Missing the cozy vibes in PH discussions — anyone else?
Don't you think Product Hunt discussions have become as cold as ice lately?
Or maybe I just don’t get which topics work best for my discussion themes?
Last summer/autumn, discussions seemed to get more replies and upvotes — people felt more cozy and engaged back then in comments.
Replies
App Finder
Discussions in p/general still get much engagement, I think even more than before.
I see your last discussions were in p/self-promotion. I see the following problems with that forum:
The posts from p/self-promotion are not included in p/general, while the posts from the product subforums and from p/ama are included in p/general, so people may think everything is included in p/general and therefor don't check p/self-promotion (this happened to me). The same for p/introduce-yourself, which is also not included in p/general.
I think there should be a way to see the posts from all forums in one list, and maybe this should be the default view when clicking Forums in the top-nav.
Also, I think "self-promotion" sounds a bit negative and not very interesting, I suggested renaming it before, see https://www.producthunt.com/p/general/new-forum-guidelines?comment=4363718 and https://www.producthunt.com/p/general/what-do-you-think-about-the-new-self-promotion-sub-forum
For "cozy vibes", maybe we should have an p/personal.
@rajiv_ayyangar what do you think?
@rajiv_ayyangar @konrad_sx Thank you! I absolutely agree!!
"I think there should be a way to see the posts from all forums in one list"
how it was before🥹
'Also, I think "self-promotion" sounds a bit negative and not very interesting'
Absoluteeeeely!! Especially when I really wanted to know "How to promote myself" because of the reason that "self-promotion" forum doesn't work well as an engaging place, and my post with a question went to "self-promotion" (I knew i added the link to my product, but that was just double attempts and hopes🙈)
Product Hunt
@konrad_sx I actually think p/self-promotion has been more active than I expected, and I see a lot of potential there. I love what's been happening with the "Roast My Product/Idea" trend. And I also liked some of the posts that focused on how to self-promote, like this one that had a bunch of responses: https://www.producthunt.com/p/self-promotion/pitch-your-product-with-max-5-words-can-you
I'm starting to see the cozy vibes grow in p/introduce-yourself. Have you spent much time there?
I think one of the cool things about Product Hunt is it is a place to self-promote and to help others self-promote. And my idea with the self-promotion forum is to celebrate that. You might be right that there's a better forum structure, but I'm not quite ready to give up on it 😊.
Product Hunt
@konrad_sx @kksrm We've experimented internally with seeing everything in one list, but my feeling is right now for the casual browser it creates too much noise. That said, this could all change in a matter of weeks, as forums continue to grow, so maybe check back in in a few weeks and see if you still feel this way?
App Finder
@kksrm @rajiv_ayyangar As I said before, I think it's a great improvement that we have sub-forums now. I also agree that it's an advantage for the casual user that the default view has "less noise". But why not just have an everything-view additionally?
Also I think it really should be made clear that p/general includes some but not all other forums (if you want to keep it that way). I actually didn't check the other forums since I didn't notice they weren't included in p/general until today.
I'll check p/introduce-yourself :)
@konrad_sx @rajiv_ayyangar yeah cool post!! thanks, your answers are cozy so thank you!!
I don’t know. I was honestly not engaging at all before, even though I’ve been a PH member for a long time. So for me, it feels like it’s a LOT more engaging than I had hoped.
@yashara that's true, sometimes I just don't have energy to be active, but I'm trying to be silently supportive :)
Product Hunt
@yashara That's great to hear, Yashar. That's our goal!
@rajiv_ayyangar Well, from my view you are succeeding!
I previously tried to post a discussion, but it wasn't successfully published, and the response I received that it was rejected. Later, I considered trying a few more times, but I'm unsure about how they review discussions. Therefore, I usually choose to comment on discussions posted by others.
@feliciana_liu that's true too! I also can't find my discussions now, I saw all my discussions in one place in previous interface and now I can't find this feature:(
@feliciana_liu this is interesting -- I saw a couple of responses above citing "censorship" and moderation and wasn't quite sure what they were referencing. I think this is worth a review by PH -- taking the time to draft free content for the site, and then being rejected from posting it, could be a big source of engagement churn on the forum feature. It happened to me once on IMDB and I legit never posted there again.
On the flip side, I do appreciate higher quality content and I hope AI slop stays out of the forums.
@kksrm I can only find my discussion through Activity in my profile.
@leah_madden yes, strict moderation does have its merits. The phenomenon of spam posting can no longer been seen.
In discussions there were a lot more cookie cutter questions. Now, I feel the quality of questions being asked have gotten better. It may seem like the cozy vibes are missing, but I think users are still getting use to the new forums format, you will see a lot more engagement eventually with time.
I wish there was a forum where communities could build connections more freely, with less censorship and fewer restrictions on topics.
Sider: AI Research Agent & Extension
You are at least luckier than me; I created at least 3 posts, but they were all rejected.
@rick_fan Oh why? Did you ask the moderators? Maybe you need to rephrase it or don't use something?
@rick_fan What reason did they cite for rejecting them?
Sider: AI Research Agent & Extension
@kksrm Yes, but where should I ask the moderator? The reply directed me to some guide articles, but they don't explicitly say.
Sider: AI Research Agent & Extension
@leah_madden No reason, just a guide link: https://help.producthunt.com/en/articles/10478791-product-hunt-forum-guidelines
Yeah, I feel like the forums get a lot less heat than other media. Most of the time it's the staff that starts the topics, or the makers of a particular product.
I'd like to see more users posting, which may require more incentives and less moderation restrictions!
@onbing true!! moderation also takes so much time before the discussion even goes live
Yeah, it feels like a lot of PH discussions have become more transactional and less about genuine connections. There used to be a stronger sense of community and shared excitement. Do you think it's the growth of the platform, or just a shift in how people engage?
@ariputrautama the growth of the platform affect I think, new interface, new users, so many information
I can still feel engaged in the forums, but yes, it's definitely different, I find more professional and technical topics.
I'm new to PH, so I might not have the full picture, but I’d love to see more of those ‘cozy’ discussions too! What kinds of topics used to spark the most engagement? Any tips for someone just starting out in the community?