Community

The owners of the old general store got it...do you?

If you’re one of the minority wondering if community is overrated, you’re not getting it. Or rather, you’re not getting the need for community. Because if there’s one thing we shouldn’t be brushing aside, it’s the importance of the power of a collaborative of people, most especially, community.

Old School Examples:

In my old Queens, NY neighborhood, the local funeral home has a problem. They’re losing the support of the now primarily Asian members of the community because there is no one on staff to accommodate their faith or speak their language. This is a family run establishment that has been in the same location across from my old church and Catholic School for at least fifty or sixty years. They didn’t adapt with the community because they felt those who are moving into the neighborhood should somehow convert to the funeral home’s way of thinking, rather than the other way around. Now they are losing business to the Asian funeral homes and may have to shut down. If they hired someone who spoke the language and could help the funeral home to learn to  adapt to traditions and religions, they’d have more business.

Another case in point from the same town:

My former home town is what is considered a melting pot. I went to school with people of all races and nationalities and everyone got along…except for some old schoolers who didn’t want new races and nationalities moving in. There was a hardware store two blocks away from our home that my father went to often, until he learned that the new owner didn’t like Hispanics moving in to the neighborhood. Instead of adapting, the shop owner complained. He didn’t want them in his store and he wasn’t going to accommodate them. My father made the decision to walk ten blocks to the hardware store owner who chose to embrace members of the new community by learning Spanish and discovering how to best accommodate their needs. Now my Dad had new friends to talk to and share with.

Guess which hardware store went out of business?

The funeral home and first hardware store made a big mistake. They didn’t see these new arrivals to the neighborhood as community. They saw them as outsiders. The smart business owners knew that collectively people become a community and community will make or break a business. Outside of a corrupt society, majority always rules. You can say you’re a people person, but unless you understand community dynamics, you’ll have a hard time getting your message across.

This is more than just some public relations practice. Both hardware stores needed their community to survive. It’s the folks in the community who buy the products but they also recommend the business to others. Communities are fiercely loyal and those who don’t get it, the ones who don’t get community or what it stands for, are the ones that don’t last. Oh sure, the store can have a sale or jump on the next big thing, but once that special day is over, life returns to normal and they see where the true loyalty lies. People will come for a sale, the community will give continued business.

Why You Need Community More Than it Needs You

When I was 7 years old I walked to the local pharmacy and asked the pharmacist for my Dad’s prescription. He didn’t have to look at the prescription slip or check the files. He filled the prescription from memory. He knew all his customers and their families. He also knew our doctors. He knew if we had allergies or a low tolerance to certain foods, and he didn’t need a computer database to give him this knowledge. In return for the excellent customer service, we gave his pharmacy our business, and the pharmacist, our friendship. I don’t know that the guy behind the counter at the ginormous CVS inspires the same response.

There’s a reason my generation trusts mom and pop stores more than super centers. We remember what it was like to pull up a pickle barrel, sit down and chat with the neighbors. We know that community isn’t one sided. Instead, it’s everyone working together towards a common goal. That goal can be the betterment of a neighborhood, or to share information, but without community neither would happen.

Guess what happened?

As soon as people realized they had a voice they made sure it was heard. They made it clear they didn’t want to navigate a phone menu to nowhere or talk to a recording. People began realizing they had options and they could leave for a better customer service experience. And they did. They banded together for a common cause. They created a community.

Now the bigger chains also have ways of growing a community using social networking, special promotions for registered members and more. They’re getting it, finally. They offer special services to reward loyalty. Before the Internet it was harder to rally a community around a big business. Complaints were brushed under the rug and it didn’t matter if customers were left on hold for an eternity. Now they understand that it’s the people who hold the power.

I dare you to name any business that can survive without community:

Let’s try:

• Stores: Without community feedback they wouldn’t know what items to stock or what to charge.
• Blogs: Without community you’ll only having the same three people who write for the blog talking back and forth with each other.
• The DMV: Ok. Bad example…
• The Cable Company: If the community is unhappy they’ll write letters, take it to the Internet and create a public relations nightmare.
• Politicians: They won’t reach office unless their community votes for them.
• Public Relations: Simply put, without people to respond to their promotions and press releases they’d be out of a job.

One person is a single voice. A community is a powerful force.

Can you think of any business that doesn’t need people to survive?

It’s All about People

People are the reason behind any success. You might not physically see the people who give feedback or buy products, but without them nothing would exist. Would Thomas Edison invent light bulbs if people didn’t have a need for them? Would we have trains if people didn’t want to travel across country without being scalped? People are the driving force behind everything. Make no mistake, where there are people, there’s community.

