social media - Cultivating Community2024-03-19T01:10:49Zhttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/feed/category/social+mediaWhy I Don't Like The Term "Troll"https://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/why-i-dont-like-the-term-troll2014-02-26T17:57:37.000Z2014-02-26T17:57:37.000ZCrystalhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/CrystalC<div><p>I'm finding more and more that I'm uncomfortable with the way that the term "troll" is becoming a catch-all word for "person who's doing something I don't like." It's an easy word to use: say "troll" and everyone says "Ahh," and nods their head in empathy. <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/dealing-with-trolls-4-snippits" target="_self">I've used this shorthand myself</a>. And I'm resolving to stop using it and find out what's really behind the "troll." </p>
<p><a href="http://knowyourmeme.com/photos/187824-some-men-just-want-to-watch-the-world-burn" target="_blank"><img src="http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/187/824/media_http26mediatumb_uafbm.jpg.scaled500.jpg" class="align-right" style="padding: 5px;" width="257" height="206"></a>I think the turning point for me has been the recent Ars Technica article summing up a Canadian psychology journal article. Even the title is irksome: "<a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/2014/02/science-confirms-online-trolls-are-horrible-people-also-sadists/" target="_blank">Science confirms: Online trolls are horrible people (also, sadists!)</a>" Almost every commentary I saw on the piece took the form of "A-ha! I was right! Trolls are terrible, awful, no-good people!"</p>
<p>While it's true that there are some people on the internet who just really enjoy causing, stoking, and/or watching chaos happening online, that number is relatively small (and fairly concentrated). To give some anecdotal perspective, GetSatisfaction founders Lane Becker and Thor Muller recently spoke at an event about their early experiences at the company. They found that the moment they encountered their first real troll, a member whose sole purpose appeared to be to cause disruption and discontent and could not be reasoned with, was about 50,000 users in. Becker described that as ultimately uplifting: yeah, they had a troll, but the other 49,999 people in the communities were pretty decent human beings. </p>
<p>Labeling a member as a troll is dehumanizing, a dangerous mindset for community managers to get into. We are literally saying (albeit subconsciously) "this member doesn't deserve to be seen as another human being, but as a deformed, inhuman <em>thing</em>." It's become such a loaded word that once it enters a conversation, it taints what we hear afterwards. Once someone is labeled a "troll," anything they say starts to be viewed through troll-tinted glasses, even when they are being fairly reasonable. Instead of encountering a disruptive user and immediately jumping to this: </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1282125?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1282125?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="400" class="align-center"></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Let's look at ways that we can figure out why this person is causing a disruption. </p>
<ul>
<li>Is this member upset about something involving your product/community? If so, what's causing their frustration and how can you help them? Does a new product not work like the old product did? Offer them some help getting familiar with it. Are instructions not as clear as they could be? Look at how you can revise them.</li>
<li>Is there a misunderstanding or a mistake happening? Is there a way you can prevent that in the future? </li>
<li>Does the member need to feel that someone's listening to what they're saying? How can you show them you're listening?</li>
</ul>
<p>Almost every article about traits or skills necessary for community management lists Empathy pretty high up. Make sure to turn your empathy filter on before labeling someone as a troll - you might just turn their behavior around. </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">What are your thoughts? Do you think "Troll" is a necessary definition in community management or are you going to rethink casual use of it? </span></p>
<p></p>
<p><em>Images via <a href="http://knowyourmeme.com">Know Your Meme</a>, <a href="http://dubbledeckerbus.tumblr.com/post/46534672104" target="_blank">Tumblr</a></em></p></div>5 Common PPC Mistakes Made by Marketers with Tight Budgetshttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/5-common-ppc-mistakes-made-by-marketers-with-tight-budgets2013-10-02T14:00:00.000Z2013-10-02T14:00:00.000ZGuest Contributorhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/GuestContributor<div><p><em>One of the most common pain points amongst those who run online communities is visibility. How do you make your community known and findable? Paid marketing can give new or established communities a much needed boost in exposure. Our friends at <a href="http://www.sitewit.com/" target="_blank">SiteWit</a> know quite a lot about this area and provided us with a great four-part series on this subject. </em></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">In an ideal world you’d have so much money to throw at online advertising that you could just wait to see what works and then fix it. But here in the real world we need to start with best practices and expand with success. So I’ve put together a small list of the mistakes I’ve made and have seen others make over and over again.</span></p>
<h3><span class="font-size-3">5 Common Pay-Per-Click Mistakes to Avoid</span></h3>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/torley/3571108692/" title="affirmative by ▓▒░ TORLEY ░▒▓, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3283/3571108692_dab9742389.jpg" width="500" height="306" alt="affirmative" class="align-center"></a></p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Mistake #1 – Too large of a scope</strong><br> Within the two major ad networks, you get to choose to display your ads on the primary search network or extend it to context sensitive ads on other sites. While it’s alluring to reach out to a larger audience remember that for most sites the primary search network provides the best and most cost effective results. So, by spreading your budget out you will get less impact and you will typically weaken your ROI.</li>
<li><strong>Mistake #2 – Too broad of a phrase</strong><br> When you’re working in an industry, you start to think that your key terms could only apply to you. However, even terms like “appliances” could refer you a lot of dental related traffic to your home goods store and waste untold dollars in click waste and lost traffic. So, start by adding a qualifying word to all of your keywords. In this example, only buy clicks for “kitchen appliances” and, until your budget expands, use keyword and phrase matching only.</li>
<li><strong>Mistake #3 – Targeting the wrong audience</strong><br> The world is very large place, despite the popular Disney ride jingle that may counter my argument. There are a lot of people who can’t read your site, can’t make use of your product, or can’t have your product shipped to them. So, keep this in mind and set your geographic and language targeting to focus on just those who can.</li>
<li><strong>Mistake #4 – Forgetting about Quality Score</strong><br> You researched your keywords, carefully crafted your ads…Now what? Dump those keywords in your homepage, put together a graphic with a pitch and call it a landing page? No, you need to spend as much time and energy putting together a landing page that matches the keywords that you’re buying. Otherwise, your ad will be seen as irrelevant and cost more per click and get shown less often. So be sure to use keyword relevant text instead of images and make a compelling pitch on all your landing pages, even if it is your homepage.</li>
<li><strong>Mistake #5 – Follow-up</strong><br> This is the big one. It’s so easy to create a great campaign and then forget about it. But things change, keyword bids go up and down, popular culture and trends can both benefit and ruin previously unknown keywords, and some things simply work better than others. It’s important to regularly monitor your keywords, bids, and ROI. This takes a lot of time. We built SiteWit because campaign management is laborious to do right. There are lots of spreadsheets and calculations to adjust bids, maximize ROI, and find the gold in your campaign. So frankly you’re better off letting our giant brain keep track of your campaigns while you focus on building your business.</li>
</ul>
<p><span class="font-size-3">In conclusion, I’d like to say that while there is never an excuse to make mistakes 3, 4, or 5, there is a time and place for expanding your ad scope and casting a larger keyword net. How will you know when that time comes? The best indicator is when you can no longer spend your monthly budget. When this happens you need to start expanding your reach with great oversight, even if it means harvesting a few more weeds with the wheat.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>(<i>Image: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/torley/3571108692/">affirmative</a>, a Creative Commons <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en">Attribution Share-Alike (2.0)</a> image from torley's photostream</i>)</p>
