Future of Social Communities

The potential to build community-curated knowledge networks remains largely untapped. There are reasons to be optimistic; the economic feasibility of paid communities, a renewed interest in curation, a slow move away from big social, and an improved understanding of platform incentives. All combined, this will lead to communities that are more sust... See more

Finally, commerce and social are coming together, although to much less a degree than marketing teams who talk up “brand communities” would like you to think. In all but a few cases, “community” here is just the marketing language used to describe a microbrand’s niche Instagram fandom. To me “community” implies users regularly engaging with each ot... See more

I think we will gain the most learnings about the future of business and identity not from top-down corporate models of community management, but from friends, squads, and content creators starting groups and supporting the legitimate participation of community members in their ongoing development, finance, and governance. 

As audiences coalesce around micro-communities as a refuge from an ongoing barrage of content and platforms, how brands connect with them matters. Offerings like Glossier’s Slack group, Vogue Club, and A24 All Access reveal a trend of brands rethinking their audience loyalty strategies. Providing space for fans to interact with your brand (and each... See more