Community App – How To Build a Successful Online Community

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What is a community app?

An online community app is a tool that taps into the core of what it means to be human.

To understand a community app in the modern sense, we must travel back in time and first understand communities.

The journey from community to community app

The concept of communities is as old as we are. People join groups based on their shared interests or problems they want to overcome. For a community to work, everyone must contribute.

Our ancestors built communities to protect themselves from wild animals and invaders. Had these communities failed, we would have lived in a completely different society today.

They were successful, and they allowed people to thrive. Luckily, today, we no longer have to form communities to protect ourselves but rather exchange information, establish businesses and hang out with like-minded people where we learn and work on our skills.

And all of this is done online.

There are a large number of community apps that small business owners can join and invite their customers to use.

We will show you how to build a successful online company with our platform called GroupApp.

But before we do…

3 reasons why a community app is essential for your online business

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A community platform makes the job easier for a large number of companies and their owners. Here’s how:

Connection and sharing

Not only can you connect with like-minded people, but apps can also be a great resource for learning new things. With so many people sharing their knowledge and expertise, users can easily find information on any topic they’re interested in.

Community leaders can manage everything easily

Community apps play an important role, as they give you the autonomy to host and manage your community away from distractions and algorithm changes. Usually, people gather on social media platforms or create Facebook groups, but these aren’t the best solutions.

For example, on GroupApp, community leaders have the freedom to create a hierarchy that will make the user experience on the platform enjoyable. Once a community leader delegates admin duties and sets up channels for communications, they will no longer waste time managing everything.

Works well for course creators and students

Course creators and other digital entrepreneurs are the first to attest to the power of online communities. It has been shown that students who learn in groups and interact with their teachers and peers do better in their classes than students who learn on their own.

Students can learn more, but other than that, it is easy to stay connected, have one-on-one conversations, participate in community events, and exchange messages with other members.

How to Build a Successful Online Community with GroupApp

Building a thriving community is not an easy task. If you want your community to be successful after you launch it, you will need to develop and use engagement strategies.

Luckily, GroupApp makes this easy, and we will help you launch, customize, and run a thriving online community that will help you fulfill your mission.

Here is what you need to do:

Onboard Your Members

Although we’ve made it easy to start on GroupApp, most things will depend on you. The entire communication within the community will depend on how you approach it.

From the start, you need to set the tone for dynamic communication. Members should respond to your content and post their own questions, comments, and ideas.

The onboarding process is the first opportunity to set a tone and encourage them to participate.

One straightforward thing you can do is set up a welcome post.

Every time a new member joins, it will be the first thing they see, further shaping their experience.

It can be followed by a welcome video to explain further what members can expect. In that video or post, you should introduce yourself and invite your community members to do the same.

This way, members will get to know each other and be more open to initiating a conversation.

With GroupApp, you can pin your welcome post and video to ensure everyone who joins the community sees it.

What’s Next?

Once people start joining your community, explore all the features Group App offers and figure out the best way to create a culture where people will message and stay engaged.

What can you do?

Use Library for Courses and Other Resources

Quality, in-depth resources, and materials are one of the main reasons people join online communities. It’s essential that these resources are organized and stored in one place so that your members can easily navigate and find what they’re looking for.

GroupApp offers a library feature where you can add PDFs, workbooks, sheets, or anything else your community members might need. You can organize the lessons and materials to help them quickly learn and progress through the materials.

Besides resources, you should organize your community discussions and content.

Separating questions and announcements from learning materials can help your students easily find information, join discussions, and stay up-to-date.

Create Communication Channels

A feature that can come in handy is channels. You can create a dedicated channel for each important topic (Announcements, Ask questions, Materials, etc.).

Here is an example of how to do it with GroupApp.

Not everyone will have access to each channel, depending on the subscription tier that you can fully customize. You can have one channel accessible to everyone to show people outside your community what they can expect.

Meanwhile, put your best content in a channel where the most engaging and highest-paying members are to create the idea of exclusivity.

With a place for every theme, channels help you and your members stay organized and on task.

Host Live Events

Organizing live events and webinars is a great way to add value to your online community. Live events provide an opportunity for people to interact and talk with each other, and they also offer a chance to learn new information and skills.

Furthermore, this is a great way to attract new members to your community. These activities can help you reach a wider audience and showcase the value of your group.

You want to inform your group of the events you’re planning so they can attend. They should be aware of when and how the event will take place.

