S2E5: How to build an online community to promote your brand, ft. William Cook, CEO of Advertise Your Server

06/03/24 • 29 min

Mindful B2B Marketing | Business Growth and Social Impact (Former: Forward Launch Your SaaS)

0:31

Introduction to Building an Online Community

1:58

Inception of Advertise Your Server

2:43

Evolution of Advertise Your Server

5:04

Expanding to B2B Companies

6:36

Benefits for B2B Brands

10:23

Setting Up an Online Community

20:39

Establishing Community Norms

25:08

Pitfalls in Online Community Creation

28:26

Connect with Advertise Your Server

Main Insight

Building an online community is essential for brand promotion and customer engagement. William Cook, CEO of Advertise Your Server, shares his expertise on leveraging platforms like Reddit and Discord to grow vibrant online communities that drive business growth.

Key Takeaways

Importance of Online Communities: Online communities provide a space for customers to interact, share experiences, and build a sense of loyalty and belonging. They are crucial for promoting brands and fostering customer engagement.
Choosing the Right Platform: Different platforms serve different community needs. Reddit and Discord are highlighted as excellent platforms for community growth. Reddit offers broad exposure, while Discord provides a more intimate and interactive environment.
Strategies for Community Growth:
- Engage with Members: Regular interaction and engagement with community members are vital. This includes responding to comments, initiating discussions, and providing valuable content.
- Consistent Value Addition: Continuously offer value to community members through exclusive content, updates, and resources that cater to their interests and needs.
- Leveraging Influencers: Collaborate with influencers who can bring their audience into the community, increasing reach and credibility.
Monetization and ROI:
- Direct Revenue Generation: Monetize the community through memberships, premium content, and exclusive offers.
- Indirect Benefits: Enhanced brand loyalty, customer feedback, and market insights can significantly impact business growth and development.
Challenges and Solutions:
- Maintaining Engagement: Keep the community active and engaged through regular events, Q&A sessions, and interactive content.
- Managing Negative Feedback: Address negative feedback constructively and use it to improve products and services.

Guest Bio

William Cook is the CEO of Advertise Your Server, a leading online community growth platform. With extensive experience in community building and digital marketing, William has successfully helped numerous brands grow their online presence and engage with their audience on platforms like Reddit and Discord.

Company Description

Advertise Your Server is the premier platform for growing online communities on Reddit and Discord. They specialize in helping brands create and nurture vibrant online spaces where customers can connect, share, and engage. With a focus on providing consistent value and fostering meaningful interactions, Advertise Your Server is dedicated to driving business growth through community building.

Give feedback on this episode by sending the host a text message.

SIGN UP FOR THE EMAIL NEWSLETTER at forwardlaunchdigital.com/podcast

0:31

Introduction to Building an Online Community

1:58

Inception of Advertise Your Server

2:43

Evolution of Advertise Your Server

5:04

Expanding to B2B Companies

6:36

Benefits for B2B Brands

10:23

Setting Up an Online Community

20:39

Establishing Community Norms

25:08

Pitfalls in Online Community Creation

28:26

Connect with Advertise Your Server

Main Insight

Key Takeaways

Importance of Online Communities: Online communities provide a space for customers to interact, share experiences, and build a sense of loyalty and belonging. They are crucial for promoting brands and fostering customer engagement.
Choosing the Right Platform: Different platforms serve different community needs. Reddit and Discord are highlighted as excellent platforms for community growth. Reddit offers broad exposure, while Discord provides a more intimate and interactive environment.
Strategies for Community Growth:
- Engage with Members: Regular interaction and engagement with community members are vital. This includes responding to comments, initiating discussions, and providing valuable content.
- Consistent Value Addition: Continuously offer value to community members through exclusive content, updates, and resources that cater to their interests and needs.
- Leveraging Influencers: Collaborate with influencers who can bring their audience into the community, increasing reach and credibility.
Monetization and ROI:
- Direct Revenue Generation: Monetize the community through memberships, premium content, and exclusive offers.
- Indirect Benefits: Enhanced brand loyalty, customer feedback, and market insights can significantly impact business growth and development.
Challenges and Solutions:
- Maintaining Engagement: Keep the community active and engaged through regular events, Q&A sessions, and interactive content.
- Managing Negative Feedback: Address negative feedback constructively and use it to improve products and services.

Guest Bio

Company Description

Give feedback on this episode by sending the host a text message.

SIGN UP FOR THE EMAIL NEWSLETTER at forwardlaunchdigital.com/podcast

Previous Episode

S2E4: How to communicate your brand identity ft. Dave Erickson, CEO of ScreamingBox

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER AT forwardlaunchdigital.com/podcast

Main Insight

"The most effective brand strategy focuses on differentiation and solving customer business challenges."
Dave emphasizes that a unique brand identity and an ability to clearly articulate how a product solves specific customer challenges are crucial in marketing. Content should demonstrate solutions, not just features.

