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Thread: How do we get the word out about Utahby5.com?

  1. #1
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    How do we get the word out about Utahby5.com?

    The initial week or so reminds me of a conversation I had with someone skeptical of the NHL's success in the stands. He was from Philly. Noted that the Flyers sold out every game, but it was the same 15,000 people every game.

    What can UB5 do to ensure that the posters here don't comprise of mostly UF.N'ers? Word of mouth and links on same/competing web sites ain't gonna cut it. It's a start, but I feel there is a huge untapped section within the fanbase that doesn't even realize this or similar sites exist. Or they know they exist, but don't want to get involved.

    I have my ideas but I'm curious as to what others think.

  2. #2
    Educating Cyrus wuapinmon's Avatar
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    If CUF stays crashed much longer you won't have to worry about it.

  3. #3
    UB5 is off to a good start, a lot stronger than CG/CUF. Those forums provided a good model for this one, but UB5 will ultimately be a lot more successful for various reasons. These include that UB5 provides a more competitive alternative to Utefans.net than CUF does for Cougarboard. The vast majority of BYU fans feel at home in Cougarboard's restrictive and homogenous environment. This board and format is more appealing to many Utefans than Utefans.net (I continue to submit that there is no competition as the boards are so different). This board and format is also more welcoming of BYU fans than CUF ever was of Ute fans. Some of my favorite Utefans posters, who you rarely see there any longer, came to CUF but were not really accepted into the community because their primary interest was Ute sports. We have attracted them and some other similar posters. BYU fans who are CUF posters often have wide ranging interests that now will be better stimulated here than on CUF. Unfortunately, CUF has turned more astringent and is trying to be Cougarboard II. I think UB5 has a very bright future.
    Last edited by SeattleUte; 02-25-2013 at 01:50 PM.

  4. #4
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by SoCalPat View Post
    The initial week or so reminds me of a conversation I had with someone skeptical of the NHL's success in the stands. He was from Philly. Noted that the Flyers sold out every game, but it was the same 15,000 people every game.

    What can UB5 do to ensure that the posters here don't comprise of mostly UF.N'ers? Word of mouth and links on same/competing web sites ain't gonna cut it. It's a start, but I feel there is a huge untapped section within the fanbase that doesn't even realize this or similar sites exist. Or they know they exist, but don't want to get involved.

    I have my ideas but I'm curious as to what others think.
    SU's comments are on target. I'll add that there are at least four audiences for this board: (1) Current UF.net posters who want a different type of board, in addition to or instead of UF.net; (2) former UF.net posters who lost interest in that site; (3) posters on the former CougarUteFans site who left because of the name and focus change there; and (4) people who don't post anywhere right now, and maybe never have. (I've probably left out some categories.)

    People in groups 1-3 will find out about UB5. It's group 4 that is a challenge to reach. We could try Facebook and Twitter, but most of the folks who follow the Utes on those social media are already following one of the message boards. I'd love to know your ideas.

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  5. #5
    Lowell, with your prestige and clout, I'm sure you could get a double page ad at no charge in 3 consecutive issues of Continuum. Try that.
    Last edited by San Diego Ute Fan; 02-25-2013 at 01:32 PM.
    Desse jeito, não tem jeito.

  6. #6
    I gathered the idea was to not monetize the site, so I'm guessing there is no budget for promotion. As with most fan message boards, a fair amount of growth and interest will be word of mouth and social media links. It wouldn't hurt to have some organized presence at Ute events like the spring game and tailgates. I think most of the growth will be organic, and like it or not, the success of this site will mean the gradual decline at uf.n...just being honest.
    You can observe a lot by just watching - Yogi Berra

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by 3UteDad View Post
    I gathered the idea was to not monetize the site, so I'm guessing there is no budget for promotion. As with most fan message boards, a fair amount of growth and interest will be word of mouth and social media links. It wouldn't hurt to have some organized presence at Ute events like the spring game and tailgates. I think most of the growth will be organic, and like it or not, the success of this site will mean the gradual decline at uf.n...just being honest.
    It already seems slower over there...but maybe that's just due to the off season.

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by 3UteDad View Post
    I gathered the idea was to not monetize the site, so I'm guessing there is no budget for promotion. As with most fan message boards, a fair amount of growth and interest will be word of mouth and social media links. It wouldn't hurt to have some organized presence at Ute events like the spring game and tailgates. I think most of the growth will be organic, and like it or not, the success of this site will mean the gradual decline at uf.n...just being honest.

