Have you ever managed any niche-specific communities?
Does it seem too hard to engage people in your online community?
If you are starving for better community engagement strategies, hold tight.
We worked closely with many other community leaders and learned their secret to increase community engagement which they never shared with anyone. They used them secretly to boost their community engagement EVERY DAY.
So today, we’re bringing you something exciting!
You probably want to know what strategies community leaders used to 10x their engagement rate in just 7-DAYS. Who wouldn’t, right?
If so, this will be the best guide you’ve been looking for regarding the best community engagement strategy.
What is a Community Engagement Strategy?
Almost 9 out of 10 community professionals (88%) feel that having a community is super important for their business. (Source: BloggingX)
When we talk about a community, we mean a group of people who come together because they share something in common, like where they live, their interests, or a common goal.
An online community is similar but the connection happens on the internet. This can be through websites, LMS mobile apps, or social media.
However, what community engagement strategy refers to is getting people involved in their community. They actually engage rather than feeling stale or outdated.
Let’s be honest, sometimes we feel shy or held back from asking questions or chatting with others in a new community because, well, what if...
Those dots? They represent those times when we don’t even know why. Just some invisible reasons!
Engagement is all about working together and sharing ideas. When the public engages, they literally talk, help, and support each other.
This can be through events, meetings, or projects. The goal is to build strong connections by doing these things.
Okay, so you’re clear on what a community is and what community engagement means. But what about the importance? Is that clear too? Even if it’s not, let’s find out why community engagement matters and learn more.
What is the Importance of Community Engagement?
You’re here reading this article because you either have a community or are connected to one in some way. And you’re looking to learn about some useful community engagement frameworks. At least, that’s what we think!
But what are the benefits of community engagement?
Believe it or not, engagement is like the heartbeat of any successful community. Without it, your group is just a bunch of people sitting quietly, hushing and fussing.
You’re about to lose them sooner or later.
On the other hand, if you have an engaging community, it helps you in:
Building Stronger Connections
When people engage, they form bonds. That’s 1000% true and proven! This makes your community a welcoming place where people are excited to join and stay.
When you say hi in an engaging community, there’s a good chance you’ll get a hello back. This small opens up conversations, and that’s how being in an engaging community helps build stronger connections.
Better Growth and Activity
An active community attracts more members. Think about it, would you rather join a group that’s full of ideas and conversations or one that’s quiet? Engagement keeps things fun and helps your community grow naturally.
Visitors are quick to join when they see an active and engaging community. Remember, 66% of people prefer to join communities where they can connect with others who share their interests.
Builds Trust and Loyalty
Having an engaging community doesn’t just mean your members are the ones engaging.
Dear, it’s also about YOU as the leader. When members see that you’re active and involved, they feel valued.
Helps Spot Issues Early
This is one of the top benefits of community engagement. Engagement also means feedback.
When members talk, they share what they like and what they don’t. This helps you fix problems quickly before they become big issues that push people away.
Encourages Learning and Sharing
Public engagement means more sharing of ideas, tips, and advice. Members learn from each other, and that makes your community a valuable place to be.
It turns your group into a Go-To spot that people trust and rely on.
A study found that 77% of people join online communities to learn new things.
You’re probably a member of some communities yourself. Ask yourself, why? Because those communities give you value, knowledge, and information.
To be honest, the importance of engaging communities is too many to fully describe. Above, we’ve highlighted just a few key points. Keeping all this in mind, let’s move forward.
5 Elements of an Effective Community Engagement Strategy
We are now going to give you a list of must-have elements for an effective community engagement strategy. First, make sure you have all these elements. These are:
Purpose
When you go outside, you plan where you’re going, right? It’s the same with your community.
You need to know why you’re building it before you develop an online community engagement strategy. Your purpose will help you stay on track.
Platform
The platform is one of the most important elements of community engagement.
You need a solid platform first. If you make a mistake choosing the right one, you will FAIL to create enough community engagement.
