We always need to keep in mind that every choice and every decision that we make, no matter how sound, will please some people, but not everyone. “You can’t please everyone” is a saying that you hear all the time, but I remember being in high school when the impact of this statement really hit [...]

GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* Tips for Handling Information Overload: Too Much Content Stress Reduction Tips Linux.com MeeGo: Where Are We Now? MeeGo.com* LinuxCon and MeeGo Review MeeGo Community Update and Metrics for July Signup Now for the MeeGo Conference! MeeGo Conference Session Proposal Deadline Extended to Aug

For those of us who manage global online communities, meeting people in person isn’t always easy. However, it is important to find ways to meet people in real life whenever possible, and we should be careful not to underestimate the value of making these real world connections. Last week, I attended LinuxCon where I g

If you want to see me speak at SXSW, you can comment and vote on my session before 11:59 CDT on Friday, August 27. Here’s how SXSW panel selection is weighted: 30% popular vote (you!), 30% program staff and 40% advisory board, so I’ll need some votes before they will accept my session! Here are [...]

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks. GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* Tips for Handling Information Overload Tips for Managing Social Media Information Overload MeeGo* MeeGo Conference 2010 Call for Session Proposals MeeGo at OSCON Wrap-Up *Disclaimers: Giga

Last week’s community manager tip about how members notice everything is part of why community managers need to pay close attention to how we behave in our online communities. Members notice everything, and they watch the community manager and other leaders in the community to determine what types of behaviors are app

You can’t get away with hiding anything in an online community; community members will notice even the smallest things. While this is true in communities of every size, it is especially noticeable in large communities with many members. People are often under the mistaken impression that they can post something in a w

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks. GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* How I Stay Productive at Conferences Using Social Media to Keep Up with Colleagues MeeGo* MeeGo Community Metrics for June Got MeeGo? OSCON Keynote by Dirk Hohndel MeeGo Technical Overvi

I often tell people that nagging is a big part of community management. Yes, you could call it by some other nice names, “encouraging”, “managing”, “asking”, “requesting”, but the reality is that it can seem a lot like nagging. As community managers, we stay focused on what th

Most community managers keep a close watch on their online communities to be able to respond quickly, but really good community managers know when to respond right away and when to wait. If something is truly wrong, you should step in immediately to let people know you are working on fixing the issue, and when [...]

Our WebVisions panel about Techniques for Monitoring Online Communities was just released on video thanks to the wonderful team over at Strange Love Live. I’m a little biased since I was moderating the panel, but I thought it went really well thanks to the amazing people who were part of the panel: Marshall Kirkpatri

GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* 3 Productivity Tips for the Corporate Web Worker How to Stay Productive and Enjoy the Summer MeeGo* MeeGo 1.0 Update for Netbooks News Recap for MeeGo Handset Day 1 *Disclaimers: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily: I am a paid blogger for the GigaOM network. MeeGo: I am a full-time employee at

The balance between listening and talking is a tricky one for many community managers, especially new ones. As community managers, we get excited when people participate, but if we start to jump into every conversation or reply to every thread it can be a little overbearing and can shut the conversation down too early. I [.

For community managers, having excellent metrics is one of the best ways to show your progress and help justify your efforts to management when talking about budgets and staffing for the community. It provides an early warning system and diagnostics for potential community issues, which gives you time to make corrections be

GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* Metrics: Corporate Web Working Effectiveness by the Numbers Companies Should Treat Everyone Like Web Workers Telecommuting + Flextime = More Productive Corporate Workforce MeeGo* MeeGo Community Metrics for May Save the Date: MeeGo Conference 2010 in November *Disclaimers: GigaOM’s

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* Corporate Web Worker Careers: Online Community Manager What Can Web Workers Learn from Corporations? MeeGo* News Recap for MeeGo 1.0 The Crazy Neighbor* Sunday morning coming down…

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* Old-school Collaboration Tools That Rock 7 Tips and Best Practices for International Phone Meetings MeeGo* MeeGo Community Metrics for April *Disclaimers: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily: I am

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … 8 misconceptions about Community Management The Commitment Required of Community Members Social Media Benchmarking via PostRank Domain Activity API Stop hiding behind your screen and take your online community offline Digital Habitats for proje

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … The Tougher Side of Community Management This one time at Brand Camp: the emperor’s new tweets California Dreamin’, release 1.2 (Linux Collaboration Summit, day 2) Designing Reputation Mechanisms for Effecient Trade (PDF link) You can fi

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* How to Stay Productive in Tough Situations as a Remote Employee How to Manage Your Boss When Working Remotely Tips for Managing Remote Workers MeeGo* MeeGo Presentations from the Linux Fou

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … Data Viz: Donations to the Cyborg Reconstruction Fund How Our Tools Define “Community” Sustainable Community Building [for Humans] How Effective Are Corporate Social Media Policies? You can find all of my links on Delicious. Sharing is go

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … Interns should be paid. With money. Amber Case – Digital Philosopher An open letter to companies planning online communities Twitter Usage In America 2010 – User Statistics And Behaviors – Edison Research Wisdom 2.0: Living Co

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … Altimeter Report: Social Marketing Analytics (Altimeter Group & Web Analytics Demystified) A Plea to Professional Communicators – Don’t Be Microphones Writing Your Own Job Description Citibank Survey Finds Small Businesses Not L

This afternoon, I’ll be spending some time at Portland State University talking about what it’s like to work as a community manager. I’ve done this presentation a few times before, but I completely overhauled the materials this week with new data on community manager salaries, job satisfaction and more. I

Here is a summary of links to my posts appearing on other blogs over the past couple of weeks: GigaOM’s WebWorkerDaily* 10 Secrets to Being a Successful Corporate Web Worker 20 Ways to Fail Miserably as a Corporate Web Worker How to Have a Productive First Week in a New Job as a Remote Employee *Disclaimers:

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … The Efficient Community Hypothesis From Ning to Causes to Ideablob: Why We Need a New Way of Building 10 Fresh Tips for Community Managers Upcoming Conferences and Events – May & June Businesses Split on Paying for Twitter You can fin

Last week, I wrote a blog post about finding the right mix of listening and creating content for online communities or social media programs, and this week, I wanted to talk more specifically about the role of listening as a community manager. This post comes from my experience as a community manager and describes what [...

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … Community Manager vs. Social Media Manager The Truth Will Set Your Social Enterprise Free 8 ways to build trust in your Social Media or Branded Online Community Quantifying Social Results Rules clarified to enhance federal social media interact

Whether you are managing an online community or a social media program for your organization, having the right mix of listening and creating content is important. Without listening to feedback, you are just creating content in a vacuum without gaining any insights from other people. If you just listen and create nothing, yo

Here are a few interesting things from this week that I wanted to share … Don’t build a boring online community 8 Ways To Merge Your Online Community With The Real World If you missed it: Crowdsourcing Innovative Social Change Social Learning: so much more than bottom/top line benefits Relationship Inflation and th