Angela Connor's Blog, page 11

Move beyond questions to engage your community

One of the 18 Rules of Community Engagement I outline in my book is simply "Ask Questions." I believe that people want to express their opinions and asking questions is a sure way to get them to do so. Throw in your own personal story before asking the question and you may strike gold. I've gotten many great conversations started that way in the community I manage. It is quite effective.

But I am noticing a trend among bloggers, some that I really respect, and that is ending every blog post

Social media strategists to watch in 2010

I received a nice surprise yesterday upon learning that I was listed among 451 Marketing's top social media strategists to watch in 2010.  I don't  look for such accolades, I just do my own thing…but it does feel nice.

So this is my public word of thanks to those who read this blog, follow me on twitter and elsewhere, send me emails asking for advice and insight, challenge my thoughts and share my work with their peers.

It is always my goal to inform, sometimes persuade, rarely convince but...

Integrate consumer trends with your overall community strategy

Have you thought much about how you will take your community to the next level in 2010. I've been giving that a lot of thought and I'm not sure that it's new features for me. We've done that and I think our users like what we've offered. I'm thinking more in terms  of content and by content I mean multimedia content that adds value to their lives and what they indicate is interesting to them through their behavior in the community.

So when I received the latest briefing from

Focus on the good when the going gets tough

I received this note from a member of my community today and it came at a great time for me because I have been feeling the weight of community management on my shoulders for a while now.  I am sharing it because these are the types of comments we have to relish. We need them to get us through the tough times. So when you get one, hold on to it and read it on the days when you feel as though you've reached the end of your rope. Here it is:

Hey Angela, Just wanted to let you know that through...

An interview with Fraser Kelton of GetGlue

Have you heard of GetGlue? It's another sharing community that allows you to keep your friends in the loop on what you're reading, listening to and other things you find interesting across the web. Glue shows you items that you'll like based on your tastes, what your friends like and what's popular with everyone else.

I caught up with Fraser Kelton, VP of Business Development to learn a little bit more about Glue:

 

Who is AdaptiveBlue and what is Glue?

AdaptiveBlue is a young NYC-based company...

Let the community interview you

On several occasions I've shared with you one of the most popular franchises I created and continue to produce in my online community. What I do is interview members over the phone and then transcribe the conversation into a blog post. People love it.

Well, one day last year, members of the community were asked to turn the tables on me by a co-worker and they submitted their questions they'd like to have me answer. I answered them all and again, the community loved it.

I just realized that I...

An interview with the Chief Operating Officer of Ning

[image error] I recently interviewed Ning's Chief Operating Officer Jason Rosenthal  for an article that will app ea r i n the January issue of EContent Magazine. (It will also be on their website and I will be sure to share the link.) Only portions of the interview will be used in the article, so I've decided to share the complete interview with you.

 

1 .      How many Ning sites are there currently?

More than 1.6 million Ning Networks have been created on the Ning Platform and we currently have more than 36...

If anonymity is no longer needed, let's ditch the witness protection program

I asked a question of the Social Media: Engage panel at Internet Summit '09 about 30 minutes ago and since that moment I've been thinking about online anonymity. People seem to hate it.

When I blogged about the upside and relevance of anonymous comments as they relate to news stories, some people balked. Jason Falls said at Social Media Business Forum last month that he wishes newspaper sites would stop allowing anonymous comments altogether. I get that. I know the drama that ensues when...

My plans for Internet Summit '09

I'm attending Internet Summit '09 tomorrow and plan to live-tweet and live blog, sharing what I find most interesting. At this point, these are the sessions I will attend, unless I change my mind at the last minute. If you're interested in these sessions, follow me on twitter. I'm @communitygirl. You can also check my blog for updates and I may post over on SiliconAngle.

Blogging: New Media and Personal Branding

Panelists: Andy Beal of Marketing Pilgrim; Brad Hill, Director of Weblogs; Rick...

Thanks for building our community, bye-bye

I heard a bit of disturbing news today about a community manager at a local competitor.

She has been reassigned, and it was not voluntary.

It turns out that the media company feels as though she has created such a robust community that it is now self-sustainable and no longer requires her services.

That's really a shame. I wonder what their plan of attack will be when people stop contributing or the quality of content begins to spiral, which it will.

You would think I'd revel in this this news...