The Emerging Role: Community Manager
I spoke today with Jeremiah Owyang of Forrester Research about the role of the “Community Manager”, in an attempt to share some of the knowledge I’ve gained in my time at Passenger. Shortly into the call, we came across the topic of client education and some of the key questions that clients ask when entering into the Social Media sphere. Among the most popular are permutations of, “How does this work?” “How long does this last?” and, “What will I get out of this?”
And of course, there’s always the question of “Who will be running this?” which brings me to, well, me”the Community Manager, or, CM. So what does a CM do, and who exactly are they managing? At Passenger, each of the CMs are people who have a knack for tech, love to communicate, and each have been Passenger Certified in “bridging the gap” ” they know how to help you create a successful community and help you get over that digital hurdle to make it all work
So let’s start there.
How does this work?
Sure the idea of entering into the Social Media realm is a little daunting. Ok, it’s a lot daunting. With all of the new tools springing up on a daily basis it’s hard to get a grip on what is a fad, what will stick around, and what is worth exploring a bit further.
If you’re here right now, you’ve probably decided on the latter and want to know a bit more. So, what does a Community Manager actually do, and where on earth do they get their community? Communities consist of a group of customers”anywhere from a couple hundred to a couple thousand”each eager to share their opinion and influence a brand that they care about. They come to us via our client’s email lists, customer lists or contact information gathered through a variety of other customer interactions. From here, members are invited to join, engaged by the opportunity to have their voices heard and have an impact on the brand.
We then work hands on with our clients to iron out a series of objectives”these objectives aren’t set in stone, nor are they necessarily the main marketing objectives for their brand. Instead, these are a combination of large, far reaching business objectives and a desire to better understand their customer. Together, we work to create a series of events geared towards these objectives”they could be polls, discussion boards, or any other type of Event. Members are invited to attend and the feedback comes rolling in.
As a Community Manager, my main task is to make sure people are happy”this includes my client as well as my community members. Each day we’re actively in our communities, reading posts, replying to messages, and noticing trends.
Among the most important aspect of this role is doing just that”noticing trends or patterns. That’s how we make this work. By listening to what customers have to say and streamlining this information into a series of more digestible community “sound bites” we’re able to bridge the gap between what the customer wants and is talking about, and, what the client wants and is also talking about.
How long does this last?
Not to sound trite or cliché, but these communities will last as long as you want them to. All they need to survive is attention and a lot of honesty. Making yourself and your brand more real and human is the first step to finding online success, and the best way to ensure longevity.
Cue the Community Manager.
We’re here to maintain that relationship for as long as brands want to talk to their customers. Personally, part of the reason why I think Customer Collaboration is so successful is because of the personal touch involved. Actually placing a face to a name does wonders in real life”it shouldn’t come as a surprise that within the B2C world, the effect is one and the same. In each of the communities I work with, as well as many of my peers’ communities, members feel a stronger tie to a brand when they know who they’re talking to. Being able to connect one on one with someone close to their favorite brand increases the value tenfold.
It’s that added personal touch that makes these communities last, and makes brands want to maintain them.
What will I get out of this?
Naturally, when dealing with a business, the “how much bang am I getting for my buck” question is bound to come up. Companies always want to know whether or not it’s worth it, because let’s face it, it takes a lot of effort to maintain any sort of good relationship”whether it’s with a customer or a friend or a family member”each take some amount of time, so understanding what the end is sometimes helps rationalize the means.
Even with a background in emerging media and new marketing initiatives, customer collaboration is truly something that you don’t get until you’re in the thick of it all and witness the success of Customer Collaboration in full-effect. You feel an extreme sense of pride and ownership for something you indirectly (or in some cases, directly,) fostered.
One of my clients recently held a series of events that inspired members to create and submit their own content. This content was then reviewed by the other community members, where they were asked to vote on their favorite submission. Once the votes were tallied, the winners had been decided and we ran into the eternal business question of, “So what?” and “Now what?” To make the community member’s feedback relevant, our client had one of their in-house designers review the submissions and critique them”all on video. Naturally, this video was uploaded to the community and shared with the winners (as well as the rest of the community). The feedback was astounding.
