Social Media and Brand Community Marketing is an effective marketing tool for companies of all sizes to reach their target audiences with engaging content and messages. When using Social Media, brands have many opportunities to connect with customers; this goes from influencers, brand publics, social ads, and Social Media Brand Communities.

Social media Brand Communities have been designated as the Holy Grail of Social Media Marketing. Online Brand Communities are a space where members can engage and interact with each other, as well as the brand itself via its social channels (e.g., Facebook page or Twitter account), for new brands this can mean engaging with new users and creating a social experience with the brand. However, as the Holy Grail, they are very difficult to create, the development of real communities requires time effort and a very well thought strategy. Online Brand Communities can be organically developed by the users or a marketing attempt initiated by the brand. However communities are never fully created by the brand, the brand only can generate the conditions for the community to emerge.

These social spaces are created around specific brands within social networks such as Facebook, Reddit, and Twitter. They can be seen as social bubbles in social media where members connect and interact with each other, share ideas, and around or about a brand. These social spaces are known to provide the brands with great visibility because the content is spread by word-of-mouth inside the community which leads to high engagement rates for users who later become customers of their favorite or Twitter, for example when users join groups related to their favorite TV show.

Most of the attempts to create communities are finally just Brand Publics, this means brands connecting with customers. One of the main characteristics of Online Brand Communities is the interaction user to user and this is very difficult to achieve.

The key aspects that make social media communities successful are having strategic goals based on customer needs or want, engaging content that can motivate them to participate beyond asking for features or brand issues.

Some ideas to create an Online Brand Communities are:

Create social media communities as an organic movement, this can be around a cause an artist, a new technology, or a movement, with your brand just as a part of the community.

Create spaces where the clients can discuss their own experiences about the brand, let them tell stories, and complement other people’s experiences.

Build relationships with influencers in your community; see who participates the most invite them to have symbolic roles and create interactions with them.

Always be relevant: don’t just post content, talk about what you’re posting and why.

There are many social media platforms that can be used to create a social space for communities, some of the most popular ones include Facebook groups and pages. Other alternatives include LinkedIn Groups, Pinterest boards, or Instagram profiles.

Creating an Online Brand Community is not easy but it’s worth the investment as it will help your brand engage with consumers, creating funs and ambassadors instead of just clients.

Social media and brand community marketing is a powerful tool that can help your company reach its target audience with engaging content, messages, and interactions. When considering social media communities for your business or brand, it’s important to remember that they take time and effort but are worth the investment in the end. If you’re unsure about how to get started building an Online Brand Community on social media platforms like Facebook groups or LinkedIn Groups, let us know – I’d be happy to discuss with you the potential opportunities for your brand.