Engaging Community-Driven Content

B2B tech companies are addicted to getting you to subscribe to their corporate echo chamber newsletter graveyard, where they dump their latest self-love notes. It's a cesspool of "Look at us!" and "We're pleased to announce..." drivel that suffocates originality and murders interest. Each link, each event recap and each funding announcement is another shovel of dirt on the grave of what could have been engaging content. UNSUBSCRIBE What if, instead of serving up the same old reheated corporate leftovers, your content could slap your audience awake? Ego-stroking company updates are out. 1. The pain point deep dive: Start by mining the deepest anxieties, challenges and questions your audience faces. Use forums, social media, customer feedback and even direct interviews to uncover the raw nerve you're going to press. 2. The unconventional wisdom: Challenge the status quo of your industry. If everyone's zigging, you zag. This could mean debunking widely held beliefs, proposing counterintuitive strategies or sharing insights that only insiders know but don't talk about. Be the mythbuster of your domain. 3. The narrative hook: Every piece of content should tell a story, and every story needs a hook that grabs from the first sentence. Use vivid imagery, compelling questions or startling statements to make it impossible to scroll past. Your opening should be a rabbit hole inviting Alice to jump in. 4. The value payload: This is the core of your content. Each piece should deliver actionable insights, deep dives or transformative information. Give your audience something so valuable that they can't help but use, save and share it. Think tutorials, step-by-step guides or even entertaining content that delivers laughs or awe alongside insight. 5. The personal touch: Inject your personality or brand's voice into every piece. Share personal anecdotes, failures and successes. 6. The engagement spark: End with a call to action that encourages interaction. Ask a provocative question, encourage them to share their own stories or challenge them to apply what they've learned and share the results. Engagement breeds community, and community amplifies your reach. 7. The multi-platform siege: Repurpose your anchor content across platforms. Turn blog posts into podcast episodes, summaries into tweets or LinkedIn posts and key insights into Instagram stories. Each piece of content should work as a squad, covering different fronts but pushing the same message. Without impressive anchor content, you won't have anything worth a lick in your newsletter. 8. The audience dialogue: Engage directly with your audience's feedback. Respond to comments, ask for their input on future topics and even involve them in content creation through surveys or co-creation opportunities. Make your content worth spreading, and watch as your audience does the heavy lifting for you. And please stop with the corporate navel-gazing. #newsletters #b2btech #ThatAshleyAmber

The rise of creator economy tech is real. But building tools for creators isn’t enough. You need creators to 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 use them. Creator acquisition has become one of the most strategic priorities for creator-focused tech companies. In a crowded market, it’s not just about features. It’s about standing out, building real engagement, and getting creators excited from day one. So I asked five standout companies in the creator space: "What’s one specific way you’ve strategically built engagement and excitement to bring creators onto your platform?" 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝: 🔹 Neal Jean at Beacons AI emphasized the power of personalization. His team uses data and AI to craft beautiful, pre-built link-in-bio pages even for creators who haven’t signed up yet. That proactive approach gives creators a tangible reason to join. 🔹 Will Baumann at Fourthwall shared how success starts when creators feel proud of their product. Once a sample is ordered, the team initiates a personalized onboarding sequence, including a strategy call to co-develop a launch plan tailored to the creator’s audience. 🔹 Rob Balasabas 💙 Uscreen at Uscreen leaned into the value of IRL connection. Through curated dinners, local meetups, and high-touch events, the team doesn’t just sell software. They create intentional communities where creators feel seen, supported, and inspired. 🔹 Sherry Wong at Roster turned hiring into content. Their "Hiring Challenges" tap into existing creator behavior, making the hiring process time-bound, community-driven, and shareable. That’s how Roster went viral without spending a dime on paid ads. 🔹 Cat Valdes at Mavely / Later stressed the importance of authenticity. By being transparent about what works (and what doesn’t), and backing it up with favorable commission rates and bonuses, she builds long-term trust and buy-in from creators. These companies all take different paths, but they share one thing in common: they lead with intention, value, and empathy for the creator experience. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞, 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟: why should a creator care about your platform? And what will make them stay? The most effective platforms are the ones that think beyond onboarding and focus on long-term creator engagement from day one.

