Increase the User's Connection to Your Site by Promoting and Building Community

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Increase the User's Connection to Your Site by Promoting and Building Community

Posted in Website Design Tips	May 26, 2006

Permalink: http://daily.mequoda.com/i//website_design_tips/increase_users_connection_by_promoting_community_172-1.html

By Kim Mateus, Managing Editor Mequoda Daily and Library

The Mequoda criteria for community building expect visitors to feel enthusiastic and loyal to the site. Are they inspired with feelings of belonging and encouraged to contribute?

Websites that encourage a feeling of belonging among users, that offer mechanisms for being involved in the site and that motivate them to become involved are good at community building.

In the fourth chapter of Website Design for Publishers and Authors authors Don Nicholas and Jane E. Zarem point out some examples of community-building options:

Chat rooms, discussion boards, and specialized forums
Comment or testimonial forms
Q&A surveys and daily polls
Associated clubs and games
Classified listings and bulletin boards
Live online events and blogs
Opportunities to email articles to friends or associates

For a marketing site, community-building tactics function as word-of-mouth marketing tools and increase both site traffic and search-engine visibility.

For membership websites, providing a space for members to communicate with one another and to interact with the association or site editors should be a high priority. When that is the case, in fact, members often supply much of the content. A site doesn't have to be a membership site, however, to act like one and benefit from its resulting community.

Community building adds value to the site experience, as users appreciate the opportunity to participate and to meet others with similar interests. The ultimate goal of community-building programs, therefore, is to increase the consumer's connection to the site by fostering a sense of camaraderie or belonging among unique groups of individuals.

Mequoda Library Members Only: If you're a Mequoda Library member, reference Don and Jane's entire chapter, Website Design Guideline #4: Increase the User's Connection to your Site by Promoting Community. Or check the full Table of Contents for Website Design for Publishers and Authors.

If you're not a Mequoda Library member, and are interested in accessing the full text of this chapter along with 425 other chapters, start your 14-day FREE trial.

Recent Mequoda Daily Website Design Tips

The Pros and Cons of Using the Recurring Billing Option on Your Subscription Website, posted in Website Design Tips | May 25, 2006

Capturing Visitors' Email Addresses is Key to Building Effective Relationships, posted in Website Design Tips | May 19, 2006

Maintaining Interest by Webifying Website Content, posted in Website Design Tips | May 11, 2006

Five Website Design Tips from WoodcraftMagazine.com, posted in Website Design Tips | May 8, 2006

Improving the User Experience with Clear Strategic Intent, posted in Website Design Tips | May 4, 2006

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COMMENTS

I have tried various tactics over the years to promote interactivity and community building on my website: http://parentingtoolbox.com but parents don't seem to want to chat or do any other interactive activity. I am trying a point system now to get them to be more a part of the site: http://parentingtoolbox.com/parentingpoints.html

Is it possible they just want to "do it themselves" and not get involved? The free offer of consultation I give them rarely gets requested but my sales, while low, are steady.

Ron

Comment by: Ron H | May 27, 2006

Hi Ron,

Thank you for your comment. I understand your position.

Increasing participation at the Daily has been a challenge for us since we launched.

I think it's largely due to the fact that people in our industry are extremely busy and don't necessarily have time to post comments.

But based on informal focus groups we've conducted, we've learned that our users are in fact highly interested in reading what others have to say, but don't have time to contribute themselves.

I'd say for your target audience, you may be dealing with a similar challenge.

I like what you're doing with the point system on your website and am interested in learning if it will lift response.

We're considering an iPod give-away to promote community at the Daily so please keep us posted!

Comment by: kim m | May 30, 2006

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