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What can you expect from Gearhead Central in 2014?

Discussion in 'Off Topic' started by Flexin, Dec 28, 2013.

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  1. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    Awwww, you are so super sweet!!:):inlove: And really, my heart skipped a beat and did a tumble when I read my name, like, "OH!! She missed ME!!"
    Thank you for showing love, and not being a hater:whistling::whistling:.

    As I said, you make me feel bad for being gone so long. I have a tendency to do that, just being in my own world. Self-centered:oops::oops::sorry::sorry:.
    I mean, don't get me wrong, I care about people and have compassion, but sometimes I tend to shut everybody out if I am dealing with something.

    An acquaintance of mine (who I thought was a friend until I found out she was sleeping with my boyfriend:roflmao::roflmao:o_O:nailbiting::roflmao::hilarious::hilarious:) years ago told me, "You act like you don't need anyone." (Well, turns out, I didn't need her, that's for sure:roflmao:) What she meant by that, is that even if we were supposed to be doing something as a group, I'd go off on my own and do my own thing.

    I feel bad for leaving this forum for so long:(, even if I was protesting my Internet company and having relationship problems, I should have been more considerate:oops:.

    Now, these days, since reading your post about missing me here on the forum:inlove::inlove:, I'm on a mission to post on this forum regularly, and if my Internet gets cut off, I'll go to a library and use their wi-fi:coffee::coffee:... and if I have any relationship problems, well, I'm not IN a relationship, so :meh::meh::meh::roflmao::roflmao:.
     
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  2. Trellum

    Trellum Active Member Founding Member Top Contributor 2nd Chevy Truck Club

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    Awwwwwwww you are sooooooooooooo sweet :inlove::inlove::inlove::inlove::inlove: But don't worry, I also tend to do the same thing! I tend shut myself and do my own thing when am dealing with difficulties! I almost lose a friend thanks to that! He was a bit unfair, I wanted to be alone back time because the doctors thought they had found something scary in my body! Fortunately that wasn't the case, but for a whole month I lived in terror thinking I'd die.

    Btw... HOW did you find that post?? :eek::eek::eek::eek::eek: I forgot to ask the other day, I'm really curious, I thought you'd not see it, been so long since I posted that, thought it was buried under a bunch of other threads!

    Thanks, that's so sweet :sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob::sob: I really appreciate it :sob::sob::cry:
     
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  3. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    More members means more traffic (in most cases). More people, means more people to talk about cars.

    For some forums the traffic means more adds they can sell an add. That isn't what I want. I only want the one banner at the top of the forum and I believe I still have one in private messages.

    More members can mean more vendors like Rvinyl.com which can mean more discounts, prizes and so on. One of my favorite forums had something like 70000 members. There was thousands on at a time between members and guests. It was very active. It was a great place to hang out. I even went to a motorcycle show with two of the members while I was in the US doing some training.

    James
     
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  4. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    Hmm, okay. I mean, I get that more members means more traffic, and just like more
    traffic on a city street, that makes for a more crowded circumstance. That means more work for you.
    On the other hand, more traffic would provide you with
    a wider variety of people to talk to. I guess I get it, kind of...

    More members, more vendors. I get that too.
    So, are you basically saying that you want to start up a "car club" of some kind?

    I mean, maybe that is what you are already doing, or have already done. Maybe not.
    I'm kind of confused a bit, and confusion is never a good thing.
    I guess I'm trying to find out ultimately what your vision is.

    A huge online community, with all the vendor perks and such that come with it. I think I get it.
    Kind of like having a large YouTube following, only in a forum-style, is that right?

    I'm going to have to go back and re-read your goals for this forum so that I can get a clearer understanding:thumbsup:.
     
  5. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    You are so super-cute!! Thanks for being supportive and understanding.
    I can understand how you wanted to just shut down after the doctors had given you a scare
    and you didn't know what was going on.

    I think that real friends tend to understand when a person needs some alone time.
    You know, like how men say stuff like, "I just need some space.":joyful::joyful:

    I totally get your need to be alone during difficulties, I feel the same way. Even when things are going
    well, if I don't get my own space, I kind of start flippin' out:roflmao::roflmao:.

