platform design - Cultivating Community2024-03-19T03:29:09Zhttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/feed/tag/platform%2BdesignEssential Elements Of Community Platformshttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/essential-elements-of-community-platforms2014-06-04T16:40:00.000Z2014-06-04T16:40:00.000ZRichard Millingtonhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/RichardMillington<div><p>Don't compare community platforms by the features they do/don't have. Compare community platforms by the features that are essential to you and how well they execute on those features. The number of <i>essential</i> features is very limited. </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1282269?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1282269?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="350" class="align-right"></a></p>
<p><b>Discussion area</b>. Members need a place in which they can interact. This will usually be a forum-based. </p>
<p><b>Notifications</b>. Members need to <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.feverbee.com/2011/12/the-notification-cycle.html">be notified</a> when people have responded to their posts. This keeps members coming back. It sustains activity. </p>
<p><b>Analytics</b>. You need to be able to properly track what's going on. You need to know what's going on beneath the surface. </p>
<p><b>Member profiles</b>. Members need <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.feverbee.com/2011/05/memberprofiles.html">to create</a> and use a consistent identity within the community.</p>
<p>Looking at this, you can partly see why <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.big-boards.com/">forum-only communities are thriving</a>. They offer nothing but the essential features. They're far more successful than any feature-backed platform. </p>
<p>But this neglects a more important point, <i>depth of features</i>.</p>
<p>Within each element, there are a range of subtle, but essential, options. Does the discussion area of the platform you're considering enable exporting of data, and integration with FB/Twitter? Can you embed the latest discussions elsewhere? Does it support different access levels, category creation, sufficient admin features, and customization of design?</p>
<p>Is it clear if there are any new posts when someone visits? Does it show both total posts or just the total number of new posts since the last visit? </p>
<p>Perhaps even deeper, how much space does every discussion take on the page? Are discussions spaced out in a way that only shows 5 discussions on a page? Or does it show 25?</p>
<p>The mistake many people make here is they compare platforms by breadth of features they rarely need and are unlikely to use as opposed to the depth of essential features. If you're in the process of choosing a platform, look to at the depth and subtle variation between the key features, not the breadth of features. </p>
<p> <em>(Image via Graphic Stock)</em></p></div>Upcoming Webinar: Community Platform Design and Developmenthttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/upcoming-webinar-community-platform-design-and-development2013-12-08T18:48:51.000Z2013-12-08T18:48:51.000ZCrystalhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/CrystalC<div><p><span class="font-size-3" data-mce-mark="1">On December 18th, Richard Millington will host a free webinar on best practices for developing and designing your community platform. He'll be taking a closer look at <span class="font-size-3" data-mce-mark="1">what makes some communities stand out from others, e</span><span class="font-size-3" data-mce-mark="1">xamining the theory behind community design and showing you how to determine w</span><span class="font-size-3" data-mce-mark="1">hat the core features and unnecessary distractions are for your community. </span></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3" data-mce-mark="1">The goal of this webinar is to guide you <span>through the steps of the community platform design and development process and help you to develop a community that's set up for success. </span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4"><strong>Wednesday, December 18th at 9am PDT</strong></span></p>
<p><a href="https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/579566470" target="_blank"><img src="http://creators.ning.com/images/signupnow.png" class="align-center"></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-3">(find your <a href="http://everytimezone.com/#2013-12-18,300,6bj" target="_blank">local time here</a>) </span></p>
<p><strong>About the Presenter</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/557601?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/557601?profile=RESIZE_180x180" width="100" class="align-left"></a>Richard Millington is the founder of FeverBee, a community consultancy, and author of the new book <a xt="SPCLICK" name="www_amazon_com_Buzzing_Communi" href="http://click.et.ning.com/?qs=560c57e3d19c1a56c67ddba1974f386d6fa9b833e60253373fa5865fd1a51365b08d12542be0bec1" id="www_amazon_com_Buzzing_Communi"><font color="#75AF2D">Buzzing Communities</font></a>. He is also a frequent guest blogger here on <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/" target="_blank"><font color="#75AF2D">Cultivating Community</font></a> and our go-to presenter for the Community Management Talks series. His straightforward, results-oriented style is admired by many in the field, and it's just one of the reasons we've enlisted him to share community management best practices to help Ning Creators (and anyone else) refine their approach and cultivate thriving communities. Richard's next free talk is December 18th at 9am PDT. We hope you can make it!</p>
<p>A recording of this webinar will be available on the Ning <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/community+management+talks" target="_self"><font color="#75AF2D">Community Management Talks</font></a> channel, and you can follow the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #NingTalk.</p></div>