[deafmetal]

I have been thinking about this topic ever since this site was hacked and we lost a lot of participants. I really prefer the interaction and depth of discussion on this site compared to social media websites or apps. The ability to maintain a threaded topic is key to the success of this forum, and although places like Facebook Groups do allow for a similar experience, I personally do not like the overall experience on Facebook at all. I also enjoy the private nature of this forum, and ability to easily ward off random trolls and spambots. I also have no problems posting on this site from my mobile browser.

Thoughts? Is there a method we could use to attract people back from social media, or is it time to give up the fight and become just another boring FB group?

[monsterworship]

Well when the board first started all of the people that ran the labels were super active in posting, there was tidbits of information available here that you couldn't be find on other social media.
There were a lot of new fans on the scene so I think they were eager for information, and there wasn't really anywhere else that had this kind of info specific to the genre that was targeted at a younger generation.

The OST bubble busted, people moved on to other things.
All of the TRVE fans stuck around, and new fans come around slowly.

In general with message boards you get a lot of lurkers.

Granted there is a small number of active users here, there is still a lot of solid information!

I don't know what else would make people come here, but I also don't think there is any need to move on at the moment.

[Hatter313]

Since I'm pretty devoid of any social media myself I'd be sad to this mosey over to FB and would resort to just emailing or texting...well...you two i guess haha, for any information.

[Mateo Sanboval]

Yeah, I am in no hurry to go to FB or the like. At all. I like this place for all the reasons outlined above. I, too, wish we could get some of our old regulars back, but new folks will continue to come around. This is the best place I've ever found to discuss film and film-related music on vinyl on the WWW. Just writing that out and reading back makes me realize that this is a niche thing and STBC is a niche place. As Monster said, once the labels blew town, the bandwagoners went with them. There are plenty of social media outlets for them to use to get news if they're interested. I don't expect it to be like the Hoffman forums or VC 'round here and I'm glad it's not. Out of curiosity, MW, what do you think the ratio of regular lurkers is to active users?

[static14]

I'll be hanging my hat at this joint for as long as it's up and running. A decidely different (and in my opinion better) experience then social media or a Facebook group.

Plus it's a community of truly great folks here.

[jgibbs4053]

Even at being fairly new to collecting soundtracks I prefer STBC to some Facebook groups that I belong to. It was cool when the labels were more active, but I do find this group a lot more informative considering most Facebook groups are just after collecting all color variants.

[Aremagod]

I like this place.....I dropped Facebook 2 years ago and haven't looked back and won't go back. Fuck Facebook!

I do like looking at the pretty pictures on Instagram.....even when people like @deaf don't follow me back to look at my pretty pictures. ;)

[texasvinyl]

My Facebook is like an abandoned white page listing for me. I don't trust Facebook, I don't use the mobile app, and I would never use Facebook to interact with brands or companies or use it for a hobby interest. It's nice to occasionally look to see pictures and goings on of family and friends, and for me that's about it. It boggles my mind the stuff people post there under their real name that goes to all their friends and family.

Instagram is much more interesting as a dedicated hobby thing. I can have a record account and follow record stuff and not have to deal with family or friends and all that jazz. But it is mostly just "pretty pictures and clips of records" without much discussion. It can be a great place to discover new record treasures if you follow the right accounts.

Twitter I have never really gotten into. I have an account but haven't ever really used it for much, and I don't check Twitter.

Snapchat...Let's be honest we're probably all too old to even understand what it's for. The best way a kid described it to me was "their way of talking" by sending stupid pictures of themselves to each other 24/7. Something tells me I would have hated being a kid with all these smart phones and social media stuff. It seems like it would be treacherous and terrible with no space to fuck up privately without it instantly being shared with everyone you know and saved forever on the internet.

That's a long way of writing "I dig this place" - y'all are good people and I love the forum here! It is too bad we've lost a few fine folks along the way. VZ where are you? And it's been great marketing for lots of the labels even if they didn't realize it. I've bought countless records I saw posts about here!!

