The Value of Outreach (Community Message Board)

[Philip Chen]

After being interviewed by Kippoe, I got to thinking that outreach beyond the shores of this Kindle Board is not such a bad thing.  Tying this in with the fact that I run a general community message board called Soundings: Puget Sound Speaks, I thought it might be a good way to provide additional resources for my colleagues on this board to reach a new audience.  This community board is a start-up and has been live since only June 2010, but gets anywhere from 1,500 to well over 2,000 hits and 50 to well over 100 visitors per day depending upon the phase of the moon, I suspect.  The url for the site is http://pugetsoundspeaks.com

You are invited to talk about your book and discuss anything you like on a new forum that I added this morning called, Independent Authors.  The link can be found here.  Just keep in mind that Soundings: Puget Sound Speaks is a family-oriented site so please be mindful about what you post directly to the board.

I also provide a link to this board for people who want to become more active in discussing Kindle books.

This is not shameless self-promotion as I will try to refrain from talking about my book on this particular forum.  

Tell me what you think.

Phil

[CNDudley]

Hi, Phil--

as another KB member in the Puget Sound Area (Bellevue), I was very interested in your new forum. Looks promising! I see there's no "Bellevue Blathers" or "Eastside Utterances"--I imagine they're rolled in with Seattle Sez?

I posted in the introductions area but will probably return later to the Indie Authors. Wish I had an orca sighting to announce!

Christina

[& gone]

Hello Phil! I took you up on your offer and am now the first post in the new forum. Thanks for setting it up. 

J.M.

[Philip Chen]

I can't promise anything except that this might get some new eyes on your products!  Good luck.

Phil

[Philip Chen]

Eight authors have taken advantage of our offer to create an independent authors forum on Soundings: Puget Sound Speaks.  We welcome all to join and discuss their books.  http://pugetsoundspeaks.com

The name of the game is to provide more visibility through another site for all of my colleagues on this board.  We refer back to Kindle Boards in the forum as a way to attract people who might see the posts there and want to join the vibrant conversation here.

[T.L. Haddix]

Phillip,

Thanks so much for doing this.  I just joined, and hope this takes off as a trend.  We have a local community forum here, and I'm going to ask the administrators if they'd allow a similar thread.  This is a great idea!  Kudos to you.

Tab.

[Philip Chen]

Tab,

Thanks for joining my message board.  I am a newbie at this stuff, but it seemed that the only thing I could offer the folks on the Kindle board was another outlet for them to get their message across.  I saw you post and hope it brings some benefit to you.

Phil

[T.L. Haddix]

I love community forums.  If you want to learn about a community, find a forum locally.  I turn to ours for news, laughs, all kinds of stuff.  I've 'met' more people since I joined that forum last year than I have in the entire 11 years we've lived up here in Indiana.  Some of them have become friends.  It's a great spot for provoking intellectual debate, too. 

I sent a message to our forum's owner/head moderator.  He should get back to me pretty quickly, and I'll let y'all know if he says yay or nay. 

[Daphne]

Just found this thread and have looked at your forum. Thank you for the invitation to join. It will be intersting for me, coming from England, to follow what goes on in Puget Sound.

[Philip Chen]

Daphne,

Hope you will post about your book!  We actually have members from the UK and other parts of the world as well.

Phil

[Daphne]

Just looked up where Puget Sound is on a map - my knowledge of American geography is lamentable and it seemed cheeky to post about my book without knowing a bit about the place first. Will wander over the Board now...