Top 10 Ways To Accelerate Community Growth
Sue Reddel & Diana LaskarisCo-Founders of Food Travelist
Why Do you Want A Thriving Community?• People are hungry for real communities that share their
personal interests
• A thriving community offers you greater opportunities and the perception of being an influencer and expert in your area
• The primary way to make money is to have influence over a large number of people with common interests that can be marketed to
#1 Engage Your Audience • Create unique and focused
content
• Make interaction simple
• Welcome new members and encourage participation
• Cultivate key members
Quick Tip: Use Google Analytics to learn where your audience is coming from and build on it.
#2 Connect With Other Influencers• Don’t be afraid to reach
out
• Be friendly and be yourself
• Comment and interact with them
• Add value
• Stay on topic
Quick Tip: Follow influencers, comment on their posts tell them how the information helped you & share with your audience.
#3 Make Content Sharable• Make the headline
catchy
• Use high quality visuals
• Make it easy to share
• Share everywhere relevant
Quick Tip: Use a headline generator like: www.internetmarketingcourse.com/freeheadlinegenerator
#4 Clearly Define Your Niche• Be obvious and stand out
• Be consistent in your messaging
• Provide unique value
• Include in all communications
Quick Tip: Find successful influencers in your niche and learn from them. Don’t copy – learn and refine.
#5 Listen For What They Want• Find the common interests
• Ask and answer questions
• Pay attention to trends
• Spend time with your analytics
Quick Tip: Respond to every comment and question as quickly as possible. Set up email alerts.
#6 Make It Rewarding For Them• Say thanks
• Respond to questions
• Be part of the conversation
• Celebrate their wins
• Acknowledge evangelists
Quick Tip: Everyone needs encouragement. A quick thank you or share of their work can make someone's day.
#7 Be Consistent• Post regularly and often
• Use your own voice
• Be honest and respectful
• Be concise
Quick Tip: Create an editorial calendar and use scheduling tools like HootSuite, TweetDeck and Buffer to make your life easier.
#8 Let Your Personality Shine• Be natural & use your own
words
• Imagine you’re talking to friends
• Use humor and tell stories
• Share appropriately
Quick Tip: Share your experience and expertise. Don’t tell them about your vacation tell them why they need to go.
#9 Keep Quality High• If the photo is fuzzy don’t use it
• Don’t use 10 words if 3 will do
• Proofread before publishing anything
• Would you read it?
Quick Tip: Use photo editors like VSCO Cam & iMajiCam on your phone to do on the fly photo editing. Also take more photos than you’ll think you need.
#10 Have FUN! • Remember you are asking for
their spare time
• Keep it light
• Entertain, inform and educate
• Inspire them with your ideas
Don’t ever permit the pressure to exceed the pleasure. Joe Maddon, Cubs Manager
Quick Tip: Take time to celebrate the wins.
Examples of Vibrant Communities• Gypsynesters
Examples of Vibrant Communities• IAmAileen
Examples of Vibrant Communities• Food Travelist
Tools You Can Use• Sharing tools: Hootsuite, TweetDeck, Buffer
• Content Creation: Feedly, Pocket, Canva, Stock Photos, IFTT
• Managing Followers: JustUnfollow, Twitter Counter, Iconosquare
• Find Influencers: Communi.it, Buzz Sumo
• Managing Your Brand: Google Alerts, Mention
• When to post: Tweriod
Contact info: Sue Reddel [email protected]
Diana Laskaris [email protected]
foodtravelist.com
@foodtravelist
#foodtravelchat Wednesday Nights 8pm ET