Ask Lemmy
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Hey, fam! Check out !fedigrow@lemmy.zip if you haven't already, we talk about this kinda thing a lot there. About a week ago I wrote down some thoughts on how to grow a community so that you're not the only poster, it's not exactly what you're asking, but maybe it'll be helpful:
click here for a bunch of ideas on what to do if you're the only poster on a community
First, find regular events to post about. For example on !bmoviebonanza@lemmy.world I post about the weekly Monsterdon watch party. On !juggalos@lemmy.world, philipontacos posts about the (mostly) weekly JCW and Shaggy Show posts on youtube. (edit: similarly, you can use a scheduler to make regular posts ahead of time, on piefed or the lemmy scheduler. For example I looked up a bunch of Tintin panels and picked out my favorites, and scheduled a weekly post on !eurographicnovels@piefed.social with a different panel every Tuesday. When I see it posted, I make a comment saying why it was one of my favorites.)
Second, give people resources they can use. For example on !sumo@lemmy.world I periodically post a bunch of links that people can use to follow the bi-monthly tournaments. This resulted in more engagement than when I just posted a lot of content myself.
Third, just ask people to post. If anyone has commented on your posts, reply to them (or send a DM) suggesting that they make posts of their own. On !gothindustrial@lemmy.world I had to ask like 10+ people in this way, but we finally got a nice community of 3-4 regular posters and several other occasionals.
Fourth, think about the kinds of posts that will attract discussion. This will vary by community. Simple links to songs or videos rarely attract much discussion. Articles may attract more, tho you run the risk of “ragebait” or “clickbait”. Look through !asklemmy@lemmy.world to get a sense of what questions will attract discussion, and think about how this can be adapted to your community. Memes can get a lot of upvotes, but the amount of discussion they inspire depends on the type of meme.
Fifth, think about “community events” to get people involved. On !superbowl@lemmy.world, there's an annual “Owl of the Year” tournament where people vote for their favorite owl.
Sixth, advertise periodically, on !newcommunities@lemmy.world, by cross-posting, by mentioning your community elsewhere (when approriate), by getting it listed in the sidebar of related communities, etc.
Finally, only do things here that are fun. That’s just my personal rule. Every once in a while I think I should make regular discussion-provoking “question” posts on !gothindustrial@lemmy.world, but I just don’t have it in me. So I only make that kind of post when I think I have a good question that I really wanna see what people answer. (edit: on the other hand, I spent several hours making a “Who is your Favorite Dracula?” meme on !vampires@lemmy.zip, because it was fun.)
Awrite, that’s just a couple things I thought of, hope it’s helpful to someone.