the quick guide to building and growing online communities!

So You’ve Realised Your Business Needs

An Online Community?

Online Communities Can:

Create a buzz about your products.

Provide free marketing via word of mouth and social media.

Produce content for your site.

Encourage brand loyalty.

So, How Do I Build And Grow An Online

Community?

#1 Start Narrow!

Only target one section of your site/business.

Build up engagement in this area and watch it spill over into the other parts of your platform.

Facebook and Twitter both started in this way!

Facebook Initially Targeted Harvard University

Students.

Twitter Started As An Internal Service For Odeo Employees. In It’s Early Days It Was

Almost Entirely Tech-Orientated!

#2 There Is More To Community Than A

Platform!Forums are some of the best communities on the web, but usually they look terrible!

Twitter has plenty of limitations. We use it because of its community, not because of it’s functionality or look!

You should design your site to encourage community activity and growth.

Reddit Has A Hideous Design... But It Still Gets A Huge Amount oF

ENGAGEMENT!

#3 Recruiting People Into Your Community

Be active on social media, but always appear ‘human’ rather than a business.

Build up trust amongst the people you are looking to recruit.

Organise online and offline events to bring people into your community!

Don’t Be... The Creepy Old Guy Sitting In The Corner.

Or... The Horny Teenager.

Woo Your Customers/Recruits, Be Genuine And Be Charming. Like The

Next Guy...

Ha!

Good Luck!!!: )