Community is one of THE big buzzwords around marketing in 2023.
But what is a 'community' and why does it matter so much?
What is a community?
A community is a group of likeminded people who may be interested in, and want to interact with, your brand. Notice the emphasis on want, this isn't a passive audience that may or may want to engage with you. A community is a group of consumers that, if you can engage them correctly, could provide the core customer-base for your brand. They might even become your metaphorical cheerleaders!
That's not to say there's a ready-made community out for you to try and claim. You need to form your community by attracting your ideal customers (most likely your target audience) to not just purchase from you, but interact and engage with you on a long-term basis.
Think of it this way. Do you have a favourite band or sports team? You're part of their community. It's as simple as that!
That's the goal of a community, a core group of customers that support, a dare I say, love your brand.
If that didn't make any sense, checkout this article by Duel.
But how do you form a Community?
Forming a strong community takes time and a lot of effort. Sadly it's not a quick or easy goal to achieve, but it could not be more worth it.
To get started you need to think about who it is that you'd want to attract. Who is your ideal customer? What's your target audience? Look at the people who already interact with your brand on a regular basis. Why do they interact with you as much as they do? FYI parents and partners don't count, sorry!
Once you've got an idea of who you think would want to be part of your community, start to create content that they may interact with. Start looking at places outside of your own feed to post that content, are there established online communities you can engage with? The answer is almost certainly yes. Have a look at Reddit, Discord, and the long forgotten Facebook Groups.
What's the best way to maintain a Community?
Depending on who is in your community, there are a few great platforms that are community focused. Such as the three I just listed - Reddit, Discord, and Facebook Groups.
They all have their positives and negatives, but put simply go for the platform that the majority of your community is already on. It's not worth the hassle getting them to sign-up to Discord if they're all on Facebook.
Either way, each platform is a great way to cut through the noise of other brands and get content straight to them!
Keeping a community engaged and active can be a full-time job in itself. It's not just about regularly posting content, you need to be able to reply to questions and actively engage with them. You only get out what you put in, the more effort you make the stronger your community will feel towards your brand. If you really put the work in, you may be able to create some Brand Evangelists that will promote your brand for you, all because they love your brand and the community around it!
That's the basics on the importance of Community. If you have any questions, leave me a comment and I'll get back to you! (like a good community manager would!)