Are forum contests actually helping forums?

[Shawn Gossman]

How do you feel about forum contests?

Forum contests often include competitions between members for stuff such as "blank" of the month, referral competitions, posting competitions, themed-"blank" competitions, and even competitions with credits and virtual currency on forums.

Some forums give prizes while others give bragging rights.

However, my question is: Are forum competitions and contests actually helping forums in the long run or are they just temporarily providing activity and engagement?

If you run contests on your forum, have they been significant in helping to build your community or are they only good for a little while?

 

[Cpvr]

They're great to do every once in a while to drive in new members and give back to the community. They also boast activity and can be quite helpful in creating a new flow of content.

I'm a fan of utilizing contests to help kick start a forum, or using them to engage my community further. I've ran a few of them in the past on a former version of VPL and they worked out well.

I only did posting contests though.

 

[Shawn Gossman]

I only did posting contests though.

Did you offer prizes and if so, what kind?

 

[Cpvr]

Did you offer prizes and if so, what kind?

Yes. I offered a top prize of $100 with a second prize of $50.

 

[Shawn Gossman]

Yes. I offered a top prize of $100 with a second prize of $50.

Nice!

How active did it get for those prizes?

And based on the results, was it more about participation from people who actually get into the niche verses people who are just trying to win a prize if you know what I mean?