Launching a community is like throwing a party.
A really big, expensive party, that needs to prove its ROI... No, seriously, for both a great party and a great community you need a venue, a host, an agenda and most importantly, guests. Here are some resources to help you organize and launch your new online community.
This exclusive resource bundle is designed for individuals or teams looking to launch a new community.
The Launching a Community bundle is built for anyone that is working with a pre-launch community program. Whether you've just got "launch a community" on your checklist, or you've started laying the foundation this bundle will help you plan a smooth, successful launch.
You'll explore
- online community platform shopping
- cross-functional teams
- community playbooks
- content seeding and curation
- community fundamentals
- community interfaces
- new member welcome programs
- where to focus when getting started
- a checklist for building a community
- and more!
The Launching a Community bundle contains resources to help community professionals tackle pre-launch community challenges. It includes:
- Roundtable Reports and case studies
- nine years of the State of Community Management Report
- high-res versions of our most popular models and frameworks
- additional resources including examples of community playbooks, checklists and more
You don't need to reinvent the community wheel. We've spent the last ten years working with hundreds of global community leaders to launch their online community programs, and have distilled the most proven community launch tactics into one resource bundle.
Instead of wasting time searching for ideas that might help, you can start your community journey.
The resources in the Launching a Community bundle will help you hit the ground running and plan an effective community launch.
Two Ways to Access the Launching a Community Resource Bundle:
You can access the resources in the Launching a Community Resource Bundle by either subscribing to the stand-alone bundle or subscribing to TheCR Library. By subscribing to TheCR Library you get unlimited access the Launching a Community Resource Bundle and the rest of the Library content, including dozens of Reports, webinars, case studies, podcasts and other resource bundles.
Choose the best option for you below:
I just want the Launching a Community Resource Bundle.
I want to subscribe to the entire Library.
Want to see all the resources in this Resource Bundle? Keep Scrolling...
The Foundation
Community Glossary
Like any work discipline, online communities have jargon. Get up to speed with the glossary of terms.
Community Maturity Model (CMM)
The Community Maturity Model (CMM) is how we categorize the different areas of community work. It is also how resources and discussions in the Network are organized.
Community Engagement Framework
We talk about engagement as a ladder, not an on/off switch. The Community Engagement Framework details how members grow, mature, and contribute to a community over time.
Getting Started
We believe in building on the success of others, not reinventing the wheel. Here are some resources that will shed some light on how other people are making their communities shine.
Community Manager Handbook
This CMGR handbook contains stories and case studies from how others before us have forged their way to community success.
Community Building Checklist
Here's a comprehensive checklist for building a community.
CMGT 101
This is a curated resource featuring advice and best practices from 17 community leaders about their secrets to success.
Shopping for an online community platform?
This article gives a quick overview of six things to consider when evaluating online community platforms.
Community Playbooks
A community playbook is a must for many community managers. Here's a quick overview and an example of a draft, and final version.
Cross-Functional Checklist
Helpful list detailing the different groups in your organization that can help launch a community program.
The Language of Engagement
A primer on how to communicate to encourage engagement.
15 Community Programming Ideas
15 proven programs to jumpstart engagement in your community.
Roundtable Reports
Roundtable reports are tactical assets that help community practitioners address common community challenges through expert advice, SME panels and proven case studies from top brands
Ten Content Curation Techniques for your Community
On this call, TheCR Champion Maddie Grant of Culture That Works and Ed Barrett, the SVP of Marketing and Membership at GBTA, came to share best practices for curating content in the context of online communities.
How Shepley Bulfinch Prepared for a Successful Internal Community Launch
Learn success strategies for launching an internal community.
How to Launch a Successful Community
This report provides some thought-provoking best practices for launching a successful community.
10 Community Fundamentals That Transcend All Community Use Cases
This report captures community expert Lisa Bidder's thoughts on fundamentals that apply to every community.
How Gamification Can Help Grow Adoption & Engagement
This report details the concept of gamification and how it can help organizations grow their community adoption and engagement.
Zero to Pilot: Growing Community from the Ground Up
This report outlines two mini-case studies, one B2B example and one B2C example, of what the strategy, approach, and biggest challenges were in getting communities from zero to pilot.
Beyond Engagement: Moving Businesses & Creating Movement
Maria Ogneva shares Sidecar’s journey from launch to early community.
Developing B2B Communities: Keys to Growth and Innovation
This report dives into strategies for engagement maintenance through executive support.
Fierce Loyalty: Unlocking the DNA of Wildly Successful Communities
The title says it all! In this report, Sarah Robinson shed light on several best practices and ideas for creating fiercely loyal and wildly successful communities.
Best Practices For Welcome New Members Into Your Community
This report found that welcome programs fit into a broader strategy that helps to build and strengthen a community.
Launching a New Community Interface
Launching a new user interface is no easy task. Stephanie Field of Carbon Black shared an information-packed case study full sure to be helpful for others engaging in down the same path.
Case Studies
Don't reinvent the community wheel. Leaders from global brands like Autodesk and Electronic Arts share success stories and offer insight on how to recreate that success in your community.
Getting The New Member Experience Right: Lessons From Autodesk
Camilo Lemos of Autodesk shares his lessons learned on building a welcome process in this case study.
Driving Community Participation and Engagement With Gamification
Learn how Electronic Arts built a gamification-based support hub and a two-tiered super-user program that increased traffic, converted lurkers and deflected contacts from Live Support channels.
Models + Frameworks
We have spent the last ten years working with global community leaders, and have developed proven, research-backed models and frameworks for community success.
Research
The Community Roundtable publishes the industry's most respected, and most widely read research. This Resource Bundle includes downloads of all ten years of the State of Community Management, and our widely-cited Community Careers and Compensation report.
- State of Community Management 2010
- State of Community Management 2011
- State of Community Management 2012
- State of Community Management 2013
- State of Community Management 2014
- State of Community Management 2015
- State of Community Management 2016
- State of Community Management 2017
- State of Community Management 2018
- Community Careers and Compensation Report
Additional Resources
- Enterprise Adoption Guide: Fantastic resource that Rachel shared. This is a 30-page research report, people. Good stuff.
- Ultimate Online Community Checklist: This is a great resource to use when building an online community. Packed with links and other resources, this is an awesome curated list to help you stay on track when starting a community.
- 5 Simple UX Principles to Guide Your Product Design: A short and helpful guide when thinking about your community as a product
- Seven UX Best Practices of Community Design: Seven main points to consider when building community.
- Scale Positive Behaviors by Designing Them Into Social Software: Structure drives behavior and software UX is no different, this article explains how to link the ultimate business objective back to how the UX of the system works.
Two Ways to Access the Launching a Community Resource Bundle:
You can access the resources in the Launching a Community Resource Bundle by either subscribing to the stand-alone bundle or subscribing to TheCR Library. By subscribing to TheCR Library you get unlimited access the Launching a Community Resource Bundle and the rest of the Library content, including dozens of Reports, webinars, case studies, podcasts and other resource bundles.
Choose the best option for you below:
I just want the Launching a Community Resource Bundle.
I want to subscribe to the entire Library.
