The Community Manager’s Playbook: How to Build Brand Awareness and Customer Engagement

304 Pages·2015·2.38 MB·English

by  Lauren Perkins (auth.)

THE COMMUNITY PERKINS
MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
Savvy companies recognize the value of a strong community. Think of Nike and its
community of runners, Nike+, and you’ll quickly understand that creating and fostering an
online community around a product or brand is a powerful way to boost marketing efforts,
gain valuable insight into consumers, increase revenue, improve consumer loyalty, and
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enhance customer service efforts.
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Companies now have the unprecedented opportunity to integrate their brand’s
messaging into the everyday lives of their target audiences. While supporting the growth E
of online communities should be at the top of every company’s priority list, all too often
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it falls by the wayside. That’s why brand strategy expert and digital marketer Lauren
Perkins wrote The Community Manager’s Playbook (#CMplaybook on Twitter), a must- O
read guide for business and brand builders who need to strengthen their approach to
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community management and customer engagement.
As Perkins explains, organizations of all sizes must treat community management M
as a central component of their overall brand and marketing strategy. When they do,
they will be rewarded handsomely with greater brand awareness, lower acquisition costs, U
increased customer retention, and a tribe of consumers who can’t wait to purchase their
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next product.
Perkins not only teaches readers how to build an engaging community strategy from I
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the ground up, but she also provides them with the tactical community management
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activities they need to acquire and retain customers, create compelling content, and
track their results along the way. Distinctive in its comprehensive, step-by-step approach
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to creating online communities that are fully consistent with a company’s existing brand
voice, The Community Manager’s Playbook: A
• Explains how excellent community management provides a competitive N
advantage with a large impact on sales
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• Provides an in-depth overview of brand and business alignment
• Teaches readers how to identify their community’s target audience and G
influence their needs and wants E
• Details the appropriate online channels through which content should
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be distributed
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• Champions the use of an agile approach through repeated testing to S
maximize the return on every company investment
• Discusses the many diverse metrics that can be used to measure P
community scope L
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Today, there is no brand strategy without a community strategy. Companies that are not
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developing communities are losing control of their brands and missing opportunities to
optimize their marketing investments. With The Community Manager’s Playbook as their B
guide, however, marketing professionals and the brands they represent will be equipped to O
manage their online marketing efforts, and ensure that their messaging is heard across all
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corners of the digital landscape.
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ISBN 978-1-4302-4995-5 Companion
53499
eBook
US $34.99
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Contents
about the author                                             vii
acknowledgments                                             ix
introduction                                                 xiii
Part i: learning                                  1
Chapter 1: what is Community management?                   3
Chapter 2: not all Communities are Created equal                21
Chapter 3: Hired!                                            45
Chapter 4: How Community Creates Business Value              69
Part ii: Planning                                 95
Chapter 5: Cm strategy orientation and setup                   97
Chapter 6: the aBCs of landscape analysis                     115
Chapter 7: listening and discovery                            159
Chapter 8: Building and implementing a Community
management strategy                             189
Part iii: doing                                  219
Chapter 9: designing Community and social experiments        221
Chapter 10: Performance tracking and measurement              239
Chapter 11: Primary Platforms                                251
Chapter 12: day-to-day management of Your Community          259
Chapter 13: storytelling                                      273
index                                                       291
Introduction
The Power and Value of Community
The world is changing. This has always been true, but we feel it more because
the pace of change continues to accelerate. advances in technology have
pushed the pedal to the metal on every aspect of our lives! The internet, with
its social networks and mobile technologies, is turning the world into one big
neighborhood. People can connect with each other instantly and constantly.
location is no longer an issue, and connectivity truly has enabled an engaged
world.
The business landscape has Changed
The business world is no exception. in every industry, technology is bringing down
the cost of creating products, accessing markets, and building infrastructure.
This “leveling of the playing field” allows smaller companies to compete and
new sources of competition to emerge in other parts of the world.