    Are you and that friend of yours still friends, or did you end up losing him after all??
    One of the best things I have done for myself as far as certain friends are concerned is to "lose" a few a them.

    How I found your comment is, I went to this thread to see what Flexin was saying about
    what we could expect from this forum in 2014.
    As I always do, I read mostly all of the replies. I don't just read the thread question or
    comment, and then immediately reply, no, I read the
    whole thread:joyful::joyful:... so, if the thread is 5 pages long, I read all 5 pages first, and then I comment.

    Take for instance that comfort food thread you started:arghh::stop::mad::facepalm::joyful::joyful::joyful:.
    I read through most of the thread, that's how I came
    across your comments about "fake" hugs, and pats on the back:roflmao:.

    I like to read :bookworm::bookworm:, so it might take me an hour to post
    just one reply because I want to read the whole thread (if I have time) before I start
    typing anything.
     
    Last edited: Jun 6, 2014
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  6. Trellum

    Trellum Active Member Founding Member Top Contributor 2nd Chevy Truck Club

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    We are still friends, but lately I'm starting to think we might not be friends for too long :( Sad because we have been friends for nearly 10 years, but he seems to be a bit lost right now. The other day we were ''talking'' on skype. He was silent the whole time playing video games... when in the past he'd multi task and talk with me. Something is wrong :( But ah well, I guess some friendships aren't meant to be, this one might not have been meant to be. It lasted long, but well... it's true some friendships have to end, this one lasted long, but it had to end :eek::eek:

    Wow :confused::eek::eek::eek::eek: So you read the whole thread... :eek: I never do that :oops::oops::oops::oops::oops: I'm too lazy, I might only read the first few comments and then comment! Hehehehe, you were mean't to find that message :inlove::oops::joyful::happy::headphone::thumbsup: Hehehe! Glad you did :singing::singing::singing::singing: I hadn't thought about the pats on the back bit :borg:
     
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  7. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    Most that start forums would like to have a huge member base. Some member the success of a forum on the number of members. Well that and the number of active members. Having 100000 sign up and only having 5 as active doesn't do the forum any good.

    My goal is to have a successful forum. To me that would be to have 10's of thousands of members and 500-1500+ online (members and guests) during the busy times.

    There are issues with having a large user base. You can have some bad apples. The more members you have the more bad apples that can slip in. So it can take more work which means more staff. That means more work.

    My ultimate goal? To earn from the site without adding banners. With that I would like to have a location (garage), hire a mechanic, maybe a paint booth and hire a painter and body person. Then hire a photographer and writer or someone who is good writer that can take good pictures. With them I would want to do how to videos, custom builds, repair cars for people that can't really afford to be without a car but are having a hard time keeping it running. To write ups, videos, build threads, car test drives, product tests and so on. That would be my goal and dream.

    But the smaller goal is to have a great forum with great traffic that is has something for the hardcore gearheads, electric car lovers and just people wondering what would be a nice car to haul around their kids.

    James
     
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  8. Soulwatcher

    Soulwatcher Member

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    I think you can do it James, you should think about putting Wordpress on the front end and use a bridge to Xenforo. That way you could create your territorials on the fly. I think if people were interested enough with the territorials, they probably would sign up and ask questions.

    Greg
     
  9. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    I thought about that but I don't know if I'm ready for wordpress right now.

    James
     
  10. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    It's very interesting to me that you want to have so many members on this forum. It seems like that many members would almost make the forum unmanageable. You'd have to quit your day job.

    You say that there would be some bad apples if the forum numbers increase, which of course is true, but having staff to manage a forum would cost money right?
    I mean, trying to manage and interact with thousands of people would be a full time job for staff, which is not a bad thing, it's just that
    you'd have to pay people to work full time on the forum. I know you know all that, I'm just trying to figure out in my mind how much money this forum would have to generate to pay for it's own upkeep.

    Earning from this site is a worthy goal, you don't need me to tell you that, but I'm just saying.