<hr>
<p><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"> <img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281911?profile=original" width="190" class="align-right"></p>
<p class="p1">This post <a href="http://www.sitewit.com/2012/11/29/yola-blog-post-how-to-make-paid-search-pay-off/" target="_blank">originally appeared on the SiteWit blog</a> and is part of a <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/list/tag/sitewit" target="_self">four article series</a> on paid marketing for communities.</p>
<p> </p>
<p class="p1"><b>About SiteWit</b></p>
<p class="p1"><a href="http://sitewit.com" target="_blank">SiteWit</a> is a Do It Yourself (DIY) online marketing platform specifically designed for small and mid-sized businesses. With SiteWit you can get started with pay-per-click advertising through Google and Bing. Our solution fully automate SEM management and optimization to maximize budgets and drive new customers to your site.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p></div>Are Comments Bad for Science?https://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/are-comments-bad-for-science2013-09-26T18:40:04.000Z2013-09-26T18:40:04.000ZAllison Leahyhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/allisonleahy<div><p><em>Popular Science</em> recently declared that it is <a href="http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/why-were-shutting-our-comments" target="_blank">shutting off comments</a> because "comments can be bad for science." The logic driving this decision is that less informed, quick-to-react readers may dominate the discussion and lead others astray. "Even a fractious minority wields enough power to skew a reader's perception of a story," states <em>Popular Science</em>'s Online Editor Suzanne LaBarre. The claim is supported by Dominique Brossard's <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcc4.12009/full" target="_blank">study</a> on how reader perceptions about science are affected by online comments: </p>
<div class="para">
<blockquote>
<p>The Internet has the potential to foster discussion and deliberation among far-reaching audiences in spaces such as the comments section of news items and blog posts. However, such discussions are not always rational. Discussions on the Internet can take an uncivil route, with offensive comments or replies impeding the democratic ideal of healthy, heated discussion (Papacharissi, <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcc4.12009/full#jcc412009-bib-0033" rel="references:#jcc412009-bib-0033" class="referenceLink" title="Link to bibliographic citation" shape="rect">2004</a>; Shils, <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcc4.12009/full#jcc412009-bib-0045" rel="references:#jcc412009-bib-0045" class="referenceLink" title="Link to bibliographic citation" shape="rect">1992</a>).</p>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="para">
<blockquote>
<p>The question remains as to whether online incivility affects the opinions of “lurkers,” or people who read online discussions without participating in them. Smith and his colleagues (<a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcc4.12009/full#jcc412009-bib-0049" rel="references:#jcc412009-bib-0049" class="referenceLink" title="Link to bibliographic citation" shape="rect">2009</a>) argue that lurkers are in fact participating in deliberation when reading others' comments because a large part of rational discussion consists of reflecting on others' opinions, which may or may not coincide with lurkers' own opinions. In other words, audiences reading uncivil language in blog comments may find the messages hostile and make judgments about the issue based on their own preexisting values rather than on the information at hand. This may develop polarized perceptions on issues among different audience segments that hold different values.</p>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="para">
<p>While a few of Brossard's hypotheses were debunked by the study, she did discover that reader's perceptions towards science are shaped in the online blog setting not only by top-down information, but by civil or uncivil viewpoints, as well. </p>
<p>Most community managers are aware of the <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/influencing-community-members-video" target="_self">power of influence</a>. Couldn't these same principles of social influence be applied by moderators to encourage proactive, meaningful conversation? And where these efforts fail, PopSci moderators could block or remove detractors. While the Internet opens doors for public deliberation of emerging concepts and technologies, it also gives a new voice to non-expert, and sometimes rude, individuals. But this is the beauty of the Internet, no?</p>
<p>Instead of removing the opportunity to debate and add context to a thought-provoking scientific article, I would have liked to see PopSci either go the community management route and/or replace open comments with a click-to-load commenting system. At least this way casual readers could absorb the content and move on without noticing or engaging with the comments. The community would remain whole.</p>
</div>
<p>PopSci invites us to voice our opinions and commentary on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, and via email, but surely they understand the <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/facebook-vs-a-custom-community-quantity-vs-quality" target="_self">limitations of these mediums</a>?</p>
<p>How do you think this decision will impact readership? Will more websites follow <em>Popular Science's </em>lead and remove commenting?</p>
<p></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/JimNX74205">@JimNX74205</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@PopSci</a> Interaction with the readers is important. This isn't the best solution. Make them sign in, maintain a profile instead</p>
— Selemir (@DS_Scriggler) <a href="https://twitter.com/DS_Scriggler/statuses/382556615926231040">September 24, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Those who think <a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@PopSci</a> shutting off comments is insane have clearly never written about, oh, climate change for <a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@PopSci</a></p>
— Seth Fletcher (@seth_fletcher) <a href="https://twitter.com/seth_fletcher/statuses/382574767426924545">September 24, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@PopSci</a> FWIW, I approve. Conversation about science is better when we don't have to keep stopping to defend scientific inquiry.</p>
— Erica Friedman (@Yuricon) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yuricon/statuses/382568234429337600">September 24, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>A sad repercussion of loss of civility and polarizing comments online-Why We're Shutting Off Our Comments <a href="http://t.co/DiWDGdrjya">http://t.co/DiWDGdrjya</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@popsci</a></p>
— Laura Damschroder (@schrodster33) <a href="https://twitter.com/schrodster33/statuses/383321746964635648">September 26, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>The ubiquitous, vocal and ignorant minority will think it's won. "Why We're Shutting Off Our Comments" <a href="http://t.co/n9vlm6L1av">http://t.co/n9vlm6L1av</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/PopSci">@popsci</a></p>
— Maya H. (@mambolica) <a href="https://twitter.com/mambolica/statuses/383305885465862144">September 26, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
</div>How to Optimize Your Social Media Strategy to Gain More Followershttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/how-to-optimize-your-social-media-strategy-to-gain-more-followers2013-09-23T12:20:00.000Z2013-09-23T12:20:00.000ZGuest Contributorhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/GuestContributor<div><p><em>Rob Mitchell is a social media strategist and writer who discusses tips for business, technology, and finance.</em></p>
<p>It's no secret that social media can be used for more than just sharing photos and funny status updates. In the business world, it represents a great way to improve your online reputation and increase exposure to your brand and website. However, as with all things social media, there is a right and wrong way to do it. If you're just starting out with your <a href="http://www.moneycrashers.com/social-media-marketing-sites-business/" target="_self">social media marketing strategy</a>, or if you're looking to revamp your current plan for better results, consider the following tips to boost your profile and generate new followers and likes.</p>
<p><strong>1. Maintain a Sharp Focus on Content</strong><br />
Having a presence on Facebook and Twitter is great, but if your content is not up to par, all your efforts can be a waste of time. Consider offering longer posts for Facebook, and whip up quick tidbits of information for Twitter. Make your content creative and engaging, but keep it brief. Try to give your readers tips and advice that they won't be able to find anywhere else. Draw on your own experiences and include relevant statistics when appropriate.</p>
<p><strong>2. Try Out the New Guys</strong><br />
Pinterest, Google Plus, Instagram, and even Vine are all now valid social media players. Investigate them all and try some of them out. You never know where you're going to gain your next social media stronghold.</p>
