What are Forums on a Website and How to Create One?

Creating a forum website for your business can be an effective way to attract an interested audience and engage with potential consumers. Learn how to create one here.

What are Forums on a Website and How to Create One?

An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages usually have more than one line of text and are archived at least temporarily. Companies use forums to attract customers and answer questions people have about their products and services. Users can speak candidly and interact with other customers who share the same interests, questions and criticisms.

A web forum is a website or section of a website that allows visitors to communicate with each other by posting messages. Most forums allow anonymous visitors to view forum posts, but require you to create an account to post messages in the forum. When posting to a forum, you can create new topics (or threads) or post replies within existing threads. To moderate the forum website and respond to customer inquiries, customer service representatives must be assigned. Companies use forums to interact with customers and answer questions about their products and services.

Unlike a live chat, in a forum the conversation doesn't take place in real time, each participant writes their contribution and then, if someone catches their attention, they can interact or not. Every successful business owner knows how important it is to be on top of everything, and forum design is a great starting point. In addition, the forums provide additional information about your project, as well as all the relevant complexities that interest most people. One of the advantages of using a forum for customer service is that it's easy to include content that can contextualize troubleshooting steps. They must ensure that users follow the forum rules and that any questions customers have about their products and services are answered.

Forums are living and active communities, and once you create one, you must participate in it if you want it to thrive. Now that we've covered the technical aspects of creating a forum, the next step is to turn it into a dynamic community. If you're a beginner, it's best to start with Strikingly, as it's the easiest and most comprehensive forum website builder available, along with great forum creation options. Remember that forums are characterized by being asynchronous, that is, they don't work in real time like chats and social networks. One of the most effective ways to attract an interested audience and engage with potential consumers is to add a forum website to your Strikingly website. It's up to you to choose the right plan based on the functionality of your future forum website and the goals you've set for yourself. Organizing the forum in this way will help users navigate your site and find information relevant to their interests.

Some forums are general, such as a fitness forum, while others are more specific, such as a forum for yoga instructors.

Allen Craiger
Allen Craiger

Incurable food advocate. Devoted web guru. Freelance analyst. Avid twitter expert. Hardcore internet ninja. Typical webaholic.