    I didn't know that DDD was a Ute fan! It all makes perfectly good sense. He is the Oz behind the curtain of UB5! No wonder he hasn't been posting...he has been busy assisting Jarid and Co in building a new site. He even tried to hide his identity behind the avatar of him on the toilet. Ha! I always thought that he was witty.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by FN Phat View Post
    I didn't know that DDD was a Ute fan! It all makes perfectly good sense. He is the Oz behind the curtain of UB5! No wonder he hasn't been posting...he has been busy assisting Jarid and Co in building a new site. He even tried to hide his identity behind the avatar of him on the toilet. Ha! I always thought that he was witty.
    You are correct about the witty part, but the rest of this flew over my head.
    You can observe a lot by just watching - Yogi Berra

  10. #10

    Types of people on Facebook

    I would add a fifth category. People who have posted on uf.n, still post on uf.n and intend to continue posting on both.

  11. #11
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 3UteDad View Post
    You are correct about the witty part, but the rest of this flew over my head.
    DDD was a poster on the former CUF message board. He often followed his sharp-edged jabs (there were lots of them) with "Sorry, just being honest." That's really all you want to know.

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  12. #12
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Corvan View Post
    I would add a fifth category. People who have posted on uf.n, still post on uf.n and intend to continue posting on both.
    Duh. I left out my own category.

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  13. #13
    How about contacts the espn PAC 12 blog about including us as one of their Lunch Links? Ted Miller and Kevin Gemmell are the bloggers. I could shoot them an email and ask them if they would be willing to do something like that.

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by LA Ute View Post
    DDD was a poster on the former CUF message board. He often followed his sharp-edged jabs (there were lots of them) with "Sorry, just being honest." That's really all you want to know.
    EGADS! I have a message board doppelganger? And a cougar on top of it all? I'm going to have to gather my thoughts...
    You can observe a lot by just watching - Yogi Berra

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by San Diego Ute Fan View Post
    Lowell, with your prestige and clout, I'm sure you could get a double page ad at no charge in 3 consecutive issues of Continuum. Try that.
    Don't even need the double-truck (that's print lingo for a two-page ad that is printed off connecting plates; usually the centerfold). A story on how social media and message boards brings Ute fans together certainly has its place in a publication like Continuum. That said, the athletic department would just rather we didn't exist, and Continuum is a P.R. tool of the school.

  16. #16
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by OrangeUte View Post
    How about contacts the espn PAC 12 blog about including us as one of their Lunch Links? Ted Miller and Kevin Gemmell are the bloggers. I could shoot them an email and ask them if they would be willing to do something like that.
    A terrific idea. Go for it!

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by hnoseguard View Post
    Free ideas - Get people to promote on social media - twitter, facebook, etc.

    Low cost ideas - get some banners, flyers, etc. and promote at tailgates / Utah athletic events. Radio advertising, not if sure if it's still available or not, but ESPN 700 had a deal running for $99 radio spots (30 seconds airtime).

    Medium cost ideas - you can get a billboard to run downtown for 30 days for $4k -$5k depending on size.
    I would love to know when those 30s run. For that price on the AM dial, you should be getting on Bill and Hans. We're in a world of trouble if we have to pitch that rate during football season, although I could see it for hoops. And nobody buys just one ad and expects to see results. Probably too cost-prohibitive of a move for UB5.

  18. #18
    Living in the past ... FMCoug's Avatar
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    You guys are doing great. The best online communities grow organically. Too much growth too fast will be just as bad as little to no growth, maybe worse.

    The bottom line is that the only real competition you have is a pile of dung. The good guys will find their way here. And you don't want the rest.
    Last edited by FMCoug; 02-25-2013 at 02:10 PM.

  19. #19
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 3UteDad View Post
    EGADS! I have a message board doppelganger? And a cougar on top of it all? I'm going to have to gather my thoughts...
    Rest easy. His moniker was TripletDaddy. Not much chance of confusion.

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by FMCoug View Post
    You guys are doing great. The best online communities grow organically. Too much growth too fast will be just as bad as little to no growth, maybe worse.

    The bottom line is that the only real competition you have is a pile of dung. The good guys will find their way here. And you don't want the rest.
    Certainly nothing wrong with that, although the same was certainly said about UF.N 10 years ago.

    Perhaps mere adaptation to the times is the best way to sustain interest in the site.

  21. #21
    If the goal as stated isn't to monetize this site, then I would say work on quality over quantity. Banner ads, radio spots and things like that aren't going to achieve that. Social media may be the most effective, some good SEO work to get this up in search terms for things like, "utah sports" and "utah sports boards" will probably do far more than anything traditional media could ever bring.

    People like to speculate about the 'decline' of uf.n being due to stars or format or what not, but really it started to struggle when it went from 30-40 people online at any given time to 300-400 during the Sugar Bowl and PAC12 announcement times. The board moved too fast to be readable and the inmates began to run the asylum.

