As tempting as it is, resist the “if we build it, they will come” mindset. Many communities fail because an organization builds the structure first and then tries to locate people to join. One of the reasons The W Club and Ikea Hackers are so successful is they were created in response to obvious but unmet needs.

You will find people inside your frame of common interest who are not ideal candidates for your community. Don’t try to convince them to join. They won’t be happy and, in the end, you won’t either.

The Evolution of Passion. Members are deeply connected to each other and to the community as a whole. A fully developed community mission and vision spark conversation and action.

invest in the care and feeding of your community long before it’s time to bring anything to market.

To find relevant conversations online, do a Google search for blogs and set up Google alerts for your best keywords. Do a keyword search on Twitter. Tweetdeck and other Twitter clients allow you to set up a column based on a specific keyword so you can monitor conversations on an on-going basis. Conduct similar searches on Facebook and LinkedIn.

You can talk with them and empower them to help you tease out the REAL problem they need a solution for. You can tap into their imaginations. You can give them stuff you’ve thought up so they can test it and give you feedback.

Listen. Listening is a recurring theme on the path to creating Fierce Loyalty. As you observe and contribute to conversations in and around your frame, you’ll hear your ideal community candidates express their needs for Belonging, Recognition and Safety.

The Evolution of Pride. Members gain pleasure and satisfaction from their participation in their community. Community membership is a part of their identity and they are anxious to display their loyalty via t-shirts,

Involve members as much as you can in developing the structure of the community. When I began building Escaping Mediocrity, I had some loose ideas on the structure I wanted to put in place. But because I wanted to create a real community, one that could function whether I was present or not, I encouraged people to take ownership of how