People have been avidly interested in pursuing this type of role and want to know how they can gain the necessary skills. Back in June of 2008 I offered 2 training programs to meet that need. It went great until I got sucked into the tech startup world and social media monitoring. Since then I have continued to mentor and scale the reach here through my blog.

Periodically people would request my courses when they came across the old posts referencing training. I always felt bad when I had to explain that my day job was busier than busy. So, I’m really pleased to see that WOMMA and the The Community Roundtable are offering training courses that are specific to Community Management (in contrast to Social Media in general) and they are created by credible people in the industry. Earlier this week Jeremiah Owyang covered the pro’s and con’s of the certification aspect of the Community Manager Training courses.

These courses will:

• fast track your knowledge base on the expectations of community management
• open your eyes to aspects that you didn’t realize existed and cause you to have even more questions
• be excellent for those of you that have been assigned or are spending a portion of your time in this new role

They probably won’t:

• make it easier to get a job (employers are getting 100’s of app’s per position) or more pay
• ramp a company’s adoption of social media (ie: embrace the value of community & related culture shift)
• replace the value of volunteering and showing leadership in an online community and the related experience.

If you’re interested in exploring community management and strategy these courses are a good place to gain the skills and an overview.

I would highly recommend connecting with like-minded people in one of the following communities:

• Facebook group Community Manager, Advocate, and Evangelist

An active group that has new people joining everyday. There is a doc with social media jobs there.

• Community BackChannel

Membership is free, but there is a process for requesting it.

• CommunityAdmins.com

These active forums are a part of Patrick O’Keefe’s iFroggy network. Patrick is the author of Managing Online Forums.

• Community RoundTable

Jim Storer & Rachel Happe are the founders of this peer network. They have built a very active community that is based on resources, research and regular activities.

Seeking a job? Check out this Facebook group of Social Media Jobs

If you’re a practicing Community Manager, what resources have you found the most helpful?

For the second half of last year people were telling me that’s what they see me doing. Chris Brogan told me that in person at Blog World. Scott Hammond of Nattergalen has identified it too & requires his staff to read my blog.

Chris has taken education to a new level of creating a business around it. I’m excited for him on his venture! This year brings me many opportunities to speak & teach in person also (some are yet to be announced). I will be doing some workshops on community management & leadership.

I have learned so much online through webinars & online experiences. So it was a natural fit when Axel Schultz contacted me & asked if I’d join the faculty of his newly founded Social Media Academy. As you know I’m a proponent of working remote & I appreciate the ‘virtual’ format! The press releases are out & I’m excited about having another way to share my knowledge with others.

Thanks to Axel & Marita for inviting me to join in their adventure.

There is a free Webinar on Jan 21

In the last post on the Interview Process I offered tips for both the Interviewer & the candidate. That started some interesting conversations. I predict that recruiting highly qualified community managers is going to be challenging.

In regard to that post, Richard Millington pointed out that the questions aren’t very helpful unless the Interviewer is really familiar with the role. He asked if a Community Manager really needs an interview?

Martin Reed added:

I think it is important to take their previous experience and achievements into account but you should still take the time to interview them or at least engage in a conversation to see if they are a right ‘fit’ – after all, would you still recruit the perfect community manager if you couldn’t stand speaking to them?

I do agree that there should be a formal interview process. That is important for both the employer & potential candidate. Both sides need to be open & explore the following:

• work habits
• company culture
• expectations for the position
• knowledge of social media tools & participation in social networks
• product knowledge & familiarity with customer segments
• communication skills
• ability to mediate & tactfully deal with people
• leadership skills – this can be a powerful position if utilized correctly
• creativity – brainstorming & execution
• open to experimentation & ability to learn from mistakes
• familiarity with analytics
• aspirations

Jeremiah Owyang has many posts on the role. Here are a couple that are helpful:

• Understanding the Role
• Should Startups have a Community Manager

If you would like assistance with any of the following, email me at mailto:conniebensen@gmail.com

• How a Community Manager can contribute to your business goals.
• Assistance with creating a job description that suits your organization’s needs.
• Reviewing & interviewing potential candidates
• Training based on organizational needs
• Exploring alternative options:
  • utilizing someone on staff
  • job sharing the position

What other factors should be considered in the recruitment process?

