Community building on social media takes some strategy and work, but it is the best way to build your business. This is the first in a series to show you how to do it, step-by-step.

We are big fans of using a community to scale your businesses. Over the next two months, we are going to go over each step you need to take to build your online community and scale your business. Today we will share five reasons why community building is the best way to build your business.

Reason #1: Loyal customers are better than new customers. Studies show that it costs five times more to get a new customer than it does to retain an existing customer and increasing customer retention rates by 5% will increase profits 25% or more. Your loyal, existing customers can grow your business when you nurture them, especially through your email list. Kevin Kelly, the Founding Executive Editor of Wired Magazine, did some simple math back in 2008 and showed that if you had 1,000 true fans that spent $100 a year, you could make a living at online business making $100,000 per year. A community is the fastest way to get to 1,000 true fans. Watch a video with Kevin Kelly here for more information.

Reason #2: When you have a relationship with your community, testimonials and word of mouth come easier and are impactful. Don’t be afraid to ask your audience for a testimonial. Testimonials are really important. They serve as social proof and shows what you’re capable of. Within your audience, testimonials and good feedback provide camaraderie because people see your methods or products working for others and they get excited about it.

Reason #3: Customer service is cheaper and better because the community connects and everyone helps and supports each other. You’re not an expert at everything, and your audience is full of a range of talents, knowledge, and abilities. Put that to use. We’re lucky to have social media platforms and communities, like Facebook Groups, and LinkedIn Groups. It used to be that you only had a website and email to engage with your audience. Everything changed with eGroups.com in 1997 which later became Yahoo Groups in 2001 and it was a game changer. Fast forward to today and there are so many platforms and tools to connect our communities. Take advantage of these powerful tools.

Reason #4: As a community leader, you’re seen as an industry expert. Your opinion matters to the group. You need to be visible and engage. Being active in your community gives you a platform to build and grow your business and not feel like you are always selling.

Reason #5: It’s the easiest way to help the most people possible and still see the impact first hand. If you are the type of person that really wants to help people and have a positive impact with your work, a community is the best way to do it.

Over the next few months, we are going to go over each step you need to take to build your online community to support your business. We are going to cover:

- Defining who you want to help
- Where to find your tribe
- What to offer them when you find them
- The power questions to use to find their pain points
- What platform to use for your community
- How to build community connections
- How to scale your business with a community and measure the results

Tools, apps and links mentioned:

Take Action

If you haven’t already, subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss these next episodes where we walk you step-by-step through starting your community and getting 1,000 true fans. Then, join the Facebook community where we will be talking about each episode and answering questions weekly. Once you’ve joined the Facebook community, find an accountability partner to connect with and check-in with.