Slapping “community-led” into your brand positioning doesn’t magically make it true. Because if what you’re calling a “community” is really just: - A one-way email blast - A WhatsApp group with no interaction - A silent audience politely lurking because they don’t know what they’re meant to say… Then what you’ve got is an audience. There’s nothing wrong with having an audience, by the way. But don’t confuse people watching with people connecting. Real community-led brands do things differently: - They don’t just speak at their audience, they co-create with them - They build rituals and reasons for people to engage beyond product updates - They listen, tweak, involve - not just broadcast It’s not always loud and ain’t always sexy. But it’s consistent, intentional and centred around actual people - not just a content strategy or GTM feature. Look at Strava. They didn’t just build a fitness app, they built a behaviour loop. You show up because others do too. You cheer each other on. That, my friends, is community. If your people aren’t engaging, it’s not always an awareness issue. Sometimes, they’re just not being given anything to belong to. And calling it “community” without the trust, participation or two-way value exchange is simply just marketing. Again, that’s okay. But remember: you’re not building a community if no one’s talking to each other. P.S. We now have over 500+ members in our Nexus Femtech community. All built on a SHARED purpose. 🤝

Audience collaboration isn’t a buzzword, it’s a revenue and relevance strategy for local news. Local journalism has been under pressure for years, but collaborative investigations could offer a sustainable path forward. Community-driven journalism, where newsrooms work directly with audiences to source information and leads, is reshaping how impactful stories are uncovered. By involving audiences directly in storytelling, publishers unlock deeper insights, rebuild community connections, and diversify revenue, without relying solely on traditional advertising models. Collaborative journalism works such that communities contribute firsthand data, reducing reporting costs and uncovering underreported issues such as systemic discrimination and environmental risks. Also, public participation fosters accountability, helping counter perceptions of bias or disconnected reporting. Then, smaller newsrooms pool resources with peers or broader networks to tackle complex, resource-intensive investigations. Projects that document hate crimes or public misconduct through open submissions show the tangible potential of this model. Crowdsourced investigations allow publishers to broaden their reporting reach without expanding headcount which is a crucial advantage amid ongoing financial constraints. Revenue Models for Collaborative Work ✅Memberships/Subscriptions: Offer exclusive access to collaborative findings, early reports, or behind-the-scenes updates. ✅Grants and Philanthropy: Secure support from organisations focused on civic engagement or public-interest journalism. ✅Sponsored Content: Partner with businesses to fund hyperlocal investigations into issues like housing affordability or environmental impact. ✅Licensing: Syndicate investigative work to larger networks, research institutions, or educational platforms. The focus is on building a reciprocal relationship where audiences are not just passive readers but active participants, directly contributing to meaningful reporting. Here are the key takeaways: 1. Start Small: Pilot a single collaborative project, such as crowdsourcing insights into local infrastructure challenges, to gauge community interest. 2. Monetise Participation: Offer tiered membership perks linked to audience input, like early-access reports or Q&A briefings. 3. Measure Beyond Clicks: Track engagement metrics such as submissions received and policy changes influenced by investigations. Crowdsourced journalism demands upfront investment in moderation systems, fact verification processes, and audience education. Maintaining editorial standards while scaling collaboration is key. However, the potential payoff includes sustainable revenue streams, loyal readerships, and journalism that drives real-world change which justifies the shift. Have you partnered with audiences on investigations? Share your experience in the comment section. #CollaborativeJournalism #LocalNews #MediaRevenue #AudienceEngagement #PublishingStrategy

I've been thinking a lot about the kind of content brands put into the world. Some of it sparks conversation and strengthens brand connection. Some of it...just fills the feed. Most B2C brands are great at chasing engagement, but not always at building brand meaning. When I mapped it out, the content that matters most always ends up in the upper-right quadrant: High Engagement + High Cultural Relevance / Emotional Impact. 🟩 The Sweet Spot This is content people actually interact with and that strengthens brand connection: • User-Generated Storytelling (not just reviews, but authentic, emotional UGC) • Lifestyle & Aspirational Content (travel inspo, fashion, wellness — fits seamlessly into how people see themselves) • Viral TikTok/Reels Trends (when done authentically and in sync with culture) • Influencer Collaborations (especially when creators embody your brand values) • Community Challenges / Hashtag Activations (identity-driven and participatory) This is where loyalty gets built. Where campaigns outlive algorithms. Where engagement means something. ⸻ 🟧 What to Watch Out For (Low/Low) • Generic Product Ads (feature dumps without story) • Random Sales Promotions (uninspired discount graphics) • Forced Trend-Jacking (when brands hop on memes without fit) 👉 These pieces don’t move the needle on culture or engagement. ⸻ 🟪 The Trap (High Engagement / Low Relevance) • Giveaways / Sweepstakes (quick hits, low equity) • Funny Memes / Low-lift Humor (attention-grabbing but not tied to your brand) • Clickbait-y Hacks (drive views without deepening connection) • Flash Discounts (transactional, not relational) 👉 Yes, these light up the metrics — but they don’t build lasting brand affinity. ⸻ The takeaway? Don’t just chase clicks. Make more content for the upper right: where engagement fuels cultural relevance, and cultural relevance and emotional impact fuels long-term brand love. 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝘽2𝘽 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙭, 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚: https://lnkd.in/d7DXQDMB 𝙄’𝙡𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙪𝙥𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙈𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙎𝙪𝙗𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚: https://lnkd.in/d28dna4K

