For Interactive Marketing Professionals (Length: 17 pages)

February 13, 2008

Online Community Best Practices

Communities Are A Powerful Tool, As Long As You Put Members' Needs First

This is the first document in the "Online Community" series.

by Jeremiah K. Owyang

with Josh Bernoff, Christine Spivey Overby, Scott Wright


Executive Summary (This is a document excerpt)

An online community is an interactive group of people joined together by a common interest. It's also one of the most powerful tools a marketer can deploy for customer retention, word of mouth, and customer insight. To host a successful community, think of it as you would product development: Start by focusing on objectives, chart a road map, assemble the right team, and plan to be flexible. Then build your success by launching the community with the backing of your most enthusiastic customers and staying engaged as the community grows. Above all, remember that control is in the hands of the members, so put their needs first, build trust, and become an active part of the community.

Buy Risk-Free

Download and print PDF immediately. Price: US $499

Our Money-Back Guarantee: If you are not completely satisfied, return it for a full refund within three weeks of your online purchase.

Already a Forrester Client?
Log in to read this document.

Add to cart

TABLE OF CONTENTS

NOTES & RESOURCES

itemShould You Host A Community?

itemBefore You Start, Determine Your Objective

itemPlanning A Community

itemAnatomy Of An Effective Plan

itemGetting Your Company Ready

itemOngoing Staff You Will Need

itemWhen Picking A Vendor, Lead With Needs, Not Technology

itemLaunching And Growing The Community

itemKick-Start By Involving Advocates And Starting Small

itemGrowing And Maintaining The Community

recommendations

itemRegardless Of Your Goal, Put The Community's Needs First

itemSupplemental Material

Forrester interviewed Carnival Cruise Lines, Leverage Software, Microsoft, and MySpace.com.

Related Research Documents

itemObjectives: The Key To Creating A Social Strategy

October 9, 2007

itemMarketing On Social Networking Sites

July 5, 2007

Find Documents In Related Categories

This document falls under the following categories. Click on a link below to find similar documents.

Technology: Customer Experience, Interactive Marketing, Marketing & Advertising, Social Computing & Web 2.0
Geography: Asia Pacific, Europe, North America

Archived Teleconference:
Social Media Playtime Is Over: How Brands Must Focus In A Recession
Original air date: Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Also in this series:
corner border corner
Ratings and Comments
Rating: 9 out of 10
based on 5 ratings across all roles.
corner border corner