Thoughts on jazzing up the Board?

[Paul Arden]

Hi guys,

I think we need more Board members! The video manual is encouraging a few new recruits but not as many as hoped. Facebook really is death to Boards in some ways but we need to change this because you can't learn or develop flycasting in a meaningful way on FB (mostly because it doesn't lend itself to longer discussions but also it's not searchable by general public and only in the most part through friends).

So if you have any ideas then I'm keen to consider them. Having members post videos of their casting seems a logical step to me. Making more of the Boards existance on the FP is a good idea too - but I'm not sure how yet. Hell I haven't found a way of promoting the video manual on the FP yet!!

Maybe some sort of notification system (app) would help. Also I've considered a Facebook login.

This month I will revamp the Board and bring the software up to date. This is necessary anyway because I need to resurrect the old Board database into new software which requires some MySQL updates - and this Board version won't run on the new MySQL!

Your thoughts?

Thanks, Paul

[steelehead]

Hey Paul,

the video manual is (so far) excellent, it beats all the other free stuff I've seen so far. I think until now, it still is a hidden gem as no one dares to enter the sexyloops world and so no one knows it is around. Probably people are reluctanct to enter this board, as the members are some sort of casting elite and the discussions usually drift apart and contain abbreviations such as SLP, RSP, etc. while "everyday flyfishers" are simply looking for "the best fly that catches every fish this season".

The members posting videos thing is really cool and I like the idea of having my casting faults explained by excellent casters, however most flyfishers do not care about if "the cast itself is a transverse wave" as long as there might be fish in 4.75 meters distance, that they need to shoot line to. I have seen a lot of flyfishers that do not care about their casting proficiency as the latest/greatest rods offer integrated accuracy and distance presentation abilities off the shelf. Guess SL is addressing a niche market - great product, great tools (video, board) but hard to compete against zillion dollar industries that influence the consumers.

Promoting the video manual could be done by video - sort of like "the SL video manual saved my life", before and after confessions by the guys that got help.

Cheers, Christian

[Paul Arden]

Thanks Christian!

I have some thoughts as to what to do after the fly casting video manual. Thing is the site stats are as busy as normal. If anything we have more US readers.

It's the Board that concerns me. The Board has become increasingly niche. Perhaps that's in part because my fishing travels has taken me to more remote and less fly fished waters. However I see it more as a Facebook challenge.

I was.hoping - and still do - that the video pages will bring anglers directly into the relevant pages on the Board to ask advice. This will take time to proliferate through the Internet. We will also have to blitz YouTube as part of this plan (Google own YouTube) and we will do this once the manual is complete.

The Board has always gone through cycles but this one hasn't really picked up pace. Getting the archived Board back up and running again is a priority. It might be possible to integrate the Board databases but that will take some planning and a lot of caffeine.

Cheers, Paul

[James9118]

Have you considered getting naked?

[Lasse Karlsson]

[Graeme H]

I used to be worried the site name was not going to be safe for work.

Then I gave up caring and now I flaunt my Sexy Loops ...

In reality though, the site is a little bit niche, but it's the only one in the world occupying the niche. There is no other place where casting is the main discussion and that's what makes this site so valuable to anyone who wants that information. It was one of the first fly fishing forums I signed up for and is still one of the few I visit every day.

This site is a shelter from the "Tell me what line works best on my Scage 5wt SubSonic Flash Rod?" questions.

Cheers,
Graeme

[Geenomad]

I think we need more Board members!

Ah but what kind of members are you (actually) seeking?

The folks that provide questions or folks that answer them? It's easy to say both but do they respond to the same attractions? More discussion or more questions?

What are the demographics, what appeals to them and what doesn't?

If FB is a competitor what is the strategic response - beat them, join them, exploit them, concede defeat?

For a similar discussion http://www.sexyloops.co.uk/theboard/vie ... f=2&t=2062

Cheers
Mark

[petevicar]

One reason why the board has lost traffic is that a lot of discussions are taking place on Facebook and not on the board.

Also since SL has become a manufacturer/supplier of fishing tackle some people have just disappeared.

The discussions these days are almost limited to high level casting issues.

OK someone sometimes comes up with a fishing in the jungle topic but there are very few people who can contribute to that.

Mark's questions are very relevant.

I think that SL Board has become more and more specialised in terms of casting and the potential contributors are rather limited compared to the millions of people around the world who fish.
The discussions are very specialised and technical and can put off a lot of people who just want to catch a fish and maybe pick up a few tips on how to do it better.

What do you want the board to achieve?
As it is it is probably the only place on the web where this current type of discussion exists.

I know a few people from other fly fishing boards who use SL as a reference point but would never dare to post something here.
A few people have posted videos of their casting but I would think that most mortals would find this somewhat intimidating.

At the moment SL occupies a very good niche. I believe that in the fly casting community it is rated as the number one site.

I have noticed that a lot of instructors that I have met at various get togethers no longer contribute. Maybe you should ask them.

[Paul Arden]

Good post Pete. Thanks!

My thoughts on this is that the Board has been around for 18 years. In this time people have always come and gone. People's lives change - they have families, their interests change and so forth.

What has always kept the Board going is a steady flow of new members becoming active. I still process new registrations maybe a couple/week. It's new blood that has always kept the Board fresh - obviously we need the long-term guys such as ourselves - but just long term guys start discussing technical stuff because we've discussed everything else already.

Maybe we just need to do a better job of bringing people from the FP to the Board and encouraging them to post.

So let me rephrase the question!!!

If you are a lurker or occasional poster who has joined the Board what would you like more of here?

Thanks (and thanks Pete for helping me focus on what I think is required!). Ie what can we offer our new members to enhance their experience and make them feel welcome.

Right, now I have to discuss bloody transverse waves with Graeme, but first I'm going to the pub.

Cheers! Paul

[Neil Owens]

Speaking from my experience, it’s intimidating coming to a board that’s heavy with worldwide experts in their field. You’re not going to get many beginners who are struggling to turn over a fly at 30’ when you’re discussing transverse waves and other such high end topics. So why not just pitch to those that can cast/fish/tie? Not an elitist board but become a font of knowledge and not a jack of all trades/place to hang out? Just an idea!

*Somewhere* on here is the answer to every beginners/intermediate question. The problem is finding it. So a well laid out structure would help and being aware that telling someone to ‘RTFM’, even when done nicely doesn’t help someone. Not that happens but it’s something to be aware of.

And if you want to compete with all the other boards you’re going to have to advertise - at least promote yourselves. Facebook is the way to go here.