Community Signal
181 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 months ago - ★★★★★ - 17 ratingsCommunity Signal is a podcast for experienced online community professionals, including those working in audience engagement, association management, developer relations, moderation, trust and safety, and more. It's released every two weeks and hosted by industry veteran Patrick O’Keefe.
This is a very community-focused program. There are plenty of social media and marketing podcasts out there. That’s not what this is. Social media is a set of tools. Community is a strategy you apply to those tools. Marketing brings new customers. Community helps you keep them.
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Episodes
Moving the News Industry From Clickbait to Community
May 15, 2017 09:30 - 39 minutes - 72.8 MBAccording to our guest on this episode, much of the news industry is engaged in a battle they can’t win, a fight over eyeballs and ad revenue with companies like Google and Facebook, where the terms will get worse and worse as time goes by. The answer? Community. By building a community that values the work that they create, they can wrestle back some of the control over their audience and receive support directly from the people who consume and appreciate the product they are creating. ...
How to Transition a Community Team After You Acquire Their Company
May 08, 2017 09:30 - 35 minutes - 66.1 MBOne of the reasons that companies get acquired is because of the community they have. The loyal customers, the active members, the people that are directly tied to the revenue that the company generates. When a company with a strong community is acquired, what should the new company do with their community team? Paula Rosenberg joined VHX, a service that allows you to create your own Netflix-style streaming subscription service, in 2015. A year later, they were acquired by Vimeo and, a yea...
Moderating Live Video
May 01, 2017 09:30 - 36 minutes - 68 MBLast month, a man used Facebook’s live video feature to confess to a murder, shortly after videos were uploaded that showed him announcing his intent and committing the act. Facebook broke down the timeline of this series of videos, revealing that they had suspended the person’s account in approximately 2 hours or less, saying “we need to do better.” But what is a reasonable expectation for the public, when it comes to people who use live video to gain attention for their violent acts, a...
The ROI of an Anonymous, Nonprofit, Mental Health Community
April 24, 2017 09:30 - 29 minutes - 54.7 MBSANE Australia is a charity that helps Australians affected by mental illness. Their popular online community, SANE Forums, serves as one of their primary initiatives. It isn’t just SANE Australia’s community, but the online community of 51 partner organizations, as well. When they seek funding (from the Australian government and others), they have the prove their value and show their ROI. But what’s the ROI of an anonymous, nonprofit, mental health forum? That is one the challenges facing...
Why Do People Love NASA?
April 10, 2017 18:54 - 34 minutes - 63.1 MBI define community in two ways: 1. Community on a specific platform, like a Facebook group or a forum. 2. Community that connects around a topic, interest or pursuit in a decentralized way, across multiple platforms. Disney, Coca-Cola and NASA are good examples of organizations that are fortunate to have the second. There are many people who love NASA and the work they have done, and will gleefully talk about it with other NASA fans, while at the same time, they may never play in any NASA-...
Improv for Community Pros
April 03, 2017 09:30 - 37 minutes - 69.9 MBWhen you think “improv,” you might picture a group of comedians at a local club, riffing on audience suggestions. But the skills of improvisation – active listening, adaptability and problem solving, among them – are skills that aide successful community professionals. Zach Ward is the longtime owner of DSI Comedy, a Chapel Hill, North Carolina-based comedy theater school where they perform improv and teach the art of comedy. For well over a decade, he’s been teaching these skills to corpo...
Making Room for Newbs in Competitive Gaming
March 27, 2017 13:02 - 37 minutes - 69.8 MBGaming is a vertical that has a massive footprint in the online community space. Gamers took to online communities really early, and have been using online tools to connect for as long as pretty much anyone else. But gaming communities aren’t always known for being the most thoughtful. That’s what Gabe Graziani, senior community developer at gaming giant Ubisoft, hopes to see in the communities he works with. After spending six years building out the Assassin’s Creed community, Gabe is now...
