• by Seana Mulcahy , May 12, 2008

One of my many quests is to build communities on behalf of the brands we represent. I write about this quite a bit. I try and think who out there has community and I feel that the line is blurry. Every brand I came up with seems more like "affinity" or "loyalty" versus community. Are they one and the same?

When I think about enthusiasts, I also think those folks are most likely part of a community or communities online. Take a look at cars. I typed in "Porsche fan" in Google and got pages of results from blogs and bulletin boards to dealers, small dealers, parts sellers, and sites like eBay, Kelly Blue Book, NADA and Porsche.com of course. Just about any auto manufacturer seems to have an online fan base.

Or how about music? In the past five years or so, musicians have had the opportunity to really tout their own talents (versus being so tightly controlled by labels and lawyers). MySpace seemed to be a springboard for many. It offered them personalization, customization, a place for videos and audio clips -- all for free.

Of course there have been several social networks popping up that are dedicated to this genre. According to Digital Media Wire, Universal Music Group announced recently that it has made an equity investment in Buzznet, the music-focused social media site, and will share revenue with it, as well as help develop editorial programming. Financial details were not disclosed.

Buzznet, which claims 10 million active members, recently acquired music blogs Stereogum and Idolator.

Want to build a gourmet kitchen? Looking for wine tastings or luxury spa vacations? Then you might want to stop by Spire. Look around some of the user postings, and you'll see perfect examples of those being true to a brand.

What strikes me is most brands that I think evoke community seem to be vertically focused or even niche. Is that true? They certainly are lifestyle-focused like Nascar.com and iVillage.com. But isn't Craig's List a community? Or what about Facebook?

To this writer there are sites that represent community like ClubMom, Crackberry and Apple; sites that create communities by some sort of common association, like Facebook and Classmates.com; sites that house many communities therein, like MySpace and Yelp.

In a recent Adweek article, Brian Morrissey writes that brands like Zappos.com, Craig's List, Yelp and the T-shirt phenomenon Threadless http://www.threadless.com "are quietly building powerful brands online on the strength of communities. For these companies, community is not a tactic or marketing plan line item, but core to what they do. It means being hyper-responsive to customers, laser focused on usability, unapologetically human and OK with customers determining the course their businesses should take. The bonus: When they take off, these brands don't need to do much in the way of advertising, instead letting their customers spread the word."

To me a community is a place where you can go to find common interests, values, likes, dislikes -- the list goes on. It is a place where you feel welcome. However the communities I am a part of are by no means one-way streets. You get out of them what you put into them. You just can't sign up and rarely come back with little to no interaction. It's like buying a house on a cul-de-sac and never knowing who your neighbors are. Successful online communities offer the environment; people or members make up the culture.

What does community mean to you? Can you share with us community sites that you've been a part of, frequent or where you have registered?