    And having a garage and a mechanic sounds fab too. Paint booth, body person. All of it sounds fabulous. My dad is an (independent) mechanic (and carpenter).
    I suppose I inherited his love of cars (although I think I loved cars long before I really got to know my dad), so I think it's fabulous what you want to do as far as the garage, the car photography, helping people. Admirable and totally do-able.
     
  11. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    Most large forums use volunteer staff to moderate the forum. So that isn't a big issue.

    There are other ways to make money other then the forum.

    You are right it is more work bit that is what I started it for.

    James
     
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  12. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    I'm really going to have to go back and reread some of the things that you wrote in prior posts
    on this thread to comment properly, but I'm gonna give it a go now. I know that there are
    other ways to make money other than the forum, plenty of ways. But I thought that you said that you
    want to do the forum full time, perhaps I am wrong about this. Like I said, I need to reread some of what
    you wrote so I can properly comment. Later.

    Yeah, I could see how a volunteer staff could moderate your forum,
    but it seems to me that--that volunteer staff might have a tendency to come and go,
    especially if they have to be offline to pursue their jobs that provide them
    with income in order to make a living.

    As far as the "more work" bit is concerned, what I have noticed about
    you (over the past couple of years of my (me) being on/off this forum) is that
    you love to work, or more specifically, I think that you love to create more and more work
    for yourself for some reason.

    Perhaps you are that personality type that always
    has to be involved in some type of activity. It's good that you
    are so passionate about the things that you do. You have drive, and
    that is a good thing.
    I'm kind of jealous of it actually.:whistling::whistling::roflmao::thumbsup:
    3,900 plus "messages', REALLY?
     
  13. Velvetsongs

    Velvetsongs Active Member Founding Member

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    Three THOUSAND nine hundred PLUS, 'messages' :wideeye::wideeye::wideeye::wideeye::arghh::arghh::arghh::arghh::arghh::arghh::arghh:
     
  14. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    Well, doing it full time would be nice. What I would like first is to give others full time jobs first and keep my job. Some of the ways I can make money, create content for the forum. One is detailing again. Having a mechanic doing work will create content plus I can buy cars at the auction for resale. There is a lot that can be done that can go right along with the forum.

    You would pick volunteers that are really into the forum. Members like that could be on a forum for an hour to a few hours a day. When they are on they can moderate then. It is done like that on many forums.

    As for me creating work for myself. That is my style. When running my detail shop, I worked 15 hours straight and then had to take a nap to have the energy to drive home. Running my own business has been my dream. I had a few over the years. I told my wife I would take a break from that and work a regular job. Working on this site keeping my mind busy and keeping me from trying to start another one right now. And I want the site to be huge. I like the saying, "Go big or stay home!". :D

    It is a lot of work now but I enjoy it.


    Yes...3900+ messages. I have been slacking. I should be over 5000 by now.

    James
     
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  15. Soulwatcher

    Soulwatcher Member

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    You can do it, forums only get better with age. The more threads you get in Google the more traffic your going to receive. I bet this forum is getting pretty decent traffic buy now. :cool: Just imagine where your going to be at 2+ years from now.

    Greg
     
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  16. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    Thanks Greg. It isn't bad. I want it much higher. I need to get the decals on the Jeep and get out there and talk to people. I want to hit up some car shows as well. If I put in the work it will have a much better chance.

    James
     
  17. JudyCap

    JudyCap New Member

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    James, it is too bad that you don't live in the US in the Pacific Northwest. They have some awesome car shows in several differnt places around the area. The Comanchero's host one in the Kellogg area, then there is the Car'D lane in down town Couerd'A lene, Idaho~ as well as the Depot Days car show oput on the first week of May in the famous Wallace, Idaho (my hometown) Then they have the "Lost in the 50's" in Sandpoint, Idaho. You would like them all. Then just across the Washington state line, there is the Auto-Boat speed show. It is mostly a car show set up at the fairgrounds with a few boats in the mix. I am sure you would love it all!
     
  18. Flexin

    Flexin Admin Staff Member Founding Member Top Event

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    Those do sound good. It would be nice to have the money to do a car show tour.

    James
     
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