Closing Your Community Right
March 20, 2017 09:30 - 52 minutes - 121 MBJessamyn West is a member of mlkshk, an online community that’s closing. She’s part of a community-led effort to build the next place where this group of people will get together. Best known for her work in the library space, she’s also an experienced online community practitioner, having spent 10 years on staff at MetaFilter, leaving as director of operations. Building on our recent discussions about the thoughtful way to close a community, we look at mlkshk as an example of a group tha...
Managing a Cancer Community
March 13, 2017 09:30 - 31 minutes - 73.3 MBThe reason that people come to your community impacts how you manage that community. It is one of the factors that guides the choices you make and the strategies and processes that you deploy. If people come to your community because they have cancer, your approach is going to be different than if they were coming because a product broke or because they enjoy a particular hobby. That’s exactly the type of community that Cosette Paneque of Breast Cancer Network Australia is responsible for....
Lessons From The WELL + Making a World Where the Sun Rises the Next Morning
March 06, 2017 10:30 - 46 minutes - 106 MBWith a career in online community spanning more than 25 years, including 20+ leading influential online community The WELL and 13 as director of communities for Salon, Gail Ann Williams is a pioneer of our industry. On this episode, the inside stories and lessons that Gail shares, from The WELL, weave together to create an overall theme of how to protect, respect and inform the communities that we serve. Including: The right and wrong ways to close a community Understanding privacy and ...
Inspiring Awe in Your Community
February 27, 2017 10:30 - 33 minutes - 77.1 MBOnline communities have the potential to create amazing, awe-inspiring moments. But they can sometimes get lost in a sea of cynicism and the day-to-day work of community management. After 10 years in community, with stints at Cisco and Intuit, Rachel Medanic is “passionate about awe.” What does that mean? And how do you encourage awe in your community? Plus: Building a community vs. building an audience Enterprise social networks and how small efforts by a community manager can lead to ...
IMDb's Message Boards and Why Trolls Don't Force Communities to Close
February 20, 2017 10:30 - 51 minutes - 119 MBIMDb will soon close and erase their 18 year old message boards. Media coverage of this announcement has generally followed a similar theme: Trolls forced them to close. Blame the trolls. They were unstoppable. But that perspective is completely dismissive of the community profession, and the tools and strategies we have at our disposal. Trolls don’t force us to close communities. But apathy definitely does. Timo Tolonen, head of community at giffgaff, a community-first mobile phone servic...
Bringing Community to the Executive Meetings
February 06, 2017 16:02 - 46 minutes - 108 MBAs employee #9 at Kickstarter, Cindy Au was the company’s second community hire. She rose to lead a team of 30, bringing community all the way to the executive meetings as Kickstarter’s VP of community. Cindy tells the story of how she built that team, and what led Kickstarter to add community at the executive level, on this episode. Now, more than 2 years out of that job, she also talks about her efforts to find a new, challenging role that moves her career forward. Plus: The “a-ha” mome...
How Engagement Editors Can Restore Trust in the Media
January 30, 2017 19:48 - 35 minutes - 81.7 MBOnly 32% of American adults have "a great deal" or "a fair amount" of trust in the mass media, according to a Gallup poll released in September. Gallup has been asking this question since 1972, and this was the lowest figure they have recorded. What can be done, on the media side, to address this growing and historically high level of distrust? One answer: Invest in community and engagement editors. Mick Côté makes the case on this episode. He's the engagement editor at the Montreal Gazet...
The Creator of Community Manager Appreciation Day
January 23, 2017 10:30 - 25 minutes - 59.4 MBThis episode is being released on Community Manager Appreciation Day 2017. We’re talking about the past, present and future of CMAD, with its creator, digital veteran Jeremiah Owyang of Crowd Companies. Now in its eighth year, CMAD recognizes the “pretty damn tough job,” in Jeremiah’s words, that community managers (and professionals) have, which can be thankless and misunderstood. We also talk about: How to be successful with the council/association model The career opportunity for com...
