We are fiercely loyal to those people, places, and things that we can call our own. They are a part of who we are, a piece of our identity. Relinquish control, give members an ownership stake, and watch Fierce Loyalty soar.

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.

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.

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.

4} Create a culture of “We.” Traditionally, the relationship between an organization and its clients is based on an “us” and “them” paradigm. Over and over again, I hear “those clients,” “those customers” and “those donors.” What if we eliminated the whole idea of “us and them”? What if there was only “we”?

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

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.

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.

• Empowered Evangelists • A Grassroots Research and Development Team • A Hungry Client Base • Reduced Client Attrition • Happier Clients