Phil Askey was smart to sell when he did

Phil Askey · Feb 28, 2012

I'm very happy with what Simon's done, I can't fault any of the improvements he's made, they were necessary and I'm sure there's a lot more to come. The forums are a little quieter than the heady days of the early naughties simply because digital cameras have matured but as with everything the genre will continue to evolve and dpreview will be in the eye of storm.

I'm also delighted that we clearly made the right decision choosing Amazon, we'd had other suiters before them but none gave me the confidence that we'd be able to continue doing what we loved. (PS. I do still love photography but the I left because site needed someone new at the helm / I needed something new).

dpreview rocks!

Pikme said:
Have you taken a look at other forums lately? Traffic is really slow everywhere, not just here in Oly "we're a dying system" forum.

Even Canon and Nikon forums are pretty darn slow compared to what they were just a few years ago. Fuji, Sony Nex and mFTs are the only places still showing a little life.

The forums pick up when news is released, but they used to be thriving 'communities' year round. Even reviews don't seem to attract nearly as much attention as they once did. I guess the constant stupid fighting has killed that in all the brand forums, not just here.

Maybe I'm wrong, since I don't have numbers to back this up. But my memory is of a much livelier place even in the absence of news.

--
Roberto M.

--
Phil Askey
Founder, dpreview.com

SirSeth · Feb 28, 2012

It's really cool of you to weigh in positively. Many of us have been around to see the growth and yet still have a connection with your name and work. I'm also really glad that Amazon has provided the means to grow without destroying the vision you helped establish before.

Best,
Seth
--
What if the hokey pokey really is what it's all about?

--
wallygoots.smugmug.com
wallygoots.blogspot.com

olympian_dp · Feb 28, 2012

This is getting too close to 1%.

I'm outta here!

Great Bustard said:
JJJPhoto said:

illy said:

i read from one of the DPR's staff posts that the forums create about 5% of traffic the site receives

Click to expand...

That's actually VERY surprising to me. I work for a site that publishes reviews of tech gear and our discussion forums generate 60+ percent of our total traffic every year.

I wouldn't have expected the forum traffic on DPR to be only 5 percent of the total traffic.

Heck, even when you do a Google search for a specific camera question it's more likely that Google will link you to a forum post than the official review of the camera (assuming you didn't search for something like "Canon Powershot G12 Review") ... so that would suggest that even the forums get good traffic from search engines.

I realize the active forum members in any forum like this are just a small "vocal minority" but it seems almost unbelievable that the forums only account for 5 percent of DPR's traffic.

Click to expand...

Look no further:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1018&message=39310213

Forum posters represent around 2% of our daily visitors, forum traffic as a percentage of total site traffic has fallen slowly but steadily since 2007. The forums are a hugely important part of DPR, but they do not represent the majority of our users, or anything near.

--
Regards,

Jerry

CollBaxter · Feb 28, 2012

Thanks for poping in Phil.

I Think you scared a lot of the natives. Thsi site like everting has evolved.

Thanks for the interest.
--
Collin

(Aficionado Olympus DSLR )

http://collinbaxter.zenfolio.com/
http://www.pbase.com/collinbaxter

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. (George Carlin)

New Seventh Wonder of the World.

erichK · Feb 28, 2012

CollBaxter said:
Thanks for popping in Phil.

I Think you scared a lot of the natives. This site like everything has evolved.

Thanks for the interest.
--
Collin

(Aficionado Olympus DSLR )

http://collinbaxter.zenfolio.com/
http://www.pbase.com/collinbaxter

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. (George Carlin)

New Seventh Wonder of the World.

I suspect that forums like this are also well past their prime, and being replaced by other forms of quick and cheap communication. Remember Bulleting Boards and discussion lists. They were all the rage a few years -or was it centuries -ago.
--
erichK
saskatoon, canada

Photography is a small voice, at best, but sometimes one photograph, or a group of them, can lure our sense of awareness.

