A Deep Dive Look at the Success of Online Communities

The purpose of this blog series is to identify the differences and multiple purposes of online communities including, but not limited to:

• Employee Communities
• External Social Networks
• Membership Communities
• Customer Support Communities
• Innovation / Learning Communities
• … hey, why not even talk about Dating Communities!

Each community purpose we explore will encompass various attributes. The stakeholders, permissions, content, and engagement strategy will all be different. In each of these blogs we’ll look at case studies and suggest best practices to optimizing your community for a specific purpose and objective. We will also reference a living casestudy of our own community (preview shown to the right).

Before we dive into this series, it might be a good idea to first make sure we are on the same page when it comes to an understanding of the definition of an online community.  Out of curiosity, I researched tons of definitions.  The one I like best is Jeremiah Owyang’s as he shares an excerpt taken from a Forrester Report: Online Community Best Practices.

 “An online community is an interactive group of people joined together by a common interest. It’s also one of the most powerful tools a marketer can deploy for customer retention, word of mouth, and customer insight. To host a successful community, think of it as you would product development: Start by focusing on objectives, chart a road map, assemble the right team, and plan to be flexible. Then build your success by launching the community with the backing of your most enthusiastic customers and staying engaged as the community grows. Above all, remember that control is in the hands of the members, so put their needs first, build trust, and become an active part of the community.” (available for Forrester clients) – you can access the full report at the Forrester site.

Now, pause a minute and take inventory of the many different types of online communities accessible today, (just a few listed above.)  In doing so, ask yourself, ‘what is it that draws and attracts us to online communities?’

• Is it the ability to formulate a community around your company or association in the hope of increasing revenue?
• Is it that we are interested in education; and online communities’ shift us from the traditional classroom?
• Or is it that we all enjoy meeting people with similar interests and enjoy the exchange of ideas and resources without ever having to leave the comfort of home?