You can write off community as overrated, but unless a group of people agree with you, your point won’t be successful.

See how that works?

Community.

Related Posts:

• 10 Tips for Using Your Competition to Become a Better Blogger
• Re-Visiting Kommein
• What Happens to Your Community on the Weekend?
• Community Manager Job of the Day: Community Analyst for WalMart
• You Are What You Tweet

Tagged as: Community, general store, mom and pop store, neighborhoods, people, power of people

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I don’t have too many regrets. I look at all opportunities, whether positive or negative, as learning experiences. That’s why all feedback is good feedback. With that said, I regret neglecting Kommein, this blog showed so much promise as a resource for community managers and I left it to fall by the wayside once my blog network began taking up my time on a full time basis.

I have decided it’s time to revive Kommein, but in a slightly different format. Instead of focusing solely on community and community management, I’d like to include other aspects of social media, including blogging. You see, social media is my passion but I have no where else to talk discuss it. Though I try to sneak in topics on my freelance writing blog from time to time, that community would much rather discuss writing.

So here I am. Again.

I hope you’ll give me a second chance.

Related Posts:

• Social Media: You Either Get it Or You Don’t
• What Happens to Your Community on the Weekend?
• You Are What You Tweet
• Does Your Community Have a Forum?
• Influence is in the Eye of the Beholder

Tagged as: Community, Community Management, Kommein, social media

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Most community management gigs appear to 9 to 5 jobs, but are they? I work for a 24/7 social radio network and it certainly doesn’t shut down at 5:00 p.m. every day.  Folks are still visiting each others’ chat rooms and talking in the forums and Yahoo Group. They still need me to wear my moderator hat. I’m also expect to provide a blog post or two over the weekend to keep the traffic flowing.

This is something all Community Managers need to think about – what happens to your community on the weekend. Do you just leave it and come back on Monday spending a frenzied day trying to catch up, or do you drop by here and there on the weekend just checking to make sure the joint hasn’t been taken over by trolls?

Even though my weekend time is family time, I still take an hour or so each day to check on the community. Someone might be having difficulty dealing with a situation, and I don’t want them to have to go through the frustration of waiting two or three days for a response.  If I know I’ll be away from my laptop for a few days, someone else takes over.

Everyone knows how frustrating it can be to reach Customer Service personnel over the weekend. Rather than have a frustrated community, it’s probably in your best interest to make sure there’s some sort of presence during the non-business hours.

What happens to your community on the weekend?

Related Posts:

• Re-Visiting Kommein
• Where Should You Put Your Community Manager?
• The Pros and Cons of Being an Online Community Manager
• Social Media: You Either Get it Or You Don’t
• Does Your Community Have a Forum?

Tagged as: Community, Community Management, community manager

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Even WalMart understands the need for Community. Actually WalMart totally gets the community thing. The have their 11 Moms blogging network, with accompanying BlogTalkRadio shows, they know the importance of community and a heavy web presence. They’re also making sure to get the most bang out of their social media buck because they’re hiring a Community Analyst. It’s a great way to assess the needs of the consumer.

Here are some details:

The Community Analyst is an advocate for the community initiative and all its components (e.g. classifieds). He or she identifies best practices and insures no inappropriate content gets on the site, or is identified/escalated in the organization or media. As a part of supporting the community team, this individual is responsible for making sure performance of the experience meets expectations, including timeliness of the user generated content experience. As a subject matter expert for community, they will deliver reporting and insights for all community functionality to advance the organization’s knowledge about online community. Key success metrics for the role are zero internal or media issues, uptime/responsiveness/customer service metrics, and delivery of reporting metrics and insights.

They’re looking for skills to:

*Strong analytical skills

*Experience developing reports/custom inquiries and with
execution of dashboards and reporting

*Retail Industry experience is a plus

*Familiarity with online marketing metrics such as ROI,
click-through rate, cost-per-click, conversion rate, average order
size, etc.

*Skills at working with proprietary and leading web site
reporting tools

*High Level of Comfort with MS Office, specifically MS Excel,
MS Access and Power Point

*Ability to organize and prioritize multiple requests or
escalate unresolved issues when necessary.

*Previous vendor management experience.

*An understanding of and passion for online community and
consumer-focused e-commerce

This isn’t a job for the sweats and bunny slippers crowd. You will have to go into the office in Brisbane, California. Since WalMart is destined to survive the current crisis with the economy, and their stock is actually up, it doesn’t seem like a bad gig to have. Check out full details for this gig at Forum One Networks.

