The Power of Community Management and Fostering Innovation

The Power of Community Management and Fostering Innovation

Introduction:
In today's interconnected world, community management plays a crucial role in facilitating relationships among users. By intervening in these relationships, communities can be nurtured, maintained, strengthened, or even restructured. Understanding the dynamics of communities is essential for effective community management. Communities can be classified along two axes: dynamic/static and purpose/emotional attachment. Additionally, they can be categorized based on interest, place, action, or practice. The significance of communities parallels the importance of customer success, as both are deeply rooted in knowledge and collective learning.

The Importance of Community Management:
One of the reasons community management is gaining importance is its direct connection to the purchasing process. Surprisingly, 84% of B2B purchases begin with a referral, while 81% of individuals trust business advice from friends and family. Therefore, communities have become integral in influencing purchasing decisions and building trust among potential customers.

Understanding Contribution Disparities:
When it comes to contributing to a community, there is often an imbalance. The 1-9-90% rule suggests that only 1% of members actively create content, 9% engage with the content, and the remaining 90% passively consume it. Recognizing this disparity is crucial for community managers to ensure that all members feel involved and valued.

The Decline of Communities:
Communities may experience decline due to several factors. Member stagnation, a deterioration of purpose or interest, and changes in the composition of members over time all contribute to the decline of communities. Community managers must actively address these challenges to prevent community deterioration.

Where Great Ideas Come From:
Innovation is a driving force in every industry, and understanding its origins can help foster a creative environment. Several research studies shed light on the factors that contribute to innovative thinking. Tolerating failure is one such factor. A study from 2009 revealed that when life scientists were incentivized to experiment and given long-term grants, breakthrough innovations occurred at higher rates compared to those with stricter grants. Psychological safety, where individuals feel comfortable taking risks, also plays a role in creativity.

The Role of Expertise and Novelty:
Contrary to popular belief, novices often bring fresh perspectives and solutions that experts may overlook. A 2014 paper found that individuals with the least overlapping expertise were the most ingenious when prompted to develop novel ideas. Those who positioned themselves as "brokers" by connecting disparate groups within an organization became sources of ingenuity. However, while outsider solutions may be more creative, they may not immediately be as useful as those from experts.