Successful Problem-Solving in User Support Forums: A Study Aimed at Identifying Post and Thread Characteristics

User forums are a popular form of user support. Many companies that provide complex products or services host online forums moderated by their employees. On these forums, users discuss problems they encountered with other users and experts. The most prominent advantages of user forums over other types of user support are that users do not have to search for the information they need and that they can get help on their individual problems. Previous studies have investigated various aspects of user forums, but research on what factors influence the success of problem-solving on user forums is scarce. In this paper, we present results of a content analysis of 50 discussions (threads) on user forums. The findings show that most threads were unsuccessful, which means that no solution was presented or not every participant agreed with the presented solution. The results of the analysis of the characteristics of the threads and the individual posts imply that companies should aim to moderate user support forums to keep the threads from becoming too large and that they should encourage users to critically assess suggestions and provide comprehensive information.