A Forum Wide Brainstorm Session

[SaturnCeleste]

I just looked at your intro thread again. I see what you mean about the questions but that's easy. If you decide to try an Introduction section, just list those questions at the top of your page like you do the pink widgets. I see you're using phpbb and not sure how the mechanics work on this site. I've used IPBoard and Simple Machines Forum.

[Joan Marie]

What would interest me, and hopefully others, is to have an organized way to sort through the topics and postings: a general directory. Nothing too granular: many of the topics overlap. Just an index for sorting though all the information.
-Paula Millet

There're lots of new spreads being developed as well as old favorites. Do we have a spot for those?

Spreads and discussions about them are found in the [url0https://www.cultoftarotforum.com/viewforum.php?f=38]Cards and Spreads[/url] section.

I think theses two comments express and confirm something heard in other comments that I've responded to which is that certain things need to be made easier to find. I will work on developing a "Quick reference" page because I think for a lot of people that will be a useful way to locate forum topics.

Thanks for pointing this out. It's not something I was able to see myself as I am so close to it.

[dodalisque]

This will be no help at all, but in my opinion, Joan Marie, you have done everything right. Aeclectic became increasingly popular because it was the already the biggest site in the world and squeezed smaller sites out of existence. It became the go-to place for everyone. I think growing is just a matter of time and finding a way to get the word out. YouTube videos by members reviewing decks or doing sample readings could be used to publicise the CoT site. I think many who used to go to Aeclectic for their tarot fix now passively view online vids. At a certain point the snowballing effect will establish its own momentum. A big draw at Aeclectic was the section in the Forum for buying and selling decks. But there we have the same problem, since if you are looking to buy or sell decks you need a lot of other members to attract you there, to make the visit worthwhile. It is quite mysterious how all the Aeclectic members have evaporated. For years I chatted to dozens of people about the Tarot de Marseille on Aeclectic. Where do they go to talk now?

[Joan Marie]

This will be no help at all,...

Oh how wrong you are! I really appreciate what you've said here a lot.

[BlueStar]

This will be no help at all, but in my opinion, Joan Marie, you have done everything right. Aeclectic became increasingly popular because it was the already the biggest site in the world and squeezed smaller sites out of existence. It became the go-to place for everyone.

I would echo dodalisque's words about the site so far - I like the way the forum has been run, the sections etc. That's not to say there couldn't be improvements, just because with anything in life there can always be improvements. I think it would be great to have people comment on readings or exchanges etc. but as suggested these are quite personal so it would be hard to know how to comment or ask questions. Perhaps in these the readers could state whether they invite comments from others too? That would be helpful to know.

The other aspect of this I personally find challenging is that tarot readings are very personal - if someone is reading intuitively then their interpretation might be a bit different than if another person read the same card, because of context and utlimately what the symbology or imagery means to the reader's subconscious. (I find this interesting, as it can open up possibilities for other meanings which one might not have considered). For example I have read the 8 of wands in the Legacy of the Divine Tarot as something very different from the traditional RWS meaning because of the imagery and the context, but the reading was verifiably correct.

My other thought is that 'biggest' is not always 'best'. It may be a goal to make the site the biggest but that can bring challenges. E.g. a big site can lack a feeling of community and sharing. It can make it harder for mods to engage in replying etc. because of volume of posts and the general admin of those. I personally think it's better to focus on quality (but then I've never run a forum lol). That will I think drive reputation and thus interaction. That's not to say having growth should be avoided, and focus dropped on things like SEO (so important). For any forum/community space I think it's important to have a clear vision of what the forum should be. I'm no expert, but just a few initial thoughts:)

[Joan Marie]

I think it would be great to have people comment on readings or exchanges etc. but as suggested these are quite personal so it would be hard to know how to comment or ask questions. Perhaps in these the readers could state whether they invite comments from others too? That would be helpful to know.

The other aspect of this I personally find challenging is that tarot readings are very personal - if someone is reading intuitively then their interpretation might be a bit different than if another person read the same card, because of context and utlimately what the symbology or imagery means to the reader's subconscious.

This is very true. Sometimes the feedback discussion between the two parties involved can be challenging enough without getting 3rd, 4th and 5th parties involved. That people politely stay out of those for the most part is maybe a good thing. Unless invited in or to make supportive comments. If you learn something from someone else's reading and want to say so, I think that would be welcome. So far, I think everyone here has used really good judgement in this regard.

There is a section called Your Readings which is intended for eliciting feedback. It could be a reading you did for yourself or for someone else. It's a good place to get other people's opinions, constructive criticism and input on your work when that's what you're looking for.

My other thought is that 'biggest' is not always 'best'. ... I personally think it's better to focus on quality (but then I've never run a forum lol). That will I think drive reputation and thus interaction. That's not to say having growth should be avoided, and focus dropped on things like SEO (so important). For any forum/community space I think it's important to have a clear vision of what the forum should be.

