ExplorOz improvements

Hi Michelle/David, Personally, I love ExploreOz.com just the way it is and that includes the current Forum strategy. Please don't build new forums for different topics. I've seen this approach taken on other web-sites and personally I find it cumbersome, a pain to navigate and generally too much trouble to bother with. Also, it is interesting to read posts that may not specifically relate to say, my make of vehicle, but still have some relevance or interest. I wouldn't worry about the blatant plugs for other web-sites. Most people, including myself, may visit other web-sites or group sites but with along with ExploreOz, it is just a knowledge/interest base. ExploreOz is good enough to stand on its merits...users will come back again and again.

Regarding people asking questions about topics already covered on this site...does it matter? Every new post creates interest and interaction between readers. It also promotes an exchange of fresh idea's and alternative views. Only other thing I can think of is to make the Site Search function more visible.

Hope my comments are of some help. Keep up the good work. :-))) Melissa

An editing feature of your posts, lots of times you post something and would like to add, or change something you posted

Also the fact that hitting the ENTER key doesnt come out in posts as a line break, which causes large posts to come out as one paragraph, making it a pain to read...

People posting links to other sites helps others out, if people find this place useful, they will come back, same as any site. Personally I like this place as theres no arguing and bleep stirring other members, while also having a good wide variety of knowledge and ages...

There is no such thing as a site with ALL the answers. If there was it would be impossible to keep up to date, and current. Thats why there are multi sites, with their own speciality.

Team please don't try to be everything for everybody. Keep doing what you are good at and allow others to specialise in their expert way. On the other hand if you have the time and inclination that's fine but why reinvent the wheel?

For what it's worth

Steve

Yep agree.

You cant be everything to everybody. This is a good forum don't mess with it too much.

the editing idea though would be handy.

Michelle
What things do YOU think are missing, or could do with improving on this site?
may give others better Ideas on what your thinking, and what direction to head

Michelle, Perfect as it is. Who wants to even know how to do line breaks. I know i dont. Keep it simple.

Hi Michelle,Me again! Yes, this site is more than a forum. Much more. When I was on holidays the other week, two people on separate occasions mentioned ExploreOz.com as a great source of info. Both referrals were completely unsolicited. That's gotta be confirmation that you're on the right track! Melissa

Hi Michelle, i would like to suggest that any topic that is is still being subscribed to, not be allowed to fade into the archives. In other words, As a reply comes in on any thread, it takes that thread to top place in the current list of topics. That way natural attrition [and not date of original posting] will occur as people eventurally lose interest in the thread. While there is interest and active postings it stays on page one at the top of the list. Does that make sense? :) :)

David & Michelle

It's a good site as is, now that I know how to do a line break! As Melissa says, you can't be all things to all people. If you get snitchy about competitors or other links, it will detract from the appeal. We all have competition; your site is more useful than most, so let it stand on its own merits.

I belong, as do some of those who post here on this forum, to a few other groups/chat sites. We use them for specific queries, so there is no need for you to be more specific. There is enough variety here on the ExplorOz forum to keep us visiting. When it's quiet I look at the other sections of your site, but once they have been read twice, you get the gist and don't need to revisit.

Regards

Rick.

Okay Michelle,

Having read your replies and those of others, would it be fair to say that most regular visitors actively use the forum? As Rick says, this could be because once we've all checked out the rest of the site, the only regularly updated feature is the forum which is live and interactive (great!).

I'm not for a minute criticising how often other features are updated. Noboby could keep coming up with new trip notes, articles etc without a huge team of personal. Look at 4WD mags for instance, they just keep rehashing the same stuff. And the quality of what you put up is pretty good so we wouldn't want to see that slip just for the sake of more regular updates, so it's a matter of compromise. I can understand your protectiveness about site, particularly when strange names pop up. I'm in a campertrailer group and all memberships are vetted for the same reasons...to avoid soliciting, spam etc.

Maybe the answer is to encourage membership to make the site more user pays, without discouraging visitors. Here's a few suggestions:

Encourage membership by increasing member-only features. eg. people want to post photo's, trip notes etc...give them the facility but make it members only. That way, user pays. Also, regular visitors will get more regularly updated articles and think of the variety of topics and trips that you'll get.

What about hosting member-only get togethers or trips. If you're already spread pretty thin, don't try to host them yourselves...appoint volunteers you can trust. Maybe you could involve some of your advertisers which would give them direct one-on-one access to a pool of customers and perhaps make advertising a little more attractive.

