1. Authenticity

Authenticity is honesty, but it is also sharing a truth in a manner in which other members of your group want to receive that truth. Most people error on the side of complete honesty and transparency but fail in the delivery.

For example, changing the world view of someone is very tough. Within the past year, I’ve learned it is easier to serve those people who want you to lead them then it is to convert those who don’t want to change.

2. Mutual Accountability

Mutual accountability is the missing ingredient in your sustainable small business community.

How often have you joined a community, either for a fee or for free, and you left because it was all information and very little implementation?

As a leader of your community (tribe), you must tactfully develop a process and a language of mutual accountability.

• Design and reward your community with simple physical action steps (Click HERE, Answer Question HERE, Share Comment HERE) leading them to where you want them to go.
• Never underestimate the power of community learning from one another vs. only from you. Have a community process and format to empower and ignite conversation and enable accountability to place organically.

3. Humbleness & Humility

Self-Importance, and stubborn pride destroy community faster than anything else writes Rick Warren, author of Best Selling book, The Purpose Driven Life. He goes on to council, “pride builds walls between people; humility builds bridges. Humility is the oil that smoothes and soothes relationships.”

Put another way, “humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.”

In the comment section below, contribute an example with the rest of us of a small business community leader displaying humility to bring a group together.

4. Frequency & Modality

Small business community is not built on convenience.

As small business community leaders, you and I must consistently engage in regular communication to build a genuine community vs. just a contact situation with your customers.

• Have a variety of different communication modalities. At our firm The Strategic Incubator, we equip our clients to uncover and deliver wisdom and conversation in the manner in which their ideal clients want to receive and participate. As a start, offer both virtual live and time-shifted (on-demand 24×7) content to your community.
• Over-communicate, but don’t over do it. Even those who claim being a member of your community are distracted, disengaged, and can even be disinterested in what you have to say. The key is a balance of smart communication at the right time, to the right people, with the right message of meaning.

Here are some book recommendations on building a sustainable small business community:

• Your Attention Please, Paul Brown & Alison Davis
• Tribes, Seth Godin
• World Wide Rave, David Meerman Scott
• Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups, Nelson Searcy
• Small is The New Big, Seth Godin
• Small Giants, Bo Burlingham
• How to Market, Advertise, and Promote Your Business or Service in Your Own Backyard, Tom Egelhoff
• Leading With Questions, Michael Marquardt
  

What am I missing in designing a sustainable small business community?

What are you missing in designing a sustainable small business community?

Please consider sharing your comments below.