[IPS News] The hidden cost of doing nothing

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I'm sure that most reading this blog are running an up-to-date Invision Community and enjoying all the benefits of a modern community platform.

Little things that get taken for granted now, like being able to view your community on a mobile phone without pinching and zooming just to read a few posts and having multiple automated tools to deal with community toxicity and spam.

However, a little wander around the web soon uncovers some really old forum systems still somehow creaking along.

Amazingly, most of these communities are still used daily, often with millions of posts in the archives.

It might be tempting to ask why keep upgrading and investing in new versions of the software?

After all, if the community is still running just fine and getting daily visitors, then it's ok to do nothing, right?

But there is a hidden cost in doing nothing.

Security
This is the main one for me. Old platforms often have several published security vulnerabilities. Often these vulnerabilities are exploited by scripts that are shared around hacker communities. This means exploiting a website running an old version of a forum system is as simple as running a script and pointing it at your site.

Older forums are also less sophisticated. They rely on unsafe hashing methods to store passwords and lack vital features like two-factor authentication.

Also, consider that the server environment has to be maintained with out of date PHP and MySQL versions. It's a recipe for disaster.

Could your community survive a major exploit where data is downloaded into the hands of a hacker?

The cost could be fatal to your community.

Declining engagement
Even the most ardent of fans on your community will eventually tire of struggling to access your site on mobile devices.

I think back to 2002 when we created the first version of our software. We only had to focus on how it looked on a computer, so naturally, that influenced the design of the forum.

It's not so simple now. More and more of us are using mobile phones to access the internet. A recent statistic showed that mobile internet access outstrips desktop use 2 to 1; and for some countries, mobile internet access is almost the only way people get online.

It's just a matter of time before new members stop registering and engagement tails off.

Competition
At the end of 2018, there were 1.8 billion websites (I Googled it). The competition for attention has never been as fierce.

Your community may be the go-to place for your niche, but what if another community popped up running the latest version of a platform with all the features your members have been desperately asking for?

It may not take long until there is a massive drain from your community.

I'm sure there's a dozen reasons to make sure you're always re-investing in your community by upgrading to a modern platform. This blog merely scratches the surface.

For those of you that do invest and upgrade? You reap the benefits daily by ensuring you are doing the very best for your community.

If you are on an older platform, now is the time to put some serious thought into making the move to something better.

I put together a little downloadable guide that might help too.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.

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