Limit the number of free posts on the forum in a 12 mth period, then request membership. If people value access to the site, they'll pay.

For all those reading this who aren't member's, think about it. Only $30 intial 12 mths, then $20 following years.

Just a few idea's. :-) Melissa

I am a member and think this is a great site indeed. I would go further though and make the forum available for members only. It is such a small price to pay for very valuable information. If people won't shell out $30 they shouldn't benefit from the discussion......discussion that may, in fact, save them a lot more money with better equipment and trip planning.

I like michelle's suggestion of even more features for members only, such as the ability for members to post photos and links. I also like the suggestion to co-ordinate trips/events for members only, i know i would volunteer for some stuff if i could. Having said that, i do understand the problems that you would face with having your name associated with something you are not in direct control of.

I don't like the idea of limiting the number of posts you can make in a year. I think people would simply leave after they have used up all their free credits, and another site would soon open up offering unlimited free posts on a forum. This would be counter productive.

I know i make plenty of spelling mistakes, usually simply because i type fast and cant be bothered correcting them, so how about a 'spell check' facility?

Can't think of anything else at the moment, but i'll get back to you if i think of some more.

Cheers, Jono.

I'm not a member yet, but will be soon.

Gday guys
as a person who has just found your site it is all new to me but imust say from what i have seen it aint broke so dont fix it.as to getting advertisers i am not a sure how long you have been up & running but having been in business for many years i have found that customers will come of their own accord,slowly at first but as your reputation builds & numbers grow the quality of what you offer to them is what keeps them advertising & only numbers of buts on seats ie sales of the advertisers products will keep them interested. once one suuplier starts getting sale via your site others will be keen to keep up & not miss the sales opertunities. i guess what i am saying is concentrate on the site & the sale will come
regards Bruce

I find the Business Search Engine very cumbersome.
As an example, I looked for 'suspension' in Melbourne. Only options are East or West Victoria.

I selected 4WD parts & accessories, typed 'suspension' - No Result'

Now, I don't know whether that's because nobody in Victoria is listed as a business which does suspension work, or sells bits, or whatever. So my options are to try every single location to see where I might get work done or order bits.

To make the site more transparent, I would prefer to see some kind of business listing. At the moment I don't know who is listed, or advertising, or what might be available. Lose interest after a while.

Similarly, I might be an impulse buyer. Don't always know what I'm looking for until I see it advertised or until I see a company name I might want to explore further.

Other point: the right-hand column on the screen advertises your shop items. Could this be offered to advertisers (at a premium of course). We don't need to see every single book in your shop to know you sell them..

Have just read all the replies with great interest. I do not own a 4WD (have nothing against them though) and find this website and forum of great help. I have towed a camper trailer behind a Commodore all over Australia and have got heaps of info from this website for planning trips, etc and have also got heaps of excellent advice from other forum users. I am the first to admit I have not paid up for membership but now will as I can see where David and Michelle are coming from. I guess for $30 a year it is a small price to pay for such an excellent supply of information.(Only the cost of a carton of beer). As I said I am not into 4WD's but I read every question on the forum because it is suprising how something you might think would be of no interest to you will contain some info that will help you out as an individual. I would like to congratulate David and Michelle on a great job and to all the users who take time to supply information to all us Aussie travellers.

I was on another forum that limited the # of posts by people, and that forum is now gone!

As for making the place user pays, thats all good and well for people who know what is here, but if you came here for the first time, and 75% of the site was userpays, all the good links are members only, cant see anything, Im betting that 90% of people wouldnt come back. Ive done it on model train boards and sites. But then you have to make it so people WANT to pay the membership, its a hard medium. I dont envy anyone having to make those decisons from the boards point of view.

There is another serious offroading forum, running on EZboard, they are trying to make userpays, well, the members have just opened a NEW forum on a NEW site, thats free.

Some are willing to pay, and others not. Viscious circle. You want people to check out the advertising and keep sponsors/advertisers happy, and to do that you need fresh people all the time. If Ive been to link as someone else said, I dont need to go back to it all the time. Same with sponsors/advertisers, you need to be able to show them value for money. A membership of ~500 compared to 75,000 hits is a huge difference.

There are dozens of forums, and sites, and boards, but this is THE best one for touring and travel info bar none. Lets keep it that way.

I like the place here. I was in a hit and run 3 yrs ago, and am really stuffed up still, one arm that dont work well, and one leg really cactus, having had a knee reconstruction 2 weeks ago, operation #28 in 3 yrs. http://bird.users.fl.net.au/injuries.htm (norty words there, but pics of my injuries)...