The client was thrilled by the submissions from members, and members were thrilled to be heard by the client. Here, the gain was mutual. The client was given a look at what customers would buy if they were given the option of creating the products all on their own, and the customer felt as though they truly were a valued entity. If the value of making informed marketing and product decisions isn’t enough for you, the intrinsic value of a “job well done” certainly will be.
And of course, there’s always the question of “Who will be running this?” which brings me to, well, me”the Community Manager, or, CM. So what does a CM do, and who exactly are they managing? At Passenger, each of the CMs are people who have a knack for tech, love to communicate, and each have been Passenger Certified in “bridging the gap” ” they know how to help you create a successful community and help you get over that digital hurdle to make it all work
So let’s start there.
How does this work?
Sure the idea of entering into the Social Media realm is a little daunting. Ok, it’s a lot daunting. With all of the new tools springing up on a daily basis it’s hard to get a grip on what is a fad, what will stick around, and what is worth exploring a bit further.
If you’re here right now, you’ve probably decided on the latter and want to know a bit more. So, what does a Community Manager actually do, and where on earth do they get their community? Communities consist of a group of customers”anywhere from a couple hundred to a couple thousand”each eager to share their opinion and influence a brand that they care about. They come to us via our client’s email lists, customer lists or contact information gathered through a variety of other customer interactions. From here, members are invited to join, engaged by the opportunity to have their voices heard and have an impact on the brand.
We then work hands on with our clients to iron out a series of objectives”these objectives aren’t set in stone, nor are they necessarily the main marketing objectives for their brand. Instead, these are a combination of large, far reaching business objectives and a desire to better understand their customer. Together, we work to create a series of events geared towards these objectives”they could be polls, discussion boards, or any other type of Event. Members are invited to attend and the feedback comes rolling in.
As a Community Manager, my main task is to make sure people are happy”this includes my client as well as my community members. Each day we’re actively in our communities, reading posts, replying to messages, and noticing trends.
Among the most important aspect of this role is doing just that”noticing trends or patterns. That’s how we make this work. By listening to what customers have to say and streamlining this information into a series of more digestible community “sound bites” we’re able to bridge the gap between what the customer wants and is talking about, and, what the client wants and is also talking about.
How long does this last?
Not to sound trite or cliché, but these communities will last as long as you want them to. All they need to survive is attention and a lot of honesty. Making yourself and your brand more real and human is the first step to finding online success, and the best way to ensure longevity.
Cue the Community Manager.
We’re here to maintain that relationship for as long as brands want to talk to their customers. Personally, part of the reason why I think Customer Collaboration is so successful is because of the personal touch involved. Actually placing a face to a name does wonders in real life”it shouldn’t come as a surprise that within the B2C world, the effect is one and the same. In each of the communities I work with, as well as many of my peers’ communities, members feel a stronger tie to a brand when they know who they’re talking to. Being able to connect one on one with someone close to their favorite brand increases the value tenfold.
It’s that added personal touch that makes these communities last, and makes brands want to maintain them.
What will I get out of this?
Naturally, when dealing with a business, the “how much bang am I getting for my buck” question is bound to come up. Companies always want to know whether or not it’s worth it, because let’s face it, it takes a lot of effort to maintain any sort of good relationship”whether it’s with a customer or a friend or a family member”each take some amount of time, so understanding what the end is sometimes helps rationalize the means.
Even with a background in emerging media and new marketing initiatives, customer collaboration is truly something that you don’t get until you’re in the thick of it all and witness the success of Customer Collaboration in full-effect. You feel an extreme sense of pride and ownership for something you indirectly (or in some cases, directly,) fostered.
One of my clients recently held a series of events that inspired members to create and submit their own content. This content was then reviewed by the other community members, where they were asked to vote on their favorite submission. Once the votes were tallied, the winners had been decided and we ran into the eternal business question of, “So what?” and “Now what?” To make the community member’s feedback relevant, our client had one of their in-house designers review the submissions and critique them”all on video. Naturally, this video was uploaded to the community and shared with the winners (as well as the rest of the community). The feedback was astounding.
The client was thrilled by the submissions from members, and members were thrilled to be heard by the client. Here, the gain was mutual. The client was given a look at what customers would buy if they were given the option of creating the products all on their own, and the customer felt as though they truly were a valued entity. If the value of making informed marketing and product decisions isn’t enough for you, the intrinsic value of a “job well done” certainly will be.