I couldn't agree more. And I have been so glad to have had the chance in this Brainstorming thread to share some of my vision for this forum.

It is important to continually grow the forum in order to keep it active and have a diversity of voices. Otherwise it just becomes a knitting circle. People come and go, and then come back again. That's just the nature of it, of life. So to always be bringing in new people, encouraging people to participate will keep the place alive and interesting for a long long time.

But the most important thing is definitely the quality of the interactions. I like the tone of this place a lot. And I think others appreciate it too.

SEO, several people have mentioned, is something I am always working on. I'm always checking the google analytics and other things. I have planted meta-data all over the place, for example under every card in the card library. I try to optimise keywords, all that stuff. We are coming up high in some searches, not so much in others but it steadily improves. Slow, but steady. I am sure there are things I could be doing better but I think we are getting there. Anyone who has specific suggestions regarding this, your ideas and expertise would be MOST welcome.

I may put together (I will) a post with some tips for everyone on how you can help improve SEO in the posts you make. For example, name-checking a popular deck or known person in your subject line (if it makes sense to do so of course) is huge. Subject lines in general are powerful seo-wise. I'm sure many of you have good tips as well. But in truth, good search results will happen eventually anyway as the forum itself grows, as SaturnCeleste pointed out.

I just want all the people out there who are looking for a place like this to eventually be able to find us and add their voices to our community.

Here is a still shot from the animation I created for my Kickstarter campaign for this forum. It's kind of how I pictured us: ))

[Tarot_scholar]

I think it's definitely worth looking at what remains of AT and seeing what can be integrated. Not the style necessarily, but here I'm thinking of site structure and layout. While this is obviously a different space than AT, there's a reason it worked so well for so many people, and if we can ease people's entrance here by gliding down the tracks that are already oiled, so to speak, then why not?

Of course the site has since been minimized and I find it hard to even find the old forums! But here's a snapshot from the Wayback Machine to illustrate what I meant:

https://web.archive.org/web/20100129154 ... :80/tarot/


But perhaps taking a cue from the organization of the forums would also be good:

https://web.archive.org/web/20100107124 ... forum.net/

If you've already done this, then don't mind me!

[Charlie Brown]

I agree that the organization of Aeclectic was superior to the other forums. However, what I don't know is whether or not it's possible to replicate that structure on the current generation of easily accessible forum software. IIUC, one of the reasons the Aeclectic forum couldn't be transferred to a new administrator is that the actual software was so out of date and cobbled together that it's doubtful that a modern server could even load it.

[Tarot_scholar]

I can't imagine importing such old vbulletin code would be worth it or even possible. But as far as informal inspiration for organizing the landing page, for example, or the kinds of subforums to have under the main ones....that's what I meant

[Joan Marie]

I can't imagine importing such old vbulletin code would be worth it or even possible. But as far as informal inspiration for organizing the landing page, for example, or the kinds of subforums to have under the main ones....that's what I meant

That was an interesting walk down memory lane! The Wayback Machine is amazing.

I think most of us had gotten used to the purple, it was probably pretty cool back in the late 90's when Aeclectic Tarot started but man, you look at it now and wow! That was REALLY purple!

I actually did find a few nuggets in there I could put to use in some way here. I see what you mean Tarot scholar, but I think with the more current tech and with modern aesthetic sensibilities, we can employ those good ideas in new ways.

Though, like the purple, we all got kind of used to the cluttered pages at AT, people now just don't want to dig through a lot anymore to find find what they want. Think about what websites used to look like and how they have changed. The thing about Aeclectic is, if you knew what was there you could find it, otherwise, it could be tricky. It was hard to even figure out which page was really the "landing page." That's that cobbled-together thing CB was referring to. That said, Aecletic was in many ways, extremely well organised and hosted a massive number of topics in a very organised way. I can only aspire to that.

I appreciate the look back. It did give me a lot of ideas.

[Nemia]

Am I the only one who turned off the purple from day 1? It was truly horrible and punishing for people with sensitive eyes

[Tarot_scholar]

hahah oh good lord not the purple! or not as default. I admit to preferring black/dark layouts with lighter text for when i'm browsing at night and don't want to stare at a giant lightbulb, though.

[Joan Marie]

I admit to preferring black/dark layouts with lighter text for when i'm browsing at night and don't want to stare at a giant lightbulb, though.

In case you didn't know it, there is a way to select a darker background format through the user control panel (access by clicking on your username on the upper right)

Go to "board preferences" tab and change "My Board Style" to "pycode" in the drop-down list. Click submit.

[Tarot_scholar]

Ahhh I hadn't thought to check, thank you!!

[I Sunshine]

I really hope I have explained this well. It goes to the heart of why I built The Cult of Tarot and, I hope, what people come to understand and appreciate about it.