I would think some sort of page with a little bit of info on members would be handy, like what sort of travelling, what truck they have, etc would rock.. Maybe click on the users name and come to a small page they can edit to give their info out to the limit they want people to know about them.

Finally on that page, a section where users can list the trips they have done and when, so if Im planning a trip to XYZ, and some users have been there recently, I can ask them what is there to see, and conditions etc..

OK enough from me.

I was on another forum that limited the # of posts by people, and that forum is now gone!

As for making the place user pays, thats all good and well for people who know what is here, but if you came here for the first time, and 75% of the site was userpays, all the good links are members only, cant see anything, Im betting that 90% of people wouldnt come back. Ive done it on model train boards and sites. But then you have to make it so people WANT to pay the membership, its a hard medium. I dont envy anyone having to make those decisons from the boards point of view.

There is another serious offroading forum, running on EZboard, they are trying to make userpays, well, the members have just opened a NEW forum on a NEW site, thats free.

Some are willing to pay, and others not. Viscious circle. You want people to check out the advertising and keep sponsors/advertisers happy, and to do that you need fresh people all the time. If Ive been to link as someone else said, I dont need to go back to it all the time. Same with sponsors/advertisers, you need to be able to show them value for money. A membership of ~500 compared to 75,000 hits is a huge difference.

There are dozens of forums, and sites, and boards, but this is THE best one for touring and travel info bar none. Lets keep it that way.

I like the place here. I was in a hit and run 3 yrs ago, and am really stuffed up still, one arm that dont work well, and one leg really cactus, having had a knee reconstruction 2 weeks ago, operation #28 in 3 yrs. http://bird.users.fl.net.au/injuries.htm (norty words there, but pics of my injuries)...


I would think some sort of page with a little bit of info on members would be handy, like what sort of travelling, what truck they have, etc would rock.. Maybe click on the users name and come to a small page they can edit to give their info out to the limit they want people to know about them.

Finally on that page, a section where users can list the trips they have done and when, so if Im planning a trip to XYZ, and some users have been there recently, I can ask them what is there to see, and conditions etc..

OK enough from me.

hiya michelle and david. well this is quite a discussion you got going. as a visitor to this site, and not yet a member all i can say is. Great site.!!!
more info than you can poke a stick at, heaps of tips and idea's, and a good range of experienced user's, with ideas and thought's to share. the other specialized sites dont have this, in fact alot of them get repetitive very quickly. leave it as is please and expect my $30 soon. rick

Hey Michelle
You might remember me, Im the "grumpy old bastard" who got a bit narky over delivery time for the 250k map CD. Well, I'm still grumpy (though not really old) and as my wife says (lovingly) "all men are bastards" so I can't get rid of that tag either.
However, you can count me as one of your biggest fans. I don't, unfortunately, get the time to visit your site as often as I used to but I can say that everytime I do, I see improvements. For what it's worth I agree with those who advocate paying for the forum. It has to be one of the most varied and valuable sources of info, even for experienced 4wd'ers (which I don't claim to be, by the way).
"Nil Illegitimus Carborundum", Michelle. (don't let the bastards grind you down)

Regards
Russell

May as well give everyone a link to buy Membership from here while you're reading this thread then :-)

Michelle/David,

Boy, didn't you create a bit of interest!!!

Just another idea to increase membership. What about offering rewards to members for referrals of new members to the site. Nothing major, just a token reward and not necessarily monetary. eg. say for every 5 referrals a vehicle feature spot or a free stubbie holder or member money...that kind of thing. :-) Melissa

Michelle and David,

As many have already stated, you guys have put together a fantastic site. Adding an edit function for posts, a spell checker and a member profile section for individual specifics would be appreciated.

I would also suggest adding a section for individuals to post notes and other pertinent information regarding trips they have taken. The information that the both of you have shared is detailed and very informative. However, as they say, VARIETY is the spice of life. Different viewpoints/perspectives would be beneficial to all.

In terms of membership costs, I agree with most that requiring a membership fee to access the site would be counter productive. Again, as some have mentioned, I strongly recommend providing some type of valuable information for members only or somehow restricting certain access to parts of the site to paying members. I think this would at least provide some incentive to pay the membership fee.

The many positive replies to your post are testimony to the fact that you are doing a lot of good things with this site. I hope that all the additional information shared here will prompt more individuals to purchase the nominal membership fee and help keep this site on going and informative for all.

Ok Another suggestion!

