Forums and Applications

[Arev]

Our OOC activity level is slowing down because we have lost a sense of a 'RID community'. We have cliches. Not to mention, if you all notice the types of members that stay in RID and remain active all have one thing in common--forum usage. We have become lax on our forum applications. Recently, we had one member post an application for the first time in a month on these forums...a month. Yet, we've had several other members join RID between then. Where are they now?

Compare this to how RID RP works--every RPer that wants to join RID must submit an application on our forums at SSG-Empire. Notice how much more active those forums are? By requiring members to interact with each other in an out-of-game medium, our PA grows stronger. Compare our current forum activity level to what it was a year ago--night and day difference.

Remedying this is more than simply encouraging members to use the forums it means requiring them to use these forums. By simply telling RPers, "Post your application here", they'll inevitably return to use those forums. If we start doing this hear, the changes will be near-immediate.

[Lexx Yovel]

Well, because we have now updated these forums I am considering making the Public section accesable by those who do not have active accounts.

They can simply fill out the CAPTCHA text, and make posts as guests (albeit, somewhat limitedly).

Do you think this would go a long way to encourage more active forum usage here?

Anyways, I kind of see what you're saying. Generally speaking, members outside of RID do not use these forums, but they use the SSG RP ones. This probably results in more applications on the SSG RP forums.

I do agree we should require usage of these forums (is that what you're proposing?), but what would be the best way to acomplish this?

[Ramd]

I know when people approach me about joining RID I always refer them to the forums to fill out an application. I think we simply need to enforce the rule more consistently.

[Red-Dawn]

Well, before i was using this rule and lost a good amount of ppl because the didn't want to subscribe to the forums. They only want to play and to play in a good guild.

Before, when they didn't want to subscribe, i was accepting them in FNS while the subscrbe into the forums but they never did and got into another guild. So now, FNS is about 50% and less RID members and i dont mind. They are lawful to me.

If you want to reinforce that idea, dont count on me to recruit as many as i am recruiting now. I'm not recruiting like Arev does but its a start.

Lets talk about that at the councils meeting

[Lexx Yovel]

Okay, well to the rest of you Council folks, I took the time to speak to Red-dawn, and shared some comments.

Some of Red-dawn's concerns are valid. For example, there are people who may want to keep RL, and the in-game world of RID, completely separate. However, I felt that it's not too much to ask for people to take a few seconds to register, and make an application. They are not even neccesarily required to use the forums after that.

Another valid concern is that registering and applying on these forums greatly slows down the recruitment process. I agree, but I think that's less true now, after the forum update, than it was before.

Before this forum upgrade, I had a hard time differentiating between legitimate usernames, and spam-bots. Now that's not a problem. I can pretty much activate people as soon as they register. It speeds up the process.

Also, I plan on making a separate application forum, to make it more obvious to new users where applications are.

In the end, I see the value of in-game applications in certain cases. But if we want to see these forums more activate, we need to have people apply here.

A good starts would be to first interview people briefly, sponsor them, and then fully recruit them only after an application is posted. This way, they do not have to wait very long. Plus, if I manage to make the Public forums postable by guests, then they do not even have to wait for activation.

[Apauck]

IMHO, I am an advocate of requiring the forums to be a memeber,

A) It weeds out those who will join for a week and then leave. It shows comitment to the guild.
B) Allows you to know your recruits better and much faster. More information in less time.
C) Allows recruits to really know the guild they are joining. See who and what the guild is.

For any major guild. Forums are the heart of the guild. You can chat with friends and not be in-game and helps keep tabs on members that can't make it into the game for any reason, be it RL, payments, etc. Sure it is slower than rectruiting straight from the game, but it allows for a bond between members.

[Ramd]

Agree with Apauck:

If they can't take the time to take 30 seconds and fill out the application, do we really want them in RID?

[Lexx Yovel]

Yeah, that's my general belief. Usually the ones not willing to take the time to do that, are members who end up leaving quickly.

I think the general formula for new members should be this:

1.) Sponsor them
2.) Have them fill an application (even if they just fill it out as a guest)
3.) We'll recruit them
4.) Have them register to the forums officially, if they haven't already

And of course, as neccesary, hold an interview, if it has not been held already.

This should make recruitment speedy, while at the same time, directing new recruits to our forums.

[Red-Dawn]

i dont see the application in the public area ... i tried it unregistered and i dontsee the thread

[Lexx Yovel]

Yikes! Thanks for pointing that out. It's been corrected.