Online communities are the rage nowadays. Not only do we all want to be part of a community, but we also want to start our own. The reason is simple human science: everyone wants to feel like they belong.
Since it’s such an important conversation, we decided to make it the topic of our #TwitterSmarter chat. We invited Bella Vasta to answer our questions about building a sustainable network. As a business consultant, keynote speaker, and writer, Bella has trained and led thousands of businesses to success. Here’s a summary of our chat.
Topic: Ways to Boost Your Online Community
Guest: Bella Vasta
Format: Eight questions directed to the guest. Everyone’s welcome to share.
An online community is a group of people who share ideas, opinions, and advice on an online platform. Every social media has thousands of communities, discussing a range of topics. As Bella said, these topics usually revolve around a product, service, or an interest.
1a. An online community is where people come together under a commonality typically a product or interest. #TwitterSmarter
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
It’s important to remember, as Rachel pointed out, that a community is more than people making noise—it treats each person as an equal, with frequent interaction, feedback, and criticism. One of the key elements of an online community is inclusiveness and mutual respect.
A1: An online community is one that:
• Interacts frequently
• Exchanges advice and criticism equally
• Supports one another and accompanying discourse equivalently #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/MCs2VrGoAS— Rachel Wendte (@rkwendte) July 25, 2019
Community building is a trend and a full-time job. Everyone talks about it even when they don’t know what they’re talking about. That’s community engagement right there.
As Bella told us, subconsciously we all participate and build communities around conversations we care about. Offline or online, a group of friends, a weekly Twitter chat, a Facebook group, or an event discussion—they’re all communities.
2a. I think we all build an online community without really knowing it. Whether it is just a small group of friends, or an established community that we are actively growing, they all count. #TwitterSmarter
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Having a community, and being part of one, is great way to stay updated, to get new ideas, and to feel welcomed. And for a business, it’s essential to identify their needs and wants.
A2: If you want to bring your audience together, you should build an online community. It's a great way to stay connected and know what their wants and needs are. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/97ikzom59G
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) July 25, 2019
A word of caution, though. Like Jake mentioned, not every brand or business has the resources to invest in community building right away. Even though it’s an elemental part of online marketing, community management takes a lot of time and effort. You need to weigh your priorities and options before diving headfirst into it.
A2: It's easy to say every brand should build community – but should they? Growth & UA can get expensive. Sometimes it's better to focus budget on product & brand, then see if dedicating resource to community is the best use of funds. #TwitterSmarter
— Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) July 25, 2019
People in your community are your cheerleaders. Engaging with them, thanking them for their support, and acknowledging their efforts are all good ways to make you and your business approachable. As Bella put it, building a community humanizes a brand.
3a. With relationships and transparency being so important these days, the community helps to humanize brands. #TwitterSmarter
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Plus, it’s an easy way to do research. Think about it—you have so many people who care about you and want to help you become a better brand. Run surveys, polls, ask for feedback, test your products, and get them involved in the way you do business.
3b. A community allows a brand to get feedback, ideas, and test things that they want to bring to market. #TwitterSmarter
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Not only does having a brand make you more relatable, but it also helps establish yourself as an industry leader. Our friends at Olesco said it well. The more you interact with your community, the more recognizable your brand becomes.
A3: So many reasons!
– You can use the power of the community to spread the word about your brand
– Helps to establish yourself as an authoritative figure and build trust
– Get to communicate with the audience on a personal level– Max #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/klPEQVplyU
— Oleso (@olesosocial) July 25, 2019
No one likes fake auto DMs. They’re a menace. But that doesn’t mean you should shun automation altogether. When used strategically, as our guest said, automation can be a handy tool.
Make a content plan and use automation tools to schedule posts in advance. You can even run regular challenges by scheduling them. This way, you’ll get more time to respond to your audience and participate in real-time interactions.
4a. You can automate building a community by preplanning your content strategy and scheduling the postings. ⁰ You can automate building a community by creating and scheduling challenges or watch parties (if on Facebook) #TwitterSmarter
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Jake gave us a great example. Consider using automation to invite people. Facebook chat bots are all about this. We can’t all be online 24/7. So set up auto acknowledgements, instead, and follow up after with a genuine response.
A4: Getting people through the initiation@garyvee does this well. At the start it's an automated messenger process to welcome people and find out stuff from them.