I just logged on for first time today, and looking at the forum, the new threads are at the top. Now scrolling down the page checking dates on when things were answered last. Some were yesterday, some the day before, but then go down more and some others were answered yesterday after the one 2 days ago... Dont know if its me, but I think if there was a way to sort the forum by date or time the last answer/thread was posted?

EG. If I go back 3 weeks and answer a thread, it comes to the front page and to the first message at the top.. Maybe sort it by date.

It is a good and bad thing to do to a Forum, but stops you reopening threads you have read several times that day, and if nothing has changed or been added then...

The bad thing is that things may go to the bottom of the list unanswered, and *some* people dont take notice, although I wouldnt see that being a problem around here.. Personally, when I first found this place, I went back thru the list about 3-4 weeks to see what people had been discussing.

Just a thought people...

Geez, you only need blink and there is another new feature or another 20 odd posts to the forum (each with at least 15 replies). I would like to echo the idea of Member Profile pages to allow other members to access more personalised details about other members (even contact details). Also to maybe share trek/route/map files from OziExplorer etc etc. One way to encourage people to pay the small $30 fee to become a member. $30 is less than a tank of fuel (for me at least).

One other thing I would like to see is maybe a "time of last post" and or "time of last reply" for each post to the forum. As a member who will visits the site multiple times each day, i often forget how many posts/replies there were on my return to the forum. However, I do understand this could represent a problem given the different time zones (unless this could be built into the cookie to determine the last time of login and base the calculation on the users time zone - maybe an additional detail to add to a user/members details)

I believe I am one of the people who offered to pass on some of my trip info to you Michelle. I have been extremely lazy in getting this sorted out, and for that I apologise. I'll endeavour to get in done in the next week or so.

But as I have said before. The site is the best resource for outback/4wd travelling and travelling australia in general, that I have seen. Keep up the fantastic work David and Michelle. Hopefully more users will realise all the hard work you put into the site and support you by becoming members. It only serves to benefit all concerned. Same goes for advertisers.

cheers, Sam.

hi all
just been to have gander at the membership sign up page
was glad to see that you have all the diferant payment methods otherthan the credit cards , nothing is mor frustrating to we few not sucked into the credit trap than tring to purchase on line. could i also sujest it might be helpful if we could see just who offers discounts to members & what they are offer,those of us who struggle just to make ends meet & have to watch $$ ,can then decide if it is worth the extra stretch
ps only found tihs site on sunday & i am already hooked

This is the best site I have found and have used it every day for over a year or more and hope I contribute information that is of some use from time to time..
Reckon if you put a charge on the site you would last no time at all, as the 'new ' visitors would not really want to pay upfront...

Feel you may be able to deal with tyre companies or other expensive equipment suppliers, eg fridges, through a referal system and receive some commission/ advertising revenue .... they would need to use your site to advertise their goods and special offers to site visitors who would receive exclusive offers available only to this site ?

Its a great site.. don't get too excited about changing it and am sure that if and when we get brainwaves, we will let you know, having been alerted to your willingness to effect change.

I thought i'd give a few comments :)

I'd like to see the forums split up into different (but very broad) categories - that way a lot of repeat questions (and answers) can be found quickly. Broad categories like Tyres, Suspension errr.... and obviously there a lot more.

Someone above also suggested context sensitive advertising in the forums - I think thats a great idea. If a post about suspension displayed some suspension-related ads - I'd click on them all! The same thing applies to the hot topics section through linking to it from relevant discussions. Categorisation of the forums would help with this sort of content cross-pollination :)

Your advertisers should be made aware that most people will do a lot of research online before buying at a store - that's the way I tend to do things (of course, unless there's a much better price online).

The forums are (I'm guessing) one of the most popular sections because of their interactive aspect - it is definitely what has kept me coming back. Exploring is about experiences, people have experiences, and thats why we come here!

Perhaps you could boost advertising income by granting advertisers access to the forum interactivity with their own 'special offers' forum - i.e. a separate paid membership for advertisers who can only post to that forum.

I also think you should make your electronic mailing list sign-up compulsory unless a user pays. Then your paid members have the choice of getting the occasional advertising offer (filtered and distributed by ExplorOz of course) sent to them. Non-paid registered users will get the messages by default. Its a small price to pay - and its not spam as long as its cleared up during the signup process! ;)

I'd also like to see more photography in the treks section. This is something that users would probably need to submit to (and perhaps even maintain?)

