Guide to using BitcoinTalk for blockchain projects

Editor's note: this article has been revamped for correctness and comprehensiveness on May 29th, 2024.

BitcoinTalk is the largest and the oldest online forum that is dedicated to cryptocurrencies and blockchain. Originally, it was a forum for discussing Bitcoin, but now it is used to discuss all the major segments of transactions in the cryptocurrency world, including ICOs.  BitcoinTalk is a direct successor of the SourceForge forum that was used by Satoshi Nakamoto to discuss Bitcoin and blockchain technology. However, the forum was shut down. As a result, BitcoinTalk was launched in November 2009 as the unofficial forum for Bitcoin.

As one of the oldest forums for blockchain technology, it has the richest library of topics and discussions for people interested in learning more about cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, as well as information about ongoing projects. Users on BitcoinTalk can post questions and discussion topics, which are thoroughly discussed by the members of the community. 

Why is it important for you to publish on BitcoinTalk?

BitcoinTalk can have a significant impact on the launch of your project. It can be a valuable source of traffic as it has one of the largest user bases, with a 500k+ audience that is fairly familiar with cryptocurrency and blockchain. 

You can create announcement posts pages, also known as ANN posts, for your projects, as well as launch bounty campaigns for them.

Most notable projects have announced ICOs for their projects on BitcoinTalk. To increase trust in your project, you can also launch your ICO on BitcoinTalk. It has dedicated ICO forums where you can get thousands of views for the launch of your project's ICO. 

You can also get volunteers for your project and have airdrop hunters who can promote your project.

How to publish on BitcoinTalk

Just like most online forums, BitcoinTalk allows users to create a profile page and post threads and sub-threads. If you don't have an account on BitcoinTalk, you can create and publish your posts by following these steps.

1. Registration page and creating an account

First and foremost, you must create an account on BitcoinTalk because guests and new users are not allowed to post threads. Creating an account on BitcoinTalk is easy. From the top left, click on “Register” and it will open a new window–the registration page. Here you need to choose a username, provide your email, and create a password. Click on register and your account will be created on BitcoinTalk.

Note:  Pick your account name carefully as BitcoinTalk doesn't allow you to change your name.

2. Boost your rank

On BitcoinTalk, new users are not allowed to post directly on the forum. You need to achieve a certain rank before you can post on BitcoinTalk. The ranking system not only limits your ability to post but also allows you to participate in other forum activities. 

If you want to do an announcement post for your blockchain project on BitcoinTalk, you should start now by creating an account and participate in the forum by providing your genuine opinion. 

However, if you are short on time and are unable to devote enough time to boost your rank, you may want to consider purchasing a high ranked account. Purchasing an account is a quick fix but beware of scammers. To protect yourself from scammers, you can use escrow services that are provided by trusted forum members who act as a third party to facilitate the deal. They usually charge a 1% commission fee.

3. Prepare your thread

To start your own thread, go to the board, click “New Topic”, and compose your message. You can either write your post inside BitcoinTalk or write your post on a writing app such as Word and then publish it on BitcoinTalk. BitcoinTalk uses BBCode, a lightweight markup language used to format messages in online forums. BBCode is simple to learn. You can, however, use a website like SCeditor to convert your posts into BBCode format. 

4. Publish Thread

Once you've written the post you can preview the post in the preview window before publishing or you can send a link to it to yourself in a private message to see how your post will look. Once you are satisfied with the post, simply click on publish to upload your post.

Things to keep in mind

1. Content

BitcoinTalk is a forum for serious and genuine discussions on blockchain and cryptocurrency. Always be genuine and post informative, well-structured and on-topic threads. If you post promotional content or sound spammy, community members will not follow you and your account will be blocked. Allow time to interact with moderators and others on the platform and build relationships.

2. Structure

It is crucial to have a visually appealing post with images and rich text if you want to increase the number of views on your post. If you want to post news about your ICO launch, use the following format:

- [ANN] [ICO]: Your company name and call to action

- Header featuring a slogan

- ICO Start/End date

- How to participate

- URLs of website and whitepaper

- Quotes from the press

- What makes your ICO unique

- Roadmap

- About the team

- CTA.‍

Important links:

- Official channels, sites and groups

- Links to the press

- Links to translations.

Finally, include a disclaimer for your ICO pre-sale.

You can also copy the BBCode of the post you like. To see the BBCode of a post click on the “Quote” button in the top right corner. This will open a comment window with the BBCode of the post. You just need to copy the code and use it to create your own post. If you want more information on launching a successful ICO, check out our guide.

3. Creatives

BitcoinTalk supports png and jpeg image formats. Although you cannot directly upload images on BitcoinTalk, you can use an external image with a hyperlink through image hosting services like Imgur, PostImage, Imgbb, or any service of your choice. Always upload the optimized image to reduce load time. You can use websites like tinypng to reduce the size of the image.

4. Write an informative title

Include enough information in the title to give readers a good idea of what your topic is about. Try to condense the main idea of your topic into a few sentences. People should ideally be able to write useful, on-topic responses simply by reading the title. 

5. Type

Instead of "newspaper capitalization," use standard capitalization. Remove unnecessary leading words, such as "Selling $100" instead of "I'm selling $100." Aside from that, it's best to write a grammatically correct sentence if it doesn't make the title too long.

Finally

These are just few tips that will help you gain audience on BitcoinTalk. However, if you want to truly build a community on BitcoinTalk you need to be consistent with posting everything on the forum and engage with the community members regularly. We can help you build a highly engaging community on BitcoinTalk for your project.

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