What to do about a new member issue (on an unrelated message board)

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m a member of a site dedicated to one of my interests. It’s a very active community with frequent meetings, advice asked for and given, posting of pictures of our creations etc. I should add that there are a good number of members who are professionals in this field.

Recently a new member joined the board. The problem is that this newcomer has very few posts and every one of these posts is an example of their work. Posters frequently comment about each others work and offer kind criticism as well as kudos, but frankly there is no kind way to describe the quality of this work. There are far too many elements, they are unbalanced, improperly matched, and poorly presented. As a result no one has responded to these posts, not even with encouragement. I think everyone is a bit taken aback.

I am not a mod or admin of this board but I fear that if this poster feels ostracized they may stop posting or quit altogether. We try to welcome everyone but this is a bit sticky. Just like the SDMB it’s possible this is a young person and may be hurt by critical remarks but the fact that there have been no replies may be just as bad. Is there any way to be (perhaps a little less than) honest and helpful without scaring this new poster off?

2

How about just focussing on one of the aspects of their work, e.g. too many elements, and doing a post about that? You could then talk about the positives that would result from having less elements. You could even mention that you’ve seen this as a common theme across several of their work examples, so that you don’t feel you have to respond to each thread.

See what sort of response that gets from the OP, and take it from there.

3

How about a PM? That way there is no public rebuke or criticism…just a friendly “I see no one else has commented…here’s what I think is happening…and here are things you might do different in your work/posting style to elicit more feedback.”
-D/a

4

Has the person asked for feedback? If so, go with some gentle constructive criticism. If not, maybe just say ‘welcome to the board’ and that you hope they enjoy their time on the board and find it useful. If there is a section of the board, or a thread that seems most appropriate for them you could point them to it.