“We now realize that no whole, be it a
family, a business, a community, or a
nation, can be managed without
looking inward to the lesser wholes
that combine to form it, and outward
to the greater wholes of which it is a
member”.
Allan Savory – Holistic Management
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Holistic Community
Strategy
Bill Johnston
Chief Community Officer
Forum One Networks

First: A warning.
More bad news
• Inherently messy
• No readymade solution
• It is / will be hard work
Photo courtesy of RIPizzo
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ripizzo/2310929170/
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Focus = Strategy
4

10 Key Topics
1 – Holistic Approach

2 – Developing Strategy

3 – Customer as a Stakeholder

4 – Organizational Stakeholders

5 – The Social Media Ecosystem

 6 - Metrics
7 – Key Sources of Value

8 – Reporting Frequency

9 – Report Satisfaction

10 – Report Contents

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1. Holistic Approach
• Organization
• is aware of Intention
,value, overhead, opportunity and
risk
• Customers
• engaged in community
development, programs and policy
• Ecosystem
• Online (& offline) touchpoints are
researched, evaluated and
prioritized
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Why Holistic is Important
• Without a holistic strategy in place
• Definition of value is problematic
• Customer needs are misunderstood
• Programs, engagement and campaigns are best
guesses
• Short & long term goals are doomed
• Ongoing stakeholder engagement & support is
at risk
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2009
2. Developing Strategy
Define business goals
1.
Research customer need,
2.
Conduct an ecosystem audit
3.
Prioritize touchpoints
4.
Develop engagement strategy
5.
Develop policy, train participants
6.
Ready to engage
7.
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3. Customer as a Stakeholder
• Research
• Expectations
• Needs
• Preferences
• Attitudes
• Current content sources &touchpoints
• Research conducted via:
• Online
• Phone
• In person
• Ongoing
• Open channel as community grows
• Advisory panels
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4. Organizational Stakeholders
• Recruit an Executive champion
• Engage key department heads
• 1 on 1 interviews are best
• Identify decision makers
• 1 on 1 interviews are best
• Broad outreach / raodshow– All
hands, conferences, brownbags
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5. Social Media
Ecosystem Diagram Blogs
Ecosystem
Independent
Communities
Mass Social
Media
Independent
Blogs
(Facebook,
Blogs You Tube,
Linked In…)
Discussion
Groups
Community
Portal
Meetups
Corporate
Local User
Site Groups
Idea
Generation
Events
11

2009
Ecosystem Audit
 Find the places your organization, key staff, and
issues are being discussed
 Blogs
 Twitter
 Social networks: (Facebook) groups, fan
pages, events
 Independent communities
 Rich media sites (YouTube, Flickr)
 Discussion groups / mailing lists
 Events / In person meetups
12

2009
Outputs of Ecosystem Audit
 Influencers & Advocates
 Detractors, competitors
 Priority sites / touchpoints
 Issues
 Opportunities
 Research lays foundation for ongoing monitoring
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4. Metrics
6. Metrics: mix of Quantitative &
Qualitative.
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
14

4. Metrics
Metrics: mix of Quantitative &
Qualitative.
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
15

4. Metrics
Metrics: mix of Quantitative &
Qualitative.
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
16

Engagement
6. Metrics: mix of Quantitative &
Qualitative.
Source: Online Community Marketing, Growth & Engagement - July 2008.
An ideal community engagement metric:
•Amount of activity on site
•Number and type of content items created
•Number of connections / relationships created
•Time on site
•Frequency of visits
•Recommendations & Referrals
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5. Dimensions of Value
7. Key Sources of Value (The
“Elevator” Question)
Source: Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008.
 Cost Reduction / Faster Support
“The ROI on employee time devoted to the forums far exceeds the

returns on the usual support methods.”
 Larger Body of Knowledge
“You won't find this content anywhere else - written by our members

to raise best practice within vendors”
 Co-creation / Co-learning
We have been able to gather more than a thousand best

practices/lessons learned in two years use.”
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5. Dimensions of Value
Key Sources of Value (The
“Elevator” Question)
Source: Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008.
Increased Engagement
“The more we invest into community, the more organic traffic we

get.”
 Lead Generation / Conversion
“When we enlist our community members to represent us physically

or virtually, our reach and conversion metrics dramatically increase.”
 Building Customer Loyalty
“Offering a community to your clients where they can speak to you

and each other significantly increases customer loyalty.”
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6. Reporting to C-level / results mixed
8. Report Contents
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008.
Q: What are the 3 most important success or performance indicators that are reported on regularly?
20

6. Reporting to C-level / results mixed
9. Reporting Frequency
Source: Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
Q: How often is the data reported?
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6. Reporting to C-level / results mixed
10.Results Reported to Senior
Staff
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
22

6. Reporting to C-level / results mixed
10.Results Reported to Senior
Staff / Satisfaction is mixed
Source:Online Community ROI & Reporting Models - March 2008
Q: Are you getting pressure to modify data sets or to find new sources of
value?
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Tips to Get Started
„If you don't know where you are going,
any road will get you there.'
• Start where you are, do what you can
• Find an Exec to be your Champion
• Start a Roundtable of community +
social media folks in your org
• Develop a draft strategy that includes:
• Clear organizational goals
• Key customers & their needs
• Initial ecosystem research
Don’t wait on policy dev & social
•
media literacy training
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About Forum One Networks
Bill Johnston
Chief Community Officer, Forum One
 Events
Online Community Unconference –

6/10 in Mountain View, CA
 Research & Networking
 Online Community Research Network
 Online Community Compensation,
Community ROI
 Services
 Community Strategy, Metrics, ROI & Reporting
Frameworks
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QA
Q&A
Bjohnston@forumone.com
http://www.forumonenetworks.com
http://www.onlinecommunityreport.com
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F1N - logo
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