How do you attract attention to your interest check?

[Venom Adhamm]

Besides like, typing the title in all caps. Or having an actually good and original idea. I've been craving a particular fandom RP, and haven't found any active and good people to RP with me after trying on many sites. So, what could I do on this site to make it more appealing?


In particular, the kind of RP I'm looking for is a one-on-one RP where the other person is a DM. Is that kind of thing just not appealing to people here? Are there any other websites I could try? Right now, I'm trying to write flavor text and world-building about an already established universe, but I'm horrified at the thought that my work will just go to waste, left thrown on infertile and untouched ground where not even the lowest pariahs of society dare to tread. So, I'd really like to know the best way to grab attention. Should I post status updates about the interest check as well as bumping it? What about colors? Should I dazzle my audience with colors? That just seems a little annoying and tacky to me, but I wouldn't really know, I'm just a stupid kid.

 

[Chordling]

There is no right or wrong way to advertise your interest check.  I do find that periodically making status updates with the link to the thread can help.  It may not work for everyone though.  Establishing friendships on the site and getting to know other users is also helpful.  This way, you can better understand their tastes and use that for inspiration.  Sometimes, having a specific roleplay method is not enough.  What kind of idea would work best with that technique?  Having a few ideas up your sleeve can be very beneficial.  It gives something for users to draw attention to and anticipate.

 

[Dragon Slayer Arcos]

It really does matter on how much effort you put into your interest check. I mean, if you put in a like half a paragraph for the description, most will think you either don't have a very clear idea of what you want and/or are just lazy. Then on the other side of the coin, if you put a HUGE amount of information into the thread, most people will not want to read all of it, and thus bypass your RP for something seemingly more simple and concise.


My advice is, make your interest check simple yet with enough detail concerning plots and plot ideas to make people want to know more about it. Also offering to accept other people's feedback is a great way to generate interest by showing you are willing to fun and not some stick in the mud that won't accept anyone else' view points or ideas.

 

[Cold Ramen Noodles]

For me, I've put only two sentences before for an interest check and gotten about 10 different people in one day. And other times I get no one. I think that it just depends on how many people interested in the same thing as you happens to see your interest check. It's pretty random for me. 

 

[Zulki]

I can only speak as the person who is interested in a roleplay and not as a GM but I find that a lot of the roleplays, or roleplay interest check threads, that I'm attracted to are the ones that are decorated very minimally - if not at all - and not bombarded with graphics, tiny fonts, and character map; I like it when the OP gets to the point of things and explains what they want in the roleplay, what we are to expect, and it's nicely formatted and definitely not cluttered. I also like that their title is the name of their roleplay or just a very short title of the genre and idea of the story like "Heroes Never Die (An Overwatch Roleplay)" or "Of Secrets and Spies (A Cold War Roleplay)", something like that.


I hope that helps out a bit!

 

[Count Gensokyo]

Besides like, typing the title in all caps. Or having an actually good and original idea. I've been craving a particular fandom RP, and haven't found any active and good people to RP with me after trying on many sites. So, what could I do on this site to make it more appealing?


In particular, the kind of RP I'm looking for is a one-on-one RP where the other person is a DM. Is that kind of thing just not appealing to people here? Are there any other websites I could try? Right now, I'm trying to write flavor text and world-building about an already established universe, but I'm horrified at the thought that my work will just go to waste, left thrown on infertile and untouched ground where not even the lowest pariahs of society dare to tread. So, I'd really like to know the best way to grab attention. Should I post status updates about the interest check as well as bumping it? What about colors? Should I dazzle my audience with colors? That just seems a little annoying and tacky to me, but I wouldn't really know, I'm just a stupid kid.

This. Holy crap, it's so hard! I've had one up for almost one week with regular bumps, and if the core concept doesn't sound pretty enticing, I don't know what does. Not a single reply so far. Guess we've both just gotta be patient, huh?


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Knot]

It all depends on timing, execution (writing), and simplicity. If it's simple enough for them to comprehend and be interested without being too long, you've got yourself a player. At least that's what my senpai told me.

 

[Pretzel Heart]

I'm like the opposite I'm really only interested in threads that have lots of writing (ie detailed plots beyond just prince x astronaut or whatever) because I feel like it shows someone is passionate and dedicated to their RP which is what gets me excited. The really simple threads or threads where the person spends half the page talking about themselves then just a sliver of plots doesn't entice me as much since you can tell me all you want (and no offense but it seems like most people write extremely similar thing in that section), but I have to see your writing and what kinds of stories and characters you like to spark my own imagination and see if I think you'd be good to work with.

So I guess my advice would be make something to attract the type of RPer you want to join you. If you want a detailed literary RP with someone who will help you with lots of plotting then lure them in with your flashy, overwrought plots. Or if you want a simple casual idea make a clear and simple layout and cut to the chase. 

Good luck tho~

 

[Squirrel Man Huey]

There is some great advice in this thread.


I posted an interest check two days ago and I have some takers, about four or so. Not bad for being brand new.


What I did was lay out my plot, expectations, the genres, the basics of the world, and a sample of what the first post in the RP would be.


I've also been building a network or just being social with a variety of people in the community. The thing is to get yourself out there, don't keep yourself hidden. Most people want to play with someone that is active.


You have to go out and find people, not wait for them to find you. Some people call it shameless advertising, I call it talking about your interests with random people.


I hope this helps.

 

[Grey]

Patience and networking are the only things that ever work. 


Your best bet is to keep working on the material, because that's rarely wasted (but then I write mostly original content for which I will always find a use) since you can simply keep it on file for the next attempt. Make an interest check, bump it a little, and a week or so later if you've had no luck, make a new one. Link to it in your profile status every day or two. 


Meanwhile, make sure to join other roleplays and get into conversations in this subforum and general discussion. Make connections, make friends; people will be inclined to check out what you're doing and join as they come to like and respect you. 

 

[fluticasone]

As many have said, networking plays a huge part. The more people recognize your username, the more inclined they are to click your thread. 


I'm personally a sucker for well-formatted interest checks (especially group roleplays), but that's just me. I can and have expressed interest in ones that had zero aesthetics involved.


I dislike folks that are overly vague in their concepts, since that doesn't really speak highly of their writing ability + I hate conceptualizing characters in a vacuum. However, I also dislike being bombarded with all the mechanics, the entire setting map, a long ass index and a plot: if you have all of those, you should just start the roleplay than post the interest check. I came to see if your idea would sell to me, not all the fuss that comes with it.


I also recommend posting during site peak hours; more people are likely to see your thread then. 


Try to imagine what you would look for when viewing someone else's int check and go from there. If you got it right, like-minded folks should come to you eventually.

 

[Squirrel Man Huey]

@Grey and @monopoisoner are spot on. Well said!