Get Sure Shot Success in Business With Online Communities

Online  communities are the most effective form of social networking as they are created to bring like-minded people with common ambitions, passions, and goals. They are more interactive than social media links as members share better understanding and stronger, bonding. Building social communities have become the need as it can improve the quality of life.

Online Communities and business

Online communities make effective branding strategies for business organizations. They take Social media to the next level by converting it into a social business. The members act as promoters they endorse the products and promote the brands. Another benefit of social communities is that they can tap community membership to reach the best talents in the industry and hire them.

Benefits of Communities to Members

·       Customer Support: Customers visit online communities for the purpose of gaining customer support. Support is given by the means of guidance or feedback from an employee. Many times feedback comes from online customers. Do the customers get help in what they are looking for?

·       Self Esteem: People feel accomplished when they contribute useful information to the online community. If an individual helps a fellow individual with a problem he will feel satisfaction from the experience. Humans want to feel important in some way or another. By helping members feel needed and appreciated by others.

·       Reputation: Some people post helpful information to online communities. When a person becomes regular in providing useful information in company discussion, the person can gain a good reputation in the company.

·       The unexpected and unique: People join communities because it gives them support mainly emotional support. Understanding emotions is a powerful way to tap them. The most valuable communities are built for existing or loyal customers. Customers when offered unexpected and provided with the right answers they will turn into the powerful brand reputation and sales instruments.

·          Content and information: An online community is powered by exchanging and sharing content information. Ask good information and content from communities.

Steps Business Must Take To Make Online Communities World Class

·       Identify Business Objectives: Don’t create an online community if one is unaware of business objectives. The purpose could include support, digital marketing or networking, but there should be some way for community members to meet their objectives.

·       Emphasize Being Personal: Personal touch is an important factor in the online community's success. Simple things like completing profiles, putting pictures. Tell customers and communities which company is running the community.

·       Be a Source of Relevant Content: One way to make community members reach their objectives is by the means of content that they are interested in. Telligent’s unofficial survey goal that setting goals make customers clear about what you want to do.

·       Reward in the Pixels not Pennies: Giving rewards is another way of boosting the morale of communities. Anything that communities will do for digital recognition will help companies in a great way.

·       Give successful Privileges: The privileges for min members and members should be different this provides incentives to members of the community. Some can include giving access to special content, assess new information, discounted products.

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·       Leverage the wisdom of the crowd: Make world-class communities will use information exchanged on their networks to improve their products and transform the way they are doing the business. Doing so will allow community members to answer the questions instead of first jumping to conversations.

·       Highly Influential Members: Influential members of the community have a great impact on the behavior of other users. By engaging and highlighting your biggest fans you will empower them to shape and grow your community.

·       Established and Enforce Guidelines: Create a policy that community members will be clear with what to do and what not to do as well as how violations of the policy will be handled.

·       Cut Customer Service Costs: Companies launch branded Online communities and customer service support to help customers themselves. They seed the community with product, documentation, expert articles and ask loyal customers to join them. Struggling users can search those resources, asking questions and discussion forums or finding answers in videos and blogs.

Helpful content can answer a lot of customers queries reducing support calls to your company

·       Boost New Customer Acquisition: Communities with public section contains SEO optimized discussion, forums, articles, and updates that are indexed by Google.When prospects will Search for solutions to problems the community will show up in results, increasing brand awareness.

To Conclude, Online communities contribute by making jobs of companies easier and are more efficient. A community can contribute by giving new ideas, advice, and recommendations in order to build the reputation of a business. Have a plan to deal with negative comments without highlighting the communities. Encourage communities to discuss the product in a greater imposing promotional message on the community. The higher the participation the greater the stake customers will have towards community and company's success.