Forum Calendar

Does anybody actually make use of the forum's calendar feature? I don't really think I've ever seen it put to use on any of the communities I visit.

 

I've used it, but rarely. Come to think of it, I'm the only member of my communities that has done so. It's one of those features that is overlooked - it's there, but serves no real purpose to the growth of a community.

 

Yes, we put upcoming events of interest on it along with a link to a discussion thread. Works well for us.

 

I havent seen it since we removed the link to it when we started, it definitely is a feature that isnt needed by many.

 

I Use It......


For Like Signature, Thread, Of The Week

And Member Of The Month..Other Stuff Like That....

 

I absolutely depend on it for my designs forum. I post up the dates I'm working on a custom job, the name of the site and what I'm doing.

I recommend, on my TOS pages for custom work, that potential clients look at the calendar for my dates of availability. Most do.

It's been a very helpful tool for me, concerning scheduling. As I need to look at it quite often to see what job I'm doing, for whom, and when.

 

I like to put funny/obscure holidays related to the niche on there.

 

I try to. When there is an event (such as a trade show) that is related to my forums topic, I will post it in the calendar. I do this hoping that google will pick up the keywords, index them and help send traffic to my site.

But its been awhile since I posted anything. Maybe I should take the time to do that.

 

I don't. I try to hide/disable it as best as I can, lol.

 

I wouldn't disable it entirely, even if you have no use for it in your community. You could always make it private and add your forum milestones, goals for your team to accomplish, etc.

 

I never thought of using it for milestones. That's a good idea, actually.

 

I rarely use the calendar feature. Sometimes it can be useful since our organizations have elections every so many months. If anything, it helps us not forget when we need to hold certain events. Beyond this and all the birthdays, I find the calendar is a sorely underused feature.

 

Yes! For birthdays it is definitely used.

There is also a calendar for staff only to alert people of what will be occurring in the near future as well as needed changes with due times. The only problem with calendars that I've found as that they do not get exposure, they are kicked down into the features that few users know about.

 

My members adore the calendar and all the unusual holidays... sometimes I have interesting links, text, or video inside. It's almost like a year-round Advent calendar. (Took me forever to enter everything in though.)

 

I do - i run a parenting site, so parents add their kids birthdays to the calendar

 

I don't keep mine updated as much as I should, but it's a valuable feature. I use it to post dates and information about industry training and events. The flooring industry has a full calendar and I feel like I am neglecting it if I don't add stuff every day - and I don't, unfortunately.

Jim

 

eJM, maybe you could put a mod in charge of posting the information every day?

 

Yeah well, ya see, it's like this: My staff is flush with old guys with very limited computer/internet skills. And lazy to boot. It's already their job, but in 3 years, only a couple of staffers have ever posted industry related calendar events. They can do messages, but all the other stuff, even after numerous threads of detailed how-tos in the staff forum, most don't perform other than rudimentary moderator tasks.

I love 'em all though and haven't got the heart to hassle them. I keep hoping the more computer/internet literate members will be willing to take on these responsibilities, but the sad fact is, the industry does not appeal to the younger set - where those skills are almost second nature.

My calendar is open to all members in the user group the pros are in. All they have to do is add an event and I am notified by email. It happens occasionally, but not nearly often enough. I think the calendar system needs to be easier to understand and enter data.

Jim

 

Cant recall ever using it for something useful.

I think the only time i ever look at it is if im bored and want tosee whose birthdays are coming up !

 

Hehe, I know how that is... pretty much the only other people who add events to the calendar are the ones who add things like their parent's birthdays, thinking it's their own personal calendar