Members
Members are the heart of your community. They’re who we focus on and bring together.
You need to pull them in and make them feel like they belong. So, before we get started developing a solid strategy, we need members. So that we can implement those tactics in our focus groups, and make sure you have some.
Resources
Resource allocation is another important element of an effective community engagement initiative.
By resources, we mean you need tools to track your community’s growth, actionable insights, and negative or positive changes.
You have to invest your time and financial resources in participatory budgeting, project management, and energy to keep things running smoothly.
And if you think you can do it all on your own, think twice! You might need extra hands or moderators to help keep the flow going strong.
Content
What will influence our members to stay active? We know you know, it’s our content.
Content is key. But wait, we don’t just need any content.
We need the good stuff! Quality content that actually matters to your people is what keeps them around.
We really hope you have these five elements: purpose, platform, members, resources, and content ready. If not, don’t worry. We will go step-by-step to develop our strategy for community engagement. Let's move on to that now.
Community Engagement Strategy 2024: A Step-by-Step Guide to Success
Today, we will only guide you about Community Engagement, so we are less likely to talk about how to start a community, this and that.
We already have content written about building a community from scratch, so make sure to read it before you start implementing these strategies.
However, it's time to reveal our best community engagement strategies that will give you results within 7 days of implementation.
Here is our step-by-step community engagement formula:
Part 1: Prepare Yourself To Get Started
Follow this part closely, as everything we do later will depend on each step outlined here.
Step 1: Set clear goals for what you want your community to achieve
Wait, this time, we're not talking about setting your purpose. Your purpose might be broader and something else entirely.
Right now, we want you to break down your specific objectives. For example, at this moment, we just want our community members to learn about our platform, "EzyCourse- The best platform for your community needs."
We’re not asking them to take any action just yet. So, what do we do? Simply, we make a post in our community. That’s it.
Step 2: Choose the best community management software platform
We plan to post in our community, but wait, where is our community? Sure, you might have a Facebook group, some popular but outdated community platforms, or use other social media platforms. But those aren’t our top recommendations.
Did you know that in late 2023, about 691 million fake Facebook accounts were taken down? (Source: Statista)
And in 2023, LinkedIn blocked or removed over 121 million accounts they identified as fake. (Source: Besedo)
That’s a huge number of fake users!
We could give you countless reasons why relying on social media or any free platform to build and manage your valuable community isn’t the best practice.
We’re business-minded, community-focused people, and we know the value of having control over your space.
So, what do the community engagement experts recommend? We advise choosing a solid and reliable community management software platform right away. One where you can easily migrate your existing community at no cost.
We promise you won’t be charged a penny if you decide to move your community from those buggy platforms to EzyCourse.
Step 3: Bring your people together
We’ve said it before, members are the heart of any community. They will decide whether your purpose succeeds or fails. But it’s up to you to bring them together under one roof.
Invite friends, introduce them, and encourage everyone to get involved. The goal is to create a fun, friendly space where people love to hang out.
But here’s the thing, not everyone is your target audience. You need to focus on who your various stakeholders are and then connect with them.
After that, create a space to educate stakeholders in your private environment. Remember, your chosen platform should give you the freedom to create multiple private spaces. This will allow you to segment your audience into different stages, such as:
New members
Engaged users
Loyal customers
Potential leads
Feedback groups, etc.
Use our Ideal Audience Checklist to find your true audience for your community. These are those who are most likely to join niche-based communities like yours.
Part 2: Keep Your Community Engaged Daily
We are now ready to jump right into the strategy we need to develop for community engagement. Let’s look into the steps we need to follow.
Step 4: Create Daily Content That Matters
We could successfully identify our ideal audience after following the part one steps. Now, to keep your community alive, you’ve got to keep the conversation going.
And what better way to do that than with content that’s not only good but valuable to your members?
You just need to understand what your people want to know, learn, or discuss. It could be tips, updates, fun questions, or even shout-outs to active members.
The key is CONSISTENCY.
