“If you try to grow too quickly, you miss a really critical opportunity to create the foundation of community and figure out a model that works really well and is repeatable. Don’t try to do too much too quickly.” – David Spinks
A decade ago, the term ‘community’ didn’t strike most as a central component of company-building, even though it was. Fast-forward to today, where the internet has transformed communication in our professional and personal realms, and community managers have become key stakeholders in product, marketing, and business development. David Spinks has been at the forefront of this community revolution. Having launched his first online community at 14 for his favourite video game, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4, David now advises community teams at the likes of Google, Udemy, Waze, and Airbnb. He is the co-founder of CMX (acq. by Bevy), where over 20,000 community professionals gather to learn and support each other, and the host of the CMX Summit, the world’s largest community conference.
In this episode of Precious on Community, Precious dives into David’s background and dissect how founders can use community to grow their businesses. The two community leaders also dig into CMX’s SPACES, a model for defining community business value which is further explored in David’s recently released book The Business of Belonging.
One of David’s recommendations for early-stage startups? Don’t try to do too much too quickly. Focus on one small group and build on top of their loyalty and commitment to the brand.
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A few cited examples of community-building in a business-context include:
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