Criteria for the Forum

Just as the forum would have rules and terms that you must agree to so you can be a member, so should you have the same privilege. For theforum in question to be considered remotely useful, it must have the following features:

1.     Commercial activity.
If you can’t conduct business on the forum, then that’s the first deal-breaker. You need to be able to run your business. You’re not there to make friends.
Special Note: If you happen to have gone through all of the forums on your list and none of them allow commercial activity, then you can, in rare circumstances, just consider the next requirement.

2.     Links in your forum signature to external and potentially unrelated sites.
Every time you make a post, you’re giving away ad space. That’s your space if you don’t have a forum signature or if you’re on a board that doesn’t allow it.

The Rare Circumstance

If it is not possible to get into a forum that allows commercial activity, it’s still possible to use forum marketing but it’s slightly trickier. For these forums you will never advertise your product directly, but you will have an innocuous link in your signature that will go to your site which can sell them something.

Proceed as normal by becoming the expert and being recognized. Never recommend your product, but recommend a product type in your forum posts. For example:

Ø “What’s the best way to get rid of fleas on my dog?”

Ø “Combination treatment of a flea collar, a flea bath, and then a drop of special flea medication behind the ear.”

While your signature might have something like:

“I thought I’d never get rid of my dog’s fleas! What a mess! At least he’s flea free now!”

Then you could have a link to your page, blog, or some other external site which could feature a dog and a treatment that you’re selling. This can be very difficult to pull off and can crumble in seconds if you’re not careful, which is why it’s recommended to avoid this situation.