Brand communities can create loyal and lasting customer relationships. With a strategic and patient approach, you can build a brand community people want to belong to.

Community superstar Jason Hill manages Bunnings’ Workshop, a private online community where members share D.I.Y tips and projects. He explains his strategy for building a dynamic and accessible brand community.

1.     Start with a soft launch.

• Individually recruit and build relationships with community founders. Tap existing customers or users, intrinsic supporters and advocates, and check other social channels for people engaging in the subject matter of your community.

• Find role models. Look for potential community founders who are already demonstrating the behaviours you want in your community. For example, you might look for people who demonstrate a willingness to share, a have-a-go attitude, or respect for others they engage with online. These users will become great models who will set standards for your community and fight to maintain them.

• Foster quality conversations that can kickstart your community. Create opportunities for your foundational community members to make first impressions, get to know one another, and bond over shared interests.

• Don’t let your brand run the show. It may be tempting to harness the power of your brand to drive growth, particularly if your brand is well-known. A community-first approach is key: ensure your community is about your members and their passions.

2.     Avoid the big launch- test and learn instead.

• Start some basic website and EDM advertising of the community. Focus this advertising around your members and the amazing things they’re doing. This strategy is effective when your community doesn’t have the content to back a big launch up.

• Continue facilitating relationships in your community. It’s important to have great moderation and a robust governance framework as you continue to grow your community, particularly if you have an owned platform and can enforce community guidelines. Encourage your team members to participate as much as they can.

• Pay attention to early feedback. What isn’t working for your members? For example, do you need to optimize your platform for mobile devices? Is your site easy to navigate and use?

3.     Build scale.

• Bring in more community members. Once you’ve got a great foundation in place, you’ll be ready to bring more people into the community to make it a much more dynamic place. This stage will be a much tighter integration with the rest of your digital ecosystem to drive rapid growth.

• Mobilise resources. You’ll need resources to promote and grow your community, but this is a big task. You might find it difficult to justify what you’re asking for due to your community’s relatively modest size and needs. Don’t worry: you can use the strong foundation of your community to build confidence among your exec team.

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