The Case Against Branded Conversations

Most branded community managers would probably have removed many of these off-topic discussions.

 

But Avon didn’t, that’s why their community is thriving.

Members bond beyond their interest in the topic. They visit regularly to know more about about each other's lives, and share the latest events in their lives.

They're not information-seekers (which most branded communities attract) they're people that want to bond. 

If you only allow people to exchange information, your members wont bond with each other. They will only visit the community when they need information (or want to share information). That wont be very often.

However, we have an ever-present need to bond. We want to make genuine human connections all the time. It's what we do when we're not working. The communities where members tend to visit every day are those that feature a high number of bonding conversations and a limited number of branded conversations.

Too many community managers push for branded conversations. They believe their members should be exchanging information about the brand (or topics closely related to the brand). By heavily restricting the types of discussions you allow, you’re crippling the development of your community.

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Comments

[Peter Fretty]

Great article Rich! More companies need to understand the significance of allowing their social community evolve. The same is true when companies embrace and encourage team members to utilize an internal social platform. While policies are important, people still need to enjoy it if you ever expect them to use the platform for active engagement.

Social media is the topic for CIO Debate's current episode (bit.ly/ooioP2) as well -- a number of great resources for business leaders.

[Glenn Friesen]

Right on, and so well-illustrated..!

Order vs. Control

Ultimately, I've come to belief that the push for brands to seek to house / participate in only branded conversations is an issue of control. Seeking to retain the control over what their community is discussing, rather than participating in the conversation their community wants to have.