Timeframe

The online world is changing so quickly that I think the traditional 6 month orientation & annual performance review should be shifted to a 3 month orientation & 6 month review. If that mixes up HR too much then do the 3 month intervals informally.

Performance Evaluation

As a Community Manager (or in any position really) keep track of your wins. Once a month take some time to log what’s went well & what didn’t. If you provide this to your supervisor it will provide you both with topics to discuss. In a perfect world there is ongoing communication & job coaching, but that doesn’t necessarily always happen. This should prevent surprises from either side.

Ideally if you’re submitting a monthly report of stat’s with feedback on what’s going well & suggestions of ideas then those reports would be excellent talking points.

Goal Setting

The Community Manager role is rarely listed as supervisory but it really is. You’re leading a whole community (both externally & internally). This means that if you’re truly engaged in your position then you should be setting goals on an ongoing basis and adjusting them as needed. I see that expectation in the job descriptions all the time. The type of person that fits this role is also very self motivated.

So goal setting should be a concerted effort with your supervisor. It is your job so take responsiblity for it’s direction. As a community manager you can influence your direction by providing your goals & then the goal setting can be a discussion of how they fit into the company’s mission.

I’m thinking that some are going to suggest that I’m a bit idealistic. I came to enjoy the process with my staff. Goals are so important. Without them how will improvements happen? Change is necessary so you may as well be a part of it or it’ll happen around you.

A quick note about the best advice given to me by my Director after my first year in a supervisory/leadership role. She said, "Choose the two activities that are the least successful & drop them." Every once in awhile I need to remind myself of that. My supervisors generally don’t have the problem of needing to find work for me, it’s more of helping me deal with the frustration of my self-inflicted "too much to do". So I hope that helps if you’re an over-achiever. I think it’s fairly typical of people in the community manager role. So that puts a totally different twist on goal setting, doesn’t it?

What are your thoughts on performance reviews & goal setting? Is it something that you find helpful? What’s your best advice? I’d love to hear it!

At first I was going to have it closed to the public. But in the spirit of community it was a no-brainer that a portion should be open to all of you. A blog isn’t the ideal place to have discussions. And granted there are oodles of microblogging platforms, the forums interaction is nice. The Facebook group format is really not a good way to interact. They haven’t added any new features to support the groups & the growth of them.

So you’re welcome to join & share ideas at CommunityStrategist.net. You don’t need to be a community manager. If you’re interested in community building, networking, branding, using social media tools, marketing & PR in the web 2.0 world, etc you’re welcome! The more, the merrier!

As a result, I’ve put together two courses for community managers. The first will be for those working with external communities & later I’ll start one for those working with internal ones. My vision is to provide community managers with a course that will provide you with practical skills that you can use every day. We’ll have discussions about best practices & the ‘what if’ & how to handle it when it happens. The Community Manager position is such a broad encompassing position that it can be overwhelming.

The first course is for Community Managers working with external communities. There will be six sessions filled with information & the opportunity to discuss it.

• Session 1 – The Plan – Strategies, Goal Setting & Metrics
• Session 2 – Listening & Engaging – Brand Monitoring & Branding
• Session 3 – Make it a Party & Recruit Help – Participation & Advocates
• Session 4 –Telling your Story – Blogging, Networking & Collaborating
• Session 5 – Attracting new members – Driving traffic to your community
• Session 6 – Internal Influence – Wearing many hats & routing traffic

Facilitation – it’s going to be remote, of course!

• First session will be one-on-one to identify goals & review your community
• Remaining sessions will be conference calls with maximum of 4-6 per group
  • session meetings one per week
  • first session starting mid July
• Access to a private discussion forum to continue the conversations & share resources

For more details, please send me an email at conniebensen@gmail.com 

*update* I’m getting a great response. I’m looking forward to working with you!

For those of you around the world, I’ll make adjustments for time zones.

Let’s take a couple of minutes to talk about The Cluetrain Manifesto because many of my readers are new to social media marketing. It is based on the premise that customers are talking & companies need to start listening & participating:

A powerful global conversation has begun. Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed. As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies.

