Strategy for building and managing online communities
Creating thematic communities is one of the main tools of SMO (promotion in social networks). But natural questions arise: how to create them, and then what to do with them?
Source http://www.seomoz.org/ , by KatFrench.
Creating a platform
Which engine you choose depends primarily on the goal that you set for the community. In addition, it is not just the decision to choose a software product - it is the choice of the interface. On SEOmoz, for example, preference is given to the style of a group blog, rather than moderated forums. The group blog format assumes the presence of an article and constantly added content (as opposed to a forum) - this is the most appropriate format for the professional development of the community. However, a number of communities work well in the form of moderated forums. In general, it all depends on what kind of community you want to create.
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From the point of view of software products, now, unlike the recent past, when I was just beginning to be involved in the process of building online communities, a huge number of various solutions for every taste appeared. There are group solutions, such as Ning and CollectiveX , that are designed to create communities with lots of opportunities. And Wordpress and other blogging software now installs different levels of user access rights, making the use of community features more focused and practical.
Of course, it should be said about good old PHPBB. Previously, PHPBB was known as the most suitable software for some types of forums, but suffered from weak protection — forums were often attacked with virus attacks using security holes. Now, PHPBB is a much more stable and secure form, but administrators still find it necessary to frequently change security codes. Lussumo's Vanilla and Simple Machine's are examples of using new forum software products that offer better design options than PHPBB.
Creation of specificity
Successful online communities are something like related communities united by one interest - they have a distinctive personality and style. One of the difficulties in creating an online commune from scratch is to involve the main participants, who will shape the community in exactly the way you originally intended. Often, new online communities, as well as in the ordinary world, are created from an interest group created within a larger, older community. As an example, let us recall how many companies were founded by fellow colleagues from one large firm, or small churches that broke away from the main one, clubs and other groups that came out from under the wing of a larger organization. These new communities usually leave the properties and features inherent in the parent organization, but they still grow and develop in a new direction.
All this leads us to the next question: whether to allow the community to grow and develop from within? Excessive moderation can kill new successful areas within the community, so do not be afraid of new topics, just rightly restricting users. But it is necessary to fear that sooner or later you will still need concrete measures to control the development of the community, if this development goes in the wrong direction, which you initially assumed. A good example of community development management is the style of Mr. Miyagi in growing a bonsai tree: planned decisions along with natural organic development.
Community protection
Unfortunately, we do not live in a world full of rainbows, unicorns and brilliance. Hic sunt dracones - online is still the same as offline, and the inherent anonymity of the Internet provokes people to a public demonstration of not the best qualities and feelings. If you build and manage an online community, you are responsible, like a sheriff, to protect your community from predators. People need to feel safe and comfortable in order for your community to grow and develop.
This is one of the reasons why it is important to delegate authority for moderation and administration of the community. If you gain a strong team of trusted moderators and editors, the likelihood of unpleasant situations sharply decreases. Another important thing is the creation of clear and clear rules of participation for users, and compliance with these rules by all users equally. Good ground for reflection is what access rights you will give to newcomers in the community, and the conditions that they must fulfill in order to earn privileges and expand access to community resources.
If you set a goal for yourself - to improve in the field of protecting your own community (that’s what you should do), you should read The Sociopath Next Door Martha Stout or Gavin de Becker’s The Gift of Fear (not published in Russian yet). Both authors offer simple ways to identify “predators” among those around you in reality, which can be easily transferred to online life.
The best advice I can give about this is to listen to your inner voice. Once, I happened to be a moderator of two thematic communities, one of which was only for women. What made this community successful is the sense of freedom that is inherent in any purely “women's” forum, when women can discuss the most intimate things. I had concerns about one suspicious user from another mixed forum, when suddenly his comments began to appear in posts on the community wall for women only. Despite the fact that this guy was an honored member of another forum, I banned him (for greater conviction, I first checked him at an IP address: it turned out that “John” places posts like “Jane”), because the rules of the women's forum did not allow the presence of men their community. The confidential atmosphere of the female community could be irretrievably ruined, I disobey the inner voice.
Today, when social media is becoming an increasingly tidbit of online marketing, the study of how to build and develop successful and thriving online communities will continue, and this skill will become a very valuable skill. It is rather a complex skill that requires both the presence of technical thought and simple human wisdom. Although, for someone, this is primarily a highly paid race.
