Posting

[kenya]

I find we have people come on the forum and then never respond or come back. I don't know maybe they do come back and don't post. I know at the old site someone complained that people don't post replies and it was true I was a lurker and didn't post. So now I do try and post, I think if we want to keep this site alive we have to post and start discussions that draw new and old members into the discussion. Some members maybe no longer have chickens but they have a wealth of information to give others.
I think members have to respond to posts, make posts even if the subject has already been gone over.
Everyone has their breeds they are interested in, genetics they are interested in, behaviours that are weird or just interesting. It's nice to see someone else's chickens, even if it's just mutts. Some beautiful mutts out there, nice to see them and speculate on their ansestry.
Even the ready to lay hens bought at the feed stores have a mass of people interested in and using them.
Is Facebook so much better, NO it's not, if someone replies to something that topic is soon gone, most people often don't get any replies to questions. Facebook is a big mighty machine that has done it's best to squash other sites and it has the money and power behind it to do that.Lets try and stop that, this site is sooooo much better.
I don't know, any one else have suggestions? I think a lot of people don't know about this site.

[WLLady]

I know I've been on FB and mention this site any time that I can (and not get barred from groups LOL). Why people are so sensitive about advertising another site on a group is beyond me, since people love to belong to more than 1 site....anyways. We would also have a lot of word of mouth advertising through the fairs and shows. This year shows and sales are virtually non-existent....and I thought we'd find more online traffic, but we didn't. I know for me, for one, I'm sick of being online. Everything is online now. More than half my work, 100% of my teaching is online, and I'm completely utterly totally sick of it.

I can only speak for myself, but I just simply don't have time to be online all the time right now either. Being an essential person at my workplace, and having to shift work there and my teaching and the farm, and family things and just generally being totally exhausted. I need to stop making excuses and just find time to answer posts. Although I don't recall seeing much (if anything) that wasn't answered in the last 6 months or so.....

I know backyard chickens in the USA is a large group that lots of people went to after the alberta chickens site closed. Even though we are PTO, we do welcome people from all over canada and the USA (sometimes we're picky on people that are from specific IP addresses overseas.....known spammers and such LOL). I'll have to check where we are on the search engines.....maybe we dropped in ranking in the last bit.

[Ontario Chick]

On the iNaturalist forum I belong to , there is a monthly update, when You haven't posted that month, just a link to the news posts,
I wonder if something like that could be set up to happen "automatically", even maybe every 6 month? just to remind people of PTO ?

[kenya]

I wonder if putting up flyers in local feed stores would let people know this site is available. Lots of new people out there, just have to get them here.
I know through the summer when people are so busy posting is difficult.

[Farrier1987]

So we already have many members. But only a relatively few are here regularly. The moderators have their emails from when they signed up.

I like the monthly picture contest. I like looking at the pictures and voting, they are almost always interesting and fun. My suggestion is that we send a mass mailing once a month with the winning picture as part of it. And a few words something like:

LAST MONTHS PICTURE WINNER HERE

Here is the one of the things we like best at PTO. the monthly photo contest winner for September. Here is a link to the Sept contest to see what the other entries were. ==============

And here is a link to this month's entries so you can look and vote if you wish ================.

And here is a link to submit your photo for the November contest. Its open until Oct 20, pick your favorite sand send it in. ===============


The above is not nagging anyone or spamming them, but gently nudging and reminding them that we are here, and there is god stuff to stop in and look at and visit about.

[Killerbunny]

Tha's a great idea @Farrier1987 , It's sad when I have to keep asking for photos from people. So far I have received none for November!

[Blizblaz]

So far I have received none for November!

All the pictures I’ve taken lately are of sad looking bald chickens! Haha

[labradors]

Mine are just boring old feed-store chickens (and I would have had a lovely and unusual breed this spring, had hubby not insisted that quantity of eggs was more important to him than having unusual and beautiful birds ). That said, we really lucked out on hens that get along with each other this time.

All that to say that any pictures would not only be dull, but they also have muddy beaks and feet!

Linda

[Farrier1987]

Send them in anyway. We wont laugh.

[Farrier1987]

You notice with Happy, its not so much the picture itself, but the caption that will sell it. (I say this having won the photo contest once in several years, sowhat do I know.)