5 Questions That Will Crystallize Your Online Community Strategy

Above is a visual diagram of a strategic framework to aid you in thinking through the elements of your online community strategy and how those elements work together to drive your strategy and execution moving forward. By answering the 5 questions outlined below in the context of the strategic framework you will be in a stonger and more confident position to communicate and execute your online community strategy within your organization.

1 - What is Your Business Goal?

• Try to boil it down to one sentence that gets to the core.
  • Increase Brand Awareness , Personalize Your Brand
  • Collaborate with Customers , Gain Insight , Co-create Products
  • Decrease Cost of Customer Service
  • Optimize Site, Better Search Results, More Traffic
  • Establish Yourself as a Thought Leader, Educate Customers
  • Increase Sales
• What type of community will you be (Shop Talk, Info Dissemination, Professional Collaboration)?
• What are your expected outcomes?
• Who are the main stakeholders?

2 - What Is The Social Media andLandscape?

• How is your brand currently discussed on social networks?
• What is your current brand activity level on social networks?
• How does an online community weave into your overall social media strategy?
• How are your competitors currently participating and serving the needs of your clients?

3 - What Do Your Members Need?

• What member types exist?
• What are they looking for (might vary by member type)?
• Where do they go? How do they like to interact? How much time do they have?
• How willing are they to share openly? Do they want exposure?
• Do they want to shape the industry or influence the next generation?

4 - What Is Your Specific Engagement Model And Roadmap:

• Engagement Model: it is important to plan and balance engagement elements.
  • Event Plan: online and in person
  • Content Plan: text to media, both internal and member generated
  • Member to Member Interaction Plan: online discussions, blogs, wikis, chats, emails OR offline phone calls and meetings
  • Outreach or Promotion Plan: push and pull qualitative/quantitative newsletter, polls, surveys etc.
• What engagement elements do you currently leverage?
• What new forms of engagement would you like to employ, is there a gap, which will be prioritized?
• Who are your "creators" of content or discussions? Do you need to recruit more creators or hosts?
• How will you integrate with other marketing channels (traditional marketing / social channels)?

5 - What Are Your Metrics? Is Each Metric Tied Back To Specific Business Goals:

• What quantitative metrics do you currently monitor?
• What qualitative metrics do you currently monitor?
• How does each metric tie to your business goals and your dimensions of value?

Have you at least begun to answer the 5 questions outlined above? If so, you should find yourself in a stonger and more confident position to communicate and execute your online community strategy within your organization.

Contact Lauren directly at ldelong@InnerCircleCommunities.com or 207.752.7298 to discuss your social media or online community needs. We look forward to hearing from you.