Online Community - What Does it Mean?

Commentary by: Danielle Wiley, Manager, Content Strategy

For many companies with an online presence, “community” is the Holy Grail. It is easy to see why. Thriving online communities can offer so much to those wishing to market to the users. They are viral, taking on a life of their own and spreading like wildfire. They are addicting, with users logging in multiple times a day and suffering withdrawal when not able to access the Internet. And, finally, online communities create loyalty.

Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to create an online community from scratch. The best way to benefit from community, then, is to take advantage of groups that already exist. Sponsorship and advertising opportunities are plentiful. The key is finding the appropriate group.

There are three types of online communities with viable advertising opportunities: message boards, email groups and chat rooms. Message boards live on Web sites or on America Online, and allow users to post messages to each other. Email groups are similar, but messages are emailed to everyone in the group, not posted on a site. Finally, chat rooms allow for real time conversations. Often, members of a message board or email group will get together at pre-set times in a chat room for a gathering.

The most popular email group site is yahoogroups.com. Navigation of the site works much like the original Yahoo! site. There are categories for browsing and a search box. I typed in “remodeling” and was presented with 36 email groups, ranging from a group for “Do It Yourself” devotees to a group for contractors to get together and share ideas. Talk about targeted audiences! For companies trying to target those in the midst of a remodeling project, these groups are ideal. Every email that is sent to the group contains an advertisement. If the ads are well targeted and address an issue that is of interest to the readers, it has a very good chance of success. By the way, if you can't find a group that fits your desired demographic, you can create your own! The producers of the new movie The Mothman Prophecies have created an official group for audiences to talk about the film.

Message boards are another type of online community. They live on niche Web sites, such as iVillage, a popular venue for message boards targeting women. Here, you'll find boards covering such topics as Motherhood (there's a group for moms of children born every month of every year), Dealing with Breast Cancer, Feng Shui, and even Computer Security and Privacy. Another site with many message boards is About.com. Here there are mini-sites covering every topic imaginable, and each mini-site has a message board. Advertising on these boards works the same way as advertising on any Web site, and include banner ads and pop-up opportunities. On About.com, there are also auctioned, pay-for-click listings available.

Chat rooms also cover multiple topics and offer opportunities for banner advertising. However, the fast pace of online chat makes it unlikely that users will pause long enough to ponder the advertising being presented. Message boards and email groups offer much better bang for your community advertising buck. There is one exception to this rule. If your company has an expertise that could be shared with users, you can sponsor a learning chat. Here is a great example. The author, Donna Boetig, wrote a book about writing feature articles for women's magazines. In March of 1999, she participated in a chat on a Web site called Momwriters, answering questions from the users of the site. This was phenomenal advertising for her book and it didn't cost her a cent. In fact, the chat is still selling books for her, as a transcript (www.momwriters.com/connectdboetig.html) is posted on the momwriters site in their archives section.

Even if you choose not to advertise on an online community, they can be a great way to better yourself both professionally and personally. An email group and message board addict, I have learned more from these communities than I have from any book or class. My Weimaraner message board has introduced me to dog lovers around the country, and even the world. When my dog was very ill, I received dozens of links on immune-related disease in Weimaraners and was even referred to a specialist living in Scotland.

My email group for mothers of babies born in November of 2001 has been another source of knowledge and support. I have learned about attachment parenting, vaccination pros and cons and even tips for curing colic. It is a close-knit group of women that share a common bond. We all check our messages frequently throughout the day, and are making plans to meet sometime soon.

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