Future of the Forum: Plans and Discussion
Feb 12, 2015 20:04:42 GMT -5
Post by wordsy on Feb 12, 2015 20:04:42 GMT -5
The VISION
Our ultimate goal is to become the premier one-stop online resource for conception, infertility, pregnancy, loss, and parenting advice that is realistic, factual, honest, and provided primarily from the members of the community forums.
The core of our vision recognizes that the generally accepted “norm” for creating and growing a family is vastly different than what people are taught to expect. We want our site to better reflect reality, not some sanitized, amped-up, and rose-colored version of building a family.
We plan on treating all journeys with equal respect and ensuring our site recognizes the unexpected realities of attempting to build a family, as well as the many different joys and challenges the evolving modern family presents. There are as many paths on this journey as there are individuals in our community, and all of those people are worthy of a great community resource. (Read more about "the moment not talked about" here)
We want to be inclusive in our community-building efforts. Our boards can be a place for women and men living all over the world—a diverse group of people allied to the same purpose: to find people who understand our phase in life and share in the experiences.
TL;DR: We want to embrace the world as it is, cultivate real communities by putting our money where our mouth is and not just lip service. We know that families come in many shapes and sizes, and we want to walk alongside people during all stages of their journey. We think everyone should have a place.
You've read the vision, now here are the details along with some questions we've anticipated. As more questions get asked and addressed, we will be adding the links here for clarity.
You can click the links to see only that topic in a new window OR simply scroll down to find the topics in order below:
Website
Website plans
Website Content
Website content plans
Types of content and content writers
Do we plan to debunk pervasive myths about fertility and pregnancy?
My biggest question with this is how would it be decided [re: pervasive myths]?
How do we prevent bias in content selection?
Forums
Forum customization plans
Are you profiting off our love of clicking things? Why must we be harnessed for ad revenue?
*Quick answer to that question is no, Proboards is. Click the link above for more details and clarifications.
What is the current state of the forum membership and clickiness?
Does this mean we would we be moving again? Quick answer is NO.
The forum will still be free, to clarify?
Advertising and Revenue
Advertising plans
Will community members be able to purchase advertising?
I think my main concern is that I still want to have the freedom to say what I want without being beholden to ad revenue.
If this site will eventually create revenue where will that revenue go? 100% back into the forum?
Have you given any thought to investors and how this might impact how the community (TOU, speech) might be impacted?
Have you considered only making back what was put in and donating all profits to charities?
Regarding the chosen non-profits/charities, do you plan to choose groups that cater to ALL members of the community?
What about a crowdfunder/kickstarter/gofundme?
Will you sell/share/farm out personal information? Quick answer is absolutely NOT.
Long-Term Plans
Second Phase (a few months out)
Long-Term Plans
Going forward how much of a say does the community have in what happens to it?
Estimate of admin time for the long-term? Do you anticipate ever expanding the admin team?
What's Next?
Naming our website/Why change the name?
We want to hear from you.
Gathering a list of non-profits
General Questions and Answers
How were the admins chosen?
What about active admins and possible bias?
Was that your plan all along and I missed it?
Baby Steps, a marathon, not a sprint discussion
Why an FAQ/AMA?
We recognize that we are about to share an overwhelming amount of information with you. We also recognize that there will be a lot of questions.
In order to make this easier for everyone to follow, we are breaking the information into a linked Q&A. Prior to sharing our vision with the community as a whole, we shared it with our moderators to help clarify and to make sure we were prepared to answer as many questions as possible in advance.
If you'd like some insight into how long the process of compiling all of this has taken us, we think this describes it well: