© Red Rose Exile


If you think the Internet is a giant billboard where you can put up pictures of the cars or clothes you have for sale so people can come look at the pictures and then rush down to your store, you're missing the point. The potential of the Internet resides in its ability to promote interaction and engagement. Retail sales may need less of that than websites, say, for community activism or for sharing recipes that are gluten free. But even business websites (and the businesses they represent) benefit from pursuing community engagement.

Leah Betancourt had a good piece this month on increasing community engagement.

Getting people to interact with others and upload content to a community-driven site enough may sound easy, but engagement doesn't happen automatically. It takes time and work, and much of the right formula is deduced through trial and error.

She lays out ten tips for attracting and encouraging community engagement. Most are simple (make it east to participate, be nice to newbies, allow creativity); but sometimes we don't think about the simply things in life (or in web design).

Take a look at the piece. It's worth reading.