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Strategies for Community Engagement | Luis F. Aleman

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From Reddit to Facebook to Discord, it seems like everyone is trying to build a community these days. These is a good reason for this. Humans are social creatures and many people feel the urge to belong to a group of people who find a common interest. Rather than the size of the group, a community is often defined by the amount of engagement or interactions between its members. A person or a brand can have a large following, but if no one is interacting, that isn’t a give and take of ideas. It’s just a one-way relationship. Here are some tips on increasing community engagement.

Provide A Platform

The easier it is for the community members to express their opinions or ideas the better it is for community engagement. People love giving their opinions and perspective so give them an easy way to do that. User-generated content is the best way to not only build engagement but it also takes the burden away from having to always come up with new content yourself.

Make It A Safe Space

In this age of anonymity, it only takes one bad experience to ruin a brand or change the atmosphere of the community. Engagement will decrease if its members do not feel it is safe for them to express their ideas and opinions.

Understand Your Community

We all come from different backgrounds. Different people are attracted to different things. Understand why the community members keep coming back and what they are looking for in the community. Cater the group content and remind users to direct interactions toward the main purpose of the group.

Don’t Forget Social Media

Social media is an integral part of marketing, brand building, and keeping the community engaged. Utilizing social media correctly is a great way to not only keep the community engaged but also bring in new members into the community. Social media is a powerful tool when used correctly.

Always Respond

The community will only last if they know or feel like they are being heard. If the community is large, it is understandable that immediate responses aren’t practical. However, not responding at all to your community will not only decrease engagement but drive its members away. People want to be heard. People want to know they are heard. Responding as much as you can will drive engagement and fuel more interactions between the community members.

This article was originally published at https://luisfaleman.org