I don’t think there is a point in me talking about how, content, collabs, influence, perks, word-of-mouth, niche strategies, and seeding, can help build a community.

These are all very effective ways of supplementing a community, but building one that can stand alone and survive time - participation, chaos, and purpose are the 3 pillars for a strong strategy.

“I feel part of this, these results are also my results”

It’s all about human beings. When people are given enough space to participate, the project becomes part of who they are. A sense of ownership arises and people feel proud of being where they are. For that, organizations have to be transparent, communicative and have to be inserted inside the community itself. Asking not telling is key. Sourcing opinions, skills, time, from the inside is crucial. A community manager job should get easier with time.

“We will survive together. We are strong.”

Chaos is necessary for community building. Chaos unites people. What I mean by this is that a community needs the scramble, needs the hustle. When a product is launching, and the necessary community building has been done beforehand, the community itself will help onboard noobs. Organically, without being told to do so. This sense of comradery comes from this chaos. I’m not saying you should leave a community unattended in product launch, but sometimes you need to step back and watch homeostasis happen.

“I know where we’re going and that’s exactly where I want to go. This is where I want to be.”

Purpose trumps objectives and creates belonging. Motivated people are the ones who have a purpose behind their actions. When all eyes are looking at the same direction it’s easy for people to understand right from wrong, it’s easy to take the [organic, disorganized and chaotic being that is a] community in the right direction. 

“I show up because I like the people around me. Even if there’s nothing to do, I’ll be there.”

I believe that the biggest mistake in we3 community building is that leaders create linear and “one-way” calls to action. When that happens, people end up in and out. They are there for the giveaway but out the door, once it’s finished. When events are organized around the community members people start to “hang out”. Community is about having people there, not anywhere else, there - present.

At the end of the day, this is a number of individual humans that; the more neural their organizational structure is, the better. Links coming from every side, not just from the top. Interconnectedness.

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I believe that DAOs represent the evolution in human organization, people using tech and the internet to find where they FIT. We all just want to fit in and when we are able to find that in what we do, life is good. Add that to a new decentralized financial system, and boom. That being said, I’ll compliment by saying that to build an online community it is essential that all the artifices (bots, apps, social media, etc…) are used in your favor.

Be the catalyst of relationships, bonds, purpose, and contribution. That would be my strategy for community building.