[bpwlogan]

STBC and occasionally The Hoffman Fourms are the only two sites that I hit online for leisure fun. I've never had a FB account, and probably never will. Personally, I think FB is just a bunch of rubbish. I like this place, and the people that frequent this site. Monster makes a great observation on the OST bubble bursting. A lot of people just moved on to other things. it's the diehards only at this point with some newer people that are always welcome joining
up from time to time.

I hope we roll on for some time to come.

[vi_resmusic]

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[vi_resmusic]

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[vi_resmusic]

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[monsterworship]

Mateo if you look at the bottom of the home page in the statistics section it will show you how many users are on, granted most are bots.

5 registered, 1 hidden and 21 guests


I don't have any analytics for the traffic otherwise afaik.

[NathanLurker]

the title of the thread should be STBC > SOCIAL MEDIA

The thing with internet forums is, there's always movement. people leaving and other people coming in. But we got cool people and the informations and resources that can be found on here are great. Everyone's mostly polite and helpful. aas long as that's the case I'm sure people have enough reasons to be interested in joining. Also, better website colors here. Better Logo. We should do those STBC tshirts.

[deafmetal]

@vi_res - It's all good. This is a place for friends.
@Aremagod - Apologies if I missed you there, but I will check again. I'm not great with those apps.

Very encouraging to read all the positive support for the forum. I think one thing that is sticking in my head was the loss of the active participation by all the labels. It was One Way Static that clued me up to this place to begin with. I understand that if they want to properly market their product, then they need to be where all the eyeballs are: social media. It's unfortunate, and I commend their endurance to deal with all the inane noise in places like FB comment sections. That said, at the peak of this forum there were more than a few trolls lobbing hate grenades at label owners as well. I guess I am not sad to see that element go away.

I would like to see this forum maintain (if not grow) the current user base, as it seemed like we were in a bit of a steep decline for a while after the last site migration. I think the more active content that we post here, the more likely people might feel inclined to join in on the discussion. I am not sure how to bring people back from places like FB, but I would love to hear some ideas. I contribute more posts to this site than anywhere else, otherwise I'm just back to writing email, haha.

[Aremagod]

@deaf.....it was all in jest sir......I only noticed you were on Instagram when you responded to a @monster picture. I failed at reading through the Instagram thread on this site.

[manuorru]

Really interesting thread @deaf.
I'm one of those guys lost in the flood when site was hacked. To open a window on STBC forum was a natural habit every morning together with email providers. But STBC forced stop changed my daily habits.
Yes, I'm in some FB group, but I'm really little social. It's undeniable that FB is much more mobile friendly, more prompt and easy to access, but also absolutely more impersonal and banal.
I really appreciated warm feeling of this place. There was, and I think there can be anymore, a special "sense of belonging". E.g., not plain and cold heads-up, but desire of sharing an information.
So, I think STBC have to survive, and about myself, I'll try to be more active!

Manu

[vi_resmusic]

Thoughts? Is there a method we could use to attract people back from social media, or is it time to give up the fight and become just another boring FB group?

I don't mean to go against the grain here but as a suggestion, it might not be a bad idea to have a STBC Facebook page or a Twitter account to get back in touch with the people who have gone.It could also serve as a notice board/muster area if the same problem occurs again.

[Bezulsqy]

I have a big aversion against Facebook and most other social media as well. I have no social media accounts at all. Only my STBC profile. I do check twitter and Instagram as a guest for news about Waxwork and Death Waltz. I would love to see them post their teasers here as well. But because they don't and I am very curious I do have the need to check their accounts every so often...
STBC is a fantastic place for me. A lot of smart and friendly people. You have teached me a lot about what is out there in scoreworld. And you have cost me a fair penny! But no hard feelings about that :-)
It is great to see the pictures and stories about new aquistions and records spinning. Also not being a native English speaker I am very much entertained by the prose of some members like Mateo and Scojo.