    I tend to think that building a good online forum is like smoking a good brisket: Slow and steady while controlling the temperature, the right dry rub, pulling it off at the right time, letting it rest and slicing it in the right direction. Yup, those are the keys to a good forum and brisket.

    Ohhhhh man... I'm think I'm going to go smoke some brisket tomorrow.

  22. #22
    Quote Originally Posted by SeattleUte View Post
    UB5 is off to a good start, a lot stronger than CG/CUF. Those forums provided a good model for this one, but UB5 will ultimately be a lot more successful for various reasons. These include that UB5 provides a more competitive alternative to Utefans.net than CUF does for Cougarboard. The vast majority of BYU fans feel at home in Cougarboard's restrictive and homogenous environment. This board and format is more appealing to many Utefans than Utefans.net (I continue to submit that there is no competition as the boards are so different). This board and format is also more welcoming of BYU fans than CUF ever was of Ute fans. Some of my favorite Utefans posters, who you rarely see there any longer, came to CUF but were not really accepted into the community because their primary interest was Ute sports. We have attracted them and some other similar posters. BYU fans who are CUF posters often have wide ranging interests that now will be better stimulated here than on CUF. Unfortunately, CUF has turned more astringent and is trying to be Cougarboard II. I think UB5 has a very bright future.
    Quote Originally Posted by LA Ute View Post
    SU's comments are on target. I'll add that there are at least four audiences for this board: (1) Current UF.net posters who want a different type of board, in addition to or instead of UF.net; (2) former UF.net posters who lost interest in that site; (3) posters on the former CougarUteFans site who left because of the name and focus change there; and (4) people who don't post anywhere right now, and maybe never have. (I've probably left out some categories.)

    People in groups 1-3 will find out about UB5. It's group 4 that is a challenge to reach. We could try Facebook and Twitter, but most of the folks who follow the Utes on those social media are already following one of the message boards. I'd love to know your ideas.
    Hilarious. I knew you two wouldn't disappoint.
    Last edited by Jeff Lebowski; 02-25-2013 at 02:25 PM.

  23. #23
    Quote Originally Posted by OrangeUte View Post
    How about contacts the espn PAC 12 blog about including us as one of their Lunch Links? Ted Miller and Kevin Gemmell are the bloggers. I could shoot them an email and ask them if they would be willing to do something like that.
    Wouldn't that require some sort of blog/news content? I am not aware, but I don't think they link to standard message board chatter. Perhaps I am wrong on that one.
    "You can do a lot in a lifetime, if you don't burn out too fast. You can make the most of the distance. First, you need endurance. First, you've got to last." - Neil Pert

  24. #24
    More brisket.


    -What would you do
    if you saw spaceships over Glasgow?
    Would you fear them?
    Every aircraft, every camera, is a wish that wasn't granted.

    What was that for?
    Try to be bad.


  25. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by wuapinmon View Post
    If CUF stays crashed much longer you won't have to worry about it.
    They did the v3.8 -> v4.2 upgrade just fine last night so we decided to try to go to v5. That didn't work so they rolled it back to v3.8 and attempted the update to v4.2 again. Now they are getting database errors. Should be fixed soon.

  26. #26
    You took that seriously? It was TIC.
    Desse jeito, não tem jeito.

  27. #27
    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Lebowski View Post
    They did the v3.8 -> v4.2 upgrade just fine last night so we decided to try to go to v5. That didn't work so they rolled it back to v3.8 and attempted the update to v4.2 again. Now they are getting database errors. Should be fixed soon.
    What a disaster; horrible timing. I almost feel sorry for you.

  28. #28
    Quote Originally Posted by SeattleUte View Post
    What a disaster; horrible timing. I almost feel sorry for you.
    Yeah, we have been offline for almost one day. I don't know how we will ever recover.

  29. #29
    Sam the Sheepdog LA Ute's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Lebowski View Post
    Hilarious. I knew you two wouldn't disappoint.
    So you're saying that is not a category of poster who'll want to come here? By "posters on the former CougarUteFans site who left because of the name and focus change there," I was trying to be neutral. I still post on that board, after all.

    And be careful! If you keep lumping SU and me together like that people will start to suspect that he and I are really one and the same person, and we don't want thinking like that gaining any traction. Too dangerous.

    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
    --Yeats

    “True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”

    --John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell

  30. #30
    Quote Originally Posted by LA Ute View Post
    So you're saying that is not a category of poster who'll want to come here? By "posters on the former CougarUteFans site who left because of the name and focus change there," I was trying to be neutral. I still post on that board, after all.

    And be careful! If you keep lumping SU and me together like that people will start to suspect that he and I are really one and the same person, and we don't want thinking like that gaining any traction. Too dangerous.
    You agreed with SU's post. I am curious to see him explain how this site is going to be more attractive to BYU fans than CUF was/is to Ute fans.

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