The document discusses measuring and building community pre-Covid, mid-Covid, and post-Covid. Pre-Covid, employee engagement and meetings industry activity were growing. Community events and online communities also grew as people sought connection. Mid-Covid, in-person events halted while online communities and neighborly engagement increased. Post-Covid, the author predicts meetings and events will strongly rebound as their value to organizations in areas like talent recruitment is recognized. The document also provides best practices for community building, including making members feel a strong sense of belonging and ensuring efforts are authentic to the community.

1. Creating Community in a Covid and
Post-Covid World
@danberger
November 18, 2020

2. @danberger
I’m a believer.
I’m an entrepreneur.
I’m a participant.
I’m a planner.
@danberger
I’m a community organizer.

3. Agenda
1. Belonging
2. Defining ‘community’
3. Measuring community
4. The value of community to business
5. Making communities better
6. Implementing better communities

4. @danberger
@danberger
Where does belonging
come from?

5. @danberger
Community

6. Defining ‘community’
A group of people living in the same place or
having a particular characteristic in common
(Oxford).
A unified body of individuals with common
interests, common characteristic(s), [similar]
professional interests, or [sharing] history or
common social, economic, and political interests
(Webster).

7. It’s a catchall for a group of people with a loose
association… like a neighborhood (“The Upper
West Side”), an affiliation (“world Jewry”), or an
industry (“#eventprofs”).
Its participants have a superficial connection that
lacks something deeper.
The problem with ‘community’

8. @danberger
@danberger
How do we measure community?

9. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Employee engagement has been
on the rise

10. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Employee engagement is the key
to positive business outcomes

11. @danberger
Mid-Covid
Employee engagement is back
to Pre-Covid levels (Gallup)
16% of employees will remain
remote post-covid (HBS)
The work day is 48 minutes
longer (NBER)

12. @danberger
Meetings industry activity 2009-2016
Pre-Covid
The meetings industry has been
growing in terms of participants

13. @danberger
Meetings direct spending over time (2009-2016)
Pre-Covid
The meetings industry has been
growing in terms of spending

14. @danberger
Mid-Covid
In-person events have come to a
halt

15. •Weddings
•Mitzvahs
•Reunions
•Birthdays
•Sports
•Military
•Educational
•Religious
•Fraternal
•Affinity
Groups
•Communities of
interest
•Meetings
•Incentives
•Corporate
•Exhibits
MICE
SocialSMERF
The Meetings/Events construct is incomplete

16. •Weddings
•Mitzvahs
•Reunions
•Birthdays
•Sports
•Military
•Educational
•Religious
•Fraternal
•Affinity
Groups
•Communities of
interest
•Meetings
•Incentives
•Corporate
•Exhibits
MICE Meetups
SocialSMERF
A new Meetings/Events construct

17. @danberger
By 2019, meetup had 3.3M RSVPs
across 250k meetups per month
Total Meetup.com Group joins per week
Pre-Covid
Community events have grown
as people seek connectedness

18. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Faux identity online
communities have been growing
Reddit had 430M MAUs – 30% YoY increase – in 2019

19. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Real identity online communities
have been growing
October, 2018
Facebook Group membership was up 40% in 2018 over
the past year with half of $FB’s user base using Groups
monthly.
14% belonged to a “meaningful Group.” (Forbes)

20. @danberger
Mid-Covid
Over 50% of FB users are
members in five or more active
Groups
77% of FB users say the most
important group they are a part
of now operates online
(Facebook)

21. @danberger
Pre- and Mid-Covid
Neighborliness engagement has
been rising
Nextdoor engagement (Feb-Apr 2020)

22. @danberger
“More Connected, Yet More Alone”
SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

23. Mid-COVID
● Employee engagement ➡
● Meetings industry ⬇ ⬇ ⬇
● Online communities ⬆ ⬆ ⬆
Pre-COVID
● Employee engagement ⬆
● Meetings industry ⬆
● Online communities ⬆
Executive Summary

24. @danberger
● Organizations and individuals have realized the
importance of face-to-face events
● Company events will be viewed as the perks that win
in the war for talent.
● Organizations are going to devote more resources for
employee engagement vis-a-vis events
● Community events will continue to be a growing
segment and new platforms for them will emerge
● There will be new ways of moving online connections
to the real world
Post-Covid
Meetings and events will come
back with a vengeance

25. @danberger
@danberger
Why do communities matter to
business?

26. Social Tables has recruited 25% of its tech
workforce off Meetup. The company has hosted
100+ meetups per year in its space, saving the
company $250k/year in recruiting, sales, and
marketing expenses.
Case Study 1: Cost savings in recruiting & brand
React DC Meetup. Cvent | Social Tables office. October 29, 2019.

27. Atlanta Tech Village hosts 40+ Meetups/year,
generating over $200k/year in sales and
marketing value.
Case Study 2: Cost savings in sales & marketing
Startup Village Meetup. Atlanta Tech Village. October 28, 2019.

28. @danberger
@danberger
How do we make communities
better?

29. @danberger
From ‘community’ to ‘Community’
5 Best Practices for Community Building
@danberger

30. @danberger
@danberger
Hospitality must be a core virtue of
Communities

31. @danberger
@danberger
Members of the Community feel a
true sense of belonging.

32. @danberger
@danberger
The Community feels exclusive to
its members.

33. @danberger
The Community has a set of rituals
everyone partakes in.

34. @danberger
Community-building efforts must
be authentic to the Community

35. @danberger
@danberger
How do we implement
Community best practices?

36. 🤗 Hospitality is a core virtue of Communities.
Everyone is warmly welcomed when they join and are treated with respect by its members.
🏠 Members of the Community feel a true sense of belonging.
There is a feeling of being “at home."
👯 The Community feels exclusive to those that are a part of it.
This does not have to come in lieu of diversity and inclusion so long as they don’t overtake it.
🥳 The Community has a set of rituals everyone partakes in.
This can be as simple as meeting regularly.
💫 Community-building efforts must be authentic to the Community.
Programs and people need to be highly curated and contextualized.
Notes on implementation

37. @danberger
We Are Community Organizers
@danberger

38. web: danjberger.com
social: @danberger
email: dan@danjberger.com
/end

39. @danberger
@danberger
Appendix