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The Market Research Nuggets Most Companies Ignore: Comments on Online Communities
A customer shares an insight within your company’s online community. He somehow found the time in between meetings, phone calls and lunch to share a suggestion, idea or complaint in a discussion thread. “It would be great if the XYZ product...
Avoid Online Customer Community Failure!
Failure. It’s not a word anyone likes. Yet it is common occurrence with innovation projects. When projects fail, there’s a natural inclination to avoid looking for the reasons why. This is especially true for online customer...
John Coate and the WELL: Looking Ahead by Looking Back at an Early Online Community
A month ago I went to London to give a presentation at the 13th annual VIRCOMM Summit. On a cold and rainy morning (it was London, after all) about a thousand community builders and social media managers from around the world gathered to think and...
Connecting the Dots on the Social Experience
Your B2B firm trumpets its engaged, active customers. These customers, the sweet center of any successful business, generate a significant portion of your firm’s revenue. These same customers serve as references; speak at industry conferences;...
10 Cheers for Community Managers Everywhere! (#CMAD)
Community Manager Appreciation Day (#CMAD) is just around the corner. Monday, January 28th marks the fourth annual celebration, started by Jeremiah Owyang. Read about the history and happenings of this day here. This is the day for celebrating the...
The Online Community Content Map – Part One
Creating meaningful content for an online community is a tricky business. Few online communities survive solely on member discussions. As I am fond of saying, people come for content but stay for community. However, if online community...
Thanksgiving Recipe: Social Media Soup
Thanksgiving time in the US always yields an onslaught of new and tried and true recipes to help us prepare a memorable meal for our friends and family. Last year, while enjoying the results of a well-planned Thanksgiving holiday dinner, it...
Why Branded Online Community Delivers on Social Customer Care
Just last week my colleagues at Social Media Today released the 3rd annual Social Customer Index Report which is chock full of data to fuel any organization’s efforts to leverage social media for customer service. This report is cause for...
Are Private Social Networks Seeing Their Heyday?
Earlier this week I published an article on Forbes:”The Private Social Network: It May Just Be What Your Company Needs,” which explores the quiet but powerful revolution private online communities are bringing to businesses. Unlike the bright...
Introducing The Social Business Benchmark ™ Program
Last month I blogged about "Ten Questions: A B2B Online Community Readiness Checklist" to identify the key elements for successful social business programs. I was very pleased to learn these ideas touched readers far and wide as they...
Social Media Manager vs. Online Community Manager: Same or Different?
One recent morning I saw a post in one of my LinkedIN groups asking "what is the difference between a social media manager and an online community manager?" Easy, I thought, and offered a quick response on my mobile ... "Social media managers bring...
Ten Questions: A B2B Online Community Readiness Checklist
A wide range of B2B firms are considering the need for creating and operating their own online customer communities. In the B2B information technology sector, customer support, knowledge-sharing and product enhancement communities are common...
Nearly 80% of People Participate In Online Community to Help Others
Because I am a veteran online community builder, one of the most common questions people ask me is why do people participate in online communities. Even after seeing many online communities succeed over time, this remains a tough question to fully...
Let the B2B Games Begin!
I am one of those jaded, cranky people who think everything new must prove itself over time. A credit to my Yankee roots, I don’t get excited about much. This is sometimes a disadvantage. For example, when I was invited into the...
Social Insurance- Getting Back To The Basics Of Relationships
When was the last time you thanked your car or home insurance agency for helping you? Or reached out to them before you got into a fender bender with another driver to talk about safe driving tips? Probably never-- if you are less than 80...
Strategy First, Platform Second ... Please!
I don't know how many times I've had to shift a conversation into reverse when an initial business discussion about online communities begins with "We're thinking about starting an online community. What's your opinion of Platform X?" Too many...
Strategy First, Platform Second ... Please!
I don't know how many times I've had to shift a conversation into reverse when an initial business discussion about online communities begins with "We're thinking about starting an online community. What's your opinion of Platform X?" Too many...
Time For You To Shine Online!
Photo Credit: bjorn.watland As more and more individuals become involved in professional online communities, understanding how to engage online becomes increasingly important. While most professionals develop good skills at in-...
Time for You to Shine Online!
Photo Credit: bjorn.watland As more and more individuals become involved in professional online communities, understanding how to engage online becomes increasingly important. While most professionals develop good skills at in-...
A Small Organization Creates a Big Community Success Case Study
When you're searching high and low for the next big thing, or scanning the edge for the next new thing, you can miss real success stories. So here's one to contemplate: a free, private online community serving a crucial constituency, aligned...
