How to build an online community in your community

The Internet is a wonderful tool, but its effects can be disastrous for a society that fails to keep up. Revive your local community by learning how to build an online community in your community.

The days of knowing everyone in your neighborhood, sponsoring local businesses, and participating in local events seem to be slowly fading away due to the rapid growth of technology.

Everyone now has the instant ability to shop anywhere in the world, talk to strangers in another country and enjoy patriotic videos on YouTube or Facebook.

These amenities are delightful, but have we forgotten our local communities and their importance? Only in your local community can you share stories about similar people, places, and events that are unique to that community. The people in your community are the ones who will understand and relate to you best. Businesses in your community can give you the personalized service that makes buying better. And by establishing a friendly relationship with your neighbors, you can create a mutually beneficial partnership that offers great opportunities for bartering. (aka metaphor for a cup of sugar).

Building an online community is one way to use the Internet to rebuild your local community, but how can you do this effectively? Here are some tips:

1. Involve everyone A society is just a society. In order to have an active and thriving online community, you will need to make it available to everyone. Residents, local businesses, and other organizations should have a good reason to visit your online community regularly. You’ll need to create content that will keep them interested and coming back, which leads to the second tip…

2. Encourage participation – Not only do you have a website where people come to see what your thoughts are for the day or read the local news, let them contribute stories, videos, and other content. This will make your online community interactive for residents. Plus, people love to share their accomplishments with family and friends. The more visitors you can get to contribute, the more views your website will have.

3. Make it exciting Creativity goes a long way. Don’t let your site conform to the norm. Keep your visitors on their toes trying to figure out what you’re planning next. You can hold special events, promotions and campaigns to generate new excitement among your visitors.

4. Keep your focus on the community Sometimes it’s easy to get caught behind a computer and forget the main reason you created your online community, so don’t let that happen. Get out in the community, visit events and businesses, and listen to people. By staying present within your local community, your online community will be successful.

Building an online community in your community can be a fulfilling and profitable experience. As your online community grows, you will lay a new foundation for your local community to stay connected with.

Global communication using the Internet is great, but let’s do our best to connect with people, places, and events in our neighbors.

You can learn more about building your online community by visiting http://www.ULiveWV.orgAn online community website serving the Eastern Panhandle region of West Virginia. ULiveWV.org allows people from all over the world to virtually vacation in Wild Wonderful West Virginia to experience its people, places, and events.