6 replies to this topic

[denverappraiser]

Hermann,

I can’t help but notice that our user traffic here seems to have dropped drastically in the last month or three. Any idea what happened? We’re losing our experts (there are only now about 4 regular posters and there have been only 6 'experts' who have posted anything at all in the last month). We’re losing our readers (yahne’s recent question only had 8 views in a day) and we seem to be losing our experts. Is there anything we can do? Google still gives the forum a pretty good pagerank (5/10) but I no longer find it when I do some of the basic sorts of searches like ‘diamond education’ or ‘diamond information’. You mentioned a few months ago that there was a major redesign being released at the time of the JCK show. What’s the plan?

I have two specific questions for any users who stumble across this thread:

#1 How did you find us?
#2 What do you like, or dislike about what you found here?

Neil

[hermann]

I've noticed the drop-off in forum activity. Curious thing is, the actual amount of traffic to the site continues to increase steadily, and is at a seasonally-adjusted all-time high!

Makes me wonder, perhaps all the questions have been answered?

So far as the experts go, I am very very grateful and happy with you and the other regular experts here. To me it's just the right number of experts, and the quality of replies and thoughtfulness couldn't be higher. I do wish more consumers would tap into their vast knowledge.

As for the redesign, it is coming before the end of the summer. I got held up with other 'life events' (got married, bought a house, etc.) but am now working in earnest on them.

[denverappraiser]

hermann, on Sunday, Jun 18 2006, 11:28 AM, said:

Makes me wonder, perhaps all the questions have been answered? 

You mean like 'How can I tell if a diamond is real?'

Just out of curiosity, what sections of the site show the most traffic? Is the forum more popular than, say, the tutorials or the 'find a local jeweler' system?

I agree that you've got a teriffic pool of advisors, I was just noticing that some of the long time regulars seem to have dropped off.

Neil

[hermann]

Not surprisingly, the "find online jeweler" and forum receive the most traffic, with "find online jeweler" slightly ahead of the forum. Everything else is way way way low in comparison.

I suspect many people are out there enjoying the summer rather than clicking away in front of their computer. Today's an absolutely gorgeous day here in Northern California

[barry]

Neil;

Speaking for myself, only, a number of factors.

1. Very busy time of the year for us.
2. Family obligations.

As you know we are Network Jewelers and contributors on another Diamond Forum and
if you check there you will note that our number of posts are down as well.

Time is a wonderful thing to have but a commodity that is in very short supply.

One observation to Hermann: many newcomer consumers to this Forum ask question(s) that have aready been asked and answered, e.g.; effect of fluorescence on face-up visual appearance. I suspect some of the Vendors are getting tired of the redundancy.

You might want to cull such FAQ's and set up a FAQ thread and pin it to the top of the Rock Page and let consumers know that they should go there for answers to such FAQ's. If they still want additional info, by all means ask away.

Congrats on your marriage and new house!!

Equally very beautiful day in NY today and taking advantage of it.

Best Regards,

[hermann]

Just got back from enjoying a glorious day outside

Barry, we do have a FAQ section and it is fairly well labeled. In fact, before people are allowed to ask questions, they are directed to the FAQs, which is perhaps why there are fewer questions than before: The Rock - FAQ

As for the traffic, it does appear we have many more lurkers than ever before. If you look at the 'Views' stats that appear next to each thread, you will note that the more interesting-looking threads are being viewed 200-300 times on average after a few weeks. And the FAQ threads are in the double-digits, with the "how do you tell a real from a fake" at 8000+ views to date.

In general it does feel like most of the basic questions have been beaten to death. It'd be nice to have a few more non-expert regulars; enthusiasts, if you will, to ask and discuss the more in-depth issues. I was at JCK 2 weeks ago and there is a lot going on in our industry that is not being discussed here.

[ben]

I like this site the way it is. The questions have gotten much more focused lately. And though any website can always use a little more activity, I like the cordial community feel that exists here (except for that unpleasant recent exchange with ddlingo!).

Keep up the good work!