How to Use the Forums For Traffic

The amount of traffic that you can get from forums can vary greatly. Some busy forums will be well worth the effort. Always look for those that have a high turnover of comments. If nobody has left a post for several weeks then ignore it. You will just be talking to thin air (some would say a bit like being married.)
It should go without saying that you need to find a forum that covers your niche. Hardley worth going on a betting forum when your site is about curry recipes, although I am sure that some gamblers do like a curry, but you get the point.
Another really important point is not to just wade in and pimp your site. You will be ignored at best and the worst case scenario is that you will be seen as a spammer and get banned from the forum.
The best course of action I find is to get a feel for the site before you post, have a read of the favourite topics. Then when your ready join in with helpful comments. Eventually you become a trusted member of that community and people will naturally be curious about what you do and check you out.
Never overlook a well used forum for advice, we are all learning as our businesses evolve and I have made some really useful contacts in this way. So remember a forum in your particular niche will be full of valuable information.
Some search engines index highly active forums. So it is possible to get a trickle of traffic this way too.
I think the most important thing I have learned is to be yourself, other words don't try to sound like a guru if your not. I think people see through this pretty quickly and all you do is lose trust. Talk about the things you do know about and when you learn about new topics pass that on. You can easily establish yourself as an expert in your own field in this way. I do have success in this way with traffic so it does work.
If anyone has any other ideas on how they use forums I would love to hear them.