Opinons needed

[sunshinecindy]

We've seen a huge decline in the forum traffic lately, and I'm really curious as to why.

I've heard some comments about all the coupon advertising being overwhelming or that there is too much negativity (ie complaining about surveys) and so on.

I would like some constructive criticism here as well as what features you like best about the forum. We use to have great times in here all day long, but that seems to have fallen off. How do we get people back in, how do we keep them here. Should we have the chats again?

I know you guys are all full of opinions (ok, so maybe when you are just getting .90 for them), but let them flow here.

[jnorth1007]

My opinion is that the member review threads and the coupon threads take up a lot of space and make it hard to keep up with the forum. I check the forum everyday but sometimes I am too busy too sort through the other stuff to see what is going on in the non-review, non-coupon threads. I do read those threads because they are helpful but I never read them from the new posts section. I go to their section and choose the ones I want to read.

[sammielynn]

I've been so busy that I haven't had time to do much. When I really have to choose between my job, real life(such as it is) and time on the forum, I have to choose my job/life. I do make a point on checking in at least twice a day just to see what's going on with everyone and what's new with SR.
I don't get turned off by too much negativity. Life is not always pleasant and we are living real life, not a happy at all times cyber life. I think it gives us a chance to vent, get answers, find out we are not alone with our problems and learn from others problems.
There are several members that I have not seen on here in a long time. My hope is that they are just caught up with job/life and not upset with something. Like I tell folks at work that get all bent out of shape about e-mail discussions at work, you don't have to read them all if you don't like them. Pick the stuff you like and leave the rest in cyber space.

[lanny76]

I agree with the above - coupon posts are nice, but I don't have time to wade through them and check other things too. I suppose I'm not on the forum as much just because life is much busier with 3 kids and one more on the way - I barely have enough time for a survey or 2 in a day, with the other things I need to do, too. The chats were probly nice for a lot of people, but for me, I didn't have the time to sit down in the evening when they were on, because that's bedtime/catch up time with my DH or doing other things around the house. Maybe some would like them again, tho.
And I don't know - maybe negativity has something to do with it, too. Seems like there are always threads fussing about surveys! But then, people aren't always happy when the opportunity to make a complaint (when it is legitimate, esp., is what I'm thinking of) is more strictly regulated (or whatever word would work better). I don't mind threads about issues/struggles people have in their lives; everyone has problems and it does help to vent/get encouragement/advice from others.
I don't post as much about things in general because it also seemed like there wasn't as much response (I mean from the community in general) - like it wasn't noticed or something. Just seems some who used to be very active aren't so much, too, and I miss some of the voices/people I was more familiar with from a year or 2 ago.
Maybe need to revive some of the fun threads/game threads, too?!

[secretmoney]

I love the forum. I've learned so much from the other members here. I don't pay attention to negativity, I'm just happy to be here. There's negativity everywhere. I always told my employees (when we had a negative customer)
that we weren't really the biggest problem in those peoples lives. They just needed to vent, so be nice. I'm still confused about offers, so more threads about them would be helpful to me. Most of all, I like threads about our lives. I like learning about the people with the same interests as me and getting to know everyone!

[spring]

I usually read some of the forum everyday, but I don't always sign into the forums to do so. I'll probably take some flak for this but to be perfectly honest, I personally get sick and tired of seeing the same people rant about the same thing (like not being able to get a survey in "x" amount of time, or not being about to get a trifecta on a particular day because they usually do any other day. Sheesh!) That's not to say that all people talking about surveys or lack thereof are complaining, but there are a few members that I feel are chronic complainers. I do try to pick and choose what I read, but sometimes these things are interspersed in various threads. I have scaled way back in my forum interaction partially because of this.

Also, I agree with Janet in the amount of coupons being placed in the forum. I like the savings and totally appreciate all the hard work that goes into getting us these deals, but I wonder if there could be a better place for them other than the forum. Sometimes I just have a few minutes to log in, and when I see there are 3 - 5 pages to get through in order to read the posts I want to see, I get frustrated and log out.

What posts do I like? I like the posts from our fellow members telling us about their lives: problems, children, travel, comments about local, national or world events, pets, etc. I loved our picture threads about "furbabies" and family members, neither of which I have seen updated in a while. I like to learn about special offers that are crediting well plus special deals someone has noticed and would like to pass on to the rest of us. I like to hear from fellow members from areas affected by unusual weather or other events, just so I can find out how they are. I like the contests Tricia and Cindy frequently run even if I don't always join in. I like reading about how some of our more seasoned members are helping newbies who are requesting help. Overall, I love the warm caring members I have grown to know via the forum.

Let's try to keep this forum a place where we can't wait to see what's going on next, like the next chapter in a great book.

[marcymajor]

i have to admit that i am not on the forum as much as i used to be. sometimes all the different issues and topics on the forum can be overwhelming so i only read what i am truly interested in and skip the rest. sorry to say that sometimes i do add to the negativity and i am truly sorry about that but there are times that people need to vent (even just a little) just to get it out of their system. lately, i have tried to watch what i say for fear of getting my post deleted or getting written up so my forum postings have been few and far between. maybe we need another contest of some kind to get people talking again on the forum. hth.

[Alice28]

I honestly just forget a lot to check in. I have also started working 2 weeks ago, and as I shared before, my DH is in Iraq. I don't have a lot of time these days to check in and see what's up.

What I do appreciate seeing in the forums are heads-up about new offers, or offers that credit well, I appreciate the contests and try to participate when I can, I appreciate notices about great sales deals for shopping.

I also love when Tricia gives heads up about bulk gift card mailing, or if the daily survey credits are being held up- that is very helpful to know.

The negativity about surveys doesn't really bother me. I do think people need to understand that surveys do ebb and flow- sometimes they are really easy to get, sometimes they are not. There are so many variables it's impossible to know why it's happening. Just deal with it and move on. I am disappointed sometimes when I can't qualify, but it certainly isn't the end of the world- let's just keep things in perspective, right?

[Love2Shop]

I actually have been on the forum quite a lot lately (for me anyway). Even though I am just trying to keep track of my surveys, I usually do check for new posts. I agree about the coupon/discount threads, though. I really don't look through them because there isn't much room in my budget for shopping right now! If I am going to shop I look for discounts on the SR shopping pages and I appreciate how much hard work goes into all of that.

[3dog2kidmom]

I don't really care for the coupon postings -- they take up so much space on the new posts list. I typically read everything on the forums but don't take the time to reply.