Appreciation for the GWW community

[gaybucks_chip]

I just wanted to take a moment and remind myself (and the other users here, and perhaps encourage some of the lurkers) how much I appreciate the GWW community.

I've been spending time on a couple of boards in addition to GWW recently, but the signal-to-noise ratio and the complete lack of interest in maintaining a professional environment at another well-known gay board has made me realize how much more useful this community is as far as actually getting business done.

As someone pointed out to me yesterday, he made the same post here and at the other board. Here, he immediately got PMs and people interested in doing business with him. At the other board (which recently has had more threads), he got nada. I've noticed the same thing several times, but it never really "clicked" with me.

Perhaps I'm late to the party, but I've realized that GWW is *the* community for serious gay webmasters interested in fostering strong business relationships, helping each other, doing business, and being successful. The other board, owing solely to the lack of competent moderation and an apparent lack of interest in securing appropriate moderators by the owner, is unfortunately degenerating into a drama fest of noise with very little useful information. And that's fine, I think we all need places to blow off steam; I was just under the misconception that it was a place to get business done, which is totally my bad.

I hope that those of us who have used both boards will continue to use and grow this board and this community for business-related exchange of information, and I am appreciative of the tone of the community here. I encourage everyone using this board to continue to post your business and community-building threads here so that we can all continue to grow our respective businesses and deepen the communications and business relationships we have with others.

[hdkbill]

I have to agree with Chip. I seldom go to any of the other webmaster forums area. Most are like cat fights. It seems they just want to use the forum for bitch, moan, complain and to start fights.

GWW seems to have the creme de la creme of gay webmasters and the support given to everyone from us old farts to the newbies is outstanding.

Lee...good job, keep it up.:thumbsup:

Bill

[gaystoryman]

Okay I have to take exception to all this. Seriously, my Farts aren't old, they are always fresh. :innocent:

[jaycar]

I agree to a point about this board......it is better than most others I have tried and I keep coming back to here. However, I do feel that it seems theres a lack of interest from the older ones in this community to the views and giving encouragement etc to some of us newer ones. Im not exactly one to make a hundred posts a day on here but thats mainly because Im busy and dont have much time to spend responding to every thread. I posted a thread the other day as we are encouraged to do with whats going on in our businesses and would you believe not one person commented out of all the ones that read it. I dont expect much and I know that I dont respond a lot on here as I mentioned earlier, but I thought we were here to encourage one another. Its very isolated here in Australia and as most of you might know the industry is not that big here. So we need all the encouragement we can get down here. :humble:
Thanks for reading.......and please....this isnt intended to get peoples back up or anything. Its just an observation.

Cheers

[basschick]

chip, i noticed long ago that no matter how busy other gay boards are, this is the gay board where 75% of my business comes from. also a handy board to get help as well as to offer it.

one thing, though. people here do a lot of business by pm and icq - it might help the community more if they also posted.

[Squirt]

one thing, though. people here do a lot of business by pm and icq - it might help the community more if they also posted.

That's a great point. After I initially make a contact on a board 98% of my future interaction with them is by phone, ICQ and on a rare occasion PM.

Could it be that some of us old men have in the past put so much of our (very limited) energy to the younger newbies online just to see them go the wrong way over and over again? Just a thought :bunny:

I've also found that so many of these newer guys don't pass our limited "verification rules" (a website, phone number, address) that some of us are left wondering who are we giving our vast knowledge to on an open board where these guys still come to lurk and not post.

I truly appreciate GWW for having a higher standard in posted communication between members and filtering the type of webmasters that are allowed to join, or stay, on the board. Although I don't agree with everything Lee does in his business life I do think the GWW board itself is something he's done right. :thumbsup: