Promotional posts from businesses/advertisers

[rsscott]

I like the suppliers comments 'within' the forums, splitting them off is just silly, they have a lot of information to offer, and as a prospective pedelec purchaser the information they provide is highly relevant to me, as long as it's on topic. I would not support them spamming the forum.

Can you link to an example suppliers post which caused the complaints?

What would you class as spamming the forum?

 

[Cyclezee]

How does this look? My logo in my avatar?

 

[rsscott]

'Trade' flags: why don't all posts from business members have these flags at the top of their messages? That would make it obvious to any untrained eye that they MIGHT have an axe to grind....A

They will, have a look at Aldby's avatar to see the 'official' trade member designation which will be applied to all paying advertisers. Those who are not paying, will just have the 'Trade member' and there will be other restrictions around what they can and can't post.

 

[NRG]

Looks good John.

I would also like to see continued trade involvement in the main forum Russ, however, posts like the recent Raddar announcement should go into a different section IMHO if that's a blog section or a trade announcement section I don't care but it should not be on the main forum. Also, I feel some posts by trade members are very close to advertising and not so much an 'infomercial' as perhaps they should be. Not sure how those types can be handled except with some form of moderation.



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Posted using Tapatalk

 

[rsscott]

Looks good John.

I would also like to see continued trade involvement in the main forum Russ, however, posts like the recent Raddar announcement should go into a different section IMHO if that's a blog section or a trade announcement section I don't care but it should not be on the main forum. Also, I feel some posts by trade members are very close to advertising and not so much an 'infomercial' as perhaps they should be. Not sure how those types can be handled except with some form of moderation.

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Posted using Tapatalk

Yes, my intention was never to stop the trade involvement, just to separate the pure promotional posts away from the general discussion. I think the Raddar post (sorry to single you out Ian!) would be best in the Blog area.

For product announcements which members do want to see, perhaps we could prefix the new thread subject with the business name, for example:

Wisper Bikes: New Wisper 705eco and face lifts to the 905eco

That way, it's obvious it's of a commercial nature.


But the main change will be that to use the forum in this way, a business will need to sign up to an advertising package. It keeps it fair for existing advertisers and helps fund the running and development of the site. Plus, hopefully they get some some sales along the way

Before I forget, we also have the main 'News' section of the site, which is ideal for us to publish press releases etc, so if you're a business reading this, add us to your 'list'.

 

[allen-uk]

Yes, John's device (#22) is spot on: but while the current 'Trade' flag is ugly and intrusive and the 'Official Trade Member' is aesthetically more pleasing, it won't of itself prevent inappropriate posts, which are always going to be policed by strong-minded forum members, and ultimately The Management.

A.

 

[z0mb13e]

Yes, John's device (#22) is spot on: but while the current 'Trade' flag is ugly and intrusive and the 'Official Trade Member' is aesthetically more pleasing, it won't of itself prevent inappropriate posts, which are always going to be policed by strong-minded forum members, and ultimately The Management.

A.

Indeed, there is nothing to stop a new member joining and then posting about their product. And I would suggest that, unless the forum is more spam than useful information and discussion, that it shouldn't give cause for concern. After all, when someone lands in any forum with a blatant and cheesy marketing post, I am far less likely to buy anything from them than I would had they just been open and honest and relevant to the forum.

Also it's usually fun to watch them taken down a peg or two by forum members. If they survive that and come back to the forum and subsequently abide by the rules (rules either laid in stone or developed over time by the community) they can often become well respected forum members (I speak of another forum that doesn't take kindly to being taken for a mug, where I have seen this happen).

 

[Kudoscycles]

I think it's all a question of degree...I have tried to mix my trade postings with some which I hope contribute to the general discussion points of the forum,I notice that David from Wisper is equally conscious of the mix being important. It is equally annoying to do a trade post,with clearly stated parameters only to see the post hijacked by another trader promoting a product a million miles away from the original posting,I am sure readers who start reading a post about a touring bike for example don't like to see the post invaded by a competitor who is trying to promote his off road MTB as an alternative.
If anyone thinks a trader is going over the top then we all have broad shoulders and should be able to respond to fair critism.
On most other forums if the trader has not contributed to the site in some way,then he can be endorsed as a non contributory trader-it is a soft black mark.All traders should clearly identify themselves as such.
Dave Elderfield
KudosCycles

 

[rsscott]

Example 1:

Member 1 asks if anyone can recommend a folding bike.
Member 2 makes a suggestion of a product from Trade Member A
Trade Member B suggests their bike
Trade Member C suggests their bike is better because of xyz

I presume the members would not like trade posts to be in this way? We don't want a situation of trade members jostling to promote their products in response to a general question.

Example 2:

Member 1 asks if anyone can recommend a folding bike
Member 2 suggests Product A
Trade Member A posts additional information on Product A
Member 3 suggests Product B
Member 1 asks if Product B can do xyz
Trade Member B posts specific information in response to question on Product

Trade Member A is a paying advertiser so they would also be able to suggest Member 1 can contact them for a test-ride etc.

Trade Member B is a non-paying member and can only answer specific questions.

Trade Member is also able to post promotional material in the Blog or by an announcement on the forum with the forum subject preceded with their company name e.g:

SuperDooper Bikes :: New teleportation module for Zipededoodaa bike in July

 

[allen-uk]

Russ: trying to avoid your algebra (which makes good sense, but I was never any good at algebra)...

A month or two back we had the situation where Bob of JuicyBikes recommended Wispers, and later on that week David of Wisper recommended JuicyBikes.

Now THAT is how the forum should operate, freely and (sometimes) in an amazingly altruistic way.

I really think that Rules & Regulations will move us into an area where most of us would feel uncomfortable. Yes, the alternative is to rely on (a) members shouting if they think someone has stepped out of line, and (b) you/any other moderators showing a yellow card to the offender.

Why are you asking the question at this moment? Have people been stepping out of line that we either haven't noticed, or that you've already quietly dealt with?

Allen

 

[rsscott]

I have received a few messages over time bringing some enthusiastic posts to my attention. But, it sounds like everyone is pretty happy with the way things are so the only things I would like to ask are:

A) paying advertisers - if you have an announcement to make, use your Blog AND/OR precede your forum thread with your company e.g. Kudos Cycles :: <topic>

B) non-paying advertisers - by all means respond to a specific question about your product when asked, but if you would like to do more than that, sign up!