<p><strong>3. Gauge Your Performance</strong><br />
If you're not tracking your performance, you won't know if your efforts are getting you anywhere. Implement Google Analytics and take a look at where your followers are coming from. You may find that it's not worth it to maintain a presence on some sites. Review and adjust your strategy based on that data.</p>
<p><strong>4. Create an Interactive Experience</strong><br />
Social media by definition has an interactive aspect to it - don't miss out on this key point. Post polls or ask for votes and opinions. You may even want to consider hosting timely <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/do-you-tweet-chat" target="_self">TweetChats</a>, online virtual discussions held on Twitter. You moderate the discussion and lead your participants through the chat. It's a great way to find out how your efforts are perceived and what kinds of new content your followers may be looking for in the future.</p>
<p><strong>5. Don't Automate</strong><br />
Automation does have its place in social media in terms of scheduling when your posts and tweets go out, but it's not wise to rely on it too heavily. Twitter users who spam their readers with constant, mindless content run the risk of getting "un-followed" because they clog up users' news feeds. Use automation only to the extent that it saves you time – do not use it to overwhelm your followers.</p>
<p><strong>6. Listen</strong><br />
You can learn a lot about your followers and uncover ways to gain more of them simply by listening to what they are saying. Monitor your accounts regularly (or assign someone to do so) and be sure all comments receive a response. Even if you just thank someone for commenting, your reader is going to know that you care and that you're listening. If you receive any negative commentary, take it to heart and acknowledge that the comment was received and is being evaluated. If it's valid, put measures in place to ensure the mistake doesn't happen again. Social media is a broad undertaking, but if you devote the time to building relationships with your readers, your business is sure to gain traction.</p>
<p><strong>Closing Thoughts</strong><br />
Social media is the way to go for marketing your small business, so it's important to get it right. If you don't think you have the necessary time to devote to your strategy, consider hiring an expert. Search <a href="http://www.guru.com/">Guru</a> or <a href="https://www.elance.com/">Elance</a> for qualified social media freelancers and you can save yourself the cost of a full-time employee. Social media marketing done the right way takes a lot of time and effort, so you have to be savvy enough to know when it's time to ask for help.</p>
<p>What are you doing to improve your social media presence?</p>
</div>Why Ambiverts Make Great Community Managershttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/why-ambiverts-make-the-best-community-managers2013-08-30T18:19:38.000Z2013-08-30T18:19:38.000ZCrystalhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/CrystalC<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208345?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>If you ask anyone who's met me at a community meetup whether I'm an introvert or extravert, they'll probably say, without hesitation, extravert. If I'm in my element, especially amongst people I already know, I'm outgoing, friendly, and quick to offer my opinion. My history as a theatre major would seem to confirm that: only extraverts want to get up on stage, right? In truth, I get more energy from spending time on my own: working at home with my dog, a solitary train ride, watching Netflix on the couch. If I have to be social too many days in a row, I tend to hibernate at home to recover after. At the end of a networking session with new people, I'm exhausted. On the other hand, at the end of a great discussion with intelligent people, I'm energized and ready to talk to ear off of my half-asleep husband. Am I suffering from a bad case of Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Hyde? No, I'm just an <a href="http://blog.mindjet.com/2013/03/why-ambiverts-succeed-in-the-workplace/" target="_blank">Ambivert</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myers-Briggs_Type_Indicator" target="_blank">Myers-Briggs</a> personality testing has been popular in academia and human resources as a way of discovering how different students and employees learn, work, and rest. In regards to attitude, the test sorts people into two categories: extraverts, who derive energy from outward actions, and introverts, who gather energy from inward pursuits. An ambivert is someone who falls in between those two extremes. First used in the 1920s, the term has gained exposure again through <a href="http://www.danpink.com/2013/01/why-it-pays-to-be-an-ambivert-and-why-you-probably-are-one/" target="_blank">Dan Pink</a>'s book <a href="http://www.danpink.com/books/to-sell-is-human/" target="_blank">To Sell is Human</a>. It's not surprising that most people can be classified as ambiverts, but how do your ambivert qualities make you a great community manager? </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>We Need Other People - Just Not All The Time</strong></span><br />
One of the key indicators of whether you're an introvert or extravert is how you recharge your batteries, so to speak. Do you get your energy from being out and about, around your friends, having a great time? Would you rather have some quiet time at home to rest and decompress? If you're an ambivert, you're likely in between. You really like spending time with your community, but sometimes you have to unplug from it for a little while. You can keep your head down and get your work done, but you absolutely <em>need</em> to reach out and connect with other community managers on TweetChats or Meetups or you don't feel fulfilled. Appeasing both needs means you're much more likely to find a good work/life balance than someone on either end of the spectrum. </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>We Hear <em>and</em> Listen </strong></span><br />
An <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddisalvo/2013/04/10/move-over-extraverts-here-come-the-ambiverts/" target="_blank">April 2013 study found</a> that contrary to popular belief, extraverts don't make great sales people. Their enthusiasm can cause extraverts to overlook the needs of the customer. Ambiverts are able to keep their emotions in check and listen so that they can respond appropriately. This helps community managers, who will often need to use active listening skills with members when trying to solve their problems. </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>We Take Action, But Think First</strong></span><br />
While extraverts will have an idea and act on it as soon as possible, introverts will often think themselves <em>out</em> of an idea. Ambiverts straddle the distance in between, thinking ideas through, but always focused on how to bring those ideas to action. This serves especially well in conflict resolution: rather than take quick, rash action, ambiverts will reflect on the details of a situation and use that as a basis for action. </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>We Can Speak Your Language</strong></span><br />
Ambiverts are the chameleons of communication. If you're loud and energetic, we can match that and come up to your level. If you want a more chilled conversation, we can dig that, too. This proves invaluable to a community manager, who has to be at ease talking to all the members of their community, as well as reaching out to new contacts, working with all the departments within their company, and reporting to the C-level. </p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>We're Jacks of All Trades</strong></span><br />
A <a href="http://diplateevo.com/2013/06/on-ambiverts-why-distinguishing-between-extraverts-and-introverts-is-inadequate/" target="_blank">diplateevo post on ambiverts</a> cautioned that ambiverts can sometimes have trouble finding one career and sticking to it, as they have a tendency to become jacks of all trades. This actually works in favor of community managers, who often have to juggle multiple roles within their title. A diverse background (a little bit of sales, a little bit of customer service, a little bit of content) is also a plus when beginning a career as a community manager. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>(<i>Image: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/2759114295/">Fitting</a>, a Creative Commons <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">Attribution (2.0)</a> image from x1brett's photostream</i>)</p>
</div>Facebook vs. a Custom Community: Quantity vs. Qualityhttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/facebook-vs-a-custom-community-quantity-vs-quality2013-07-12T14:00:00.000Z2013-07-12T14:00:00.000ZJohn McDonaldhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/JohnMcDonald<div><p>“Why should I invest in a custom community on Ning – why not just focus on my Facebook Page?” It’s a question I’ve heard frequently since I joined the Ning team in 2009. While there isn’t just one answer, custom communities do offer several unique benefits including complete ownership of the relationships and membership data, the ability to communicate with fans when and how you want, the chance to create a branded destination, and the freedom to monetize fan activity.</p>