Related Posts:

• 10 Tips for Using Your Competition to Become a Better Blogger
• Why You Can’t Underestimate the Importance of Community
• Re-Visiting Kommein
• Social Media and Community Manager Jobs for the Week of February 8, 2009
• Community Manager Job of the Day: Community Manager for LinkedIn

Tagged as: 11 Moms, Community, Community Analayst, Community Manager Jobs, Walmart

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I recently unfollowed a couple of people from Twitter. The first I unfollowed because of spam. I stopped following the second person because most of her posts are laden with profanity and followed up with “Don’t like swearing? Too bad. Don’t follow me then.” Well ok. I don’t follow people for the sake of haiving a large pool of followers, anyway.

I’m not a prude.  Though cursing doesn’t hold the same pleasure for as it did during my teens, I’ve been know to throw out a bad word now and then, particularly if pain is involved. However, I’m of the belief that creative people can get their points across without resorting to profanity or vulgarity.

You are what you Tweet. Whether you use Twitter for business or pleasure, folks have to think about what they put out there. Employers are cruising Google and the social networks to see what employees and potential employees are up to. Maybe some people don’t think about this stuff – or even care. I do. I care how my community sees me and the example I put forth.

The folks I meet on Twitter are friends, colleagues and even perhaps important business contacts. Why turn them off? I’m not saying not to be you, but it’s always a good idea to take some time out and think about what we’re tossing out there.

When you use Twitter, does it matter to you what your followers think?

Related Posts:

• Does Social Media Matter to Civilians?
• Shaming Unfollowers: Should We Really Take it So Personally?
• 5 Reasons Why Foursquare Isn’t Dumb
• Why Social Media Noise is Good
• Re-Visiting Kommein

Tagged as: Community, social media, social netwowrking, Twitter

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This past September at BlogWorld Expo, my co-Kommein conspirator David Peralty and I hung out in the blogging lounge and had a little discussion about community forums. Specifically whether or not it’s a good idea for businesses to have a community gathering place. David wasn’t so sure he liked forums as they’re a lot of work to moderate, and as David showed me with his own company’s forum, the most popular folder is the one designated for complaints and technical support issues.

Personally, I’m a huge fan of community forums. I find they can really bring a community together – moreso than comments or social networks. It gives a bunch of like-minded people the ability to carry on a continuous conversation without word limits and it’s a great way to for folks to share ideas, help each other out and cultivate friendships and relationships.

The place I work recently launched a forum and I’m about to open one at the blog network I own. David was right. So far, the most comments have gone to the technical issues folder. Now mind you, we’re only a couple of days into the forum, but  I did expect a bit more of the warm and fuzzy. Something else to keep in mind is that the company  I work for  just launched a major website redesign and the regulars are feeling a bit out of their comfort level. I’m willing to give the complaints about the relaunch a bit more time as the community gets used to a new interface.

The good news is that the forum has eliminated a lot of the email the team gets on a regular basis. Instead of emailing technical support or customer service, folks post at the forum. Our team visits regularly and responds in kind. I also enjoy watching everyone discuss and share.

A couple of days into it, I’m glad we launched a forum. Yeah, the technical issues folder is a thorn in my side, but isn’t it our job to find out what works and what doesn’t? I’m still a big fan of forums. They’re a great place for the community and team to interact and they bring everyone closer together. I’d rather not be in the dark about what my community is thinking.

I’d love to learn your thoughts about community forums. Is it better to not know what your community is thinking?

Related Posts:

• Re-Visiting Kommein
• What Happens to Your Community on the Weekend?
• 10 Tips for Using Your Competition to Become a Better Blogger
• Why You Can’t Underestimate the Importance of Community
• Book Review: Managing Online Forums

Tagged as: Community, community forums, Community Management

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One of my biggest frustrations is when I want to communicate with a blogger or web site owner and his or her contact details are no where to be found. If anyone should be easy to reach, it’s the Community Manager.

Make sure the members of your community know your email address as well as hours you’re available to chat via Skype or other means.  Post these details on the company blog, website and community forum if you have one. Feel free to establish guidelines, for instance, if you’re only available during certain hours make sure everyone knows. Having a Community Manager who is easy to reach and talk to is one of the most important things a business can do.

Related Posts:

• The Pros and Cons of Being an Online Community Manager
• What Happens to Your Community on the Weekend?
• Community Manager Job of the Day: Do-It-Yourself Online Community Manager at KaBoom!
• Community Manager Job of the Day: Community Moderator
• 10 Tips for Using Your Competition to Become a Better Blogger

Tagged as: Community, community manager, online community, online community manager

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