While everyone's chasing brand deals, the real billion-dollar brands are being built in communities. When I worked at YouTube before short-form existed, the difference between us and Vimeo wasn't features. It was community—the ability to build relationships at scale. Colin & Samir get this better than anyone. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗗𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘁: Not just YouTube videos. Live shows that sell out arenas. Not just merch drops. A theatrical documentary coming this November. Not just content. A community that shows up everywhere they go. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆—𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗶𝘁: Built their YouTube channel into creator economy HQ Started The Publish Press newsletter Created The Colin and Samir Show podcast Grew their Discord community Hosted intimate meetups Partnered on brand events Launched Press Publish NYC with 450+ creators in attendance They've been investing in community long before it was trendy. Their Dude Perfect breakdown just shows how deeply they understand what makes it work. Same week, Salish Matter's makeup launch (sincerely yours) caused mall chaos. Not because of the product. Because her community wanted to be part of the moment. My daughter asked why we didn't fly to NJ for it. That's when I knew: Creator communities aren't just changing business. They're changing how our kids see the world. I missed Press Publish NYC and I felt the FOMO as well. That's why I try to be everywhere — because the magic happens when communities gather IRL. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸: 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Turn your course students into a private community. Weekly office hours become monthly meetups. 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Your most engaged commenters become your street team. Give them early access, let them vote on content. 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: That DM folder full of questions? That's your first 100 community members waiting for a Discord invite. 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Stop ending videos with "comment below." Start ending with "join our Wednesday workshops." The magic isn't in having a community—it's in giving them a reason to show up beyond your next upload. Digital communities crave physical connection. Online loyalty translates to offline action. Creators treating community as a feature will struggle. Creators treating community as the foundation will thrive. Your move. Cheers to Colin and Samir, Dude Perfect, Jordan and Salish Matter, and every creator investing in community IRL. You're not just building audiences, you're building movements. 📸 From YouTube to Spotter to building Bay Area Creator Economy, community was always the answer #CreatorEconomy #CommunityFirst #CreatorCommunity

Building a Successful Customer Community: More Than Just a Forum A well-run customer community isn’t just a place for discussions—it’s a strategic asset that builds deeper relationships, strengthens product adoption, and creates a sense of belonging among your customers. A thriving community can: ✅ Drive retention – Customers who feel connected to a brand and their peers stay longer. ✅ Enhance product adoption – Peer-to-peer learning helps customers use your product more effectively. ✅ Create organic engagement – Customers help each other, reducing support burden and strengthening loyalty. What Makes a Customer Community Successful? 1️⃣ Clear Purpose & Value 🔹 What’s in it for customers? Whether it’s networking, product knowledge, or industry trends, a great community serves a defined purpose. 2️⃣ Strong Onboarding & Early Engagement 🔹 Communities fail when members don’t know how to participate. Structured onboarding, welcome guides, and initial engagement prompts are critical. 3️⃣ Diverse Participation Opportunities 🔹 Not all members engage the same way. Offer different ways to participate, such as: 🔸 Discussions & Q&A threads 🔸 Live virtual and in-person events & expert AMAs 🔸 Exclusive beta groups & insider content 4️⃣ Encouraging Organic Conversations 🔹 A common mistake? Over-moderation. Let members shape discussions while providing light guidance to keep engagement strong. 5️⃣ Recognition & Incentives 🔹 Gamification, ambassador programs, and member spotlights keep engagement high while rewarding contributors. 6️⃣ Measuring Community Impact 🔹 Successful communities don’t just “feel good”—they drive real business impact. Here's what you can track: 🔸 Retention & renewal rates for engaged members 🔸 Reduction in support ticket volume 🔸 Peer-led referrals & advocacy participation 🔸 Expansion growth A well-structured community provides a unique, scalable way to engage customers, making them feel valued while strengthening their connection to your brand. When customers learn, share, and grow together, everyone benefits. What’s the most valuable community you’ve been part of? What made it work? #CustomerCommunity #CommunityBuilding #CustomerEngagement #CustomerSuccess #B2BMarketing #RetentionMarketing