Using the Event function in GroupApp, you can schedule online events like webinars, onboarding meetings, and training for your community. People will be reminded of them, and they will show up on their calendars.

They can also notify you if they plan to attend by responding with an RSVP.

You can organize webinars with special guests if you want to go the extra mile for your members. Guests can be experts in specific fields, depending on your community’s needs.

Bringing in experts is a great idea to show that you are serious about running your community. Furthermore, when people are willing to come and share their experiences with the users, it increases the credibility of everything you do.

Students will be grateful for the opportunity to hear a different perspective and will value the membership even more.

Schedule and Broadcasts Lessons and Posts with Drip Feature

Community app features can help you stay constant in how you communicate but not be bound to do something on a specific day.

To make it easier for you, GroupApp provides you with the option to schedule and broadcast your posts. Every time you schedule a post, your students will receive an automated email and avoid missing out on any information.

Last but not least, you can also control when students get access to course lessons with a drip schedule feature. This allows you to set the pace and keep the community learning and improving together.

And you can always track students’ progress within the community app, which allows you to follow up with them and keep them accountable.

Use Direct Messages and Group Chat to Connect and Get Feedback

Keeping in touch with your members in a regular, planned way will help you build relationships and connect with them. If your members receive information and updates from your side, this will encourage them to participate—to message other members, share data, and even make friends outside the platform.

GroupApp recognizes this and offers direct messaging and group chats within your community. The idea is for each community member to easily connect with another member and continue the conversation in a private or group chat. You’re doing something right if they become friends and form relationships outside the app.

After your members become involved in your community, they expect you to post and share content regularly. Your presence will also help them develop habits of staying connected to the community.

For example, if you make Friday a day when people talk about the most exciting thing they’ve learned that week, it will eventually become one they look forward to because they know what to expect.

This will improve engagement, but you will also have to listen to what your members have to say. Tailor-made content will improve your members’ engagement and confirm they are in the right place.

Perform member research on a small group of members to find out what they think and how much they know.

Establishing direct relationships will help you understand why your members joined, what problems they are looking to solve or expect from you, and what their expectations and challenges are.

For larger groups, you can send automated messages asking them to fill out questionnaires and only pick a selected few members for an in-depth answer. For small communities, you can exchange text messages asking for more elaborate answers or ask people during video calls to provide you with feedback.

Some options include:

• Create quizzes
• Do surveys
• Organize Q&A’s and focus groups

These techniques will help you understand community members and their needs. With the data you’ve collected, you’ll be able to create valuable content for your users and get them involved.

Integrate GroupApp With Your Tools Using Zapier Integration

GroupApp knows that there are a large number of useful tools that make your job easier—you can integrate them effortlessly. With Zapier Integration, you will be able to keep working with your favorite tools.

One of the main benefits of GroupApp is that it creates an easy platform that everyone will be able to use within the first few minutes.

You can also use our API to build your integration and set up single sign-on for authenticated users so that they don’t have to log on and off every time they want to access the community.

Earn Money with GroupApp

Many community apps allow you to earn money, but on GroupApp, you can do it in two different ways.

Membership Subscriptions

The first one is through membership subscriptions. Membership subscriptions can be a reliable income source for content creators.

Membership or subscription levels limit access to the content members will have. They let you decide what content will be available and to whom, as well as what kind of payment is needed.

The easiest way to set up membership tiers is by using hierarchical levels (Free, Advanced, Business, etc.). This is a standard method based on financial investment. The more members are ready to invest, the better content and benefits they will get.

You can also organize membership tiers based on community members’ roles (Individual, Student, Teacher, etc.) or on the output they will get (Online only, Print only, etc.).

Make sure to add some creativity to your subscription names. If you’re looking for inspiration, you can check out our guide on Creative membership level names.

Sell Courses & Resources

You can also monetize your knowledge on GroupApp by selling online courses and downloadable resources. Depending on your expertise, you can create and sell templates, e-books, how-to videos, worksheets, or anything your students will find useful.

Our community app has an easy-to-use course builder that lets you create and sell courses to everyone.

Not to mention that creating a community on GroupApp will open up more opportunities as you automate processes and create a stable and valuable experience for your members.

Are You Ready To Build Your Community with GroupApp – the #1 Community App Out There?

There’s no need to search for another community app because GroupApp offers everything you need – a sense of belonging for the members and the opportunity to upgrade your business and make it profitable for the owners.

Sign up for a free GroupApp account or start a 14-day trial, bring your courses and community together, and start earning money!