Are you in the club?

A bit of social media whore, I engage daily in a number of online communities. From the usual online suspects such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn ( not forgetting the excitingly new Google +), to closed forums created around a specific interest, it’s fair to say my online social life is far more interesting than my offline one. Which let’s be honest, consists mainly of a husband and a hamster.

And while the consumer world is undoubtedly leading the pack when it comes to seeing the benefits of creating fan based business boosting virtual communities, the B2B world is beginning to catch up.

Just what is an online community? Put simply, an online community is any website where users publish content and build relationships with each another. In the B2B world this can lead to networking opportunities and a place to share knowledge. The return can be significant; customer insights, stronger relationships with existing clients, partners and suppliers, and if course, new clients

Indeed online b2b communities are increasing being recognised for what they – a great way to engage–positioning your business as a genuine industry thought-leader. And with a Forrester Research study stating that 91% of business buyers use social technologies (with 69% using them for professional purposes) it’s clear that more and more businesses are discovering the benefits of branded B2B communities.

But before you dive head first into creating an online hub for your business, there are a few things you should consider first.

1. Don’t be a sheep. Don’t start a community just because everyone else is doing it. Make sure you’ve got something different to say first. There are plenty of existing communities around if you simply want to join the online conversation. Creating an online community takes time and effort and it won’t revolutionalize your business. Make sure it’s worth the effort and you have the resources to keep it up.
2. Don’t lose focus. The problem with creating an online community is that every bugger wants a say and your initial plan for an engaging and targeted destination site becomes a bit of a mess with no clear purpose. Know what you want to say, and who you want to say it to and stick to that path.
3. Do know your stuff. Find out what your target audience wants and give it to them. You simply can’t apply B2C principles to B2B users. Talk about business objectives not touchy-feely stuff. B2B users want well written and trusted content that helps them do their job better (and perhaps more importantly makes them look good). Deliver this and you’re on to a winner.
4. Do make it personal. People want to react with people, not a faceless business entity. And don’t leave it to the marketing agency either. People want to talk to peers who know their stuff and understand their problems. Higher community participation = higher brand loyalty and customer satisfaction.
5. Do have a long-term plan. So your community is ready to go and the hard works done, right? Wrong. Keeping online communities fresh requires effort. Make sure you have the resources in place to ensure you don’t lose momentum and assign a community manager to keep the plan on course. Encourage users to create content and play a part and your community really starts paying off.
6. Do measure results. There is no point creating an online community if you aren’t going to measure its worth. Keep track of activity, members, downloads and sign-ups. What can be measured should be measured. But don’t confuse traffic with value. And don’t assume all value is economic value. There is value in customer satisfaction as well as ROI.

Make sure your B2B community is fit for purpose and you could see real success. But remember you simply can’t create a successful online community without members, and busy professionals won’t participate in your community unless they are getting a genuine return on their time and effort. Forget that at your peril.