But nothing beats that 1:1 personal interaction so don't automate everything#TwitterSmarter
— Jake Symons (@jakeswrites) July 25, 2019
When you come across a community on Twitter, Facebook, or any other platform, you’ll know right away if they’re worth your time. Because they have what all good communities have: genuine conversations, helpful comments, and a kickass moderator that everyone respects.
It’s important for a community to have a proper leader who knows their role. Their purpose is to serve the community and foster good harmony between participants. They’re actively involved and show how much each member matters to the community.
5a. Good communities have great leaders who care about the people more than themselves. They are there to serve. They have an active membership that feels like they have some ownership or investment in the future of the group. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/pQFHgXRLud
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Apart from a good leader, Joana suggested a few other aspects of a good community. Like rules, for example. They help moderators keep conversations civil, and a good community isn’t afraid to establish rules. Similarly, a community is pointless without a well defined goal or a common interest.
a5 some features for good communities: #twittersmarter
??a good community manager w/ strong social skils
?️ clear rules
? a well defined purpose
?️ a meeting point (IRL or online or both)— Joana Rita Sousa ? ?? (@JoanaRSSousa) July 25, 2019
Think of a community as a tribe, as Alberto reminded us. It’s family.
A5
I like the Tribe concept by #SethGodin
A group of people connecting to a leader and connecting to an idea (Cause, project, brand, product). With an interest in common and a way to communicate with each other.
#TwitterSmarter https://t.co/V3VApoPxAg
— Alberto Gómez (@alberMoire) July 25, 2019
Go where your audience is. It’s the oldest and most underrated advice on social media. Bella pointed out that sometimes your audience will be on multiple platforms. In that case, identify which type of content works on which platform and form your goals accordingly. For example, use Facebook to gather feedback and post articles, and Instagram to share updates on your new home office.
6a. You can choose a platform to build a community based off where your community hangs out or which you are most comfortable on. Ask yourself, which would facilitate the members of your community the best way? Example: Visual=IG, Conversation=Fb #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/1cdL9Z08FL
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
And as our new community member Nidhi said so well, you don’t always have to go out of your way to create a community. They’re already all around you—just head over and blend in.
A6: Community is already on their way. We just need find them and join them. ? #TwitterSmarter
Like today I found you. ?— Nidhi Jain (@jainnidhi03) July 25, 2019
Oh, my. This is a big question.
Bella gave us her top three mistakes that brands make while building a community:
7a. ⁰1. Build it and they will come. Not true. You need to give them a reason to come and KEEP coming back. ⁰2. Not defining your goals for the community.
3. Admins allow members to take over the group, aren’t active enough to direct the tone, ship, or protect other members. https://t.co/Dn5doCVxy7— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
A few other mistakes, as pointed out by our community:
A7
Mistakes brands make in
community building❌Not being consistent
❌Not listening actively
❌Not sharing the spotlight
❌Not following up/through
❌Not defining their purpose
❌Not being transparent
❌Not being authentic
❌Not leading w/ valueVALUE > PROMO#TwitterSmarter
— Bentley University (@bentleyu) July 25, 2019
Apart from all the general dos and don’ts of community building, always remember the big picture. Understand the purpose of building a community and see how that will impact your overall revenue. It’s a long term strategy, and be mindful of that right from the start.
When building a community from scratch….
8c. It is a math equation (revenue in your company) not a popularity contest! #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/cKVj8oW2tg— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
If you can, collaborate with other stakeholders in your business and know how a social community ties into your sales model. This will help you keep your messaging consistent across all channels.
8b. If you are a business, you need to know what this community will do for your business and how it fits into the sales model. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/yxP6X2XjcY
— Bella Vasta (@Bellas_Pets) July 25, 2019
Oh, and lastly, as Jignesh says, be open minded, friendly, helpful, and have fun.
A8.
Have a clear action plan
Be #consistent and patient
Be smart and #strategic
Good Will to help #people
Ready for #changes If needed#Invest some to time
Be #transparent
And just have fun…#TwitterSmarter— Jignesh Thakkar (@JigneshThakkarV) July 25, 2019
That’s all for this week, folks. Feel free to share your thoughts by tweeting out to either Madalyn or meself.
If you can spare an hour of your Thursday, join us at 1pm ET for the next #TwitterSmarter chat.
About me, Narmadhaa:
I’m a writer of all things—technical and marketing copy to fill the pocket; haiku and short stories to fill the soul. A social media enthusiast, I’m a member of the #TwitterSmarter chat crew, and always happy to take on writing gigs.
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