The Conversation Economy is here - and it's actually a fun and refreshing evolution in social media. The content side of social media strategy has already evolved in this direction (although I'd argue it has always been this way) - consumers want more content that speaks WITH them, not AT them. They want content that creates or deepens that feeling of connection they have with a brand. Social media content strategy is, and always has been, a two-way conversation. And so sure, it's still important to create and publish content but between the consumer's desire and the platform's algorithm priorities around user-to-user connection - volume of content matters less than it ever has...and that should excite social media managers everywhere! It's now more about social engagements - and no, not inbound ones. Outbound ones. As an example, we've implemented proactive engagement strategies on two of the brands I work on: Our Anytime Fitness team has been working with Overdrive and in 2 months we have already seen our proactive outreach see a potential reach of 909M, driving over 60K additional engagements. Platform-wise, this has driven a 145% increase in profile views, 85% increase in reached audience, and 46% increase in video views on our own content. And we've seen a 43% increase in followers!! Our Waxing The City team (shout out Taylor DeShaw) has been dedicating a small daily time block to proactive engagement, and despite 13 fewer published posts in Q3 vs Q2, we have seen video views increase 70%, our reached audience grow 56%, our profile views increase by 157% and a 72% increase in net follower growth. Organic social is not just about what visuals we can push out, it's about how we can join relevant conversations to engage WITH our consumers side-by-side as a way of building a connection that helps keep the humanness in marketing (and keeps us top of mind). I've said it since day 1 of working in social media: Community management (no, that's not just responding to inbound DMs and comments) is the most underrated part of a successful organic social media strategy. Who else is having fun in the comment sections out there? #socialmediastrategy #Socialmediawins #proactiveengagement #communitymanagement.

🤩 Y’all, case study #2 just dropped on betternews.org with the American Press Institute's series on influencer + newsroom collabs. And it is GOOOOD. https://lnkd.in/egse_Jc3 ☝️The problem: Pittsburgh's Public Source wanted a path to more creative trusted messenger partnerships but lacked a clear, consistent way to discover creators across their region, assess their work and figure out where alignment made sense. ✌️The solution: A local influencer map — very much expanding their community asset map work. Think of it like a living database that helps you identify who’s already building trust and reach, and how you can collaborate. And even better: they brought in Adriana Lacy and her consultancy, Influencer Journalism, to help, FTW. 📊 One of my favorite tools in their project is the mapping spreadsheet, which is such an accessible way to start building your own creator map. (get your copy here 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eUJVVHFD), where you can track: Handle (Name) • Platform • Followers • Background/Affiliation • Key Content & Audience • Relevant Feed Content My favorite takeaway is how they balanced micro and macro messengers. The Public Source team didn’t just chase follower counts. Micro-creators brought depth to tight-knit communities. Macro-creators brought lift when values and alignment were there. That balance = 🔑. 📌 If your newsroom is ready to move beyond one-off collabs into real creator partnerships, start here. This case study is your recipe. S/O to Halle Stockton, Natasha Khan Vicens, and Jennie Ewing Liska for always being down to share what they're learning to move the local journalism field forward. https://lnkd.in/egse_Jc3 #communityengagement #influencerpartnerships

The most successful beauty brands are selling something you can’t actually buy. Community. Belonging. A lifestyle. In an industry flooded with products, the brands that truly stand out are the ones that have tapped into something far more valuable than just product innovation: a place where their audience feels seen, supported, and inspired.   Here's why this matters, and how you can apply it to your brand: 1. Community create loyal advocates, not just customers  Brands like Rare Beauty, Topicals, and Summer Fridays don’t just sell products—they offer a sense of belonging. They’ve created communities where customers feel like they’re part of something bigger, which fosters loyalty beyond just a single transaction. How to Apply This: Think about how you can share your brand values with your community and engage them in meaningful ways. Ask for their input, celebrate their milestones, and make them feel included in your brand’s journey. 2. A strong brand story attracts the right people  A brand that has a clear, consistent purpose and story will more easily—and genuinely—connect with their key audience. Shape your brand values and story  to resonate deeply with your community. How to Apply This: Reflect on your brand’s purpose: Why does your brand exist beyond just selling products? How can you serve your key audience? Craft your narrative around this. 3. Community drives authentic engagement When people are invested in your story and feel like they’re part of your journey, they become your best advocates. To build a loyal community, engage with them! How to Apply This: Respond to comments, stay active in your DMs, create content that encourages conversation, and be present. It’s so simple: people want to connect with other people. (The amount of times I’ve seen positive reactions to brands getting active in DMs and the comments section  >>> ) Anything else you'd add here? Tack on your thoughts in the comments!