Following from yesterday.
Think about this for a moment.
Which organisations invest the most in their community?
Who can you think of that does a really good job of communities?
I’m going to bet most of the organisations you named didn’t exist twenty years ago.
The brands that invest the most in the community are usually owned by people with a long-term profit orientation.
They can do amazing things for members. They can hire a fleet of community professionals, and deliver a phenomenal experience right now because they believe it pays off over the long-term.
You can probably spot the problem. Most organisations have owners who either issue profit dividends to themselves, can’t afford deep expenditures, or have short-term goals to hit.
Your boss with limited resources and an annual bonus target isn’t going to buy in to your community philosophy which might pay-off in 3 years. Think about it. You ask for $250k to build a community which will improve loyalty over 3 years. Another department asks for $250k to hire more sales staff to generate sales.
It’s not a close battle.
Many of the stories we read about someone who managed to win resources for their community efforts are those lucky enough to work in organisations with VC capital, long-term orientations, and limited need to generate profit in the short-term.
If you’re trying to get more resources in these organisations, you’re usually going to struggle. In fact, you’re almost certainly going to fail.
Far better to be thorough when joining an organisation to check their community philosophy. When do they expect results? What is the profit-orientation? What resources do they have for the community?