbies and there questions. That way, it will not clutter other parts of the forums, and easier for new members or those new to the sport to find what they are looking for.

 

[ExSCA]

Or maybe have a section dedicated for newbies and there questions. That way, it will not clutter other parts of the forums, and easier for new members or those new to the sport to find what they are looking for.

That's is coming VERY soon... in fact, most of the parts are in place, I just need to do some testing - and it will be live.

 

[ianmaney]

Just bumping this one so I can find it later !

 

[JayAln]

I think I may fall into this category! I am usually able to find an answer to any questions I have in previous topics, therefore not had much need to post. I am relatively new to shooting so enjoy reading the board to absorb as much information as possible (I also work behind a PC and love to procrastinate!)

I want to start entering registered shoots and trying different disciplines so am sure there will be some questions coming from me in the near future.

James

 

[ExSCA]

Best answer yet... thanks James.

I look at the analytics behind the site (and others) - and as Chard says correctly, this one isn't unusual - about 10% of members are active. We see some churn on that 10%, so some of the active members at the beginning are not active anymore (some have closed their accounts due to some of the bickering on the site we have had at times) - others just drift away - to be replaced by new members coming in and getting active.

Good content, without too many know-it-alls is the key to getting people involved. Some competitions, polls and surveys will also help (my Christmas comps are all about getting people engaged and hopefully giving something back for all the donations and support I get).

I'm conscious of the fact the new shooters may be scared away by some of the threads that have 'experts' commenting on them, and some modifications we'll make to the site will help make a home for the beginners and build a good library of previously asked topics (as well as helping everyone identify the best answers).

The most important things is that our member count continues to rise (we have spikes in new members, but the trend is always upwards) and our visits and page views per day keep increasing, which means even if we have lurkers - they are coming back. 10% of 1000 members is better than 10% of 600 members - so the growth is important if we get 1 in 10 joining in.

It's interesting to see how page views rise and fall depending on the 'tone' of a topic - when things get argumentative, we get less pageviews. This is why I'm quite active at trying to stop the out of hand stuff. When a thread goes wildly off-topic, I can see the pageviews drop on that quite quickly.

So - I may have the keys, but its your site to drive... the more experienced members and more experienced shots have the ability to help new people into the sport.

I'd say we're doing two things as well as any other site out there:

1. Getting people to make step changes in their shooting. Newbies to their first shots / beginners to their first registered or competitive shoots / intermediates and experts to their first FITASC Sporting or a change of discipline.

2. Getting people together to shoot - the number of meet-ups at events is the most personal gratifying thing about ShootClay - I was new to shooting almost exactly two years ago, and I knew one person. Now I know loads - and I'm meeting more all the time, and those people are going off and shooting together.

That's the really good stuff. And the stuff that ShootClay should be proud of.

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

Their lack of involvement could have something to do with the topics discussed. An awful lot have been done over and over again on this and other websites.

Does that not also apply to magazines? used to subscribed to a well known clay shooting mag also The field mag and shooting times weekly all of which repeat year in year out the same old same old but they sell thousands, There are many very experienced shooters on this forum some right at the top of there game who really know almost everything they need to know about this sport but they still use the forum, how often can you discuss your choosen sport openly with a world champion!.. not in many sports in my opinoin but here on shootclay you can fill your boots

 

[ExSCA]

Does that not also apply to magazines? used to subscribed to a well known clay shooting mag also The field mag and shooting times weekly all of which repeat year in year out the same old same old but they sell thousands, There are many very experienced shooters on this forum some right at the top of there game who really know almost everything they need to know about this sport but they still use the forum, how often can you discuss your choosen sport openly with a world champion!.. not in many sports in my opinoin but here on shootclay you can fill your boots

Agree completely - in my opinion the beauty of ShootClay is that we can cover those subjects again, but also kickstart an ongoing dialogue between the experienced and the learner - I'm very grateful to have some top shots (and other experts - Sports Psychology, Eye Specialists, Sports Governance) on here who share their knowledge, as well as a larger number of experienced shots who also share wisdom and opinions with the wider community. That's just like the magazines - but dynamic.

Where ShootClay beats the magazines - is the speed at which you can have those conversations. On the fly, in real time people can go a layer down or deep dive on a subject. That's hugely valuable. How often does a beginner get to have a conversation with a AAA shooter without paying for a full lesson. It is largely by the generosity of spirit and time that those shooters participate in the forum, and why I feel it is important to respect their views and time.

The other place we win out is speed - If a ground wants to post its scores - they can do it dynamically, if they want to adjust their calendar they can do it themselves. If someone wants to launch a product and get opinions, they can do it in real time. If a big event finishes up, we can have scores, views, reviews online during the same day. My personal aim is to make a PLATFORM for shotgun sports - the community is one part - but the parts of the site that enable communication (calendar, directory, mailing list, main news site) are just as important to making the site a way of getting people engaged with their sport.