Looking forward to what is coming in 2017!

By the way, would love to see some bandcamp embedding possibilities if possibble.

[chiefbrody]

I was thinking just the other day about how there used to be so much excitement on here when, for instance, there was a new Death Waltz release. I didn't know whether it was a sign of the soundtrack vinyl bubble bursting, the dilution caused by so many releases, or the decline of STBC.

I don't know too much about FB user groups, but I just can't imagine the depth of conversation or the developing of trust and 'relationships' you get here. There are users whose labels, websites and music I've supported, others whose opinions are my 'go to's when I'm undecided or looking for something new, and others that have helped me out, and I've helped out. It's been a great place.

I've never been a daily poster - I've never felt knowledgeable enough - and I definitely have had active and inactive phases, but I've posted on here many many times more than on any other site, or social media platform. I'm not against a FB group, but I wouldn't be if it was at the expense of the forum.

[Spun out of control]

Don't do Facebook but am quite active on Twitter and recently joined Instagram under my 'Spun'... moniker

Have no moans about STBC at all.

Yes it was great when there were a few more posts, but to be honest a lot of them were either just excitement about grabbing a certain variant or moaning about shipping costs or an item not received... often when the label heads posted on here they'd get hit by customer service type questions that would have been better served by emailing direct. So you can understand why they backed off a bit.

Am also sure certain labels have seen a bit of a slowdown - though not sure if that is a sign of the bubble bursting or there simply being so much choice that none of us can possibly afford it all (though am still impressed by the hauls of some of the guys on here).

In short I think the site going down a couple of times this year - I think for up to a couple of weeks at one point - acted as a bit of a natural 'cull', sorted the wheat from the chaff, men from the boys etc.. and here we are. Get the feeling people hang around and post on here because they enjoy the interaction with like minded individuals just as much as showing off spoils :)

It's also very good to have info and knowledge about a variety of releases all in the one place. And searchable at that.

Must also say thanks to @monsterworship for his personal efforts in keeping the ship afloat.

[Mateo Sanboval]

Here's the short of it: STBC is what it is because it isn't what it ain't. Namely those other platforms and forums, dig? The active folks in here get it. Heck, we revel in it. Those that get it a little less, spend a little less time or just move on. But new members come, too. STBC had been a lot busier these past few weeks with rookies, veterans, and returning stars alike; some new artists and promoters, too. STBC will continue to ebb and flow, grow and change. Our job is to spread the word when appropriate and let the chips fall where they may. Keeps things interesting, no? I wouldn't have it any other way.

PS - Echoing many others' sentiments here, I'd also like to personally thank Monster Worship for his dedication to this place. STBC wouldn't be here without his efforts. He fits this labor in with work, running his own label, and presumably some small semblance of a personal life. He's amazing. Three cheers for you, Chad. Many thanks.

PPS - And, as ever, big thanks to Spencer and Seb for starting this place. Even though it grew up a bit differently then they'd hoped, we owe it all to them and the night they drank white wine under the stars with Nicolai on the portable and made sweet, sweet iLove and STBC was conceived.

PPPS - While I'm at it, let's toss some props at at the feet of the arch nemesis of blank wall spaces everywhere, IronJaiden, for his lovely set design. STBC is the least visually taxing place I haunt in the World Wide Web. Chin chin, old boy.

[vi_resmusic]

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[Bezulsqy]

@vi_res
I agree with your views for the most part.
And I think it is great that you posted this.
Although the title of this place does not reflect it's anally specific content, it is a forum with topics about soundtracks on vinyl as its core.
Everyone should feel free to post whatever they want. If I find it interesting I will reply. If not I find it hard to comment. For example I stay away from the library part because I feel out of my league. But I do love to read what is posted there.
Your comments do create an insight that I could and should respond more when newcomers post. Whatever it's contents. It is nice to feel noticed.

[ScoJo]

I'm a vegetarian goth hermit.

I hate barbecues.

:)