Managing Online Forums: Everything You Need to Know to Create and Run Successful Community Discussion Boards

Check out the book website for full details.

Every day, millions of users log on to their favorite online forums,communities and social spaces and interact with others to get adviceand discuss everything from the latest news and trends to their hobbiesand professions to whatever else strikes their fancy. Administratorshave to lead these communities, deal with difficult users, manage staffmembers and make tough decisions.

Legal constraints, spammers and technical issues can turn theexcitement of running an online community into chaos. With the rightguidance, however, running forums can be an enjoyable and rewardingexperience. My name is Patrick O’Keefe and I own the iFroggy Network.I’ve spent years developing and managing online communities. In thisbook, I share my experiences in a straight forward, honest fashionand show you how to make the right decisions about every aspect of yourforums, including:

• Creating an organizational structure
• Designing and launching your community
• Deciding on user options like avatars and private messaging
• Promoting and attracting members
• Utilizing technology to your benefit
• Developing and enforcing guidelines
• Choosing and managing moderators
• Shutting down users who disrupt and harm the community
• Involving your users and keeping the site interesting and inviting
• Generating revenue

What is talked about in this book is not hypothetical - it consistsof in use, battle-tested theories and solutions, making it so that whenyou must deal with these issues on your forums, you will be betterequipped. Real life examples are cited throughout, including the actualuser guidelines, staff member guidelines and more, from realcommunities.

This is a book for both new administrators and experienced ones. Ifyou are new, it will give you a major boost as you grow your knowledgeand build your community. If you are already an administrator that’sleading a successful community, the book can enhance your knowledge andgive you more to think about and, with that, even more experience foryou to pull from.

Managing Online Forums is the one book that shows siteowners and administrators how to create a safe and entertainingcommunity that users will return to again and again.

Book Trailer

Media Mentions

• Advance Praise
• Interviews and Other Mentions
• Reviews

Praise and Reviews

“O’Keefe provides an impressively insightful, comprehensive, and cogent blueprint for building a loyal and responsive community online.”

- Ryan Leslie, Founder, NextSelection Lifestyle Group, recording artist, producer, and online video pioneer

“… Managing Online Forums is a worthwhile book to buy and absorb. There are TONS of great resources in there, and lots of real world examples for you to follow. This alone makes the book a great resource to have on the shelf.”

- Chris Brogan

“Patrick is one of the true leaders in online community building, and his knowledge isn’t just theoretical, it is based on ‘in the trenches’ experience–and those experiences will prove invaluable as you look to leverage community in your endeavors.”

- Jeremy Wright, CEO, b5media, and author, Blog Marketing

“Online forums make up the very foundation of the social web. Unfortunately, there are few resources for the growing number of people who work behind the scenes to make them successful. In this comprehensive book, Patrick O’Keefe brings his real-world experiences to bear in the form of strategies, tactics, and ideas that fill a knowledge gap that has begged to be filled for too long.”

- Lee LeFever, Principal, Common Craft

“Patrick O’Keefe has been building online communities for nearly ten years. He’s got more expertise and experience than anyone else when it comes to leveraging the power of community. Read this book and you’ll save time and frustration. Best of all, you’ll get results.”

- Zack Urlocker, Executive Vice President, MySQL

Author Interviews

• All Interviews

Related Links

• Book Website
• ManagingCommunities.com
• iFroggy Network
• AMACOM