{"id":3094,"date":"2015-09-17T12:34:19","date_gmt":"2015-09-17T17:34:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bizwomenrock.com\/?p=3094"},"modified":"2016-06-09T22:10:38","modified_gmt":"2016-06-10T03:10:38","slug":"your-email-list-is-not-your-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bizwomenrock.com\/beta\/your-email-list-is-not-your-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Email List is NOT Your \u201cCommunity\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Katie Krimitsos<\/a><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Oh yeah, I said it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And I\u2019m thinking that comment may just get me some hate mail from bloggers or business folks who spend a lot of time engaging with the folks on their email list. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Buuuuut…hear me out on this one…<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A few weeks ago, I was chatting with a friend of mine who is a pretty big blogger. \u00a0He was telling me a story about the readers of his blog and referred to them as his community. \u00a0As soon as that one word was mentioned, my face got hot and I noticed I wasn\u2019t listening to anything else he was saying. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

All I could hear was my internal voice screaming…<\/span>your blog readers do not constitute a community!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now,I tend to have a pretty strong \u201cwhatever works for you\u201d attitude about everything, but obviously, I had a very strong opinion about this. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So, I decided to write about it. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

According to a simple Google search, a <\/span>community<\/b> is defined by the following:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s another dictionary search…<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll notice the parts I\u2019ve highlighted mention something similar…that community involves \u201cliving together,\u201d or \u201cliving in the same place.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u2019s this little detail that I believe separates a true COMMUNITY from, let\u2019s say, your \u201clist\u201d or your \u201cfollowing,\u201d or your \u201cfans.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I believe a true community exists when <\/b>interaction<\/i><\/b> is possible between its members. \u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

<\/h2>\n

That\u2019s the juice! \u00a0That\u2019s where all the dimension happens. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I have an email list. \u00a0And I get so much pleasure out of the email replies I get back when I send out something that resonates. \u00a0I appreciate and love that interaction.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And I have a Facebook page. \u00a0And a personal Facebook profile. \u00a0Both of which are extraordinary ways for me to connect with friends and fans. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But for the most part, these interactions are two dimensional. \u00a0I talk to them. \u00a0They talk back to me. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Absolutely nothing wrong with that. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not a community. \u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A community is when the 10 people who comment on my post on Facebook can exist in a place together that allows them to <\/span>talk to each other<\/span><\/i>. \u00a0And not just within that post, but within a PLACE, a habitat that encourages this interaction. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A community is when those 10 people can talk to each other and get into conversations that don\u2019t even include me!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A metaphor:<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I grew up in a small town in Arizona. \u00a0Big Catholic family. \u00a0We went to church every Sunday without fail. \u00a0And our little mission we attended had a tremendous community. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

During mass, the priest would speak to us as we participated in the deeply entrenched rituals. \u00a0We would speak back to him when the time was appropriate to respond. \u00a0And sometimes, as was part of the mass, we would shake hands and \u201cgive peace\u201d to our fellow church-goers. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But then, mass would end and lots of hugs, pinched cheeks and kids running around would commence. \u00a0I would find out how Nina Pat was doing, talk to the ladies making the pancakes and enjoy the homemade menudo with friends. \u00a0<\/span>This was when COMMUNITY was happening<\/span><\/i>. \u00a0<\/span>This was where the community existed!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\"smdp\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Community in the online world works the same way. \u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

During one of my <\/span>recent podcast interviews<\/span><\/a> with Jamie Walker<\/strong>, Founder of <\/span>Fit Approach<\/span><\/i>, a community with over 4,000 members, we discuss how \u201ccommunity\u201d has become a bit of a buzzword and what we think community really is. \u00a0And we both agree\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A Community is not your email list. \u00a0It is not your fan base. \u00a0It is not your followers. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It’s when all those people get together!<\/h3>\n

A Community is dynamic.<\/p>\n

A Community is an ever-evolving organism of like-minded people.<\/span><\/p>\n

A Community can exist because of you, but will exist <\/span>beyond<\/span><\/i> you. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So how do you translate your followers into a true community in the online world?<\/b><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1. Establish a Home:<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

One of the best places, in my humble opinion, to \u201chouse\u201d your community is within a Facebook Group. \u00a0It\u2019s a free platform that allows people to join and begin interacting with each other. \u00a0A forum. \u00a0Information can be shared, ideas can be sourced and relationships can be made all within the virtual walls of a Facebook Group.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2. Invite Them:<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

