i quit my first account for a number of reasons. one of the big ones was, as others have said, lack of overall activity on the site. but going beyond that, a lack of meaningful updates and progression was another one. even now after i've come back, the shops are just as unorganized and hard to navigate as they were when i left. we still have a "nose" feature on the avatar maker but no noses. there's still a huge lack of variety in hair styles and textures. i still have to hunt through a tiny number of special/donation items if i want any kind of facial hair at all, and even then most of it is comical or fantasy-based. "feminine, fantasy, and anime-inspired" still seems to be the running theme of the site, and that kind of look is something i lost interest in after the novelty of avatar sites in general wore off years ago.
i think this site's problem is the same as most other avatar sites. it's a concept that was new and appealing to a younger crowd in the past, but if nothing is done to update the look, the concept, and the functionality of the site and no effort is being made to attract a wider variety of users, the ones who were there in the beginning will eventually outgrow it and there will be nothing left to draw new people in.

the shops need a major overhaul. there are way too many and it's impossible to find anything without having to use a search function--for which you'd have to already know what you were looking for. browsing is a nightmare.

the items need more variety. i have seen some improvement in variety of item themes on this site as compared with similar sites, but we still haven't really stepped outside the realm of fantasy-based and mostly feminine. i think it would really benefit from representing more types of people, a broader range of interests and styles, and more modern and realistic looks.

more involvement from staff would also be helpful. one of the things that kept me active on other sites i was on for so long was having actively involved staff who seemed to really care about the community and be a part of it. they hosted mini events and q-n-a sessions, posted regularly in the forums, got to know the users, and were always visible and quick to respond to feedback. when the staff became less a part of the community, the users quit caring.

going back to issues with the layout and function of the site, i think the homepage also needs a major overhaul. announcements and latest CIs should take more of a spotlight. i had to look at it a few times to realize they were even there. meanwhile, the main forum page feels kind of dull and lifeless. i'm no web designer, but as an average user, i don't find it very engaging. nothing draws my eye, and the announcement banner just looks like an annoying popup that doesn't go away.

if we want more activity, i think improving the site itself (the items, representation of different themes, the layout, the functionality of the shops, etc) is something that should not be overlooked. even if you try to encourage more activity in the forums by being active and prodding people out of their usual hangouts (another big issue--all the activity is concentrated into a few threads! it also drives away newcomers who will feel like outsiders no matter how welcoming people in their hangouts try to be)... people will eventually leave if the site doesn't have much to offer and nothing ever seems to change.


edit: adding to the thing about shops, we have the same issue in the forums! there are WAY too many forums and subforums. it's all just a lot of unnecessary clutter that over-categorizes things and further ensures that any activity we do have will be lost... like tears in the rain.