Research from CMX and Leader Networks reveals the keys to community readiness and red flags to watch out for when launching a community strategy.

1. KEYS TO COMMUNITY
READINESS AND GROWTH
Research and Analysis by Leader Networks
Written and Distributed by CMX
Sponsored by:

2. ABOUT US
2
The Hub for the Community
Industry
www.cmxhub.com
@CMX
Social Business Research, Strategy
and Operations
www.leadernetworks.com
@vdimauro

3. 3
You know you want to build a
community for your business but
do you have a map to get there?

4. 1. Preparing for Community
2. Planning for Activity and Growth
3. Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Today’s Agenda:
4

5. Keys to Community Readiness
and Growth Study
5
• 414 participants in late 2015.
• 76% in the United States.
• Survey takers were gathered via
social channels, email, and peer
referral.
• Download for free at: http://
cmxhub.com/communityreadiness

6. ORGANIZATION SIZE AND FOCUS
Question: What is the size of your organization (number of employees)?
6
Both
business to
business
and
business to
consumer
31%
Business to
business
37%
Business to
consumer
21%
Association
or
membership
organization
7%
Other
4%
ALL ORGANIZATION SIZES WERE REPRESENTED, AS WERE A VARIETY OF ORGANIZATIONAL FOCI.
35%
20%
9%
15%
4% 4%
12%
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
0.4
Question: What is the focus of your organization?
ORGANIZATION SIZE FOCUS Most “Other”
respondents
were nonprofits
or education
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

7. MANY RESPONDENTS FROM COMMUNITY AND
MARKETING BUSINESS UNITS
Question: What Department are you in?
7
18%
0%
0%
0%
3%
6%
8%
8%
23%
32%
Other
Legal
HR
Finance
Sales
Strategy
Communications
Product
development
Marketing
Community
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Over half of respondents are in the
Community or Marketing
Departments
Top Other Responses:
Support: 19
IT: 7
Executive: 7
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

8. 1. Preparing for Community
A. Identify readiness indicators
B. Defining the business value
C. Gaining funding
D. Researching community platforms
Let’s dig in!
8

9. 9
A. Identify Readiness Indicators

10. FREQUENT IDEA SHARING & CUSTOMER PRODUCT FEEDBACK =
SIGNS OF COMMUNITY READINESS
10
10%
15%
31%
31%
34%
38%
46%
53%
54%
Other
We didn’t look for signs to validate
They asked for online community
They build things independently & wanted to
We have successful offline events
We help solve complex issues, so there is a lot
They trust and want to engage our expertise
They frequently reached out for answers to their
They frequently give us product feedback or
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
• Respondents with larger communities were more likely to indicate that users “reached out to get answers to their questions.”
• Organizations with a B2C focus were less likely to “report successful offline events.”
• The majority of organizations surveyed who have an online community sought to
validate the need for community with their customers
WHAT WERE SOME SIGNS THAT YOUR CUSTOMERS WANTED A BRANDED ONLINE
COMMUNITY? (SELECT ALL THAT APPLY)
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

11. 11
B. Defining the Business Value

12. ORGANIZATIONS LAUNCH ONLINE COMMUNITY TO
IMPACT CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND RETENTION
12
25%
5%
5%
7%
8%
8%
13%
14%
19%
27%
31%
48%
61%
Other
Customer dissatisfaction
Because our competitors have one
To influence NPS scores
Executive mandate
Market forces to compete
Replace or supplement in-person events
Customer requests
Generate revenue
To support brand champions
Reduce support costs
To gather ideas to fuel future products and services
Customer satisfaction / retention
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Organizations with a B2B focus and those with more than 50 employees are more likely to identify “reducing support costs” as a primary
driver of their online community.
The most common other
responses were: creating
space for collaboration,
UGC and the organization
identifying as a community
itself.
WHAT WERE THE PRIMARY DRIVERS BEHIND YOUR ORGANIZATION’S LAUNCH OF AN
ONLINE COMMUNITY? [SELECT UP TO THREE]
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

13. 8 IN 10 CONSIDER INTEGRATING CORE BUSINESS
PROCESSES INTO COMMUNITY TO BE IMPORTANT
Very important
46%
Somewhat
important
37%
Somewhat
unimportant
12%
Very unimportant
5%
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO INTEGRATE CORE BUSINESS PROCESSES SUCH AS
E-COMMERCE OR CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT INTO YOUR COMMUNITY?
38
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

14. ORGANIZATIONS VALUE UGC & COMMUNITY SIZE ABOVE
ALL ELSE
14
19%
7%
17%
17%
36%
37%
46%
53%
Other
None, we do not track outcomes of our
community.
Revenue generated from the online
community via ads and sponsorships
Social shares
New product ideas or feedback on existing
products and services
Customer or user testimonials
Number of members
User created content
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Respondents who consider
their communities very
successful are more likely to
value “new product ideas or
feedback.”
Top Other Responses:
Support Deflection: 16
Engagement: 13
Satisfaction/Retention: 11
WHAT COMMUNITY OUTCOMES ARE MOST VALUED BY YOUR ORGANIZATION?
(SELECT UP TO 3)
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

