By Ted McEnroe, The Community Roundtable
As more and more organizations join the community bandwagon, what separates the best from the rest? In part, it’s that the best communities are integrated into their organization’s overall strategy.
The State of Community Management 2015 report finds that best-in-class communities demonstrate a commitment to making community more than just a tool in the toolbox – they make strategic investments in community that align with broader business goals.
Among the evidence:
- Best-in-class communities were more than twice as likely to have developed a measurable community strategy (85% to 37% overall)
- 90 percent of best-in-class communities track activity as it relates to the community strategy (versus 53% overall)
- More than 70 percent of best-in-class communities align their content strategy and/or program calendars with their community strategy – fewer than half of communities overall did that.
Proving the value of your community to the larger organization gets much easier when you take an intentional approach to integrating the community strategy with larger business objectives, and when you collaborate with key stakeholders. You are more likely to find alignment opportunities, and it makes it easier for you to put your community successes in a context that resonates with the broader business.
Need strategies for integrating your community approach to other pieces of your organization? TheCR Network and its member resources are a good place to start! Learn more about membership here.
