Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
In this episode of the Community Strategy Podcast, you’ll hear an excerpt from chapter nine of Creator to Community Builder: Find Calm While Building Your Online Community. Deb Schell is a Community Strategist and Author who’s aided over sixty business owners in building an online community, course, or membership.
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Takeaways:
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The five community onboarding elements include an explication of the space, a way for members to show up and connect consistently, telling your members how this community can help them with their challenges, validating that members are in the right place, and providing them with safety.
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Understanding your ideal members is essential; knowing how they consume content will be necessary in creating content for them.
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Know how your members interact on the internet and provide them with guidelines to ensure a safe online community for all members.
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To establish a strong sense of belonging, you must clarify what the members have in common. Lay out how they can support each other through challenges.
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Chapter 9: Onboard your members
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Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
When clients reach out to me to build a new community, it is usually the week before they launch, and they ask me how to onboard their members. The problem with this is that they need more time to build a member journey map or a guide that tells their members how they can navigate within their community.
Many new community builders assume that members will instantly know what to do or where to go once they open their community. They may explore the community and become curious about events, courses, or programs, but they will likely only have a few spare moments to find out if this is where they want to spend time. Most of your work to convince them they belong in your community happens long before they are inside.
In the last chapter, we discussed how, when building an audience, it is important to tell people your community’s purpose. When members are inside, you must remind them about this place and why they belong there. Members will also need to know if they are allowed to share photos or personal information, and they will want to know who is in this space with them.
The most crucial goal of the onboarding process is to encourage members onto the platform and into conversation with each other. If they don’t know other members, they may not return unless it’s for a specific course or a program.
Ultimately, you’ll need to answer all their questions and welcome them with a feeling of belonging, a guide to tell them where to go, and a plan for the future so they know what to expect and how to participate. This can be accomplished by following the five community onboarding elements below. In the following sections, I’ll explain different methods to implement each.
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What’s here: Clearly explain what’s included in this space.
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Connection: Elevate members who show up consistently.
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What’s in it for them: Tell them how your community relates to their problem.
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Sense of belonging: Ensure members know they are in the “right place.”
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Make it safe: Inform members what’s allowed and what isn’t. Community guidelines provide them with expectations about how to participate.
A Clear Message
The biggest mistake new community builders make is moving too fast, too soon. When hosts skip setting up an onboarding process, they risk losing members from the start. Even though you need to be thoughtful about onboarding, the process should feel quick and easy for each new member. An invitation to join the community should be short and sweet, and any message you share should have a clear action step.
Recently, I spent several hours training on a new software for hosting communities. It took me a long time to figure out where things were, how to sign up for live sessions and locate relevant documents. The experience wasn’t fun, and at times it was even stressful. I eventually found what I was looking for, but most people won’t spend as many hours figuring things out unless it’s for a job.
The best way to design an onboarding process is to receive feedback from your existing members about their joining experience. Was it easy? Fun? Stressful? Be specific and find the places members became stuck.
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
A clear message can be defined in a few steps:
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Tell the members about the community and why they are a part of it.
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Give them the steps to join in an easy-to-implement format.
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Provide a few ways to learn about what they can do inside the community, including written descriptions, screenshots, and quick video or audio how-tos.
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Provide the rules, expectations, and guidelines to ensure they feel confident in their contributions.
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Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Offer a Variety of Ways to Invite Members In
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Thanks to ever-changing technology, knowing the best way to communicate with new members can take time and effort. The methods will differ depending on your community’s structure, the devices involved, and your team’s familiarity with technology. This is why it’s good to ask your existing members about their experience and make changes based on their feedback.
My experience, and that of my clients, reveals that your chosen platform makes a significant difference in the onboarding experience. Remember, you must also factor in the devices your audience uses. If your members are primarily downloading an app on their mobile devices to access the platform, it will be a different experience than using a desktop or tablet. If most members are desktop users, your onboarding should match this experience. Note: If it would suit most of your members, you may choose to recommend one device over another, but make sure you communicate this clearly at every stage.
The Video Walkthrough – Verbal and Auditory Learners
You can create a video that walks members through navigating the community. Show them the content, explain how they can connect, and discuss why they want to participate in events. Let them know how to consume and create content as well. This will allow them to learn independently whenever they can access the tutorial. No matter what you do, keep these videos short and easy to understand.
Orientation Packet – Visual, Solitary, and Logical Learners
Over the years, I’ve created packets that provide photos, screenshots, and step-by-step instructions on where to go, what to do, and how to connect. The packet can be sent before your kickoff call, and you can invite them into the community a few days early to ensure they can access everything they need.
Learn by Doing – Physical and Social Learners
You can create an event, course, or challenge that encourages them to upload a profile photo, write an introduction, or connect in another way. Through social events such as a welcome party or orientation, you can introduce your network members to one another. These are great ways to connect your members right from the start, and you may be surprised by the lasting bonds sparked by meaningful experiences such as these.
Concierge – Solitary, Verbal, and Auditory Learners
You can personally welcome each new member via phone, video, email, or text. This takes time to do on your part, but high-touch experiences justify a higher-priced membership. When people need active support, personalized options provide the chance to build deep relationships. This can be effective when participants are in different stages or prefer small, trusted cohorts.
Onboarding Prompts to Encourage Your Members
Creating a few prompts inside your community can encourage members to join conversations. Using an “at sign” (@) to tag a member on many platforms alerts the individual directly.
Using prompts, invite members to get to know each other. Here are a few examples:
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Let’s get to know each other! Please add a fun photo to your profile and share the story behind it!
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Who’s here? Introduce yourself and share one thing you’d like to give and one you need from us.
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What brought you here?
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What are you most excited about?
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Who will be the first to complete their profile? The winner will hold the “Community Superstar” title for one month.
Let members know how to set up (and turn off) notifications and where they can manage their dashboard.
Here is an example:
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We are so excited you’ve joined us! We want to ensure you don’t miss a thing, but we know a lot of notifications can be annoying. We recommend you select “Daily Digest,” so you receive only one email daily to keep updated on the community.
Encourage members to discover each other as well:
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We are super excited that [@ name of member] has joined. We know [what you know about that person], and I know that [name of another member] may also have [common interest, same role, similar location].
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Check out the newest members in the directory [and explain how to access]! Click “Follow” so you are updated when they post.
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
Connection and Belonging
Chapter 9: Onboard your members
One of the most valuable tasks of a community host is effectively communicating with members. Many new community builders assume members will connect organically, but this doesn’t typically happen. On the contrary, it’s your responsibility to tell people how you want them to show up and model it for them within the space. Members need a guide to help them know who’s there and why they should connect.
To establish a strong sense of belonging, you must clarify what the members have in common. Lay out how they can support each other through challenges. For example, you may be running a learning community where members are at different stages of development—beginner, intermediate, and advanced. If your community encourages mentorship, consider establishing a straightforward way for advanced members to share their experiences with beginners. Remind them it’s not a member’s job to solve others’ problems but to encourage growth and learning.
If your community is large, consider establishing topic groups within the platform so members can bond over shared interests. Encourage members to fill out their profiles. This isn’t something they’ll do on their own; you need to tell them it’s an option that will enhance their experience.
Incorporate ways for members to get to know each other and foster relationships over time. This might be during events with paired breakout sessions or by seeding discussions in topical groups.
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Email: Deb@FindCalmHere.com
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