15. 15
C. Gaining Funding

16. COMMUNITIES OF THE FUTURE WILL BE BUILT ON A
STRONG BUSINESS FOUNDATION
16
1%
13%
25%
28%
31%
46%
48%
50%
8%
13%
14%
17%
29%
39%
45%
56%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Other
Purchase platform for an online community
then build a plan
Build a financial model for community
returns
Conduct customer journey mapping
Cite customer requests/used customer data
Develop a business case
Identify business needs community could
help with
Found strong executive support
Have an online community Considering an online community
METHODS FOR GAINING FUNDING FOR AN ONLINE COMMUNITY
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

17. 17
D. Researching Community Platforms

18. ONLY 4 IN 10 ORGS RESEARCHED PLATFORMS
RIGOROUSLY, VERY SUCCESSFUL COMMUNITIES DEVOTE
MORE EFFORT TO THE SELECTION PROCESS THAN
OTHERS
18
High
39%
Medium
18%
Low
21%
Not Sure/Don't
Know
22%
Respondents who consider
their communities very
successful and those from
larger organizations are
more likely to report that
their organization
expended “high” effort in
selecting a software
program.
HOW WOULD YOU RATE THE LEVEL OF RESEARCH EFFORT THAT YOUR ORGANIZATION
DEVOTED TO SELECT A SOFTWARE PLATFORM?
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

19. THE WEB WAS THE MOST COMMON METHOD OF
RESEARCHING A COMMUNITY SOFTWARE PLATFORM
19
22%
14%
19%
22%
36%
41%
46%
58%
Other
Issued an RFP
Attended vendor conferences or meetups
Attended webinars
Peer referral
Conducted demos
Developed a business and technical requirements checklist
Web-based research
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
The most common other
responses were “built our own”
and “not sure.”
Respondents from larger organizations were more likely to indicate that their organization developed a requirements checklist, issued an
RFP, and conducted demos.
WHAT TACTICS DID YOU USE TO RESEARCH A COMMUNITY SOFTWARE PLATFORM?
[SELECT ALL THAT APPLY]
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

20. 1. Preparing for Community
2. Planning for Activity & Growth
A. Defining member activities
B. Growing your community
Today’s Agenda:
20

21. 21
A. Defining Member Activities

22. SHARING IDEAS & AMPLIFYING BRAND MESSAGE ARE VIEWED AS
THE MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITIES AMONG ORGS CONSIDERING
A COMMUNITY
22
1%
5%
7%
7%
11%
15%
13%
13%
2%
3%
8%
17%
12%
15%
14%
13%
3%
4%
5%
8%
10%
7%
15%
37%
Other
Participate in research activities
Self-serve through videos and how-to tutorials
Create user generated content to reduce our content
development burden
Get product support from each other
Solve problems by accessing experts and FAQs
Amplify our message, member advocacy programs
Share ideas / support each other
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
3rd 2nd 1st
Organizations with a B2B Focus are more likely to indicate that “[solving] problems by accessing experts and FAQs” and “self-serve through
videos and how-to tutorials” would be main activities.
IF YOU WERE TO LAUNCH AN ONLINE COMMUNITY, WHAT WOULD BE THE MAIN ACTIVITIES OF
THE MEMBERS?
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

23. 23
B. Growing your Community

24. SIZE AND GROWTH OF COMMUNITY
Question: How many total members are in your community?
24
Under 100
8%
100-499
11%
500-999
7%
1,000-4,999
21%
5,000-9,999
10%
10,000-50,0
00
12%
Greater than
50,000
31%
• Over 3 in 10 respondents report communities larger than 50,000 members
• Close to a quarter indicate that their community has at least doubled in the past
year
• Younger Communities were smaller and reported more rapid growth.
It has
declined
5%
Has not
changed
8%
Grown 1% to
9%
18%
Grown 10%
to 25%
23%
Grown 26%
to 50%
14%
Grown 51%
to 75%
6%
Grown 76%
to 99%
3%
Grown 100%
(doubled) or
more
23%
TOTAL MEMBERS GROWTH IN PAST YEAR
Question: What has the growth in your community been over the past year?
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

25. MANY METHODS ARE USED TO TRY TO GROW
COMMUNITY, BUT THERE IS NO MAGIC BULLET
25
23%
2%
18%
19%
20%
29%
32%
37%
37%
58%
Other
Purchase lists
Share an online tour of the community
Refer-a-peer programs
Offer incentives and giveaways
Onboard all customers or employees to the
Develop personalized outreach to
Email invitations from our organizations list
Run events
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Multiple other
responses cited
“word of mouth” and
“product support.”
HOW DO YOU ATTRACT NEW MEMBERS TO JOIN THE COMMUNITY?
(SELECT ALL THAT APPLY)
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

26. SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING AND AUTOMATIC
ONBOARDING YIELDS THE MOST NEW MEMBERS
26
19%
1%
1%
3%
6%
9%
10%
11%
18%
23%
Other
Purchase lists
Share a publically available online tour of the community
Offer incentives and giveaways
Refer-a-peer programs
Run events
Email invitations from our organizations list
Develop personalized outreach to prospective new members
Onboard all customers or employees to the community by default
Use social media marketing to raise awareness and drive traffic
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
There were no themes
in the other responses.
AMONG THE ACTIVITIES YOU USE TO ATTRACT NEW MEMBERSHIP TO YOUR COMMUNITY,
WHICH ONE HAS BEEN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL IN CONVERTING NEW MEMBERS?
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

27. 1. Preparing for Community
2. Planning for Activity and Growth
3. Avoiding Common Pitfalls
A. Common concerns and challenges
B. Most common reasons communities fail
C. Properly staffing your team
Today’s Agenda:
27

28. A. Common Concerns and Challenges

29. LACK OF VIBRANCY IS THE BIGGEST CONCERN SHARED
BY ORGANIZATIONS CONSIDERING AN ONLINE
COMMUNITY
29
15%
2%
2%
3%
4%
7%
9%
9%
14%
35%
Other
We are in a regulated industry
Legal concerns
We don’t have executive support
Members will criticize our company/say things we don’t
Creating new content ongoing is a burden
We don’t have the staff or expertise
We don’t understand all the potential costs
We don’t understand the operational impact
The community will fail to be vibrant
0% 20% 40% 60%
Various others including staff time/
bandwidth and lack business case
WHAT IS YOUR ORGANIZATION'S MOST IMPORTANT CONCERN ABOUT LAUNCHING AN
ONLINE BRANDED COMMUNITY?
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

30. TOP THREE CHALLENGES FACED: INTERNAL
AWARENESS, LONG-TERM STRATEGY, AND METRICS
30
2%
6%
11%
13%
13%
14%
18%
18%
20%
22%
27%
31%
37%
44%
Managing a team of community managers
Outreach to other communities in your industry
Gathering and organizing product feedback
Serving as the voice of users in business meetings
Budgeting
Managing community ambassador program
Managing offline and/or online community engagement
Generate revenue
Building relationships with users
Integrate with other lines of business (e.g. customer support)
Creating and executing on content strategy
Managing business/community metrics
Building long-term community strategy
Internal awareness of the value of community
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
• Respondents who consider their communities very successful are less likely to report “building relationships with users” as a top
challenge and more likely to report “gathering and organizing product feedback” as a challenge.
• Larger organizations are more likely to identify “integration with other lines of business” and “internal awareness of the value of
community” as top challenges.
PLEASE IDENTIFY THE TOP CHALLENGES YOU FACE AS A COMMUNITY BUILDER (SELECT UP TO 3)
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth" by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

31. B. Most Common Reasons
Communities Fail

32. COMMUNITIES MOST LIKELY TO FAIL WHEN NOT
GIVEN ADEQUATE SUPPORT AND RESOURCES
WHAT IS THE PRIMARY REASON THAT YOUR ORGANIZATION’S BRANDED ONLINE COMMUNITY
WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL?
Lack of internal
support and
resources, 31%
Not enough
engagement,
24%
Doesn’t address
member needs,
17%
Other, 14%
Poor
community
management,
7%
Problems with
platform, 7%
26
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth" by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

33. C. Properly Staffing your Team

34. TWO-THIRDS OF ORGANIZATIONS CONSIDERING
COMMUNITY PLAN TO STAFF IT IN-HOUSE
Question: Does your organization plan to staff the online community with a dedicated community manager?
34
Yes - In House
64%
Yes -
Outsourced
5%
No
5%
We’re not sure
23%
I don’t know
3%
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth" by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

35. ALMOST ALL COMMUNITIES HAVE A COMMUNITY MANAGER
Question: Is your community staffed with a dedicated Community Manager?
35
Yes – Full
time
68%
Yes – Part
time
22%
Yes –
Outsource
d
2%
No
8%
• More than 9 in 10 respondents indicate that they have a manager. Half of those have a single manager.
1
50%2 to 5
40%
6 to 10
5%
More
than 10
5%
HAVE MANAGER NUMBER MANAGERS
Question: How many community managers does your community have?
IF YES
Larger, older, and
very successful
communities are
more likely to have
a full-time manager
and more likely to
have multiple
managers.
“Keys to Community Readiness and Growth"
by Leader Networks and CMX, 2016

36. 1. Preparing for Community
2. Planning for Activity and Growth
3. Common Pitfalls to Avoid
What We Covered:
36

37. Key Takeaways
1. Communities are shifting to become more strategically focused on
supporting the customer journey.
2. Executive sponsorship and identifying key business drivers are critical
success factors in launching a successful online community.
3. Maintaining community engagement and growth is an ongoing
challenge for most companies.
4. Organizations often underestimate staffing requirements.
5. Choosing the right software platform can strongly influence the long-
term community success.
37

38. 38
Questions?

39. 39
WHERE TO NEXT?
Need help or a sounding board as you build the
business case for community?
Send us an email!
vdimauro@leadernetworks.com
Download the full report here:
www.slideshare.net/vdimauro