If you’re not familiar with the manifesto take a couple of minutes to read the 95 theses. I suggest reviewing them periodically because at various stages of involvement with social media you’ll find that they take on new meaning.

I really like Valeria’s summary & inclusion about emotion because the New Marketing is all about customers & relationships. She says:

This kind of conversation is a commitment, not a savings account for your marketing spend. When I speak about social media, the tools and dynamics, I often say that they are the container, the context in which you get to:

• engage
• educate
• entertain

The fourth “E” is emotion, the human quality that is memorable because it touches us. While blogs and other social media seem (and often are) extemporaneous, they do allow you to show the personality of your business. Your personality is still what differentiates you from your competitors – and, after years of industrial age treatment, what makes you likeable.

Here is my take on the meme on the 10th anniversary of the book:

1. What does The Cluetrain Manifesto mean to you? How has the book and theses influenced or not influenced you?

I was introduced to the concepts in early 2006 in the public library non-profit setting. As I have shifted to marketing online the precepts of the Cluetrain Manifesto have become more applicable. They also ring true for me as a customer!

As a customer living in a rural area I’ve long relied on reviews on Amazon to make purchase decisions for three reasons:.

1. Word of mouth influences me: It is easier to purchase electronics in this way rather than rely on college students opinions in stores.
2. Local selection is limited in a town of 60,000. I want to buy what’s best for my needs rather than what’s being mass marketed.
3. Lower price & the convenience of having it delivered to my door – shopping online definitely allows me to purchase at the best price

As a Community Manager the Cluetrain Manifesto provides the foundation for my philosophies & underlines the relevance of my work:

• the customer is first & they need to be listened to – they are networking & influencing each other’s purchases
• conversations are happening everywhere – the company needs to get off their site & join in
  • they need to respect the customers opinions & space
  • realize that the relationships must be nurtured & are fragile
• the conversation must be transparent & authentic – if it is then the customers will embrace it & uplift the brand (as well as forgive it’s shortcomings)
• the conversation isn’t something to be controlled (externally OR internally)

2. Which companies have best implemented The Cluetrain Manifesto in your opinion and how were they effective?

There are so many examples. There are some excellent books that I list in my Resources page that provide examples & case studies.

3. In thesis 57, The Cluetrain Manifesto states, “smart companies will get out of the way and help the inevitable to happen sooner.” In light of that thesis, is encouraging employees to use social media and blogging a good idea? Is it really effective, when an employee is encouraged but not directed?

I believe that education/training is imperative in every organization. In my tenure as a supervisor for almost a decade I always challenged my staff & learn & grow in their positions. Change is inevitable & learning new technology is imperative. My staff were always asking for more training & I believe that it’s the organization’s obligation to provide it.

Education can provide the foundation for encouraging employees to do new tasks (including incorporating blogging & the use of social media tools into their routines). The last question asks whether employees should be encouraged or directed? How about if management embraces the concepts first, then ensures training & participates with their employees. That’s a win-win situation & I’ve always thought that management should lead by example.

4. How can a company encourage employees to use social media, and empower them to answer customer questions and learn from customers?

I guess I covered it in question 3. I would recommend that companies:

• Learn about the benefits & commit to participating
• Embrace the concept & plan for it
• Education & train the employees

5. Do all employees want to talk with customers? If not what percentage want to internetwork and converse?

I don’t think that all do. And I don’t think that it’s everyone’s job. Conversely those that are on the company’s front lines NEED to be not only comfortable with talking with customers but also be well versed in how important word of mouth is. Specific training should be provided to them so that they can fully understand the value of the relationships that they’re creating & the power that can bring.

I also believe that management & the executive level should be participating with their markets online. As I mentioned earlier that will set an example & tone for the culture of the organization. Surely every employee that wants to engage with customers should be encouraged to. Building relationships with the customers will pay off in surprising ways!

Here are other responses to this meme by: RichardatDELL, Michael Walsh, Valeria Maltoni, Jason Falls, Zane Safrit, Phil Gomes, Mack Collier — and John Cass who started it.