The (Experienced) Community Manager Job Hunt
January 16, 2017 10:30 - 34 minutes - 80.7 MBRecently, we discussed the career ceiling in community management. We’re extending that conversation on this episode, talking about the community manager job hunt with an experienced professional looking for work. Trella Rath has spent time at Fandom (formerly Wikia), Wargaming America, Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Mekanism, where she was laid off right before Christmas. Since then, she’s been searching, applying and interviewing for a new job. We discuss the challenges and surprises...
Requiring Real Names
January 09, 2017 10:30 - 34 minutes - 79.3 MBReal name policies aren’t new. Online communities, social networks and comment sections have attempted to require real names before and many still do. One of them is the CBC, Canada’s 80 year old national radio and public broadcaster. 7 months ago, they began “requiring” people to use their real names to comment online. The CBC’s Sam Lightowler joins the program to share her observations and discuss the viability of requiring real names. Plus: The CBC’s responsibility to facilitate comme...
The Career Ceiling in Online Community Management
January 02, 2017 10:30 - 38 minutes - 89.5 MBThere are probably more senior community jobs than ever before. But many experienced community pros struggle to advance while remaining in the profession, because many organizations fail to prioritize community. This leaves it under department heads who don’t want to scale it and only view it as a low paying role for junior-level people. Alexandra Dao of Vimeo recently shifted out of a community role, in part due to a desire to advance that she wasn’t seeing in community. As one of the peo...
Why (Some) Associations Struggle with Online Communities
December 26, 2016 10:30 - 31 minutes - 72.2 MBAssociations are a natural segment of the online community space, because one of the primary objectives of associations has always been connecting likeminded professionals and sharing resources. And yet, according to today’s guest on the show, “most” associations have not yet implemented an online community platform. Ben Martin has carved out a specialty, helping associations build their online communities. Why are most associations still skipping online community building? And where do as...
Working with Law Enforcement
December 12, 2016 10:30 - 22 minutes - 51.7 MBAs community professionals, we get a zone when it comes to handling problems. We’re so used to fixing issues, that we can forget about outside resources that may be better suited for dealing with an issue than we are. Law enforcement is one of these. Steve Brock has been working in community for over 25 years, with a unique depth of experience in moderation for big brands. He has had to work with law enforcement many times, and on this episode, Mr. Brock shares stories from those effor...
When Community Members Block Ads
December 05, 2016 21:25 - 33 minutes - 77.5 MBMany online communities are ad-supported. Without that revenue, they may have to reduce their operations or cease to exist at all. Ad blocking is a serious threat, but what’s the best way respond to it? Todd Garland is the founder and CEO of BuySellAds, an ad tech company that I’ve worked with for many years. He says the time to blame ad blockers is over, and that whining about ad blockers only guarantees a bad ending to this story. Plus: How ad quality became so bad, even for reputable p...
How MetaFilter’s Founder (Successfully) Stepped Away From the Community After 16 Years
November 28, 2016 10:30 - 47 minutes - 110 MBAfter managing MetaFilter for 16 years, founder Matt Haughey stepped away from the community in 2015, handing the day-to-day operations over to a long time staff member with a small, paid team. More than a year and a half later, Matt stops by Community Signal to reflect on his decision and how it has impacted the community. The transition of power at MetaFilter is our focus on this episode, including what led Matt to realize that it was time for him to go. Plus: Why MetaFilter charges $5 ...
Ethical Communication Platforms
November 21, 2016 10:30 - 28 minutes - 66.7 MBAs we talk about harassment and fake news online, we are often discussing what responsibility platforms have in the matter. What should they do? What shouldn’t they? What does it mean to build an ethical platform? On this episode, with Marie Connelly of Vox Media’s product team, we talk about how algorithms aren’t a simple answer, why we should treat spam like we treat harassment and the cost of thoughtlessness. Plus: What Marie did that caused lurkers to raise their hands Community as ...
