I just launched community.themakerdad.com. Here's everything that didn't make the announcement post.
In this episode I walk through the real process behind setting up the new community side of The Maker Dad: the platforms I compared, why I picked Invision Community, the cost math that made the decision for me, and the ongoing work of figuring out forum categories that actually make sense. I also get honest about whether this was even the right time to launch it.
00:36 Why I wanted a community space
01:24 Comparing forum and community platforms
01:52 The cost problem with paid community platforms
03:00 Why I settled on Invision Community
03:18 Screen share: the actual site walkthrough
07:05 Why not Discourse, and the Patreon-style plan
08:33 Ghost as the SEO hub, and why now
09:32 Why not Zenforo (plugin costs)
10:17 The real work: forum category structure
11:01 How communities grow and reorganize over time
13:21 "From the Shop Floor" and the Good Enough mantra
14:38 The doubt: was this even the right time
16:59 Cost math: Invision vs Mighty Networks and Circle
Website: https://themakerdad.com/
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheMakerDad
Discord: https://discord.gg/xDpzcugFws
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1881396004
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5vvoiC3ccHFG7HWt3mWxUH
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