The awesome folks who follow you, are on your email list and who are fans of yours are doing so because they value you. \u00a0They love what you\u2019re doing and they want to be kept in the loop! \u00a0Just imagine if you told them you were going to have an open house at your home and you wanted them to stop by and hang. \u00a0Of course they would come to spend some time with you! \u00a0But just think of the additional value they would get meeting <\/span>everyone else at the party!<\/span><\/i> \u00a0As the definitions above state, these folks have similar interests and characteristics, so of course they\u2019re going to get along and like each other! \u00a0How awesome would it be that YOU can be the one to provide the value of others to them?<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

3. Be There and Be Present:<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re the one hosting the party, you have to be there. \u00a0Being active in a community forum like a Facebook Group depends on you being there and being present to what\u2019s going on. \u00a0What conversations are happening, \u201cpolicing\u201d so you can ensure that everyone has a good time and gets value out of being there and ultimately overseeing what’s going on. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

4. Lead Them:<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

This looks different for every leader and for every community. \u00a0In the <\/span>Biz Women Rock <\/span><\/a>community, I am a very hands-on leader. \u00a0I\u2019m in my group every day, I\u2019m commenting, I\u2019m posting, I\u2019m connecting people. \u00a0But in the <\/span>Tampa Bay Business Owners<\/span><\/a>, our local company\u2019s group, me and my husband who run the membership organization are not nearly as active. \u00a0The conversations are very member-driven. \u00a0Both methods work, as will yours, whatever that needs to be to fulfill your community culture. \u00a0Whatever that ends up being, it\u2019s your job to be seen as the leader, to let your community know what\u2019s going on, to look out for their best interests and to know what kind of dynamics are happening at \u201chome.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

5. Be Ready for Constant Evolution:<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Unlike an email list or a fan base, a community is dynamic (definition = characterized by constant change, activity or progress). \u00a0And it\u2019s dynamic <\/span>because<\/span><\/i> of the interaction, <\/span>because <\/span><\/i>people are existing in the same space. \u00a0Anyone who has ever brought their fan base together for a conference or a concert can attest to this. \u00a0So embrace the change and roll with it! \u00a0This is not the place where posts can be automated all the time or you can always discuss only what you want to talk about. \u00a0Because the group changes. \u00a0The community evolves. \u00a0They\u2019re <\/span>alive<\/span><\/i> and that requires you to be plugged into that. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Should everyone who has an email list or a social media following establish their own community? \u00a0No, I don\u2019t think so. \u00a0It\u2019s an entirely different way to interact with your fan base that may not be needed (or wanted) by everyone. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do I believe that you should give up emailing your list or drop your other social media activities and just focus on building out a Facebook Group or a community forum of some kind? \u00a0Absolutely not!! \u00a0Those are all massively important ways for you and your brand to continue growing!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do I think building community is one of <\/span>the<\/span><\/i> most powerful ways to deepen your brand and ultimately, your ability to make a massive impact on the people who love you and what you\u2019re doing? \u00a0Damn right I do. \u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is paradigm-shifting stuff. \u00a0This is the next evolution of social media and online interaction. \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is you leading a group of people who believe in what you\u2019re doing, can congregate in a safe space around that idea and can be inspired and given the tools to do whatever it is they\u2019re inspired by you – and others in the group – to do. \u00a0This is a revolution, baby. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"107<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Katie Krimitsos ***   Oh yeah, I said it.   And I\u2019m thinking that comment may just get me some hate mail from bloggers or business folks who spend a lot of time engaging with the folks on their email list. \u00a0   Buuuuut…hear me out on this one…   A few weeks ago, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1128,1129,1125],"tags":[946,136,22,1012,1191,1430,1429,1431,58,59,20,1108,23,1428],"class_list":["post-3094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice-from-the-best","category-blog","category-grow-your-biz","tag-audience","tag-community","tag-facebook","tag-facebook-group","tag-facebook-groups","tag-fanbase","tag-fans","tag-followers","tag-katie","tag-krimitsos","tag-social-media","tag-tribe","tag-twitter","tag-your-email-list-is-not-your-community"],"yoast_head":"\nYour Email List is NOT Your \u201cCommunity\u201d - 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