[emmaonline]

Listed in order of importance:

1) Design (a nice looking forum will bring you members)

2) Functionality (everything needs to work smoothly)

3) Catagories (make sure you have enough catgories and sub catagories to keep thing organized and easy to follow)

4) Moderating (stay on top of posts and posters and remove problem posts and spam fast)

5) Participation (be an active member of your own forum)

6) Promotion (once your forum starts to get legs go out and sell it to the internet community)

7) Rewards (encourage participation by offering rewards)

8) Hire help (for a nominal price you can get outsiders to help with moderating and management issues)

9) Frequent Updates (you need to keep things fresh)

10) Ask your members to spread the word