Get your forum rolling... tell your friends!

"Tell your friends" it's simple advice, that you already know, but here are some tips when spreading the good word of the new forum you just created.

Your Mission:  It's important to have a sentence or two of what you'd like to accomplish with your new forum.  Who are the type of ppl you would like to contribute?  What type of content would you like them to contribute? - Questions, Past experiences, Funny antidotes, etc.  How often would you like them to participate?  And finally, do you have any goal with the forum?  i.e. to raise awareness on xyz, to create a fun forum to chat about the latest tv show, a forum to cheer on your favorite team and complain about your rivals, etc.

Why:  It's important to let your friends (and the community) know why you started the forum?  It's obvious that it's a topic your passionate about, but what made you start it now?

Don't beg, but emphasis the importance to you:  Starting a forum is easy, just click a few buttons and type a few keywords.  Ramping up a forum is hard.  The hardest hurdle is getting you forum from 1 to 20 members.  Let them know you need the support now, and as the forum grows, it will take on it's own shape.  If you can get your friends contributing initially and have them tell their friends, you forum will get some traction - and then you won't need to try so hard, it'll just take off on it's own.