Most of us have a few favorite websites we visit on a regular basis. For me, it’s the content that is updated regularly, like forums, blogs, RSS feeds, and even news aggregates, that keeps me coming back for more. Because there is always something fresh and interesting to read or do, I tend to visit these websites on a daily or weekly basis, reading articles, participating in discussions, voting in polls, and even playing browser-based multi-player games.

What most of us may not stop and think about is the information we’re giving this website. No, it’s nothing Big Brother-like. Statistics like number of visitors, repeat traffic, page views, visitor location, time on pages, and view paths are crucial for many businesses because they allow the business to evaluate its web-based marketing strategies.

Often, the most important measurement is traffic, or the number of visitors to your website.

Traffic to a website is like oxygen to blood. For web-based businesses, the entire income stream can depend on the amount of new and repeat visitors. For businesses that use their websites as a marketing and communication tool, traffic brings in new clients. For smart businesses, both web-based and non, traffic means loyal, involved customers providing more than just income.

As I mentioned in my last Stagecoach Express article regarding community innovation, web communities can encourage and produce many benefits to businesses.

How do we, then, create these communities?

The Field of Dreams approach can only take you so far. Just like a garden, you have to grow a community, and it takes a lot of care, hard work, and brow sweat.

Start by picking a medium. How do you want your community to interact, and what do you want your part to be? Blogging, and encouraging comments and discussions about subjects and articles you write can be a great way to start. By writing blog posts, you’re adding that all-important content to your site.

As you develop a blogging style, begin to market your blog. Encourage everyone you know to go online and read! Drive visitors who already go to your website, add the link to your e-mail signature, put the link in your profile on other sites. Make sure to measure your blog’s traffic, and keep an eye on subscriber rates (if you’ve added an RSS feed). My next Stagecoach Express article will take you through the basics of blogging, and how to make a blog work for you.

Forums are great for encouraging high-level community discussion. An online forum is the evolution of the “message board.” Individuals who wish to contribute to a discussion become “members”, and are then permitted to post messages. Forums can be harder to start because they rely on members posting content, instead of the website owner, but once they get going they can be a rich source of information and innovation.

For businesses, a forum can be an ideal way for customers to discuss issues of relevance to a product or service. A sporting goods store might have a minor league hockey forum (and it would be wise to moderate this site very carefully!). A pet store might host a forum on rescued animals available for adoption. A camera store might host a forum on photography. Once I’ve covered the boons of blogging, I’ll write another article exploring forums and their advantages for many businesses.

Once you being to see seedlings, make sure to keep watering. Keep your content fresh, and encourage comments. If you’ve chosen to go the forum route, make sure you’re keeping your community clean, and adding/removing topics as required.

Want to learn more about web communities, and how they can help your business? Be sure to stop by the Stagecoach Designs storefront at 249 King St. West in Dundas, ON, or call us at 866-914-4442.