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Building an Online Community

Thu, August 21st, 2008 by Philip Guthrie | 1 comment

Finding, organizing and motivating your base of online supporters requires a place for them to communicate with one another. First generation websites were (and many still are) little more than glossy brochures — good for giving out general information, but not for drawing repeat viewers. A perennial problem is how to keep a site’s content fresh and dynamic. Web 2.0 methodology allows for user-generated content, which provides a variety of view points and contributes to a sense of belonging. Online communities build ties between your organization and its key supporters.

Not all organizations have the option of community building; there must be some common cause or interest, a raison d’être. If your company manufactures grommets, chances are people won’t flock to your site to debate plastic versus wood, but if you distribute the popular animated movies of Wallace and Gromit, then provide a home for your fans! The more your organization or company concerns itself with public opinion, the greater the need to open an online dialogue with the target audience.

If your organization advocates public policies, your supporters need to feel that they have a say in the direction of movement, rather than simply following your lead. Involving backers and stakeholders in the debate fosters a personal connection and reinforces their ties to the cause. Frequently the leadership of a business or group fears to host open communication and places onerous restrictions on postings, but remember: Big Brother is not your friend!

“But how do I control what get said?” The short answer is you don’t, but you can pull positive content to the fore and bury the boring and the boorish. Implementing a user-generated rating system, combined with dynamic posting placement floats items of interest to the top, and sinks the unappealing out of sight. Combined with a language filter and user-reporting of offensive behavior, any fallout can be controlled with the part-time help of a moderator.

720 Strategies has provided expert community building solutions for such clients as EMILY’s List, the American Council for Young Political Leaders, and others. We create social networks for recruiting, motivating and retaining target audiences to shepherd your message. Through viral content, creative emailing marketing, virtual events and online visibility, 720 Strategies can effectively promote your organization or cause.

Maximize your online potential by attracting and keeping the largest target audience possible. Not only will you reap the benefits of their involvement and enthusiasm, but you will have a ready made focus group of core supporters to bounce ideas off of. Since one can’t be certain how the public will react to certain advertising or public relations strategies, your online allies provide an invaluable early warning system; and they may pick up valuable themes that might otherwise be overlooked.

Online activists form the foot soldiers of an organization and will be far more likely to participate in activities, or donate money, if they are involved early and often. Keep them interested by providing regular updates, promoting on and offline events; by organizing online contests or giving prizes for achievements.

There are a million places to visit on the Web. Building an online community is a great way to differentiate your organization, keep your content fresh and involve your core supporters at each stage of development. 720 Strategies will help you set up the site, spread the word among your target audience and keep them busy so that they keep coming back.

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