Key Takeaways

Step-by-Step Marketing Strategy

Determine Your Business Cycle Stage:
Understand where the business currently stands. Are you a new startup, a growing SMB, or an established enterprise? Different stages require different marketing strategies.
Focus on the Basics:
Ensure that your website has strong calls-to-action and that free content like blog articles, YouTube videos, and social media posts are available.
Expand to Advanced Marketing:
For mature businesses, consider investing in advertising campaigns, events, and sponsorships. SMBs with resources can leverage trade events and Google Ads campaigns.
Incorporate AI into Content Creation:
Utilize AI for generating outlines, titles, and basic content structures. Refine and build upon these AI-generated drafts for faster, more effective content creation.
Develop a Comprehensive Content Strategy:
- Write a detailed blog post about how your product solves specific business challenges.
- Atomize content into multiple pieces (short videos, audio snippets, infographics).
- Use AI tools to create faceless videos from written content.
- Distribute across multiple social media channels in varied formats.
Distribution Plan and Calls to Action:
- Share blog articles on LinkedIn and other social media platforms.
- Use smaller content pieces and videos for wider reach.
- Align calls to action with each content type (e.g., "Contact us," "Download a whitepaper," "Try our product").

Guest Bio

Dave Erickson
Title: CEO, ScreamingBox
Bio: Dave Erickson has over 30 years of experience in eSports, gaming, software development, marketing, sales, branding, publishing, advertising, and international business. A serial entrepreneur, he has founded and managed businesses across the USA, Europe, and Asia. Prior to ScreamingBox, he played a pivotal role in building the Fatal1ty gaming brand and licensing program, and also founded an internet marketing company in 2002 that catered to high-profile clients like Gunthy-Ranker, Qualcomm, and TigerText.

Company Description

ScreamingBox
Description: ScreamingBox is a digital development company that offers web and mobile app development, along with other technology solutions. Their virtual-first approach helps clients save costs while ensuring high-quality digital solutions. They have built a strong reputation in the industry due to their distinctive branding and word-of-mouth referrals.
Website: screamingbox.net

Rainmaker Web
Description: Rainmaker Web helps startups and SMBs with marketing strategy, content creation, and digital distribution.
Website: rainmakerweb.net

Give feedback on this episode by sending the host a text message.

SIGN UP FOR THE EMAIL NEWSLETTER at forwardlaunchdigital.com/podcast

Next Episode

S2E6: How to transform sales through hyper-personalized networking, ft. Rhonda Dibachi, CEO of Hey Scottie

Main Insight: Using hyper-personalized outreach creates business opportunities with higher ROI for time spent and fosters better relationships between salespeople and customers.

Guest Bio: Rhonda Dibachi, CEO of Hey Scottie, has a diverse background in technology and manufacturing with experience in nuclear engineering and software development. She has co-founded multiple tech and manufacturing startups, including one that successfully went public. Rhonda is passionate about integrating technology into manufacturing to solve real-world operational challenges.

Key Takeaways:

Identify Successful Customers: Start by examining who your successful customers are, and identify their key attributes such as location, industry, product type, or size to categorize your ideal customer.

Find Adjacent Prospects: Look for prospects that are similar to your successful customers, particularly those that are geographically close so you can easily visit or engage with them.

Engage with Potential Connections: Identify potential points of engagement from their online presence, such as association memberships, and consider attending related events like annual meetings.

Leverage Personal Interests: Use personal interests shown on platforms like LinkedIn, such as hobbies, to create a more personal connection.

Look for innovators in a target company or industry: Identify people who are ambitious and receptive to innovative ideas such as recent job-changers, digital natives, and people who attend industry conferences.

Make Personal Connections: Make efforts to personally connect at conferences or through platforms like LinkedIn, reaching out to conference-goers and suggesting face-to-face meetings before the conference to discuss potential collaborations.

Give feedback on this episode by sending the host a text message.

SIGN UP FOR THE EMAIL NEWSLETTER at forwardlaunchdigital.com/podcast

Mindful B2B Marketing | Business Growth and Social Impact (Former: Forward Launch Your SaaS) - S2E5: How to build an online community to promote your brand, ft. William Cook, CEO of Advertise Your Server

Transcript

[0:32] All right, today we're going to be talking about how to build an online community to promote your brand.
[0:38] So I've got William Cook with me. He's the CEO of Advertise Your Server, which is the leading online community growth platform.
[0:47] They help grow online communities on platforms like Reddit and Discord, and he's responsible for the growth and development of Advertise Your Server. So I am super excited to chat with you today, William, and hear all about your backgroun