In a previous post, Adrian discussed the basic difference between a forum and a blog.

Today I wanted to discuss an interesting phenomenon we're starting to see more and more - forums looking like blogs.

As Adrian explains, forums are a lot more interactive than blogs, with multiple members contributing and creating dozens of new threads under different subforums every day. Due to the high number of new posts, all forum packages typically share the same user interface - displaying a list of categories with the last thread posted under each category:



Blogs on the other hand, expressing the thoughts and ideas of an individual or small group, typically generate an average of 1 new thread (posting) per day. Frequent blog readers want to see "what's new" right away, without having to click-around through different categories.

Originally conceived by Open Diary, blogs have adapted a different common user interface, showing the most recent post on the front page, with arrows to navigate to previous entries:



Notice how easy it is to read the latest posts on a blog? No clicking around. Readers visit the blog website and simply scroll down to read the latest entries.

This very popular user-interface helps in building strong readership while keeping things simple for your readers.

-- and now Forum owners want the same benefits.

We're starting to see more and more forums modify their front-page user-interface to look like a blog. Specifically - recent posts are displayed on the homepage, thread replies are displayed as comments and categories (subforums) are no longer the focus of the page.

The major benefit of this blog-like interface, beyond giving your forum a "personal feel", comes from the notion that users are just too lazy to click. Studies show web visitors are more likely to scroll down, reading the content of the page before they decide whether or not the site deserves additional clicks. This interface makes it easier to captivate the web visitor and win attention span.

EarnersForum, an online forum where web entrepreneur's and online marketers share advice and insight, is the latest forum to join this new trend. EarnersForum re-launched today with a new interface and enhanced features. Still a forum (with many users contributing the content), one of the most significant changes - EarnersForum now looks a lot more like a blog, with the front page featuring the two recent posts.

See below for the Before and After pictures:



Why are so many forums "crossing over", updating their front-page with a blog-like interface? Simply put - because it works. If you have a forum, I strongly recommend you experiment with this user interface and analyze the impact on page visits and page views per visitor.

To elaborate on this - at the recent AffiliateSummit, Dave Taylor released some stats showing users view on average 1.4 pages on his web site.

This number corresponds to our findings with other similar sites.

In plain English - most users view the front page of your website, before they decide (in this order):

1) Do I hit Back and surf to another site
2) Do I scroll down
3) Do I click a link

According to MarketingSherpa, the action of "clicking a link" is more expensive in user mind's than scrolling down. Basically users are too lazy to click on your links and will scroll down first before they decide whether to leave your site or stay.

This is why it is so important to include your best information (recent posts for example as shown above) on the front page. If you have a growing forum, instead of showing a list of all topics, experiment with showing the content of the last few posts in an attempt to engage the user - make them scroll - then click around for more.