web Average lifetime for a forum?

[Gone Airbourne 21,969]

I have been thinking for a long while now even since i joined here back in 2012. How long do forums in general usually last before they start to die down? I could imagine after the main topic of the forums once that ended so would the forums as well. However with this being the first forums that I have been apart of.

 

For you veteran forum goers that have been apart of many in the past. What would you say is the general lifetime of a forum before it gave way of its popularity?  

[Malinter 3,064]

Depends really, alot of things can kill a forum.

 

Loss of interest in the topic the forum was built on.

change in design or staff.

Influx of new members who just kill any new topics stone dead.

Edited December 13, 2013 by Malinter

[Moonbacon 384]

it depends on how well made the forum is and how smooth it runs its pretty much about the forum quiality. i can say mlp forums will last good long years. 

[Starshine 16,330]

Anywhere from three days to fifteen years

 

Welp, that aint helping at all. Forums that are based on a certain interest like tv shows and ongoing games tend to last much longer than general forums that have no particular focus. Good moderation certainly helps, but ultimately everything will be decided by the community itself.

[Mightymags 1,053]

I'd say it depends on three things. 

 

1. The lifespan of the topic it was created on. As popular as the show may be, it's not going to last forever. As with all smaller fandoms this one won't survive long after the show ends. I'd give it 2-3 years max before all forums are either dead or barely hanging on. Of course there will always be the few die-hard fans, but most likely people will fade as there's nothing new to hold their interest. 

 

2. The community atmosphere. This forums has one of the greatest communities I've ever seen. But there has to continuously be both inclusivity and respect. The forums won't survive if the senior members of the site exclude the newer members (especially with such a large flood of them recently). Eventually senior members will fade and if the newer members didn't stay because they didn't feel included then the site will die. Alternatively, if the newer members don't respect the rules, written and unwritten, then the senior members will become discouraged and leave. I think that's mostly seen in the newer members killing topics to increase post count. (Which is why I was a fan of the 100 character minimum, RIP)

 

3. The structure and authority. If the administrators become evil and try to take over the world, then that could be an issue and it might be harder to run the site. Knowing our administrators I wouldn't be surprised if that was a very real possibility. 

 

In all honesty, a forum can die due to bad administration and lack of trust, so I'd say we're pretty lucky here. 

[Gone Airbourne 21,969]

I'd say it depends on three things. 

 

1. The lifespan of the topic it was created on. As popular as the show may be, it's not going to last forever. As with all smaller fandoms this one won't survive long after the show ends. I'd give it 2-3 years max before all forums are either dead or barely hanging on. Of course there will always be the few die-hard fans, but most likely people will fade as there's nothing new to hold their interest. 

 

2. The community atmosphere. This forums has one of the greatest communities I've ever seen. But there has to continuously be both inclusivity and respect. The forums won't survive if the senior members of the site exclude the newer members (especially with such a large flood of them recently). Eventually senior members will fade and if the newer members didn't stay because they didn't feel included then the site will die. Alternatively, if the newer members don't respect the rules, written and unwritten, then the senior members will become discouraged and leave. I think that's mostly seen in the newer members killing topics to increase post count. (Which is why I was a fan of the 100 character minimum, RIP)

 

3. The structure and authority. If the administrators become evil and try to take over the world, then that could be an issue and it might be harder to run the site. Knowing our administrators I wouldn't be surprised if that was a very real possibility. 

 

In all honesty, a forum can die due to bad administration and lack of trust, so I'd say we're pretty lucky here. 

You made a lot of good points there. Especially with the old and new members alike. I did enjoy the 100 character limit and I wish they would actually leave it like it was. It gave you an incentive to put a little more into your post I think. 2-3 years also seems reasonable and yeah it does seem like that with how big and great this site has become for certain. 

 

I also have seen a lot of older members go but at the same time a lot of new member join. Who's to say that those new members will stay for a good while but. Yeah I think the points you made were right on the money.

Depends really, alot of things can kill a forum.

 

Loss of interest in the topic the forum was built on.

change in design or staff.

Influx of new members who just kill any new topics stone dead.

True very true.

 

Anywhere from three days to fifteen years

 

Welp, that aint helping at all. Forums that are based on a certain interest like tv shows and ongoing games tend to last much longer than general forums that have no particular focus. Good moderation certainly helps, but ultimately everything will be decided by the community itself.

I could see that def. so depending on what kind of forum it was.

[Northern Star 1,023]

Well 10 years later it's still here...

My experience is roughly 20 years before an event basically kills it. Then there is the chance that it is revived with new people and basically reborn, which I have seen before on sites.

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

I have no idea as this is the only forum I've been on

[Splashee 28,538]

I think most Messageboards I was part of when I grew up are still around. They just changed their names to Forums at some point because social media and stuff maybe? Average life span is: ∞

[Dreambiscuit 8,195]

I’d say the more robust ones can go from 3 years until interest wanes or a fan base dries up, which could take a long time.

In my somewhat limited experience, the biggest problems are:

Members who, by imitation of others who don’t think for themselves, make a point to discourage the necro’ing of old posts until no one posts anything at all. Old posts have a lot of conversational value, especially on forums where new members want to chime in on subjects that preceded them.

Administration and moderation is also important. If staff doesn’t maintain respect and basic discipline in the ranks, trolls move in and start reducing the value of forums with abuse and negativity, which usually pushes out the quality members. This is one of many reasons I oppose the return of the Debate Pit.

Maintenance matters too; you can’t use forums that are breaking down all the time.

And finally, you have to have steady material for fans to comment on and discuss. Otherwise there is little chance of getting new members and keeping the forums healthy. Even without new material forums can survive based on friendships and general fandom, but new stuff doesn’t hurt.

Happily most of these pitfalls have been avoided here on MLPF, which is why it’s been going strong and remains a great place to be.

[Prospekt 10,984]

I still have an account on one that's about 22 years old, and I created it when that forum was around... 14 years old I believe? I'm inactive but I took a peek inside and it was still going with some of the same regulars (some of whom have accounts from the early 2000s). But I think that's rare. Lots of forums die out after just a few years. I checked out a couple other MLP forums back in 2016 or so but they were pretty much dead... only a 4-5 years after they were created. I joined this one because it seemed to be in much better shape.

Edit: Just peeked again real quick, and some of the regulars in the aforementioned forum from 2000 have accounts from that same year. I can't imagine sticking around that long. But hey, I'm only 24

Edited May 31, 2022 by Prospekt

[Sarabi 50]

Along with the many things people have replied with on this post, I'd say one of the biggest things is the topic of the forum.

I'll use an example of forums I've used in the past. 

There is a forum that focuses on Walt Disney World - and it has been going since 2001, still very active to this day.

There was a forum for The Lion King franchise - it was made in 2006, and it didn't really die until about... 2017 - 2018. (Not to say the fandom is dead, forums just aren't as popular as other social sites these days - also the forum became outdated)

It really just depends on the power of the base. If it's a topic, any topic, that a lot of people are into, then chances are it'll stay around. If the topic is something like a series that only got through like 1 season, it probably won't last very long before it dries up. The fans can only do so much.

Maintenance is very important too, because if a forum starts breaking and there's other social sites people can migrate to, they likely will. Nobody wants to be on a forum that is falling apart.

Edited May 31, 2022 by Sarabi

[Pentium100 2,057]

Average is probably rather low, since there are probably a lot of forums that die quickly. On the other hand, it seems that if a forum manages to survive long enough to get a decent user base, as long as something bad does not happen (forum owners quitting etc) or interest in the topic fading, the forum will survive.