1.
Online Communities

2.
Online Community:
• A group of individuals or business-focused
people who interact around a shared
interest which is done (to some extent)
online.

3.
That’s vague for a
reason.

4.
Thanks Wikipedia!
1.Communities of transaction emphasize the importance of buying and
selling products in a social online manner where people must interact
in order to complete the transaction.
2.Communities of interest involve the online interaction of people with
specific knowledge on a certain topic.
3.Communities of fantasy encourage people to participate in online
alternative forms of reality, such as games where they are
represented by avatars.
4.Communities of relationship often reveal or at least partially protect
someone's identity while allowing them to communicate with others,
such as in online dating services.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_community

5.
The most important
questions:
• Why should your community exist?
• Does your community already exist?
• What do they want and need that they
don’t already have?

6.
Communities take time

7.
You must believe

8.
From here
• Identify who you’re targeting
• Connect them

9.
Where are they?
• Twitter?
• Facebook?
• A forum?
• Pinterest?
• Is there anybody out there?

10.
When you find them
• Get to know them and find out all you can
• Where else do they go online?
• Are they in more than one place?
• Who are they?

11.
Are they focused on:
• A product or company?
• A particular issue?
• Escapism?
• Connecting to people emotionally?

12.
Where else are their
related concerns
addressed online?

13.
Now that you’re
research is done figure
out how to help them.

14.
What’s the best way to
help?
• Forum
• A place to share
• Issues for them to talk about

15.
Connect them
• Reach out
• Invite them to your space
• Be personable and approachable
• Use the proper channels
• Don’t step on people’s toes (or do)

16.
Let’s assume they show up

17.
Who are they to
everybody else and
each other?

18.
This is the hard part
• Encourage discussion/sharing
• Encourage connecting to their other
communities and networks
• Let them do what they want
• (Within reason)

19.
Transition
• Provide guidance and moderation
• Invite others to help moderate and
contribute
• You need to relax

20.
It’s their’s now
• Let them own the community
• Encourage more diversity
• Set new rules
• Create new words, phrases, or other
meaning

21.
Divisions!
• Cliques will likely start
• This is fine
• There will be trolls
• This is also fine, just don’t feed them

22.
Sound easy?
• You must remain committed
• You may start with one community in mind
and end up with another
• Others might be more passionate than you

23.
Lastly,

24.
Track everything
• Where they come from
• How long they stay
• What they share
• Etc.

25.
More on that next
week