FreshNetworks Blog

People build and join online communities for many different reasons. They may want to create and use the most comprehensive hotel review site in the world. They may want to feedback to a brand about their product. Or they may want to help other people get the most out of their mobile phone. The common thread that goes through online communities is that they are issue-, goal- or topic-focused.

Within this environment conversations and discussions flourish. People are there because they share a common interest and they want to discuss this. Some of the communities that we build and manage at FreshNetworks are online research communities. These are communities that have been specifically built as a tool for consumer or market research. They are a great tool for understanding both what people think and why they think it, allowing you to explore the social context in which decisions are made and give you an instant and enthusiastic research resource.

However, even online communities that are not specifically built for research can be a valuable source of insight. Alongside the planned research and activities you get from an online research community, any online community is a fantastically rich source of organic insight. Organisations and brands that run online communities are able to get a range of benefits, whether or not they specifically intended the community to be a source of insight, including:

• understand how customers talk about you, your market and your competitors
• see what issues are currently of most interest to them
• get reviews and feedback on your product or service, and those of your competitors
• learn the language that customers use
• know the questions and concerns that your customer base have
• find out about new competitors, new ideas and new products

All of this, and more, just from having a successful and well managed online community.

We at FreshNetworks think that there are huge benefits people can be getting from their online communities and hope that people are doing so. With this aim in mind over the next few weeks, we’re going to be sharing our thoughts and  experiences of getting insight from online communities, specifically those that were not built in the first place as a research and insight tool.

In our experience, good online communities can have a great benefit to brands. We’re going to help you make the most of them.

Read our series on Insight from Online Communities

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Some more reading

• Do we tell the truth in social networks? Does it matter?
• Paying people can be a bad way to motivate them
• Why online communities benefit from our desire to be heard
• How to build an online research community: a podcast