i’m random, unique, maybe a little bit special… but crazy? are you sure?

ok so i might have had a little fun with you there, but the madness will continue next week… i will escape those men (and women) in white coats. taxi for one…!

oh and before you ask… the music is crazy by the kooks. i kinda love it.

i’d love to be able to list a ten step guide to building a successful community, the problem with that is that if you followed it step by step, you’d probably fail because it’s about taking each situation on it’s own individual merit and adapting your approach to suit each.

however, there are some key considerations that you should always remember…

DECIDE YOUR TARGET MARKET

trying to appeal to a mass market is always going to be a tough challenge and not one that many can succeed at. find your niche and stick to it. think LOLCATS - a specific phenomenon with a huge effect - heck my mum even emailed me in lol language the other day (that or she was in a rush and just not very good at spelling). have a clear idea before launching or re-branding of who it is that you want to use your product or service and why they would want to. have a friend that knows nothing about the web ask you all about it and if you can explain it clearly and with conviction, that’s always a good sign!

RESEARCH THE MARKET

find out where your target audience is communicating, what they’re talking about and the tools that they’re using. by listening and contributing to these conversations, you’re more likely to pick up on something that they feel is missing in the market which enables you to provide that niche product that everyone’s been waiting for.

you can’t build a site or service and just expect people to come to you - you have to be prepared to interact with the community members in a place that’s convenient for them. above all else, you have to be genuine about wanting to be in the chatter, contributing something of value and not just posting a link as a thread in a forum.

LOOK AT YOUR SITE

i know how ridiculous that sounds, but so many people build their site to please their desires rather than what their users actually want. build tools that encourage the behaviour that you want to see on your site - think instant messaging facilities, rating, sharing etc.

MONITOR FEEDBACK, MONITOR FEEDBACK, MONITOR FEEDBACK

whenever and wherever possible, open the floor up to your users - whether that’s through emails, feedback boxes, surveys or whatever, just make sure you’re doing it as much as you possibly can. getting the feedback is just the first part though, if you don’t do anything with that feedback, it’s a pointless exercise and you’re community won’t feel listened to.

if you can, incorporate the feedback at each release that you can. if there’s a reason that you don’t want to include some feedback or can’t, don’t be afraid to say that - whether that’s to the individual or on your blog. people will understand if they know that they’ve recognised their feedback.

if people give you feedback, they’re buying into your product/service - they want you to succeed and in return they’ll become your best advocates with a much further reach than you could ever hope for on your own.

THE FUTURE’S BRIGHT

of course, there’s a lot more to it… and it is time consuming but the rewards can be huge - i’m not talking financially, but bringing people together and watching them interact - what can be more satisfying than that? if you don’t have time to do this stuff, then at the very least pay someone to do it. the effects can be just as great as that of a really good pr firm but the loyalty will be much greater and longer lasting. communities rock!

to everyone who made my birthday what it is, i thank you. you really are great.

incase you didn’t catch that…

Hannah Jones, Alex de Carvalho, Dru Nierer, Garrett Murray, Dave Morin, James Duncan, Judson Collier, Kelly Manners, Mel Kirk (name twin), Tara Hunt, Lisa Moore, Neha Tiwari, Maximillano DeMuro, Mike Frankel, Amy Bale, Michael Palmer, Adam Rifkin, Bruce Durham, Mike Gowen, Natalie Gage, Hayden Rushton, Mark Eastlake, Patrick Dowman, Alvin Ashcroft, Matt Rees, Luke. M. Vaillancourt, Andy Clarke, Candy Clark, Luke and Karen Davey, Adrian Bryant, Tim Beadle, Rizal Karim, Lisa Jones, Marty Batten, Oyvin Solstad, Jina Bolton, Jeff Croft, Ryan Matthews, Werner Vogels, David Prager, Anne Holden, Andy Budd, Ryan Tutton, Josue Rodriguez, Sam Hardacre, Ryan Carson, Lisa Price, Natasha Higgins, Patrick Tutaj, Phillip Jeffrey, Tariq Krim, Tom Lewis, Daniel Craig, Jorge Jaime, Godwin Johnson, Jacob Burke, Annabel Kerr, Natalie Applin, Megan Cabble, Paula Searle, Kevin Bees, Alison Bees, Joban Dale, Melanie Kirk (name twin 2), Adam Cooke, Simon Powell, Sam Downie, Vero & Andrew Pepperrell, Bryan Veloso, Dan Efergan, Lorna Probert, Rohini Denton, Gav Strange, Rich Davey, Ben Reynhart, Katie Mcquinn-Roberts, Paul Boag, Elliot Jay Stocks, Sarah Parmenter, Sally Strebel, Chip Diffendafer, Brendan Dawes, James Higa, Joe Stump, D Keith Robinson, MSG, Kevin Marks, @jamieyates, @bellepheron, @shoesmitten, @anthonymcg, @neokrawl, @pixel, @montgomery, @legallb, @davidhuges, @legallb, @tayyabj, @glaciulcinder, @clntryan, @sideshowbob, @f14tomcat, @juksie, @johnthebeef, @theronin, @utku and @jinjorge.

thankyou! xox

i was sent a super special birthday present in celebration of me turning old tomorrow. then again… maybe it wasn’t so special… infact maybe it wasn’t a present at all…

wishing you the happiest of happy thursdays… and remember turn the light off when you walk out of a room

m x