An online brand community is defined as a community formed on the basis of attachment to a product, company or brand on the World Wide Web.
Is it important to you to be part of an online brand community?
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Not too long ago the answer to this would have been no f*ckin way! Now though I think I have as much interactions with brands online as i do in real life... sad! But i do think it is good that there are places online where you can communicate with people from allover the world and talk about your favourite brands and engage with the brand as well!
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I don't tend to write on brand communities sites. Saying that i do find them very useful for information searching, especially getting people's opinions on products and the like. For this reason I do find communities important.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say it was important, but I would say that it was a cool thing to be a part of. Forums and the like are a great way of feeling a part of a brand or product, gaining information about it and ultimately building a better idea of what you are involved in.
ReplyDeleteI would share the view of Jamie, i like to enter brand communnities to listen to topics that are relevant to me. That is one of the great beauties of social media. In response to Chris, forums do make customers feel a part of the brand.
ReplyDeleteDo you feel that these brand communities should have a presence from the organisation or should they be completely left to the customer?
If I like a brand and have an interest in them I will actively search for them on Facebook and sing up to receive page updates. For example I follow Mac Makeup because I love their products and want to see what's new. I also follow a new drink called Carnaby Brown aimed at 20 something females because they have a lot of fashion content on there too and they post images of vintage fashions and shops around the UK. They're clearly trying to extand their brand beyond just a drink by offering up different interests to their target group.
ReplyDeleteI think they should be managed by the org but then also brand ambassadors should also be in place on tehse pages.
Online communities are a great idea, whilst i have never added to a community through making a post i frequently search forums or services such as Yahoo Answers to look for information.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to brand communities i think that there is a danger that the forum can end up doing more harm than good for the company. As angry customers unleash their rage for a company on forum walls.
I definitely agree with Julia, if there is something that I'm passionate about I do like to follow them on facebook and twitter....A lot of my friend's join pages on facebook I think just because there's nothing to do or their bored, but I would only join one's that I have a connection to. For example I'm a member of the UK starbucks group (slightly because i'm obsessed with their coffee) but also because not all my friends share the same interest and it's nice to log on to a page and share a comment that will be appreciated by likeminded individuals :P or to find out the latest offers that only fans can avail of.
ReplyDeletewhile i'm not sure it's a brand community, my trampoline club has a webpage and I'm always on the forum posting some updates and finding out what's going on in the club. because i'm away for the year it gives me a chance to stay in touch and still be an active part of the club. In this case it is very important for me to belong to the online part of the community. I think that without this social medium i could have lost touch with a lot of people...still im not sure if this falls under the umbrella term of brand community
I don't tend to follow brands on social media unless it i s something I have a huge personal attachment to. For example, friend's who work in marketing may invite me to Facebook pages and I will accept to show support and also of businesses that family or friends may own.
ReplyDeleteI'm not part of an online community but I often use them for advice on new products and services, as well as for support in using new tchnology.
ReplyDeleteI've joined a handful of brands' pages on Facebook. The community aspect isn't the main benefit, I'd say that the fact you feel somewhat 'closer' to the brand is why I have joined: you receive news quickest and have the opportunity to receive discount codes, enter competitions etc. It's great to be able to interact directly with them too to find out the release date of new products.
ReplyDeleteI, like rob dunn, have joined communities particuarly on facebook but i don't check out updates very often at all! i am a fan of coca cola and i get messages from them on my news feed which gets me thinking about coke. I like the benefits of being part of a community in terms of offers, vouchers, deals, vip etc as well as learning more about what the company is really about, forget the corporate bull. if i had more time i may spend more time in brand communities
ReplyDeleteLike others I become a fan of, or subscribe to updates on a few 'brands' of interest to me. I don't consider it to be of particular importance to me - if they weren't there I wouldn't miss them!
ReplyDeleteto be frank, I have no interest in being part of an online community solely based on a brand or promotion; i prefer to participate in online communities that are based around an interest or activity for example soundcloud, which is for music. On a personal level I actually find it really annoying when brands try to persuade you that your participation in some sort of social media is for any purpose other than for them to wave their logo in your face...! Really wish I could think of an example to back up what I'm saying, sure you know what I mean.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comments about feeling part of the brand. It gives you that notion of knowing more than anyone else and being the first to know about a new exclusive product or offer.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to rob and anonymous, I think that the reason we choose to 'like' these brands on facebook may be less to do with our attachment to the brands and more to do with portraying a certain personality across on our facebook profile. For example you may like the 'xgames' if you want to be seen as into extreme sports - even if you never view the fb group again after liking it.
ReplyDeletebrand communities are far more then just facebook 'like' or 'fan' pages! people may not realise this and so education make be in order. i mean how do people engage in something they know nothing about. i like the idea of a brand community but i can't say that i am part of any!
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