Community Management 101
You did it!! You made a post, wrote a caption, maybe even shared it to your story. You’re done, right?
Not quite. That “strategy” is what we semi-kindly refer to as posting and praying. Posting content and praying that it magically attracts the right person to do your desired activity as a result.
But what’s missing is the SOCIAL aspect of social media: the community management!
Ok, so you need a community management strategy, cool. What’s that???
We can pull a few key highlights from this definition:
Ongoing and interactive PROCESS
Multi-faceted INTERACTIONS
Encourages CONNECTION
So with that background on what community management is, let’s dive into the specific activities to keep in mind as you’re developing your strategy.
Process
Like with any aspect of your social media strategy, you need a process for your community management to help you stay organized.
Who is part of your community or target audience?
Who will be in charge of building your community online?
What community management metrics will you track (e.g. comments, messages, new followers, mentions, etc.)?
How will you stay updated on community news or cultural trends that are relevant to your business or audience?
Defining the who, what, when, and how will lay the foundation for your community management strategy.
Interactions
The second aspect of community management to consider is the various types of interactions or ways you will engage with your audience. Create a content plan that includes the frequency and types of content you will share.
For example, pretend you are a local coffee shop. You may decide to share daily behind the scenes content on your stories, create coffee process or education reels three times a week, and schedule a live video to talk about the featured drink of the week.
Golf Park Coffee in Lynchburg, VA does this well! As soon as you look at their Instagram you’re transported into their shop and welcomed by their beautiful drinks. The content they share online matches the community they create in real life.
Each piece of content is an opportunity to encourage conversations around your brand.
Connection
Once you have your process in place and a plan for creating content, now you get to connect! Think through how you will foster engagement with your audience.
Will you respond personally to every comment?
Will you welcome new followers with a direct message?
Will you offer a way for your followers to get access to more content (either paid or free)?
Each of these interactions help establish and grow the relationship with your community!
Wendy’s is a classic example of intentional connection, especially on Twitter (oh wait…we mean X). Not only do they reply to every comment, they maintain their brand voice and humor so well.
Community management is a HUGE aspect of what makes the work we do here at Wholesome Media different from other social media management companies. We truly care about the community you’re developing and want to partner with you to help it flourish.
What questions do you still have about community management? Drop them in the comments!