<p>However, the most important reason for investing in a custom community is the outcome – higher quality engagement with fans, peers, or customers. Real conversations and Interactions that are deeper than just a Like or a quick “Love it” comment. In a custom community, fans develop stronger relationships with each other. For a business or social leader, the end result is higher fan retention, increased brand loyalty, and greater activation of fans to achieve goals e.g., a social purpose, repeat purchase, co-creation of content, brand evangelism, etc.</p>
<p>To demonstrate this point, I analyzed fan engagement for five Ning customers who have active communities on both Ning and Facebook. Three are product brands and two are influential authors. I focused only on deeper interactions (posts and comments) within each Ning community and Facebook Page in May 2013. I excluded light interactions such as Likes because they don’t involve exchange of ideas – real conversation. At the request of these customers, I’ve kept their identities confidential.</p>
<p>The analysis illustrates two major differences in the quality of engagement within their custom Ning communities vs. their Facebook Pages:</p>
<ol>
<li><span class="font-size-2">Fans in the Ning communities were much more likely to post something (a blog post, new discussion topic, a photo, or a video) over a simple comment.</span></li>
<li><span class="font-size-2">In the Ning communities, the vast majority of commenting were fans commenting on other fans’ posts. On the Facebook Pages, the majority of commenting were fans commenting on posts from the brand or page owner. In other words, most activity in the custom Ning communities were many-to-many interactions whereas on Facebook, most activity were one-to-many interactions.</span></li>
</ol>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>The Study</strong></span></p>
<p>All five social leaders have large communities on both platforms. The number of posts and comments on each platform was roughly equivalent. Note, if lightweight engagements such as likes and shares were included, overall fan activity on Facebook would be higher.</p>
<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281863?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281863?profile=original" width="642"></a></p>
<p>In 4 of the 5 examples, fans or customers who had joined a Ning community were much more likely to post something (a blog post, new discussion topic, a photo or a video), rather than just comment.</p>
<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281869?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281869?profile=original" width="624"></a></p>
<p>In all cases, the vast majority of comments in the Ning community were made by fans on fan posts, rather than fan comments on the social leader’s posts or vice versa. On all of the Facebook Pages, the majority of interactions were between the social leader and fans (one-to-many).</p>
<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281916?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281916?profile=original" width="624"></a></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>And (not Or)</strong></span></p>
<p>A Facebook Page and a custom community can both play a valuable role in your social media strategy. The Author B in my study posts content on Facebook eight times per day on average. He’s casting a fishing net in a pond with more than a billion users. It’s an efficient, light-touch way for him to reach his fans and get a Like or a “Brilliant”, “Amazing” or “So wonderful”. As Richard Millington, a leading community expert, <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/the-psychological-impact-of-interactions" target="_self">explains</a>, “This is an audience, not a community.”</p>
<p>Author B has recruited over 39,000 of his most loyal fans to join his Ning community where they help and support each other. In the entire month of May, Author B only contributed 3 blog posts and commented 9 times in his Ning community. His loyal fans did the rest – posting blogs or initiating new discussion topics over 30 times per day. They are carrying out the philosophy and social purpose of Author B.</p>
<p>If you want to do more than fish in a big pond, build a custom community for your most loyal fans and create an army of brand evangelists.</p></div>How to Make Social Work for Your Community: Ted Rheingold at ForumCon 2013https://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/how-to-make-social-work-for-your-forums-ted-rheingold-at-forumcon2013-06-14T04:26:03.000Z2013-06-14T04:26:03.000ZAllison Leahyhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/allisonleahy<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208256?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>For anyone interested or involved in creating online communities, <a href="http://www.forumcon.com/agenda" target="_blank">ForumCon</a> is an event not to be missed. The conference offers a mix of keynote presentations, panel discussions, and breakout sessions, along with a healthy dose of collaboration. Session topics run the gamut from a history of forum software technology to SEO to connecting with your community in real life. Panelists presented a variety of perspectives on the business of community, but as a community manager, the talk that resonated most with me was <a href="https://twitter.com/tedr" target="_blank">Ted Rheingold</a>'s lessons on <strong>How to Make Social Work For Your Forums.</strong> Read on for key insights on creating a social strategy to compliment your community.</p>
<p>No community is so high and mighty that it doesn't need to participate in social media. As someone who owns or manages a thriving community, you might believe that Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Reddit aren't worth your time, and in some ways <a href="http://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/the-psychological-impact-of-interactions" target="_self">you're right</a>. But it's important to have humility in the face of Facebook and other powerhouse social platforms. In order to grow and replenish your community with new members, fresh ideas, and voices, you will need to make social media your ally. Launch your community into the social sphere and encourage site visitors to do the same through 1) design, 2) presence, 3) engagement hacks, and 4) creating shareable content.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>What the heck is sociality?</strong></span></p>
<p><strong>On page sociality:</strong> Someone reads a discussion or article on your site and shares it directly to her social networks via an on page share button.</p>
<p><strong>On service sociality:</strong> Someone is scrolling through her Pinterest, Facebook, or YouTube feeds, and doesn't want to go elsewhere, so she shares direct links back to your community.</p>
<p>If you want people to share content from your community, it's important to own the process of social sharing and make it as easy as possible for visitors. Learn the top three or four services your audience uses and that drive the most traffic to your site. Focus on those -- remove the others. Additionally, you should create a baseline for metrics by using <a href="http://www.google.com/analytics/features/social.html" target="_blank">Google Social Analytics</a>, which reverse engineers popular buttons and recognizes when they're clicked and submitted, so you can discover what your visitors are sharing and where they're sharing it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Different levels of sharing</strong></span></p>
<p><strong>Brand-level sharing: </strong>These are the buttons that prompt a visitor to connect with you on their favorite social channels e.g., "follow us on Twitter," "subscribe to our RSS feed," and "follow us on Instagram." You should display these buttons prominently on your site, but they should not appear on every page, because the visitor will only take this action once. The top righthand corner of the main page of a website is an ideal spot for these social icons, and many visitors will expect to see them there.</p>
<p><strong>Article-level sharing: </strong>Post and page-level sharing that should be prominent on every page of your community. Visitors can take multiple sharing actions and are more likely to share a post if the buttons are apparent. Top of post, bottom of post, and scrollbar social sharing buttons are most popular. A combination of top and bottom or bottom and scroll may prove even more powerful -- you can collect data or use a service such as <a href="http://www.crazyegg.com/" target="_blank">CrazyEgg</a> to see which placement attracts the majority of shares.</p>
<p><strong>Content-level sharing:</strong> The most sophisticated type of sharing, this sometimes requires a mouse-over for a submenu to pop-up that encourages readers to share photos, quotes, or paragraphs. If overdone, you run the risk of exhausting your audience.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Social platform fatigue: How can you tell which sites are worth your time?</span></strong></p>
