An Internet forum is a place on the Internet where visitors are allowed to post messages, exchange information or ideas, and conduct discussions.http://www.greenwebdesign.com/Glossary-Of-Technical-Terms.htmhttp://www.videojug.com/expertanswer/internet-communities-and-forums-2/what-is-an-internet-forum Unlike chat rooms, these conversations are not held in real-time. A forum is often hosted on a website with a form for submitting messages under pre-defined categories or topics.http://www.greenwebdesign.com/Glossary-Of-Technical-Terms.htm Once a new post is created under a given topic, all posts subsequently added in the form of questions, answers or information are grouped together to form a thread. It helps future forum visitors to follow all the discussions and information posted from the beginning to the most recent entry.http://www.citmedialaw.org/faq/what-forum-thread-etc

The idea of the Internet forum evolved from the paper-based bulletin board system. People post their advertisements or messages for offering or seeking employment, for selling or buying things as well as for providing and demanding all kinds of information on college campuses, in supermarkets and other social areas. With the rise of the Internet, it has become much easier for people to post their messages first in the Usenet newsgroups and later in the web-based forums.http://sumans.net/web/publications/2010_wcnis_bbsone.pdf

Internet forums are virtual meeting places for people to look for specific information or solutions. Forum marketing has evolved as a kind of niche marketing strategy to capture potential customers who participate in the forums. The marketer’s main purpose is to become an expert in a given forum and drive traffic to the marketer’s website without being banned as a forum spammer.http://www.masternewmedia.org/forum-marketing-strategy-how-to-promote-your-site-through-online-forums/ A marketer, who participates in a forum using different usernames or floods the forum with numerous messages back-linking to his or her website, may be accused of forum spamming.http://www.spamlaws.com/forum-spam.html