Ok, so I need to know, how to RPG-Directory first start out? Did it rapidly start gaining members the first week? How long did it take to get the skin and banner? How was it opened? Did they have a countdown to the grand opening? How did they first advertise in the very beginning? How did they get members in the beginning? How many members did they have after the first week?

I would just like to know some basic stuff such as that so I can follow in RPG-D's footsteps when I open up a forum. Thanks in advance!

ShinLi is obviously the person to answer this. But I would just like to add, we still have the same admin as who started it out, though I can’t say how long it has been open for, in fact this is quite an interesting topic… I’d be fascinated to know.

Yeah, ShinLi would know this. However, this would help the members alot. It could be a sort of history book on RPG-D and the eras of it :boogie:

Not only would it be an informational history of RPG-D, it could be a guide on how to start a new forum! (THats basically why I started this topic).

Wow what a wise idea, of course it would all be a guide not for people to openly copy… because some ideas should be kept unique

You have misinterpreted what I said. I never said anything about ripping graphics, skins, or ideas or motives for forums. Nothing like that. I said that it would help people on starting new forums. Like advertising, where to advertise, where to get good graphics and skins, etc. You need to get your facts straight before you start making false accusations.

Please don't offend or disrespect a member of staff member again please. But that is ripping from another site if you steal their sources, etc.

I can see this is getting a bit out of hand but won't close this just yet. However, if you are a staff member and think differently, close as you please.

They werent accusing you of saying that you were going to copy RPG-D exactly, though, in reading the first few posts, I thought that myself as well.

A guide on how to start up a forum, well as many success stories as there are, there is a forum right behind it with the same general idea, had the same, if not more unique services, and it just didnt work out for them for some reason or another. Each forum is unique, and will have it's own unique beginnings.

RPG-D started off pretty small. I found the link on an RPG that I just happened to be surfing through at the time. I really didnt know what I was going to do on an advertising site, seeing as I didnt really have a site to advertise at the time, but I just knew that I had to join once I saw it. I believe we have the same skin as from the beginnings, perhaps we changed it once? Not too sure on that one.

Well I think one of the first places rpg-directory advertised was rpg collection. I think that is where I first found it, I'm just guessing that was one of the first places it advertised because I was one of the first member's on here, that about all I know really lol.

I do believe you are right Jay. They were affiliates from the start I think.

:D Yeah i got something right and I think you site skin as almost been the same all the way though the sites history :D

If I'm correct, RPG-D started on 20 februari this year. We at first had some different skins, and I changed them because in most reviews I got they didn't like my skins. And I greatly value good reviews, so I kept changing skins until I got good reactions in the reviews. And when I saw Nicola's skin, Celestia, I fell in love with it :p. I think we must've had this skin since end februari or march?

And nope, there wasn't any grand opening. I basically got a random idea of making such a forum on IF, seeing PB had RPGC, and it was a good success. And I know IF held many RPG forums too, but there wasn't really a good proper place to advertise for those forums. I made the forum in about a week? All by myself lol.

After I opened I made Andy my co-admin, and I hired the first few people a bit later? Melly, Horse and Jess are the oldest staffies ^^. I knew Melly already because she has been a member on my old RPG Forums.

How did I advertise? Everywhere and no where lol. I asked some of my old members to join (forced?), and basically advertised everywhere I could. IFSZ, RPGC, other big advertising forums, even some RPG related forums, or RPG's themselves. I know that once people started advertising and we got a member base of around 50 people, it couldn't go backwards again. The clue is that if a member advertises his or her site, he/she has to put our button up on their forum. This is the main traffic income for RPG-D, and as more forums advertise, RPG-D will get more traffic. And don't understand this wrong, this traffic is not only to keep RPG-D as a forum succesful. But this traffic brings a constant flow of new guests and possibly members, that will look again at the advertised forums, and thus increase changes of members joining up on your forum which you advertised.

And I really have no clue about statistics in the first few weeks, I didn't write that down lol. Although I can say that the start was quite slow. That's why we still have a lower post count then RPG-D actually should have lol.

But you have to remember that RPG-D's concept is totally different to that of RPG forums.

I'm sure that the highest percentage of people who found RPG-D was by from a site they joined or were passing through that had the nifty little RPG-D Icon. After that got going, I'm sure there was no need to physically advertise :D

I did not mean to offend anyone. And if I did, I aplogize for that. And no, I wasn't planning on ripping any resources from RPG-D. All I was asking is that how RPG-D started so I could have a few ideas of how my future forum wold be doing in the first couple of weeks. There was just a misunderstanding.

Thank you ShinLi for the overview of RPG-D, it has helped me numerously. :)

Your welcome, if you have more questions, I'll be happy to anwser them ^^.

Actually, I have one more question. Do you know about how long you had the board when you reached 50 members? I'm just wondering so that when I start a board, and there is only 10 members after two months, I'll know if I'm on the right track XD. Thanks.

Well from what I can tell, after 7 days of the site being open this site had 38 members because Horsecrzy72 joined on that day and he is the 38th member.

Wow, I think that's a very good guess Jay Serge. I suppose I didn't delete any members at that time. So I suppose we had around 40 members after a week.

We have around 7 to 12 new members joining on a daily basis at the moment. Which seems quite a lot, but only a few of those people actually do start to post. So it's not all about numbers, it's about who of those numbers actually decides to go posting on the forum and coming back on a regular basis, if not a daily basis.

I've got to say I'm a bit guilt for not being active at the start due to the fact I did my posting, did my ad and then left thinking nothing would come of this site like most advertsing sites because of the size of it when I join lol came back a month later to see how it was going and boom, punch to the face and I was put in my places, I think there was like 100 members already, so I became active :D

Wow, thanks guys. Man, RPG-D really did do good in the beginning, I gotta admit. Thanks again guys, this really did help me out. :)

Lol Jay, I'm a girl! And yea, I'm the 38th member, no clue what my join date is though, but I trust your calculations!

You don't know what your joining date is? My god, you must be blind lol (jk).

Urhm *pokes the Amanda*, the join date is right under your member numbero. I think you joined about 8 days after RPG-D opened. Your join date is 28th february.

And almost all of our staffies are girls, exepct or Andy and Prongz.

lolsorry Horsecrzy721 I should have remembered your a girl, I've seen your photo's on here, I was thinking of andy for some reason, my bad sorry any who and ShinLi's right, thats how I know I was one of the first to join, and yes I'm rather prowd of it :D

I remember when you joined Horsecrzy! I remember when I joined too! XD Ah, the early days... I think I was number 10 (that was a long time ago). Gawd, I missed this place... where was I? Anyway...

ShinLi has done the most amazing job with this place! No one could do it better! I'll say one thing about RPG-D... From the start, all the staff always find ways to make this awesome... so there's always new things going around... it doesn't get boring. ;)