<p>It doesn't take much to maintain a presence on a social platform. Being present on a social platform means adequately describing your service and product in your profile, including good photos and links back to your site. It's okay if you don't update your Google+ page daily or even weekly, but make sure your most recent update isn't from 2011, and keep it consistent. The important thing is that you do have a brand presence -- it's free marketing after all.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>@<a href="https://twitter.com/tedr">tedr</a> unless u have an amazing <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23social">#social</a> mgr working w you, can't possibly juggle all <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23social">#social</a>. you DO need to be present, tho. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23ForumCon">#ForumCon</a></p>
<p>— Lynn Abate-Johnson (@peoplefw) <a href="https://twitter.com/peoplefw/status/345282175408693248">June 13, 2013</a></p>
</blockquote>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Engagement hacks for the most popular social platforms</strong></span></p>
<p>Find the path of least resistance to improve your brand's reputation and increase its following on the most popular social platforms. Give your tweets and posts a personal touch and <em>don't buy your audience!</em></p>
<p><strong>Twitter</strong></p>
<p>Tweet as a "person" via the brand handle. Know your audience, and also know that the most sought after tweets are related to current events, breaking news, and personal updates.</p>
<p>Half-life: 30 minutes. If a tweet doesn't get any engagement in 30 minutes, put it in your back pocket and tweet it again later.</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Use the favorite function generously and add people to 'prestigious lists' (e.g., most inspirational speakers, ridiculously awesome community managers, the best of the Internet, etc.). </p>
<p><strong>Facebook</strong></p>
<p>"Facebook Edgerank is brutal," noted Ted. If you're getting hit by Edgerank and are in a negative cycle, the best way to break out of it is to <em>only </em>post things that get major engagement. If it takes only posting pictures of kittens and dogs, do it. As you start picking up engagement, you'll get caught in a more positive cycle. "It's awful, but they're focusing on their users who would rather look at cute pictures." Finally! Permission to start posting <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/homedepot/15-cats-that-are-very-disappointed-in-you-7g48" target="_blank">disappointed cat pictures</a>.</p>
<p>Half-life: One day, and the most engaging Facebook posts are news, culture, and celebrity-related.</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Fan peer pages; like, share, and comment on posts.</p>
<p><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281800?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="300" class="align-right" height="425" style="padding: 8px;"></p>
<p><strong>Pinterest</strong></p>
<p>Create very topic specific Boards. Instead of "for your home" try "wicker baskets for spring." <span>Think of your Pinterest board as a landing page for your long tail searches. Make sure to use the target keywords in your pin descriptions and board title. Those keywords help Google index and rank your Pinterest boards, and will be a boon to SEO.</span></p>
<p>Half-life: One hour. </p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Follow a single board of active users to get attention without flooding your home page.</p>
<p><strong>Instagram</strong> </p>
<p>Power up your Instagram feed by using top hashtags and following user-created trends. If a hashtag is hot, jump on the bandwagon.</p>
<p>Half-life: One hour. </p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Use the heart liberally -- liking and loving photos will delight fellow Instagram users and generate potential community members. If your community is all about cycling, seek out posts with the #cycling or #bike or #bikesf hashtags and comment when it is meaningful.</p>
<p><strong>YouTube</strong> </p>
<p>The most popular YouTube content is how-tos, serials, and personality-driven programs. <span>With the right content, viewers can get to know your brand better and in a positive light. Video content is exceptional at improving brand recall, perceived legitimacy, and overall reputation.</span></p>
<p>Half-life: Forever!</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Read the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/yt/playbook/" target="_blank">YouTube Playbook</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Google</strong>+</p>
<p>It's important to build a presence on Google+ for search power and credibility. Create a detailed profile and share content from your community directly to your Google+ page. The content creators in your community can also sign up for <a href="http://blog.searchengineacademy.com/blog/seo/google-authorship-7-benefits-beyond-seo/" target="_blank">Google Authorship</a>, which can help establish brand identity and may influence the way a post ranks in the search engine results page.</p>
<p>Half-life: One day.</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Find relevant groups and participate in them; organize Google Hangouts and invite influencers.</p>
<p><strong>LinkedIn</strong></p>
<p>Get crowned as an influencer! How? We're not quite sure.</p>
<p>Half-life: One hour.</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Participate in relevant groups, be generous with likes and comments, post new discussions, and follow influencers.</p>
<p><strong><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281819?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281819?profile=original" width="272" style="padding: 8px;" class="align-right"></a>Quora</strong> </p>
<p>To have a big impact on Quora, answer questions thoughtfully. Seek out popular or trending topics, but only answer them if you have something honest and valuable to add to the conversation.</p>
<p>Half-life: Forever!</p>
<p>Engagement hacks: Share knowledge, be modest and informative. Follow relevant influencers and up-vote valuable content.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Big thanks to Lucy Bartlett, <strong>Murray Newlands, </strong>Oliver Deighton, and <a href="http://www.viglink.com/" target="_blank">VigLink</a> for organizing the event and inviting us to attend. </strong></p>
<p></p>
<p><em>Lead image of a very disappointed cat courtesy of <a href="http://www.popkitten.com/sad-cats/" target="_blank">PopKitten</a> via <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/homedepot/15-cats-that-are-very-disappointed-in-you-7g48" target="_blank">Buzzfeed</a>; image of a worried boxer courtesy of <a href="http://birdstalkingtoo.blogspot.com/2009_06_01_archive.html" target="_blank">BirdsTalkingToo</a>; photo of Ted Rheingold at ForumCon 2013 courtesy of Crystal Coleman</em></p></div>Discovery is Powered by the Community You Keep: Glimpse Conference 2013https://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/discovery-is-powered-by-the-community-you-keep-glimpse-conference2013-06-13T18:14:41.000Z2013-06-13T18:14:41.000ZAllison Leahyhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/allisonleahy<div><p><span class="font-size-3">Discovery is powered by the community you keep -- its engine is online and social. Think GPS-enabled apps that let people learn more about others in their vicinity, recommendations from friends, and hashtagging. <a href="http://glimpseconf.com/2013-sf-agenda" target="_blank">Glimpse</a> is the first ever conference focused on the future of social discovery, a decidedly broad topic that informed a day ripe with serendipitous discovery. </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><a href="http://glimpseconf.com/2013-sf-agenda" target="_blank">Panels</a> covered topics including the future of Dating, Shopping, Transportation, Content, Entertainment, Neighborhood, Investing, and Identity. The fast-paced, 25-minute per panel format fueled quick-witted conversation. S</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">ocial discovery is exploding in every direction, but at the end of the day, the thread that ties it all together: Community. Of course! </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Community is the infinite network of connections, visible and invisible, that combine to form the tapestry of our identity. Our community informs everything from our purchasing to listening decisions. We leverage community to develop trust, which is widely recognized as the <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/rachel_botsman_the_currency_of_the_new_economy_is_trust.html" target="_blank">currency of the new economy</a>. None of these functions of community are new, but they are made even more obvious today with the development of social tools and sophisticated algorithms.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">To illuminate the importance of community, a few tweets from the day:</span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>Fascinating. A community of literary lovers organically discovered and propelled 50Shades of Grey to fame on @<a href="https://twitter.com/goodreads">goodreads</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Karynn Ikeda (@ktikeda) <a href="https://twitter.com/ktikeda/status/344957601240477696">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>You can't talk content without talking community. Curation. Creation. Conference. Carpaccio. Combustication. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Mayka Mei (@mayka) <a href="https://twitter.com/mayka/status/344953975868624896">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>The next trend? Social currency created by community. Every product needs a market says @<a href="https://twitter.com/naval">naval</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Shari Foldes (@sharifoldes) <a href="https://twitter.com/sharifoldes/status/344859322813128704">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>Robust team of community managers in the CNN news room. Definitely not a position in journalism a few years ago. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Selena Larson (@selenalarson) <a href="https://twitter.com/selenalarson/status/344953489195147264">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>Half of @<a href="https://twitter.com/disqus">disqus</a> is about technology and the other half is about community management. You can’t have discussions in a void. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Karynn Ikeda (@ktikeda) <a href="https://twitter.com/ktikeda/status/344952821562621953">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>"We underestimated the power of community at RelayRides...it's an interesting factor." - @<a href="https://twitter.com/andre_haddad">andre_haddad</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23GlimpseConf">#GlimpseConf</a></p>
