Seminars, classes and webinars on building communities are usually very well attended. We all want to find out how to effectively gather a following around what we say, do and sell. We want the likes, follows and shares; we want a lot of them and fast. Many communities get abandoned before they gather a substantial following because their founders are not patient enough. Only a few are nowadays willing to keep providing content to a handful of readers or viewers. In this reward abundant world, it’s challenging to get us make an effort without immediate results. We write a post or two and expect people to flock to our page, admire us and spread the word.
Ten years ago readers were gladly sharing their emails, reading newsletters and joining lists. Even though now it’s way harder to gather people around a message, there are communities and successful blogs that get started daily. Here are 10 things to pay attention to when building a community:
1. Deliver well curated messages. Instead of posting a lot and fast, focus on starting meaningful conversations based on well researched, targeted articles, videos and newsletters.
2. Know your audience. If you know exactly who you’re writing to, it’ll be easier to craft your posts accordingly. The more your audience feels that you’re writing for them, the more loyal they’ll become.
3. Don’t try to be everywhere, be where it matters. Whenever there’s a new social media channel on the horizon, we’re tempted to join. Overcome the fear of missing out and focus on continuously delivering valuable content where your readers are.
4. Be consistent. Readers like knowing if the writer they follow will be posting a few times a day, once a day or once a week. Often, they include logging on to blogs as part of their routines. Depending on the author’s voice and frequency of posting, they may decide to check out some articles to start their day, they may look into some during their lunch break or as a weekend distraction.
5. Have a consistent delivery voice. Are you going to teach or entertain? How are you going to be helpful
6. Realize it’s not about you. Readers expect your writing to be valuable for them. So often I hear radiant readers who feel as if a book was written just for them. Everyone expects valuable, helpful messages and the more personalized they are, the better.
7. Show. Many writers are trying to get subscribers to their empty blogs or pages based on a promise. Readers want to see ten, twenty or thirty blog posts to make a decision if they’d like to be a part of it.
8. Know your why. Once it’s clear why we’re writing the blog, it’ll be easier to gather a growing community and consistently deliver content. Decide if the reason for writing is simply the need to share or help, promote a brand or build an audience.
9. Enjoy the process. Focusing on being in the moment and enjoying filming or writing will make the whole process easier. Your audience may be small for a while but if you love what you do, it’ll be easier to keep delivering content instead of impatiently checking how well your posts are doing.
10. Provide value. Readers want to grow and get informed. They’ll spend time reading what you have to say if they find it worth their time.
Anna Sabino is a co-active certified business growth and life coach. She is writing a book on being a successful creative entrepreneur. You can find out more at AnnaSabino.com or check out her videos on creativity, entrepreneurship and mindfulness.