Building a Digital Community: 10 Tips for Success
Strategies and Considerations for Creating a Community Your Students Want to Join
Digital communities are an excellent way to help students connect - to information, classmates, support resources, even potential employers.
But it’s not enough to simply offer a community and expect that students will show up. Students need to understand and see the value of the community so they are motivated to join and participate.
At InScribe, we've helped schools of all sizes and missions build successful digital communities, and we've learned a lot along the way. With input from our recent webinar speakers, Dr. Kevin Kelly, lecturer at San Francisco State University, and Jenny Weddle, Business Systems Manager at Indiana University's School of Medicine, we've identified ten strategies to launch student communities that thrive.
1. Be clear about the purpose of your digital community. It may sound obvious - but simply letting students know what the community is for and what they will find there is critical. This helps set expectations about topics in the community, who else will be there, and what students can expect to get out of participating.
2. Plan ahead so your students have a good first experience. Some students might be willing to jump in with both feet, but others will need some convincing. And a student’s first impression often determines whether they ever come back. Make sure you have a strategy to welcome new students to the community and to keep content refreshed and relevant.
3. Make your digital community highly visible with multiple ways to connect. Students don’t need another destination! To help your community thrive, create easy access points from the places your students already go, such as your LMS, student portal, and websites. Also remember to promote and link to your community from your communication channels, including newsletters, social media, and more.
4. Commit to the digital community and respond quickly. Timely participation in the community is key to gaining students' trust. Make sure the community leaders are available to answer questions and respond to interactions.
5. Humanize the leaders. Students want to know who they are interacting with! Take some time to have community leaders introduce themselves in short paragraphs or videos. Let students see that there are real people here to help and encourage them.
6. Recognize the opportunities in front of you. Replicating face-to-face interaction is hard, and that shouldn't be the goal of a digital community. Instead, recognize your digital community as a means to create new and different ways for students to connect and build relationships.
7. Include students in the entire process. Student feedback is worth its weight in gold. The more students can provide insights, shape the community experience, and personalize it, the more relevant it becomes. Pay attention to the conversations students start and participate in to learn about the topics that are most important to them.
8. Create a safe space for all students. Regardless of identity, culture, and background, communities that are open and diverse give students an opportunity to find themselves and seek out new connections. Reinforce a sense of belonging for all students through your community guidelines and by encouraging open, student-led conversations.
9. Offer both real-time and asynchronous opportunities to connect. Students, especially non-traditional students, have complicated schedules with competing priorities. Some students also don't have consistent access to reliable internet. Make sure every student can participate by promoting both live and asynchronous opportunities to engage.
10. Don't wait until the start of the term to open your digital community. Unlike a course start date, your digital community is fluid. Give students the opportunity to engage before the start of the term - it’s often when students have the most questions and need the most support!
Want to learn more about the relevant and meaningful digital communities InScribe is building? Get in touch with us today!