— Allison Leahy (@zapleahy) <a href="https://twitter.com/zapleahy/status/344895883910987777">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>travel is a state of mind. representing @<a href="https://twitter.com/couchsurfing">couchsurfing</a> and talking trust, community, and discovering new people, experiences at <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Annie Fishman (@anniefishman) <a href="https://twitter.com/anniefishman/status/210443653817180162">June 6, 2012</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>The power of community: Relay Rider has better cust satisfaction when they meet the owner in person, rather than a digital exp. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Jen Picard (@jenpicard) <a href="https://twitter.com/jenpicard/status/344895360898039808">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>"Skout sees community management as #1. Otherwise things will be overrun. Anonymous straight men behave very badly" <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23hahaha">#hahaha</a></p>
— annebot (@annebot) <a href="https://twitter.com/annebot/status/344932639288995840">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>"I think Wanelo works because it's a community, it's not just one brand" -@<a href="https://twitter.com/whatupwilly">whatupwilly</a> from @<a href="https://twitter.com/zapposlabs">zapposlabs</a>(cheers) <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a></p>
— Sean Flannagan (@seanflannagan) <a href="https://twitter.com/seanflannagan/status/344865760264482816">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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<p>"The neighborhood is the original social network" - @<a href="https://twitter.com/sarahleary">sarahleary</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23glimpseconf">#glimpseconf</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23socialmedia">#socialmedia</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23community">#community</a></p>
— Samantha Strauss (@sfsam22) <a href="https://twitter.com/sfsam22/status/344878791245590529">June 12, 2013</a></blockquote>
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</div>What is Your Community Support System?https://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/what-is-your-community-support-system2013-05-17T09:00:00.000Z2013-05-17T09:00:00.000ZCrystalhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/CrystalC<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208189?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><span class="font-size-3">Everyone has bad days at work sometimes. And it's pretty normal now to Tweet or post on Facebook to let off some steam.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><span>As community managers, we often can't use the same outlets to vent our frustrations,</span> Maria Ogneva notes in her recent (excellent) article <a href="http://socialsilk.com/2013/05/15/community/dark-side-community-management/" target="_blank">The Dark Side of Community Management</a>. Our names and faces are publicly connected to our employers, and we have to watch what we tweet. With these popular channels of communication turned off to us, it's important to find other avenues of support. When you need to talk about your day, who or what do you turn to? </span></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">A Significant Other</span></strong></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Partners are usually the first stop when it comes to venting about your day. If your partner isn't in the social media field, though, they might find it hard to sympathise when you complain about that one person who did that one thing that ruined your day.</span></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">Humor/Satire Blogs</span></strong></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">A little dose of humor can go a long way, and sometimes, all that's left to do is laugh about something. That's probably what prompted the birth of <a href="http://whatshouldwecallsocialmedia.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">What Should We Call Social Media</a>. I know I'm not the only one that's thought "<a href="http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-know-that-feel-bro" target="_blank">I know that feel, bro</a>" to those entries. </span></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">Online Communities</span></strong></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><span>When you really just need another community management professional to understand you, o<span>nline communities are a great place to turn for advice or to bounce ideas off of others. </span></span></span></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">Offline Communities</span></strong></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">If you're fortunate enough to live in an area with a large amount of community managers, there may be <a href="http://www.meetup.com/find/?keywords=community+management" target="_blank">meetup groups</a> or other regular meetings of fellow community managers where you can chat, vent, and share ideas face to face. </span></p>
<p></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Do you have a support system outside of one of these areas? Share yours in the comments. </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">  </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2">(<i>Image: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thatgirlcrystal/6835437121/">Bad Day</a>, a Creative Commons <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.en">Attribution Non-Commercial No-Derivative-Works (2.0)</a> image from thatgirlcrystal's photostream</i>)</span></p>
</div>The Psychological Impact Of Interactionshttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/the-psychological-impact-of-interactions2013-05-07T16:59:31.000Z2013-05-07T16:59:31.000ZRichard Millingtonhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/RichardMillington<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208194?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>When you reply to a fun, <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.feverbee.com/2011/02/open-and-closed-questions.html">closed</a>, question on Facebook it doesn't affect you on a deep level. </p>
<p>It doesn't increase your connection to the organization or fellow likers. It has little influence on your future actions (and certainly not your buying habits). The only thing that changes are the engagement stats. They skyrocket.</p>
<p>If you were to look at <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.facebook.com/visitsweden">VisitSweden's Facebook page</a>, clearly they have high engagement rates. They have hundreds of people liking posts, commenting on posts, and even sharing posts. It looks terrific. </p>
<p>Therein lies the problem. It looks so much better and more active than their community did. <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.communityofsweden.com/footer/editorial/community-of-sweden/close-down/">They decided</a> to close the community and focus on social media platforms. </p>
<p>If look at engagement metrics, this makes sense. Closing struggling communities is a good idea anyway. But it's mistaken to believe that the types of interaction are interchangable between platforms.</p>
<p>In dedicated community platforms people talk to each other, not just the page admin. They build relationships with each other. They visit daily to satisfy their social needs. This has significant, long-term, impacts on future actions and, yes, buying habits. </p>
<p>The FB page has few discussions. No-one is getting to know other people on the page. This is an audience, not a community. Despite all the engagement, it will be tough to demonstrate any measurable impact. </p>
<p>Interactions aren't equal. Interactions <i>between</i> members are very different from interactions <i>with</i> members. Responding to a Facebook post has a far weaker psychological commitment than participating in a discussion with other people. Likes have no beneficial impact. </p>