W. Eugene Smith, Dec 30, 1918 to Oct 15, 1978.

http://erichk.zenfolio.com/

http://www.fototime.com/inv/7F3D846BCD301F3

underwater photos:
http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/5567

jkrumm · Feb 28, 2012

Facebook has taken a chunk out of all discussion forums, just for eyeball share. Someone recently started a photo club in my town and used Facebook to organize it. The photo features suck, but almost everyone is on it, so growth and organizing is easy.

--
John Krumm
Juneau, AK

Brent Lossing · Feb 28, 2012

Hard to believe I have been coming here since 2000. Thanks a lot for making that opportunity available - I have made a lot of friends and learned a lot about photography.

Phil Askey said:
I needed something new

So... what are you up to now? Do you mind sharing?

tropicalsun · Feb 28, 2012

The forums get busy whenever there is new models being announced or released.

If its in a period of where not much is being announced or nothing new is shipping out then its going to be a lot more quiet and dead here.

AlextheSiberian · Feb 28, 2012

Indeed, I fully agree having been to both states and do confirm how beautiful they are!!! From seascapes to the mountains to vineyards to fruit orchards to the great open prairie!

Alex

JamesMor · Feb 28, 2012

This is completely true. Facebook has become the real 'competitor' for views - at least for us at NWP. It is a pity to because FB stinks for any sort of searchable archived discussion. Having said that, FB is a two-edged sword and we started to catalyze it and views are back to where they were prior...but after a real plunge for a bit.

Also, someone mentioned how the forums gain so very little of the actual views on a site, and that is also completely true. Someone said the number 5%, my guess is that it is closer to 2 or 3 percent. The moral of the story? Publish.

James

jkrumm said:
Facebook has taken a chunk out of all discussion forums, just for eyeball share. Someone recently started a photo club in my town and used Facebook to organize it. The photo features suck, but almost everyone is on it, so growth and organizing is easy.

--
John Krumm
Juneau, AK

--
The Nature Wildlife and Pet Photography Forum
http://www.nwpphotoforum.com

Digirame · Feb 28, 2012

Thank you for sharing with us those links. Yes, there's many opportunities to make friends on these forums and they can often create a long time bond. This can make the forums more popular.

It is so much nicer to not have the in-fighting. A lot of us won't have anything to do with any of that; it just makes me sad that people treat other people like that, over and over again. I don't know if it's a cultural thing or if everyone everywhere just needs this forum moderation to stop it.

One positive thing I think occurs on these forums. We often get to share our cultures, our lives, our cities and landscapes to each other from all over the world without seeing the negative things that we find from the internet news, newspapers or magazines (although some of that may appear). It can bond us to each other as friends.

sandy b · Mar 6, 2012

Actually pretty stable

http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/dpreview.com

Darren Lee · May 8, 2020

In hindsight no. The site is probably worth 10x or 20x more then when he sold it.

CWDaly · Mar 21, 2023

It’s getting shot down soon. How much is it worth now?

meow · Mar 21, 2023

Great Bustard said:
JJJPhoto said:

illy said:

i read from one of the DPR's staff posts that the forums create about 5% of traffic the site receives

Click to expand...

That's actually VERY surprising to me. I work for a site that publishes reviews of tech gear and our discussion forums generate 60+ percent of our total traffic every year.

I wouldn't have expected the forum traffic on DPR to be only 5 percent of the total traffic.

Heck, even when you do a Google search for a specific camera question it's more likely that Google will link you to a forum post than the official review of the camera (assuming you didn't search for something like "Canon Powershot G12 Review") ... so that would suggest that even the forums get good traffic from search engines.

I realize the active forum members in any forum like this are just a small "vocal minority" but it seems almost unbelievable that the forums only account for 5 percent of DPR's traffic.

Click to expand...

Look no further:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1018&message=39310213

Forum posters represent around 2% of our daily visitors, forum traffic as a percentage of total site traffic has fallen slowly but steadily since 2007. The forums are a hugely important part of DPR, but they do not represent the majority of our users, or anything near.

They probably represent a large part of regular users though. I imagine most visitors come here because they want to buy a camera and need to look things up. They make their choice - or not,. Not much reason to come here often if you don't participate in or at least read the forums.

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Phil Askey was smart to sell when he did

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