This fast pace of evolution is our new reality, and companies are scrambling to
stay ahead of the competition.
Community management Drives Competitive
advantage
While technology provides a lot of new tools and opportunities, people
are inherently still the same. if they feel a personal connection to a brand,
they will be loyal to it. That’s why communities of customers, employees,
and shareholders are so important. Thriving communities give companies not
only a competitive advantage, but an adaptability advantage. They do that by
tending to the real resource: people.
The stakes are higher than ever with the growth of social media. greater
access and transparency puts customers in the driver’s seat. Consumers now
have the power to research companies before making a buying decision and
broadcast their opinions to the world. business mistakes can’t be swept under
the rug with great Pr or ad campaigns anymore.
xiv Introduction
Fortunately, brands can also benefit from these changes. From open
communication on social media to responsive customer service, the digital
age enables companies to connect with the public. With a few clicks of
the keyboard, companies can access a wealth of data on their customers’
reactions, habits, behaviors, needs, and desires. This information is vital to
staying relevant in a sea of competitors.
Community management (Cm) is more critical than ever in helping businesses
gain customers and integrate themselves into the daily lives of consumers. it’s
also a huge liability if businesses ignore their customers and the communities
that surround them. how, you ask? We’ll take a look at an example from
lululemon’s community success and then failure in Chapter 1.
The Community Manager’s Playbook is designed to teach you how to build a
community management strategy that creates a loyal customer following and
strong competitive advantage for years to come.
Community management isn’t Just for
Community managers
Community managers can build a career based on the information in this
book. since this is a rapidly evolving discipline, pushed along by the advances
in technology i have mentioned, the role and responsibilities tend to shift from
company to company.
however, there are universal standards for performing well and measuring
success in managing modern communities. Whether you’re wondering how
to prioritize multiple communication channels, how to meet business goals or
tactically execute for success, this book will address these gaps for you.
This book is also designed to support founders of startups and business leaders
who want to understand their customers, drive business growth, and create
value. This is because community managers aren’t always part of the team
when a company is just getting started, or has been in business with a more
traditional marketing approach. in either case, key components of community
management should become embedded in the early company building stage
as well as at critical growth points where customer and market feedback is
crucial for success. Companies can benefit greatly from the discovery and
validation processes taught throughout the book.
in the same vein, stakeholders involved in assessing investments and roi, from
C-level executives and business leaders at larger consumer brands to startup
founders and venture capitalists, should develop an understanding of community
management and how it should be integrated into an organization.
Introduction xv
Finally, the book speaks to hiring managers or human resource personnel
who require an understanding of the community management role in their
organizations. Finding the right person to fill the community manager role
is never an easy task. even if you rope in that rare person with the perfect
experience and background, your company may not have the right tools
or organizational structure to set that Cm up for success. This book tells
managers what expectations to set, how to benchmark performance, and how
to develop community managers into stellar brand assets.
a step-by-step guide to learning, Planning,
and Doing
i’ve read a lot of business books, and i’ve noticed that the best ones actively
engage their readers in the subject and set them up for success. That’s what
inspired The Community Manager’s Playbook. i wanted to share the theories,
strategies, and tactics that i’ve learned over the years in a fun, invigorating way.
you can use this book in various ways. it covers theories of community
management, strategic approaches, execution techniques, and useful tools.
numerous hands-on exercises will push you to apply what you’ve learned and
use it in the real world.
Part i: learning
Part i is meant to level the playing field. new and junior community managers
can learn the basics, while readers with more experience can review
foundational knowledge. and hiring and supervising managers can gain a new
appreciation for the community management discipline.
This section explains the fundamentals of community management and the
community manager’s role—what it is, why community is valuable, what Cms
do every day, and why it is important to your organization.
• Chapter 1 defines community management and the value
of a Cm in today’s business world.