You have explained it very well. I whole-heartedly endorse your idea!

[jaq]

Oh, in case it hasn't been mentioned yet - one of the things I loved about AT was that there was vigorous trading and selling. I got some really, really awesome decks that way that I would have never been able to get otherwise. I know we have a section for that here but if we could make it blossom ...

[Joan Marie]

I really hope I have explained this well. It goes to the heart of why I built The Cult of Tarot and, I hope, what people come to understand and appreciate about it.

You have explained it very well. I whole-heartedly endorse your idea!

Thank you so much for saying so. I really do appreciate it.

[Joan Marie]

Oh, in case it hasn't been mentioned yet - one of the things I loved about AT was that there was vigorous trading and selling. I got some really, really awesome decks that way that I would have never been able to get otherwise. I know we have a section for that here but if we could make it blossom ...

I think a lot of people would love to see this too.

Obviously more membership would help (you have to be a member to participate in the Buy/Sell/Trade). Also more participation, a lot of people join but don't really participate, at least not at first. But many eventually do.

We do have a Buy/Sell/Trade area. But it could def be busier. I suspect, it may be another case of something people just aren't seeing. This is an issue I am becoming aware of through this whole brainstorming thing and I will begin improvements shortly. Again, I think the answer is a well made "Quick Reference" page. People need that, I totally get it.

I am open to any ideas or suggestions of how to improve the Buy/Sell/Trade area to encourage more activity.

[Joan Marie]

hello everybody. I want to thank everyone who participated in this brainstorming session, either here in the forum or by PM and email.

I got a lot of good insight. I know many people miss the days of AT, but time marches on and so does the way people use the internet. My goal with The Cult of Tarot was always to take the best of the past and combine it with dynamic new possibilities.

I still have a lot of energy for this place and I hope you do too. I promise you we will not remain stagnant. There are things afoot I don't want to go into detail about yet because I am still working out implementation. My hope is that by our 1st Anniversary on May 25th, 2019, we will have seen the beginnings of the next generation of Tarot Forum really taking shape.

In the meanwhile, keep posting, keep trading and selling, keep joining the reading groups, and stay tuned to this channel.

(this thread has been moved to the Misc Topics about the Cult of Tarot Forum. Your ideas and suggestions are, as always, very welcome. )

[Grizabella]

I've wondered why the name of the forum uses the word "Cult". That isn't a positive thing for many people. At least not here in America. It suggests something like the Jim Jones group and the Waco, Texas thing. It made me pause for a second when I saw it but I knew it wasn't really a cult here. I'm wondering why this name was chosen. It might be a deterrent to people and turning away prospective members.

[Charlie Brown]

That never occurred to me, but that's not an unfair statement.

[Joan Marie]

Well, I'm not going to change the name of the forum.

Cult is a word with a very interesting background. It has the same root as Culture, Occult, Cultivate. The latin root, cultus was about the mystical rites performed at harvest time. (hence, agriculture)

I explained it in the video I made for the Kickstarter I did for this forum. You can see it here I think it's pretty interesting.

Don't forget that when you say something has a "cult following" that's kind of a good thing.

I was aware there may be some people "afraid" of the word. What can I say? Maybe it's not for them.

I created a Tarot deck called "The Cult of Weimar." People who are into Weimar get it. The deck sold out. I brought the name to this project because it felt right to me. I liked how it sounded and I like the idea of the mystery and secret information it brings.

It's also meant to be a little cheeky and fun. Like I said, I knew some people wouldn't get it, or wouldn't have the curiosity to at least have a look. What can I say? I think most people who are into Tarot and divination would not be afraid of the word. I mean look at Mr. Crowley for goodness sake.

I think it's a cool name. I think it captures a mood of fun and mystery. And I hope to, eventually, develop a cult following.

ETA: But since you brought it up, it does make me think that it would be a good idea to find a way to use all that in the "branding" of the site. I'm sure other people may have wondered the same thing and maybe I could use that curiosity to increase interest. So thanks!

[Tarot_scholar]

Eh, I'm American and I'm find with "cult" in the title. I mostly think of cult following, cult classics, etc. (But I have a certain fondness for bad movies, so...!)

Anyone put off by the word "cult" would probably already be put off by the idea of Tarot, too, one way or another.

[Grizabella]

That's really a good point----one of my worst failings sometimes is missing the point of things. lol Seriously. I do see that a cult following is really a good thing, and now can see the "culture" connection. I wasn't criticizing at all but was genuinely curious. Thank you for answering the question so nicely. I'm sorry I haven't been here on the site very much lately. I've been working on my website and rearranging my little abode. I'm slow at everything I do but at least I'm getting it done, slowly though it be.

[Joan Marie]

I'm slow at everything I do but at least I'm getting it done, slowly though it be.

Take your time Lady. Good to have you back.