<p><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281905?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750"> </p>
<p>You can look at the interactions themselves above. They don't bring the same value as discussions which take place in community platforms. They don't bring new value, new information, encourage high levels of self-disclosure, build relationships between members, nor build bonds between members. </p>
<p>This presents a problem for a community professional. You're going to get pressure to move to social media platforms. You're going to find it easier to develop a page that looks really active and pleases the boss. Yet you also know this page doesn't have the same impact as community platforms do. This is a really, really, tough argument to make. But if we don't make this argument, we'll find it impossible to build communities.</p>
<p>(<i>Image: <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nostri-imago/2866399803/">Last Conversation Piece</a>, a Creative Commons <a rel="nofollow" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">Attribution (2.0)</a> image from nostri-imago's photostream</i>)</p></div>Social Media Responds to Tragedy with Tacthttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/social-media-responds-to-tragedy-with-tact2013-04-18T15:00:00.000Z2013-04-18T15:00:00.000ZCrystalhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/CrystalC<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208136?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>The social media response to Monday's tragic Boston Marathon bombings was, for the most part, one of tact, community, and cautiousness and shows the power that social media and online community can have in times of crisis. While there was the <a href="http://www.mrmediatraining.com/2013/04/16/tragedy-in-boston-what-the-hell-was-epicurious-thinking/" target="_blank">inevitable brand misstep</a>, the majority of conversations happening around social media communities were positive ones.</p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Communities in Action</span></p>
<p>The Boston PD utilized the new broadcast channels that social media allows, <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/04/15/boston-marathon-police-tweet-video/" target="_blank">tweeting their request for video from in and around the Boston Marathon area</a> (Mashable). While law enforcement agencies have long sought witnesses and video evidence from crime scenes, the megaphone effect of social media and the large number of people who were likely to have been filming (either for later uploading to social platforms anyway or for their own personal memories) will result in an abundance of footage for investigators to work with. </p>
<p><a href="http://google.org/personfinder/2013-boston-explosions" target="_blank">Google implemented its Person Finder</a> service (previously deployed after the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami) to assist friends and family reconnecting with each other after the explosions. An <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/bostonites-offer-rooms-meals-rides-stranded-marathon-tragedy-article-1.1318264" target="_blank">unknown Samaritan used Google Drive's Form tool</a> to create a Need A Place to Stay database, connected stranded visitors with Bostonians willing to open their spare beds and couches for the night. </p>
<p>With cell phone service unavailable or overloaded for many, others (including Foursquare's Dennis Crowley) were <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/100645753" target="_blank">still able to use their social networks</a> to let worried friends and family know they were okay. An "I'm ok," tweet replaced hours of phone calls and missed calls and worry. While misinformation <em>was</em> being distributed, it was quickly fact-checked and debunked before spreading too far.  <a href="http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/boston-technology-social-media-enable-rapid-provider-response/2013-04-16" target="_blank">Area hospitals also utilized social media</a> to keep people apprised of the developing situation.</p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Response Pieces</span></p>
<p>Jon Loomer, in <a href="http://www.jonloomer.com/2013/04/16/social-media-marketing-tragedy/" target="_blank">Social Media Marketing in Times of Tragedy</a>, revised a previous post, addressing what he feels is the proper response from brands post-tragedy. He emphasized the importance of not running your community as a one-person show lest you get caught unavailable when social feeds need to be paused:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Some brands left their auto-posting on. In many cases, I completely get it. Maybe they hadn’t heard the news yet. Or maybe they were not in a place where they could turn this off.</p>
<p>That’s why it’s important to have a backup who can turn this messaging off if necessary. It could be an employee, but it could also be a spouse or friend.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Stephanie Fusco shared <a href="http://stephaniefusco.com/2013/04/when-tragedy-strikes-a-community-managers-checklist/?hubRefSrc=twitter#lf_comment=69177887" target="_blank">When Tragedy Strikes: A Community Manager's Checklist</a>, which included two steps I found especially resonant:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Ask: how will our fans be affected? </strong>Once you’ve paused all communication efforts, ask yourself how your fans will be affected by this tragedy and how, if at all, you can help. One of my favourite examples of putting this into action is trampoline company Springfree’s response to Hurricane Sandy. Knowing that their fans would be nervous about securing their trampolines, the company posted a helpful<a href="http://www.springfreetrampoline.com/blog/tag/hurricane-sandy-tips" target="_blank"> blog post with Hurricane Sandy Tips</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Call decision makers. </strong>When tragedy strikes, our first instinct is to help. For many, this includes reaching out to large corporations or local companies in hopes that they can provide funds or services to aid in recovery. Once you have your communication ducks in a row, call up key decision makers and ask how, if at all, they are able to help. For a company like Google, this meant creating a person finder tool for those in Boston after the <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/04/15/boston-marathon-person-finder/" target="_blank">Boston Marathon bombings</a>.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Chris Brogan took to <a href="http://humanbusinessworks.com/radioshow/69boston/" target="_blank">his podcast</a> to voice a contrasting opinion, insisting that business as usual is not necessarily insensitive in times of tragedy and we should stop being judgmental about the choices businesses are making. Quote transcribed from podcast: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>What got to me was this notion... that <strong>now </strong>this was something we should be thinking about and yet there were explosions and death that happened in Iraq... and Somalia that same day. And that doesn't take away from what happened in Boston... if we're gonna tell marketers and businesses to stop doing what they're doing because there's tragedy, well there's tragedy all the time. And you can say 'yes, but this is close to home,' but that's the very thought... you're not giving the same thought or level of respect to other countries. That nationalism... is frustrating to me.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Your Community</span></p>
<p>At a time like this, an online community can be a place of comfort for many members. Running and fitness-centric communities especially may find that the attacks hit very close to home for them emotionally. Even if off-topic conversation is normally verboten in your community, you may want to designate a thread for people to share their thoughts, feelings, and stories related to this event. A quick reminder of the Code of Conduct or Community Guidelines that you've set in place might be necessary if the topic becomes inflammatory. Gauge what's right and appropriate for your community... they'll probably tell you what they need from you.  </p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>(Image: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cityofbostonarchives/8224218721/in/set-72157632114111561/" target="_blank">Ariel View: South Boston</a> from the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cityofbostonarchives/" target="_blank">City of Boston Archives</a> on Flickr, Public Domain)</em></p>
<p> </p>