A members profile page for paid users is a good idea too. It would let people boast about their 8" lift suspension with photographic proof etc ;) Perhaps members could write a paragraph or two about themselves and have a couple of small photos that they could maintain. Other aspects such as being able to view all the forum posts made by that particular member could be valuable too.

I'd also like to see an business directory rather than a search - as mentioned in an earlier post too.

Hope i've added something constructive here :)

-Mart

Just thought of another one! No, not trying to make life difficult for David, honest! Just trying to be constructive.

After pressing the 'Reply' button, the only message visible is the original post. This means that when trying to respond to several comments in a thread at once, you need to remember who said what or reply via follow-ups to different posts.

Would be nice if you could scroll down and see ALL posts on a thread while compiling your response.....

Another one that nobody has mentioned, I regularly when I find a good site, I post it to the other forums im in, like the Patrol and the Melbourne lists.

I have posted about this place to spread the word, as Ive said, this is about THE best site for touring information around. Some know about it, others dont... Word of mouth is around the best way to spread the word..

Thanks everyone,

We were not complaining about the way the forum and links work we were just trying to see if there is anything that we can do to make our site even better (OK the constant links were starting to concern us a little and we decided to post this thread to see the reaction). As most of you out there will now understand we sit and work on this thing all day. We like all other people in small business want to make money and be able to do what we love for work. If we can make it better we will be glad to do so. Some of the feedback posted has been excellent and we will we certainly be looking to introduce some of the more complex features down the track.

As for the spell checker, I have looked into it and found a solution however at nearly US $200 for the license of the software I need to work out how to cover the cost. The rest of the site I have written myself and only costs my time generally (and lots of it mind you).

Post edits I am still trying to work out as the issues of when the post is valid are a little complex - I really cannot let it be edited for ever and the handling of the email notifications needs to be addressed. Still thinking on this.

Please keep the feedback coming and we will endeavour to keep build the site that you the users like the best. BTW: The Feedback form is generally the best place if there is no active thread lodged by Michelle or myself as we do not always read the forum.

Thanks again
David

could we get rid of that annoting button that pops up when selecting "sort resp".
That and the ability to edit a post for correction/further addition is all that I need from you guys.
Other than that you have a fantastic site - the advertisers will come in time !

As folks have stated, this is a very useful site.

My suggestion is to not change anything for visitors, but the improvements and some of the finer features (like post-edits, etc) be only available to members. Its a bit like the "E" lanes on the motorways; members get a great run (mostly) but visitors can still get through.

Cheers,

Stuart

Dear Exploroz Team

People putting links to other sites is what makes your web site that much more useful and interesting, keeping other sites (which I suspect you see as competition to your site) out of the picture would be a big negative. What makes any web site good is not necessarily that it has all the information, but most importantly that it can point you to where that information can be found. Links to other sites aren't a threat to your site, they just help enhance it.

Regarding payment in order to access your site/forum I think you may lose a lot of people if you do, especially considering that what really makes the forum great is people's input, which is being contributed freely. I appreciate that you need to make a profit, after all why should you host this at your expense but I don't think charging access to the forum would be a step in the right direction - I think the forum is your main draw card. People have said $30 joining fee is value for money, but that depends on what the individual gets. To some the information is invaluable while to others this information may be interesting reading only, also as some one else pointed out $30 is very little to some of us whereas to others $30 to join is too much to justify or afford.

I'm not sure what to suggest in order for you to generate an income, I suspect there may be a reluctance for retailers etc to advertise on your site for fear of exposing themselves to unfavourable comments when people are not happy with their service or product??

Perhaps you could have an area (members only) where members can place their trip reports etc or plan get togethers etc. for those so inclined.

Hi Team. Just a small thought on a worrying topic.
I understand your problems. I’m in a similar business where the advertisers want everything for free and so do our clients. It’s rough at times!
Maybe the advertisers should look at how their products are “spoken” about on the forum. I looked up UHF radios on your site and checked out the GME TX3400. I bought one through my local dealer at a far higher price than I could have obtained one over the net. I like to support my local retailers and I like to be able to get some hands on service. But the fact of the matter is I got my initial information from you and from comments on the Forum. Now go and tell them that! Incidentally the TX3400 has a range of about 200km at night in flat country south of Alice – so much for line of sight. I wasn’t using Duplex because I haven’t learnt how to use it yet.
I could make some comments about the long range tanks I have but I didn’t make the initial contact for these on the net. In your independent appraisal I would agree with your comments which I think must be a good way of advertisers to show they have faith in their products even though they may not do exactly as claimed. Trev