Without being defeatist in the face of competition from Facebook (and it’s Russian robots) I don’t think forums in general can compete with the ease and accessibility of FB, I got talking to a Mustang owner about his mods yesterday and he was telling that me that “you can go on Facebook and get info on things”, which I think we all appreciate is a useful and easy thing for people who maybe won’t go the extra yard to join a forum.
Where I do think we can not only compete with FB but out perform it, is the quality of content we can support. More in depth information with proper guides, longer posts with more content, easier to find critical info, more nuanced and interesting back and forth discussions over technical issues, and (without being too snobby about things) I genuinely believe that making a bit more effort to log into and contribute on a forum actually means we filter out a lot of the noise that comes from FB being so accessible.
Anyone remember when myspace was the only social media platform? Where are they now?
For clarity for anyone reading who disagrees with me, this is how I feel about it as a Forum Member, not a reflection of The Team’s position.