I’ve joined a lot of forums in the past – my favorite is USTExchange – and in all of them, I’ve picked up some tips on how to make the most of this experience.

5. Always put an interesting signature (with a link to your site/blog) that will entice other forum members to click on it and thus, increasing traffic to your site/blog. My personal favorite is the use of a headline animator (which can be seen on my sidebar and was generated by feedburner.com). This nifty animated gif updates itself automatically so people can see right away the title of your latest entries, which could possibly encourage them to visit your site/blog.

4. Put a lot of thought before posting an entry in a forum. Whether you are a newbie or an established member, common courtesy, common sense, and proper grammar are still very much appreciated.

3. Respect the rules of the forum – I am of course assuming that you take the time to actually read the guidelines / FAQs that a responsible member of a forum should know.

2. Stick to the thread topic. The rule is to read the first (original) post in the thread and respond appropriately. If a question was asked, answer it to the best of your ability. If there was a picture or a video attached, it is expected that you view it before sharing your opinion.

1. Smilies are not a considered a valid post. Not only is this practice irritating, it shows that you are too lazy to think of an original response and is one of the hallmarks of a forum SPAMMER.