Translated by http://www.blog-maye.ru/
Source http://www.seomoz.org/ , by KatFrench.
Creating a platform
Which engine you choose depends primarily on the goal that you set for the community. In addition, it is not just the decision to choose a software product - it is the choice of the interface. On SEOmoz, for example, preference is given to the style of a group blog, rather than moderated forums. The group blog format assumes the presence of an article and constantly added content (as opposed to a forum) - this is the most appropriate format for the professional development of the community. However, a number of communities work well in the form of moderated forums. In general, it all depends on what kind of community you want to create.
')
From the point of view of software products, now, unlike the recent past, when I was just beginning to be involved in the process of building online communities, a huge number of various solutions for every taste appeared. There are group solutions, such as Ning and CollectiveX , that are designed to create communities with lots of opportunities. And Wordpress and other blogging software now installs different levels of user access rights, making the use of community features more focused and practical.
Of course, it should be said about good old PHPBB. Previously, PHPBB was known as the most suitable software for some types of forums, but suffered from weak protection — forums were often attacked with virus attacks using security holes. Now, PHPBB is a much more stable and secure form, but administrators still find it necessary to frequently change security codes. Lussumo's Vanilla and Simple Machine's are examples of using new forum software products that offer better design options than PHPBB.
Creation of specificity
Successful online communities are something like related communities united by one interest - they have a distinctive personality and style. One of the difficulties in creating an online commune from scratch is to involve the main participants, who will shape the community in exactly the way you originally intended. Often, new online communities, as well as in the ordinary world, are created from an interest group created within a larger, older community. As an example, let us recall how many companies were founded by fellow colleagues from one large firm, or small churches that broke away from the main one, clubs and other groups that came out from under the wing of a larger organization. These new communities usually leave the properties and features inherent in the parent organization, but they still grow and develop in a new direction.
All this leads us to the next question: whether to allow the community to grow and develop from within? Excessive moderation can kill new successful areas within the community, so do not be afraid of new topics, just rightly restricting users. But it is necessary to fear that sooner or later you will still need concrete measures to control the development of the community, if this development goes in the wrong direction, which you initially assumed. A good example of community development management is the style of Mr. Miyagi in growing a bonsai tree: planned decisions along with natural organic development.
Community protection
Unfortunately, we do not live in a world full of rainbows, unicorns and brilliance. Hic sunt dracones - online is still the same as offline, and the inherent anonymity of the Internet provokes people to a public demonstration of not the best qualities and feelings. If you build and manage an online community, you are responsible, like a sheriff, to protect your community from predators. People need to feel safe and comfortable in order for your community to grow and develop.
This is one of the reasons why it is important to delegate authority for moderation and administration of the community. If you gain a strong team of trusted moderators and editors, the likelihood of unpleasant situations sharply decreases. Another important thing is the creation of clear and clear rules of participation for users, and compliance with these rules by all users equally. Good ground for reflection is what access rights you will give to newcomers in the community, and the conditions that they must fulfill in order to earn privileges and expand access to community resources.
If you set a goal for yourself - to improve in the field of protecting your own community (that’s what you should do), you should read The Sociopath Next Door Martha Stout or Gavin de Becker’s The Gift of Fear (not published in Russian yet). Both authors offer simple ways to identify “predators” among those around you in reality, which can be easily transferred to online life.
The best advice I can give about this is to listen to your inner voice. Once, I happened to be a moderator of two thematic communities, one of which was only for women. What made this community successful is the sense of freedom that is inherent in any purely “women's” forum, when women can discuss the most intimate things. I had concerns about one suspicious user from another mixed forum, when suddenly his comments began to appear in posts on the community wall for women only. Despite the fact that this guy was an honored member of another forum, I banned him (for greater conviction, I first checked him at an IP address: it turned out that “John” places posts like “Jane”), because the rules of the women's forum did not allow the presence of men their community. The confidential atmosphere of the female community could be irretrievably ruined, I disobey the inner voice.
Today, when social media is becoming an increasingly tidbit of online marketing, the study of how to build and develop successful and thriving online communities will continue, and this skill will become a very valuable skill. It is rather a complex skill that requires both the presence of technical thought and simple human wisdom. Although, for someone, this is primarily a highly paid race.
Translated by http://www.blog-maye.ru/
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/23957/
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