1. Vircomm '99 by Digital Places www.digiplaces.com
April 25, 1999
An Overview of Internet Community Fundamentals and Operations Management by
Digital Places
Digital Places -- "Profit from Internet Communities"

2. Capitalizing on “Community”
Sponsor communities frequented by target customers
Participate in communities frequented by your high margin target customers, partners and employees.
Build communities to be frequented by those with whom you have the most valued relationships

3. The Online Service Equation
Net
Profit/Loss =
Cost
Acquiring
Customer -
Life
of Customer [ ]
Revenue
Avg/Customer ( ) *
Communities are more cost effective than content-focused services because they positively influence each of the four factors in the online service equation:
Members create content which reduces the cost to produce the service.
Active members establish reputations within the community, become committed to remaining and tell friends about it. These dynamics contribute to increasing the average customer life and decreasing the average cost of customer acquisition.
Marketers will pay more for access to committed, active community members who constitute a tightly-focused target market.

4. Operational Highlights
Organize internally for success
Manage the Social factors
Carefully select and train “Caretakers”
Support the Motivators
Provide
Value for their information
Applications
“Presence Infrastructure” & search/browse

5. Community Applications
Msg boards, chat, listserves, IM
Homepage/Profile building and search

6. Agenda Membership and Presence Community Profiles
Community Management Roles

7. What Is Community?
Any online group wherein the site developer provides facilities that enable communications among members. May be:
typical message boards and chat
feedback mechanisms like eBay
elaborate virtual worlds like Palace & WorldsAway

8. Why are you investing in developing an
Organizational Goals
Why are you investing in developing an
online community?

9. Defining Your Membership
Who is your Target Audience?
Demographics
Psychographics
Wants and Needs

10. Online Presence
Enable individuals to express their identity and/or develop a reputation online
Expanding presence increases interaction
Presence => Member communications => Community Experience

11. Creating Presence Individual Profiles Information about the member
Vircomm '99
April 25, 1999
Creating Presence
Individual Profiles
Information about the member
Provided by the member
Structured by Community Developer
Contains information important to the community
Richness increases depth of engagement
Profiles are information about the member, provided by the member, structured by the community developer. A personal profile is structured by the user (your signature, your web page), but the community profile is structured by the community developer according to what’s important to your remembers.
Pick what’s important to your community. For instance if you run a golf community, you need to pick fields or elements for your profile that are important to the user’s golf identity. (Need an example here -- they don’t care about where you live or what your hobbies are?) For example, what’s your handicap, what courses have you played, reviews of these courses, what’s your game strength, etc.
Digital Places -- "Profit from Internet Communities"

12. Member Involvement Caretakers - .5% Motivators - 3% Actives - 15%
Passives - 80%

13. Figallo’s Community Profiles
Interactivity
Focus
Cohesion

14. Interactivity Shrines -------- Theatres --------- Cafes Cafes Shrines
Don’t impose strict controls
Advertisements are more tolerated
Shrines
Host knowledge of subject is very important
Heavy participation by host required

15. Focus Bazaars -------- Malls ---------- Boutiques Bazaars Malls
Games & play, little focused interaction
Malls
May act as portal sites, ads more tolerated
Boutiques
Deliberate participation, subscription models more likely

16. Cohesion Loners ------- Associates -------- Families Loners Associates
Warning sign
Associates
Core of loyal users, lots of interaction
Families
Pre-packaged, value history and traditions
Message boards more effective than chat

17. Management Roles Executive Producer Community Manager Online Staff
Responsible for fiscal success of the business
Community Manager
Responsible for social success of the community
Online Staff
The bridge between you and your community

18. Management Relationships
Executive Producer
Content &
E-commerce
Webmaster
& Designers
Community
Manager
Remote
Staff
Customer
Service
Training
& Events

19. Executive Producer Duties/Responsibilities
Directs creation of total service
Content, e-commerce, and community
May decide business direction and models
Keep community consistent with these goals
Revenue attainment & cost containment

20. Executive Producer Qualifications Performance Measurements
Conscious user of online media
Technically savvy
Business savvy - understands cost/return tradeoffs
Performance Measurements
Total membership, growth
Revenue, Profit/Loss

21. Community Manager Duties/Responsibilities
Selects, trains and monitors hosting staff
Guides social aspects as they relate to the total service (content, e-commerce, etc.)
Liaison between community members, hosts, producers
Enforce/Implement site policies

22. Community Manager Qualifications Performance Measurements
Naturally sociable person
Sensitivity and knowledge of legal environment
Able to motivate staff and participants
Performance Measurements
Member retention (quality & quantity)
Ratio of community staffing costs to total members

23. Online Staff Roles
Advisors, Allies, Ambassadors, Community Proxies, Feedback Gatherers, Greeters, Mediators, Moderators, Representatives, Role Models, Supporters, Teachers….

24. Online Staff Skills/Qualifications
Helpful, patient, tolerant
Initiator, entrepreneur, leader, respected within community
Natural enthusiasm, know their tools, know their own limits

25. Online Staff - Special Skills
Chat
Message Boards
Events
Backend Tools
fast typist, efficient communicator, attentive
higher degree of communication, summarization
moderation, motivation, preparation
broader technical savvy, feedback solicitation and summarization

26. Recruiting Online Staff
Online communities are a burgeoning training ground
Recruit from services you respect
Balance observation with application process

27. Training Online Staff Set expectations of effort and conduct
Train to meet those expectations
Teach “how-to” not “do-for” – sowing the seeds of future staff

28. Managing Online Staff Motivation Compensation Burnout
Lessons to be learned from DOL versus AOL
Compensation
“The 10th best worker is a volunteer – you can’t make them do what you want to do…”
Scott Kurnit, CEO of MiningCo.com
Burnout
Only you can prevent forest fires.

29. Question:
What is the most important element of any community? ?

30. Answer:
The Members

31. Trust is Central
The community belongs to the members. Serving the members is the first and foremost goal. Decisions that subordinate this goal can undermine trust and jeopardize the stability of the group.

32. Violating Trust
Things that undermine trust

33. Generating Trust One idea for generating trust in community members
Ideas will be posted on by April 30.

34. Keys to Successful Communities
Establish trust
Make visitors feel welcome
Participate with the users
Select Caretakers carefully
Control membership influx

35. Where is Your Community Going?
Plan your community to meet organizational goals
Costs vary based on Interactivity & Cohesion
Control and guide this to meet business goals

36. Where is Your Content Going?
Is your content appropriate to your members needs?
To your needs?
Control your content, don’t let it control you.

37. What are Your Goals for ...
Interactivity?
Cohesion?
Focus?

38. Wrap Up What one thing will you change, and when will it be done?
What resources are you missing?
Where will you get them?

39. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com 650-224-4567
Community Management
Digital Places