Messages
In keeping with our policy of maintaining a safe and respectful environment for our members, messages in our forums are strictly monitored. This means that posts and topics may be edited, split, moved, merged or removed if the content is considered disruptive, inappropriate, or in violation of forum rules.
In addition, the private messaging system (pm’s) can be used by registered members for a number of purposes, but only in a manner which conforms to the forum rules. Any misuse of the feature may result in a ban from the site.
Members are required to keep their username and password confidential, and will not disclose these details to third parties without prior permission from the forum administrator. This includes information which is contained within the member’s registration profile or in their posts/topics.
Posts which are offensive, obscene, discriminatory, racist or otherwise illegal or in breach of our forum rules will be deleted and members’ accounts may be banned. These include, but are not limited to, posts which contain links to obscene or defamatory websites, content which is illegal, sexually suggestive, indecent or unsuitable for children, or images that could be viewed as abusive, threatening or discriminatory against members of our community.
Forum Rules
In order to ensure a positive forum experience, it is important to adhere to the following rules. They help us maintain a safe and friendly community that is free of offensive, inappropriate or illegal posts and are a necessary part of the moderation process.
Respectfully respond to other members’ questions and comments, rather than attempting to argue or criticise the point of view of others. This will make the discussion more constructive and less prone to personal insults.
Don’t spam multiple topics with the same message; this is considered’spam’ and will result in you being banned instantly. Instead, try to post in the most appropriate topic(s) for your message.
When replying to a thread, use UPPERCASE letters and avoid writing in ALL CAPS as this is considered shouting and can be offensive. When replying to a specific post, state the relevant part of the original message in your response and remove any header information, this will make it easier for other members to locate and read your response.
If you believe that a post is not in line with these rules please click the ‘Report Post to Moderator’ link in the bottom right hand corner of every post. This will allow the moderators to take action.
It is also a good idea to only make a single post per topic; posting several identical comments will be considered duplicates and may be removed. This rule applies to all forums, not just the nonuforum.
Do not use the ‘Report Post to Moderator’ feature on private messages, this will only cause you to be suspended and can lead to a permanent ban of your user account. This is a time consuming and costly way of dealing with inappropriate or offensive conduct on the forum.
Keep your responses concise and focussed on the issue at hand, don’t let disagreements turn into a drawn out argument which is toxic to both participants and readers of the forum. Always be polite and courteous to other members, if you disagree with their points of view, be prepared to offer an alternative viewpoint that may be more agreeable.
Forum Members
A forum is a great way to get your members engaged with your product. They can comment on your posts, ask questions and even share their own knowledge with other like minded members in the know.
A well-designed forum will keep your members engaged for months on end – no waiting for an email or message to come in – and is a great way to build rapport between you and your customers. It also allows you to provide more targeted content, such as newsfeed updates and email newsletters, without the hassle of having to maintain two separate websites.
The best part is that you can control who gets access to your forum based on their membership level and cancel them at will if they choose. There are also several cool new features available to your administrators including the ability to see who has been viewed and which users have replied to their most recent messages.
This is a free upgrade that comes with your new member onboarding plan. You can also use this feature to send your most loyal members a special welcome email and create a special page on the site for your most active customers to see.