Post something every day, even if it’s just a quick thought.
Step 5: Host Fun Events and Challenges
Did you know that 16% of marketers want to try something new this year by hosting events like pop-ups to connect with people in real life? (Source: Bizzabo)
It’s because virtual or local events are super powerful for getting people excited and involved.
In fact, 77% of marketers say events are the best way to reach their audience and increase community engagement. ( Source: Splash)
They can be as simple as a Q&A session, a live chat, or a quick poll. Challenges work too, like a "Best Tip of the Week" contest or a “30-Day Activity Challenge!”
When you bring people together for a shared goal, they feel more connected and excited to participate.
Step 6: Ask for Community Feedback and Listen Up
Nothing makes people feel more valued than when you ask what they think.
Whether it’s about your community projects, events, or even the community itself, feedback is gold. It shows you care about public opinion. And it also helps you make your community better and gain community trust.
Set up quick surveys, ask questions in posts, or just drop a simple “What do you think?” now and then. And most importantly, listen.
When your members see their ideas in action, they’ll engage even more.
Part 3: Internal Community Engagement and Growth Strategies
You might think, oh, it’s just about trust, let’s skip it. But wait a second—skip this, and your whole community engagement plan might flop just because you didn’t build trust!
Step 7: Always Be Present and Active
As a community leader, your presence matters. You need to be there, responding to comments, joining conversations, and sometimes just saying “Hi!”
This shows that you’re not just managing from a distance. You’re part of the group. The more active you are, the more your members will feel comfortable engaging, too.
You know what we call it? We call it leading by example.
Step 8: Reward and Recognize Contributions
Everyone loves a little recognition. It could be something as simple as a member of the week post, a thank-you note, or a fun badge.
It doesn’t even have to be fancy. Trust us, just do it for once. You'll see that one person will engage 50% more than before.
But to do that, you will need a platform like EzyCourse that offers gamification features.
Step 9: Create a Welcome post for New Members
When someone joins your community, they should feel welcomed right away.
Create a special post or send a quick welcome message to guide them on what to do first. Highlight the main areas they should check out, suggest some posts to read, or invite them to introduce themselves.
This could be a chance for you to get more personal and get to know them in person.
Step 10: Influence Members to Take Action
We learned this community marketing technique from a previous client. He influenced members to feel comfortable commenting on posts.
Here’s how he did it: He would make a post and then instantly comment on it himself.
People would see the comment and think, "Oh, there’s already one comment!" This made them more likely to comment too because the first comment influenced them.
However, it’s important that such posts or content are highly personalized or something people can connect with.
Part 4: External Community Engagement and Growth Strategies
It’s not just about internal community engagement plans. There are many more opportunities to create engagement activities from external sources too. Here’s how:
Step 11: Share Community Highlights on Social Media
Don’t keep all the fun inside the community. It won't cost you anything if you start sharing some highlights on social media.
Now, don't ask what to post. Post about your latest event, do press releases, share a member’s great tip, or celebrate a milestone. This will show outsiders that your community is active and worth joining.
Step 12: Run a Referral Program
Though referral could be sometimes stressful it is worth mentioning here. Your members are your best marketers. Try to encourage them to invite friends by setting up a referral program.
In return offer simple rewards, like a freebie, a special badge, or a shout-out in the community. Oh, we have just revealed a way to grow an online community!
Step 13: Collaborate with Other Communities or Influencers
Reach out to similar communities or influencers who share your interests. You can collaborate on joint events, guest posts, or even quick shout-outs for each other.
You can also use outreach strategies like DMing people on their social media accounts who share freebies, and resources, and are looking to develop networking.
Be careful, though! This can sometimes feel like spamming, so you have to be super mindful.
Step 14: Do Email Outreach for More Growth
Believe us, this is a proven growth tip for both external and internal strategies shared by community growth experts. Email outreach and push notifications aren’t new, but they’re powerful ways to connect directly with your audience.
They let you reach people personally, right in their inbox.
