Building an online community is hard, earning money from it is even harder. Businesses have taken customer insights from the online communities seriously, and others even converted them into income sources by monetizing them. More and more individuals are establishing their own community, with the goal of connecting people. By charging around $20-100 a month, entrepreneurs have built up a six-digit firm around topics as memory improvement techniques, guitar instruction, and culinary blog.
However, making the success of online communities is a big thing. To build a much more engaging community you need to draw enough participants, and more daunting is to cultivate a great user experience that will keep the participants dedicated – and able to pay – over time.
Start with a sufficient user database
If people visit your website and find that there is no activity, they will not be likely to participate or remain as a member. Before you go online, be sure you have at least 50 primary participants. One way to do this is to build a waiting list and unleash your website only when you’ve hit the right numbers. To identify the earliest participants, you can contact your email list, use social media to identify potential customers, or try the old-fashioned approach of personal calling and emailing to see if they want to join.
Concentrate on content that needs to surround your website
Undoubtedly, the value of an online community is the community. However, unless people experience it, they hardly imagine how the interaction is or why they have value. Instead, the thing which is likely to encourage people to join the community is the promise of valuable information. Therefore, express that in your messaging.
Get really engaged from the beginning
Your active involvement is necessary to build high engagement for the community. The members have a bond with you, not with each other. Therefore, you need to participate actively and frequently to cultivate the connection, and bring them into the habit of participating.
Build the connection
One of the best parts of the online community is the feeling of connection that members grow. Hence, it’s very essential to create a culture that makes everyone feel welcome when they join the community.
Deeply understand your community
It is necessary to understand the distinction between an online community and another sales platform. People don’t want to waste their time to be endlessly pitched, so be careful to prevent from selling too much. Besides, you should remember that close connections to your clients can help you. A deep understanding of your customers lets you know whether they want a new product or not. Thereby, you will know clearly what you need to do next.
By following these rules, you are far more able to develop a genuinely valuable platform for members and bring tangible value to their lives, while developing a sustainable business model for yourself.
If you are planning to build your online community, or want to grow it more effectively, phpFox can help. We are a leading social network platform with a big collection of interesting features. Along with free consultancy, we offer an optimal package while setting up and other services for your ideal online community. Do not hesitate to contact us for further discussion or drop us a message at hello@phpfox.com