</div>How To Use A Community Platform With Social Media Platformshttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/how-to-use-a-community-platform-with-social-media-platforms2013-04-17T15:50:00.000Z2013-04-17T15:50:00.000ZRichard Millingtonhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/RichardMillington<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2208217?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><span class="font-size-3">Your community platform is your home. </span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">It’s the destination you want your target audience to reach so you can cultivate a community. In this central base, you can control the newcomer to regular journey, facilitate interactions between members, create great content, and form a powerful group identity.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn are bad platforms on which to build communities. You don’t have the control you need and you can only reach a tiny percentage of your audience.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">However, you can use these social media platforms in two very useful ways:</span></p><ul><li><span class="font-size-3">Bring in new members. You can use social media platforms to find people interested in your topic and invite them to join the community. Following you on a social media account can be the first step to being a regular community member.</span></li></ul><ul><li><span class="font-size-3">Increase activity from existing members. It takes time for visiting the community to become a habit. You can use social media platforms to let members know what is happening in the community. You can get members to visit more frequently through the platforms they are used to visiting.</span></li></ul><p><span class="font-size-3">For most communities, it makes sense to have both a Twitter and Facebook account. Invite members in the community to follow you on these accounts. Then use them to let people know what’s going on in the community.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">For example, if there is a popular discussion taking place, write you can publish updates about it. If you have a great member-contribution to the community, you can update people on social media accounts about that too.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">You can go beyond this. You can create a community hashtag on Twitter and let members share thoughts via this hashtag which are then pulled in to the community. You can arrange live discussions via Twitter and report on what was discussed in the community.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-3">If you like, you can use it to share interesting facts or the best pieces of advice being shared in the community. The more interesting/useful, the more people will visit.</span></p><p></p><p><span class="font-size-3"><em><span class="font-size-2">Lead <a rel="nofollow" href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bagolino_village.jpg" target="_blank">image</a> courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and <span class="font-size-3"><em><span class="font-size-2">remixed</span></em></span> under <a rel="nofollow" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC Share Alike 3.0</a></span></em> <br/></span></p></div>Why Businesses are Embracing Branded Community Siteshttps://cultivate.ning.com/ning-blog/why-businesses-are-embracing-branded-community-sites-12013-04-08T18:32:59.000Z2013-04-08T18:32:59.000ZAmita Paulhttps://cultivate.ning.com/community/AmitaPaul<div><p><span class="font-size-3"><strong>Moving Beyond Facebook</strong></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1281690?profile=original" class="align-right" height="317" width="312"></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Many of us following Facebook’s ongoing updates to News Feeds are convinced that the new rules, filters and algorithms are making it harder for businesses to reach their audience without spending big money on sponsored posts. Given the rising costs and unpredictability of reaching their fan base with organic content, brands and business owners are considering to limit their reliance on Facebook as their core social media platform, and are more likely to continue using Facebook for it’s 1 billion+ users, primarily as one of their many distribution channels. A recent NYTimes article by Nick Bolton <a rel="nofollow" href="http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/03/disruptions-when-sharing-on-facebook-comes-at-a-cost/">“Disruptions: As User Interaction on Facebook Drops, Sharing comes at a Cost”</a> brings up these issues, with a very relevant example. The desperate monetization attempts of Facebook (costs of audience acquisition, engagement and reach etc ) and, the concerns of privacy and control, are few of the many reasons that are forcing businesses to move away from Facebook as a destination site and, are encouraging them to embrace alternatives, available in more controlled, and privately owned community sites.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><b>Audience Size and Quality</b></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Social Media experts and marketers have been ranting for long about the need for businesses to have a sizable audience on Facebook to have any meaningful existence. This directly translates to investments in getting consumers to like their page. These investments would make sense, if there were a guaranteed formula to correlate the likes on a page to the engagements they would drive. Unfortunately there is no such magic formula. The audience thus cultivated or rather, bought does not ensure quality. In more cases than not and, with targeted investments, this audience does not give the assurance of any long-term commitment.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><b>Audience Engagement</b></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Further investments need to be made to reach even a small fraction of this audience and, businesses are required to promote their messages. Then again, Facebook model favors content producers. Not all businesses support this model. This inherent assumption in the design impacts such businesses in getting visibility with their fan base, and, deems Facebook not the preferred medium to build a thriving community. Why would businesses pay to acquire fans, when they have to pay to reach them?</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><b>Ownership and Control</b></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Finally, after investing in fan acquisition and in engagement, there is very little that business owners can do <em>with</em> their audience. There is no straightforward way to reach out to the audience they've acquired, without any intermediary (which, is Facebook) or through any other channels like, email. There is little to no ownership of audience data. Facebook knows more about your hard-earned audience than you as a business owner do.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><b>Fragmented Social</b></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Yes, Facebook dominates as the largest generic platform. But, the media environment is fragmented and consumers will subscribe to a truck-load of niche platforms that are rich in content like Path, Pinterest, and other content-based websites. I predict that we will witness a shift where businesses and brands will place less focus on the channels and more on the pathway of content communication that is most linked to the desired outcomes, thus making such sites as mentioned earlier to be distribution channels, rather than destination sites. </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><b>Embracing Niche Community Sites</b></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Niche community sites that can be built using platforms like Ning 3.0 offer power of participation and group-think, which keeps the community thriving, without any external stimulus.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3">Businesses are willing to invest in members and are increasingly interested in creating communities that can be nurtured and developed to produce long-term commitment. By focusing on vertical niches, business efforts can be directed towards building high yielding destination websites. A members-only community facilitates relationship building without concerns of privacy and it presents more direct ways of engaging with a member-base.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"><a href="http://www.ning.com/customer-story/national-peace-corps-association/" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://www.ning.com/customer-story/national-peace-corps-association/" target="_blank">Erica Berman</a>, who is the Director of Communications for The National Peace Corps Association, and manages a thriving community powered by the Ning Platform, shares her experience:</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p><span style="color: #000000;" class="font-size-3">“While Facebook was good for us at the beginning, now it feels like fewer and fewer people are seeing our content. We can’t afford to promote posts and even if you do, there’s no guarantee members see them. If I send something out in the Ning community I know they see it. Plus, it’s easy to export our membership data for our monthly email newsletter. When we send a message out to our Ning community, we always see a bump in responses. We sent out a survey to many places asking members about their service and life after the Peace Corps–the Ning community was the most responsive."</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span class="font-size-3">The Peace Corps still uses the reach of other social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn, but the Ning site is the core of its online efforts. Read more about Erica Berman’s success and others at <a href="http://www.ning.com/customer-story/national-peace-corps-association/" target="_self">Ning.com</a>. </span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-3"> </span></p></div>