Share valuable content, updates, and personalized offers. Send these to your own community members. They’re more likely to see your message. This simple action can really boost virtual community engagement.
To do this, you'll need community apps with white-label email-sending capabilities or push notifications for your members.
Another thumb for EzyCourse? It can be the perfect choice for this!
Part 5: Strategies for Sustaining Interest and Participation
Do this and that, but at the end of the day, you need a plan to keep your strategies going. Here are a few steps to help you make it last.
Step 15: Set Mini-Goals for Engagement Each Day
To double your engagement, break it down. Set mini-goals, like “Get 3 comments on today’s post” or “Have 1 new member introduce themselves.”
Share these goals with your team. See how things will change within a week.
Step 16: Keep It Fresh with New Content Ideas
Keep your content fresh by trying new things and strictly follow your content timeline. One day, post a quick poll. Next, share a helpful tip. And then maybe a behind-the-scenes look at your work?
Step 17: Monitor What Works and Do More of It
Are they loving polls? Then do more polls.
Do they enjoy live chats? Schedule them more often. Share necessary information with your community and bring transparency.
That's how it works.
So, that’s the end of our community engagement strategy action plan steps. But there are still many simple ways to make your community more engaging that you won’t find written down anywhere.
But wait, we’re not done yet. There’s one crucial part you’re still missing. The last one is just below.
Also read: A Complete Guide to Building Your Online Learning Community
The Foundations of a Strong Community Engagement Strategy
Did you read our article attentively up to this point?
If you did, you saw we said to monitor what works but not how to do it. We talked about email outreach and hosting events, but didn’t mention which tools to use, right?
Well, that’s because just a few lines won’t help you realize how crucial these really are.
The answer to all the above questions is simple.
Use EzyCourse.
You might think, what about Circle?
The Circle is expensive, right? Sure, there are budget-friendly Circle alternatives, Facebook group alternatives, Thinkific, and many more.
So Why EzyCourse?
That's because you will hardly find any LMS (Learning Management System) software that can meet all your community needs. Whether it’s building a learning community, creating courses, or creating spaces for coaches. Whatever it is, you just need EzyCourse. It’s an all-in-one online course platform and community platform.
Here are some of the benefits of using EzyCourse that will help you increase engagement activities in any community:
Create interactive content by adding images, videos, quizzes, surveys, and more right inside your community.
Assign any type of homework to your learning community and provide personalized assignments based on the content.
Allow members to download resources to add value to your space.
Create chapter-wise lessons daily and save time.
Use advanced gamification to assign badges, earn points, and enjoy more fun games.
Based on members' engagement and activities, assign them customized certificates.
Track progress, grade members as you wish, and keep them engaged.
Make learning distraction-free.
Use our complete white-label email marketing system for both internal and external community growth.
Monitor members or students with our real-time activity analyzer.
Switch to EzyCourse to 10x Your Engagement
We hope your search for the community engagement strategy stops right here. Just follow the steps we shared, and understand when to use what. And that’s all you need to grow your community.
When you start applying the steps we’ve mentioned, you’ll begin to see what to do next and might even develop your own marketing plan someday.
One last tip, choose your platform wisely. If you don’t, none of these steps will work as they should.
Check out EzyCourse and take our free trial. We promise you won’t find any other community platform that offers so many features for engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are a few more queries that might come to your mind.
What are the 3 C's of community engagement?
Communication, Collaboration, and Consultation are the 3 C's of community engagement. These are the key pillars that help build strong connections.
What is an example of community engagement in the community?
Some of the digital community engagement examples are hosting virtual events, running social media polls, and creating interactive content like quizzes or forums.
Offline activities that we can call community engagement include neighborhood clean-ups, community meetings, citizen participation, and local workshops or charity events.
What is the best platform to build a community?
There are several online community platforms to help you build an online community. People are really loving EzyCourse to build their community from scratch. It’s an affordable alternative to Thinkific, Circle, Mighty Networks, and other platforms.
