This has been on my mind since I started seeing forums like this popping up here and there. 

It seems to be extremely hard to attract and retain members, and from my experience, it's just hard to regularly check and post in forums... Well, checking is easy, but if you don't participate, not much use, is it?

I have wondered why this may be. I think it comes down to two, connected things.

1. the so-called network effect. If no one's already creating threads and replies, is there even anyone on this forum to talk to?

2. Feeling intimidated by the thought of creating a new thread. It feels a bit like something formal. "is this topic/idea important enough to make a whole new thread about?" "Has someone already started a conversation like this?"

I think the relative "clunkiness" of forums - you have to make a thread to start a conversation (which is a seperate page, sometimes multiple if it's a long one), the full reply text editor is a seperate page, etc etc - compared to instant messaging, which is fast and snappy, is also a big factor.

How do you all think these can be mitigated? I think the first step is being aware of these obstacles. What are your thoughts on this?

I overall am trying to use social media less, or at least in a controlled way. Trying to train my attention span to be longer. Trying to be active on forums is part of this.