Five tips for a vibrant community

Since I joined Plek as CEO, I have spoken to many customers and prospects. And in doing so, I immediately noticed something. There is a big difference between organizations that use their social intranet for their internal communication and those that do so for "external" purposes. Also, the vibrancy of those external communities is often a lot lower compared to social intranets for internal use. Based on my experience so far, I would like to give you five tips to increase interaction within your community aimed at external members, which can result in your community becoming a lot more active and lively.

Types of external communities

There are many different types of communities operating, including, among others:

• Trade organizations, wishing to serve as a knowledge platform for member organizations
• Voluntary organizations, wishing to share information and best practices
• Business associations, which want to strengthen the mutual network
• Large employers, who want to keep their alumni involved and informed
• Temporary employment and secondment organizations, which want to share relevant content with their external staff.

But they all struggle with the same challenge:

‘How do I stay relevant to my members? Why should they keep visiting my platform?’

I'd like to give you five tips that will increase the vibrancy of your platform and thus help you stay relevant. Finally, I will give you a bonus tip; it is especially for anyone who has, or wants, to start a community and will not be managing the community themselves.

1: User-friendliness first

Participation starts with a user-friendly platform. This means:
- Can members quickly respond to each other via multi-threaded comments?
- Is it easy for users to quickly share videos, documents or information for specific target groups?
- Is the content clearly displayed?

Bear in mind that members also don't want to be overwhelmed by new information. This is prevented by layered access and good notification settings. Because the more actively they participate, the more involved members feel in your community.

2. Show who is part of your community 

A successful community consists of a large group of active members. It is therefore important that participants can quickly see who is in the community and who is active. A well-organised facebook with configurable profile pages can therefore be a very valuable addition here.

Profile pages showing expertise, function and membership of specific groups can play an important role in making mutual connections. And have your members found the right person? Then make sure they can start a chat directly on the profile page. That way, you ensure even greater engagement!

3: Welcome new members when they join

Nothing is worse than entering an event, only to be greeted by no one! So help your new members get started. Don't just guide them on the platform by pointing out the possibilities, but also point them to groups and members that might be relevant for them. This way, you actively contribute to the success of your own community.

4. Gather feedback!

Actively respond to the needs of the community. You can do this by means of regular pulse checks (how is everyone doing, what kind of topics are trending at the moment, what are people looking for?) or set up (anonymous) surveys.

Only by actively asking your members what is going on you can take your community to the next level. Let people contribute, and keep asking for regular feedback.

5: Omnichannel experience 

From home, in the office or on the road. Members should be able to ask or answer questions whenever they want. So make sure your online accessibility is on point.

Make sure your platform is accessible via multiple devices (mobile, tablet or computer). And also make sure logging into your community is effortless (e.g. provide a clear landing page and login procedure). This way, you ensure that members stay involved everywhere, whenever they want. You will see, this also contributes to mutual activity!

Bonus tip: Have a community manager

It's obvious: I know. But if there is one aspect that I have seen that makes the difference between a ‘dead’ and a very vibrant community, it is the community manager. Someone who posts relevant content, moderates conversations, inspires and rewards ambassadors. Someone who regularly solicits feedback, looks for what works and what doesn't, analyses which content resonates and which does not. In short: that one person who makes sure the community lives and stays alive. Who makes members feel welcome and heard.

Have you managed that? Then I am sure your community will really come alive. Do you have any more tips to get and keep a member community healthy? Let me know!