Anyone who manages a community — online or offline — will identify sensitivities within that community. This includes topics that either generate strong feelings of consensus or prompt division within members. The role of the community manager is to identify these sensitivities, and then manage them in a way that generates positive, productive discussions.
As busy community managers, it can be easy to get caught up in the daily work of assessments, moderating, and even theories behind community work — and get distracted from the original vision for one’s company. So it’s important to revisit how one is going about reaching those goals. At Health Union, we find that revisiting “the basics” can be a critical exercise in constantly reexamining our approach to community management. In a recent team brainstorming session, our VP of Community Development, Amrita Bhowmick, created an exercise that allowed our group to easily share our ideas about what “community” means to us, and what qualities can make or break a community.
Over the past several years, there has been a significant growth in the popularity of online communities, and as one may expect, there are a multitude of challenges associated with developing these seemingly robust communities into self-sustaining businesses. In 2013, the CEO of Reddit, for instance, reported that despite having 70 million monthly readers, his company wasn’t making money. More recently, Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter, announced (via a tweet), that there would be company layoffs to “move with greater focus and reinvest in our growth.” A viable business model is absolutely critical to maintain thriving and sustainable communities.
Discover insights from 600+ surveyed people living with chronic conditions to understand challenges and enjoyments that they experience during the holidays.
“Why do lurkers lurk and what do they do?” The 90–9–1 rule of thumb has been applied to many digital and online communities. 90% tend to be less vocal but still engaged, 9% tend to be more vocal by commenting and/or sharing, and the remaining 1% tend to be the most vocal by creating new content. The lurkers are the 90%. While the exact ratio is highly debated and perhaps outdated, the idea that lurkers or what we refer to as the “silent majority” make up a large portion of online communities still holds true.
Community manager, Stephanie Huston discusses the balance of the physician-patient-community triangle and thoughtful ways to engage with people seeking help.
Community, Social Community, Social Network, Community of Interest, Community of Practice, Virtual Community, etc. The list seems infinite. These terms are used almost interchangeably, but actually hold distinct meanings that can affect the way we as community managers approach each community type.
Recently I read a question posted among a group of community managers, asking if people believed that it was possible to manage a community that you are not actually a part of. Not surprisingly, many people were doubtful. It’s only natural to assume that being a member of a community that you are managing would be an important component to successful growth of that community, but you might be surprised to learn that this may not always be the case!
Chief Community Officer, Amrita Bhowmick, shares lessons learned in community development, becoming a more mindful professional, after parenthood.
This month, Amrita continues her series in DTC Perspectives monthly e-newsletter, DTC In Focus by discussing how to get patients hooked on engagement.
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