• Chapter 2 describes major Cm responsibilities and the
traits needed to succeed.
• Chapter 3 details creating a recruitment and hiring
process tailored to unique business needs.
• Chapter 4 expands community management into broader
business strategy and shows how it unquestionably
creates value.
xvi Introduction
Part ii: Planning
Part ii teaches you how to build a strategic framework for community
management. it explains how to set goals that connect to big-picture business
objectives, conduct research, define metrics, and map out a plan for success.
• Chapter 5 provides a strategic overview of community
management aligned with business goals.
• Chapter 6 dives into the abCs of strategy—audience,
brand, and category—with hands-on exercises.
• Chapter 7 leads you through using a powerful tool for
gaining insights about community members.
• Chapter 8 guides you to create a full strategic plan based
on what you’ve learned.
Part iii: Doing
The final portion of the book, Part iii, guides you through tactical execution.
• Chapter 9 explains how to design productive experi-
ments and apply agile methods to your work.
• Chapter 10 is all about metrics that track performance.
• Chapter 11 covers the most useful platforms for engaging
people and growing your brand.
• Chapter 12 provides knowledge at a tactical level on
practical ways to maintain and build your community—
and acquire customers.
• Chapter 13 explains how to tell a story about your
brand—the best way to connect with users at an emo-
tional level.
get ready
by studying this book and applying its principles, you will learn how to
create a robust and successful community management practice within your
company. as a founder and consultant who has worked with a ton of startups,
i understand the need for a bias toward action. This book is jam-packed with
exercises and prompts to help you build a strategy that meets the business
needs of your organization, regardless of its size or stage.
by the end of this book, you will have a community strategy that drives
bottom-line results for your company. let’s get started!
P A R T
I
Learning
C H A P T E R
1
What Is
Community
Management?
How to Harness the Power and Value of
Community for any Organization
I know something about you. The fact that you’re reading a book about
community management tells me that:
1. You need to know more about strategic community
management to improve your business; or
2. You have community management responsibilities; or
3. You’re interested in getting a job with community
management responsibilities.
That means this book needs to deliver useful information to 3 different
audiences, and make it fun. No sweat!
Now I will share something about me. I know a lot about community manage-
ment and develop lots of digital business strategies with community at their
core, so this book will have a solid theoretical underpinning. But I’m a huge
believer in the idea that people learn best by doing.
4 Chapter 1 | What Is Community Management?
That means The Community Manager’s Playbook has a strong bias towards
action. Have no fear! I’ll ensure we lay a strong strategic foundation for
implementation, but unlike purely theoretical business books, you’ll find there
are questions and exercises throughout the book to reinforce the knowledge.
You have complete control over the speed and pace of each lesson. All I ask
is that you use what you learn. Doing so will help you build a better team and
business. (In fact, the “Learning Pyramid” from the NTL Institute of Applied
Behavioral Science suggests that at least fifty percent of learning comes from
direct application . . . now you’re starting to see the performance geek in me.)
To begin, I want to explain core concepts and make sure we’re all on the
same page.
In this chapter, I’m going to:
1. Define community, in both a general sense and as it applies
to business strategy;
2. Explain why people join communities;
3. Demonstrate the power of a strong, well-managed
community;
4. Get you up to speed on digital communities; and
5. Teach you how to assess the role of community manage-
ment in your own organization.
These are important first steps that will form a strong foundation for your
community management strategy. Even if you have experience with these
topics, I encourage you to review them. Share the love and teach others in
your organization, while reinforcing your own knowledge.
Let’s get started!
What Is Community?
By the broadest definition, community brings individuals together around a
common purpose, interest, or goal. The most basic type is based on physical
proximity. For example, people in your neighborhood or hometown are part
of a community that’s formed around that location.
Other traditional communities are based on shared characteristics. Here are
a few examples:
• Alumni groups are based on a connection to a specific
college or university.
• Sports fans gather to support a team they love.