In order to have a more intuitive understanding and evaluation of the community, five elements that constitute a complete community can be summarized from the practical process of community operation, namely, interests, structure, output, operation and replication. According to the first letters of these five words, the constituent elements of the community can be referred to as “ISOOC”.
1. Interests – the premise of the establishment of the community
The first element of the community is interest, which is the premise of the establishment of the community. The so-called “interests” are the common recognition or behavior of something. What do we get together for? The most important thing is what we do together. If there is no value, there is no need for anything to exist. Just as the largest women’s community in China, “Chen Zao”, which is proud of self-discipline, mentioned in the community activities: “In order to find people of the same kind, we created a world.”
These people of the same kind can gather together based on a certain product, such as Apple mobile phones, Hammer mobile phones, and Xiaomi mobile phones; they can gather together based on a certain behavior, such as a travel group of travelers who love traveling, and a book exchange meeting for those who love reading; they can gather together based on a certain label, such as fans of a certain star; they can gather together based on a certain space, such as a group of owners in a certain residential area; they can gather together based on a certain emotion, such as hometown associations, alumni groups, and class groups; they can gather together based on a certain type of “three views”, such as the BetterMe base camp where “one person walks fast, a group of people walks far”.
2. Structure-Determines the Survival of the Community
The second element of the community composition-Structure, it determines the survival of the community. Why do many communities go silent? That’s because there was no effective planning for the structure of the community at the beginning. This structure includes members, communication platform, joining principles and management norms. The better these four components are, the longer the community will live.
① Members: Discover and call on those who have “same interests” to form a pyramid or ring structure. The first batch of members will have a huge impact on the future community.
② Communication platform: There must be a gathering place as a base camp for daily communication. The most common ones are QQ, WeChat, Weibo, etc.
③ Joining principles: The community has veteran members and has built a good platform. Gradually, more people will come to join. Then, a certain screening mechanism must be set as a threshold to ensure the quality of the community and make the joiners cherish the community because it is not easy to join.
④ Management norms: As the community has more and more people, it must be managed. Therefore, first, administrators must be set up, and second, group rules must be continuously improved.
3. Output – Determines the value of the community
The third element of the community – output (Output), which determines the value of the community.
4. Operation – Determines the life of the community
The fourth element of the community is operation (Operate), which determines the life of the community. It is difficult for a community without operation and management to have a relatively long life cycle. Generally speaking, the following “four senses” should be established through operation from beginning to end.
① Sense of ceremony: such as joining through application, joining the group must have a welcome ceremony, etc., to ensure the sense of ceremony for new members of the community.
② Sense of participation: such as through organized discussions, sharing, etc., to ensure the quality of the community with something to say, something to do, and something to gain in the group.
③ Sense of organization: such as through the division of labor, collaboration, and execution of a certain theme, to ensure the combat effectiveness of the community. 4 Sense of belonging: such as through online and offline mutual assistance and activities, to ensure the cohesion of the community.
5. Copy – determines the size of the community
The fifth element of community composition is copy, which determines the size of the community.