How Libraries Build Safe, Inclusive Community Spaces
November 07, 2016 10:30 - 29 minutes - 67.4 MBCommunity is at the core of the existence of public libraries. They’re an important hub for local communities and, in turn, become a community of their own, where people learn and share. Many libraries are safe, inclusive spaces where diversity is on display. If you are new to the area, or even to the country, libraries help you connect with your new community. If you are a member of a marginalized group, libraries can provide vital support. If you have a disability, libraries offer access...
The Skill of Empathy
October 31, 2016 09:30 - 31 minutes - 72 MBI recently spoke to a class at Syracuse about online community, and one of the students asked me what the two most important traits for a community professional were. I named empathy and attention to detail. The first one is the focus of this episode. It’s hard to imagine a great community professional lacking empathy. And yet, it’s a skill that’s worth talking about, understanding and refining. Higher Logic community manager Lindsay Starke is passionate about empathy and the impact it can...
How Pearson’s Internal Online Community Connects 36,000 Employees in 70+ Countries
October 24, 2016 09:30 - 26 minutes - 62.2 MBSix years ago, multinational publishing and education company Pearson transitioned from siloed intranets to an internal online community named Neo. This platform has encouraged active collaboration between their global network of 36,000 employees, spread across more than 70 countries. When you are talking about such a large, diverse group of employees, part of bringing them together is figuring how to to divide them, to ensure they are connecting with the right people and accomplishing the...
The Howard Rheingold Episode
October 17, 2016 09:30 - 23 minutes - 54.5 MBI’m a big believer in knowing where you come from. Online community is not new. Our profession has existed since the 1980s. People came before us, and I believe that it’s important to understand, acknowledge and appreciate that. We should value and respect those who did the work before we did. Any conversation about online community pioneers must involve today’s guest. Howard Rheingold was an early, active member of The WELL, the highly influential online community, founded in 1985. He is ...
How The Guardian Prepared for Brexit’s Impact on Community Engagement
October 10, 2016 09:30 - 33 minutes - 78.3 MBWhen the results of the Brexit referendum were announced, the people of the United Kingdom reacted immediately online. Many of them chose The Guardian’s website as their venue, sharing their thoughts with the readers of one of country’s most popular news outlets. When a highly-charged political issue like this comes to pass, I always think about my friends and peers who work community in the media, and the challenges they must be facing. If you want to talk about Brexit’s impact on comment...
Bringing Respect to a Like Fight
October 03, 2016 09:30 - 40 minutes - 94.1 MBWhat makes great online discourse? That’s what the Engaging News Project routinely tries to determine. Though their work focuses on news media, the resulting research is often just as helpful to the average community professional. Director Talia Stroud, associate professor of communication studies at the University of Texas at Austin, joins me on this episode to discuss the obstacles that can prevent comment sections from being great, and offer straightforward recommendations for how you c...
How to Build a Paid, Private Online Community With Staying Power
September 26, 2016 09:30 - 30 minutes - 71.4 MBPaid, private online communities often struggle to retain members and create value over a long period of time. They start strong, with a lot of promise, but over time, many succumb to repetition in content and conversation that leads to members deciding they can no longer justify the expense. With a fee of $49 per month, eCommerceFuel is a 1,000 strong paid, private community for ecommerce store owners with six and seven figure incomes. They turn people away. They kick out inactive mem...
Kickstarter’s Community Wants Your Next Crowdfunding Campaign to Be Successful
September 19, 2016 09:30 - 29 minutes - 68.5 MBKickstarter is the world’s largest crowdfunding platform, with $2.3 billion dollars pledged to more than 112,000 successful projects. The company has a firm grasp of the best practices that can improve a campaign’s chances of success. In part, this knowledge comes from their large community of creators, who continue to refine and identify new “best” ways of using the service. Carol Benovic-Bradley, of Kickstarter’s learning and engagement team, within the larger community team, works to su...