eBid Widgets

Views on what the forums are there for, how to use them for maximum effect or maximum fun are bound to vary wildly. So this is just my take… 

The basics & background.

eBid provides the forums for three reasons that I can see. 1. To take the strain off the support team. 2. To create a friendly community. 3. To promote the site. 

In many areas the advantages to the users of the forums will coincide nicely with eBid’s reasons for supplying them, but there will be clashes and the first thing it’s important to recognise is that eBid’s wishes will always rule.

Why do eBid’s customers use the forums? For a different set of reasons. 1. To get help. 2. For fun and company. 3. To promote their own stuff. 4. To help the site. 5. To vent anger. 

Those lists aren’t, as you see, a perfect match - which explains why moderation is sometimes called for. The eBid forums aren’t actively moderated, but there is a report function and if somebody objects to another poster’s comments they will be checked, and may be removed.  Posts most likely to be removed are those promoting sales elsewhere, containing personal attacks, or insulting the eBid site generally. This will disappear quite quickly, as you would expect; they don’t comply with eBid’s reasons for providing the forums in the first place. 

Removal of posts will often create a certain amount of hot air, with those who’ve been moderated speaking of “freedom of speech” and “censorship”. While the latter is undoubtedly true, censorship does exist, this is because the concept of “freedom of speech” on a privately-owned, business oriented, publicly viewable site is a fallacy. A total nonsense, in fact. eBid has no requirement to provide a platform for freedom of speech. It is selling a service, and its obligation is to itself and its customers, the buyers and sellers who are trying to make deals on the site. Allowing complete freedom of speech on any subject, from religion and politics to “this site sucks” would make no sense. If you’re looking for freedom of speech, head for Central Park, or Hyde Park Corner; you’ll never find it on a service website.

The approach

So, given the background above, how do you make the most of the forums? For a start, make your own posts and your own behaviour match the requirement of eBid as closely as possible. Since a clash of aims will always be settled in eBid’s favour, fit with them as best you can for better use of the site.

eBid wants the forums to be friendly, and helpful. So for a start, try being friendly and helpful. You might think you don’t know enough to start offering advice to those looking for help, but you’ll be surprised how quickly you pick it up - and there’s nothing like answering somebody else’s newbie question to make you realise you’re not a newbie any more! If you can’t answer a specific query, you can still be welcoming and encouraging. If a puzzled newcomer has been asking for help, and none has arrived, bump the thread for a new audience to see. Make suggestions of where users can find more help - maybe a better forum to ask in than the one they’ve chosen, or an external site they can look at (you’re welcome to use any of mine, of course, but there are other excellent resources out there such as Astral’s Knowledge Base and Jeweleffect’s great Guide to Setting up Google Checkout. Just knowing where the instructions are puts you ahead in the game.

Often people will only turn to the forums when they’re failing - this can make them angry and frustrated, and their “cry for help” might not always be a positive thing. It can often start with insults and sarcasm. Try to remember they aren’t personally angry with you. If you can offer positive advice, and you think it might be listened to, then great. If you’ve nothing positive to say, try saying nothing. Walk away and let others deal with it. If you think the post is really aggressive or unpleasant, or you see it promoting angry responses in return, report the thread.  Sure, some people will talk about “snitches” and “button-pushers” when they see that advice, but we’re not in the schoolroom or the prison yard now, we’re talking about a professional business where people are trying to make a living - not just the users like you and me, but the guys who own it too - and we’re allowed to be the adults when we see bad behaviour that needs addressing. The report button (small exclamation mark) is there for a reason, and will be acted upon. If you can help keep the forums clean and friendly, then you’ve helped the whole eBid community.

So now we’ve addressed making your approach to the forums match eBid’s wishes,
what about looking at our own? The three main issues for regular users are: getting help, promoting stuff, and having fun. Getting help is easy on the forums, just ask. If you’re fairly new, I’ll remind you now that the people you’re asking are just other users like you. So be nice. It’s easy to come across as surly or demanding in print. A simple “how do I do that” can be worded in real life, with an enquiring tone, a smile, and look of pleading, or even just a raised eyebrow and a tone of chirpy interest. In text you have to substitute all that, or it can look like a demand. How you choose to make those substitutes is up to you - I favour emoticons (little smiley faces) but lots of people don’t like them. You can use extra wording “please, how do I do that, I’m totally lost!?” or you can use friendly looking fonts and colours to dress up your request. 

Having fun is trickier to address on your behalf… I’ve no idea what your idea of fun is! So while we’re talking about approaches rather than details, some things to bear in mind are: not everybody has the same sense of humour, the forums are all public so anything you say could be read (out of context!) on Google, anything rude is likely to be removed, even if it’s meant harmlessly.  There are a number of ways to have fun via the forums, including chatting to your fellow eBidders about anything you like (or don’t like) in the Kitchen Table area. Jokes and funny pictures are often posted.  People share stories about their families, pets and their neighbourhood (again, remember what you say is viewable worldwide by members and  non-members alike) and once a month the charity auctions produce a lot of very silly fun with eBidders running around “nicking ticks” (out-bidding) from each other and threatening dire punishments for anybody who wins their favourite item.

It can sometimes be tempting, in the friendly atmosphere of the forums, to diverge wildly on somebody else’s thread asking for help, if an opportunity for a leg-pull or vicious pun is spotted - remember to check that the poor old eBidder asking for help has got their answer before you start making fish puns, okay? 

Dos and Don’ts.

Again, let me repeat my initial statement, this is just my take. If you’re new to the forums some detailed dos and don’ts might be helpful. If you find you disagree and end up wanting to behave in a different way, that’s your choice and just between you and eBid. I hope you’ll find these guidelines useful, whether as a starting place or a set of rules to behave by; but it’s your choice. So, here are my dos and don’ts, in no particular order:

Do remember please and thank you, it’s easy to forget the basics in the hurly burly of a rapid exchange.

Do make sure you respond back to any thread where you ask for help, so that people know their time isn’t wasted even if you don’t necessarily agree with what they’ve said.

Do remember that the people you’re talking to are your fellow buyers and sellers, potential customers, probably competitors - they don’t owe you anything, they don’t have to help, they’re just being kind.

Don’t ask the same question in more than one place, unless you’ve given it sufficient time to prove the first location hasn’t been noticed or attracted the right attention (we’re talking days, not minutes here).

Do remember that if you ask for opinions there’s a chance you won’t get back the answers you expected. If you don’t want to hear the answers, don’t ask.

Do make sure you put your questions in the right forum. It’s not always easy to know which one that is, so give it you best shot and be prepared to move the thread if advised to do so.

Don’t worry if you don’t get an answer instantly, it might be a matter of timing (there’s nobody who knows around) or people could be sitting thinking about your problem prior to answering.

Do check if a subject has been covered previously before asking; repetition of a question, however reasonable it is individually, can be annoying for the people who’ve been around a while.

Don’t swear, make personal comments, post contact details, link to e-commerce sites, talk about other selling venues in detail, advertise your stuff outside the proper forum… or in any other way break the rules.

Do offer help to others where you can; what goes around, comes around. 

Do set-up your signature to promote your shops and/or items each time you post, but…

Don’t post pointless threads just to give you signature an airing (we’ve all seen it a million times, and nobody’s fooled). 

Don’t be upset when you post your genius idea and nobody’s thrilled. Chances are, we’ve seen it all a million times, don’t take it personally.

Do post your genius idea though, maybe it will be a real first and everybody will be thrilled!

And finally… do join in. What’s the worst that can happen? :o)

Oh, and finally, finally… those are my theories on using the forums; I wish I could claim I always live up to them!

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