Oprah, the Ultimate Community Leader

Oprah Winfrey is a name that people know all over the world. Her reach is so pervasive that even people who have never watched her show know her name and who she is. I say, she is the ultimate community leader. If you're curious about how to cultivate an online community for your brand, networking group or linking like-minded people together- look no further then the queen of daytime.

I started watching Oprah back in the days of Donohue (the original Phil). In the 80's, The Oprah Winfrey Show was young and the content was pretty different then current trips to Australia (partnership with Telstra), dresses for worthy brides and houses for single mum's who've sacrificed everything to improve the lives of their children.

Back in the early days, Oprah was talking to people about their lives - just like she does now, but it was a different type of sensationalism. In order for people to trust Oprah and set her show apart from all of the other daytime talk shows Ms. Winfrey did something very different- she talked about herself and her personal challenges. Most notably her battle to find peace with her mind and body was a hot topic for a very long time for Oprah and her audience. She admitted having experienced physical abuse and explored her body image issues.

An energy sprang out of these omissions and sometime in the 90's the show shifted format focusing on forging commonalities. Oprah wasn't the interviewer standing with a mic in the audience any more she was centre square talking directly to her audience from the stage.

The lesson for community development is that it's not just about entertainment. It takes time to form relationships and all relationships begin with questions being answered. The Oprah show of today would not be the same if it hadn't gone through the evolution of asking questions and listening BEFORE the gifts and book club. Without the personal connections Oprah has forged between herself and her audience any recommendation or endorsement she made would fall on deaf ears. The audience goes out and buys an Oprah book club selection because they trust her- NOT because she commands them to read it. The 'Oprah Effect' is not something that just happens.

The Oprah audience can relate to the host as a human and because she doesn't come across like a perfect, untouchable celebrity. Empathy is powerful, and it's the human experience that makes us care about each other. As a fan who has invited Oprah into my living room for over 20 years I don't believe she is a gimmick. I have witnesses her evolve in front of my eyes. I've seen her struggle and learned from her journey.

This is what community is all about- sharing, acceptance and support. The subject matter is irrelevant- communities are formed by commonalities not force. Do not cut corners and don't try to fake it. Using tricks like auto-follow on Twitter or too many automated emails is unappreciated and won't get you very far. Know your audience inside and out and celebrate them through relevant content. Show them they matter by singling out the best examples of community participation. Celebrate your community and they will show their appreciation by supporting you in return.

Oprah has used every type of media to allow her fans to connect with her on their own terms- she does not push her own products, but rather; maximises the freedom of choice. She stands for her own set of values that are inline with her audience. I am very excited to see how she manages her network Own in the new year.

How Not to Manage Your Facebook Fan Page

Things are going pretty well with organising events for Girl Geek Dinners Melbourne. The first discussion we had at Honey Bar was a success and I'm really excited about our next event on November 24th.

A challenge is finding people and organisations to help me spread the word about the group and events. I understand that most people don't want to feel like a broadcaster- I'm only interested to connect with individuals and organisations that are passionate about supporting women in tech, and opt in.

That said, when I go onto Facebook and post a mention of an event on a fan page or group that aims to attract the types of women who would likely be interested to participate I don't expect for my post to be removed. I understand spam, and I understand that we don't want irrelevance diluting the dialogue.

The point is- participating on Facebook means inviting a dialogue. Having a fan page should be about your fans and not yourself. Social media is not a print campaign. It's a way to share and connect. If you are interested in having a one-way dialogue or only allowing wall posts by paid advertisers you are bastardising the very foundation of community.

Please don't EVER do this:

Facebook is not a magazine. The wall should not be limited to paid posts.

Now I can appreciate that Women's Network Australia might not be interested to support GGD, or perhaps they would have preferred that I email them a request to post information about our next event on their wall, but that isn't how Facebook works.

Yes, an organisation can set guidelines and block people from posting inappropriate material, but this is something entirely different. This is paid inclusion, and in my opinion; abuse of a free service. If WNA wants to only allow paid wall posts then they should build that feature on their own website. If an organisation is not open to facilitating networking amongst fans then they should hide the wall or only allow admins to post.

The message I've received is that WNA is only interested in those who pay to be included. Or maybe the only networking they support is their own.

I believe this walled garden approach to community management is old fashioned, and out of touch. (I especially like that a man is acting as a representative of a women's organisation. How very progressive.)

To help illustrate the difference of a fan page and a website, I'd like to quote a recent Mashable article entitled, 5 Big Brands That Are Rocking the Social Media Space:

Starbucks has proven it’s social media savvy. It has continued to launch new campaigns and engage followers along the way. And it continues to source ideas from its custom social network, My Starbucks Idea.

The Seattle-based caffeine king wants to know what you want from Starbucks, and the company is listening. The site enables consumers to share their ideas and critique others’ ideas as well. Discussions are encouraged, and the community votes to see which ideas become reality. The “Give a Gift” idea was suggested back in 2008, and drew more than 42,000 votes. It may have taken some time for the idea to become a reality, but it shows that Starbucks is listening to its customers.

Although this example is a digression it does illustrate the importance of encouraging outsiders (fans) to share and give their opinion. The post I created was contextual to the demographic, it didn't require that fans move to a different location or vacate the WNA fan page, video contributions for the GGD Tech 2010 Review 2011 Predictions can be done through any type of online community which allows video uploads, and it would help fans of WNA get noticed for their opinions. It was a post about empowerment on a fan page claiming to be dedicated to female enterpreneurs.

I believe that if the aim is to control the media -then social media is not for you. If instead, you want to engage an audience and encourage feedback to improve your services and offering then social media is exactly the right medium for that message.

Here's a quick video about the nature of the GGD discussion: