Lawrence Clarke
Tuesday 31 January 2012
Since the publication of our benchmarking report on online communities for membership bodies we’ve been encouraged to continue to stir the pot and engage more with senior management. The overriding message from the report is that senior managers don’t appreciate just how valuable proactive engagement leading to productive collaboration with members can be.
An attendee, Gareth Jones, has blogged about the event, and one of his observations is pivotal to the successful development of any member...
Wednesday 14 December 2011
A big thank you to all those who attended our inaugural ‘huddle’! Together we explored the findings of our first annual report on the health of online communities in membership organisations. Using the content from the report, four groups simultaneously shared their experiences, challenges and frustrations and then summarised them back to the other groups. The outputs were both enlightening and reassuring. Many recognising that they are in a very similar place.
From both the report and the...
Thursday 11 August 2011
The Internet is an unforgiving medium that shines a spotlight on the strengths and weaknesses of any business. Getting good rankings in search engines depends on those underlying strengths - but ultimately what really counts is whether visitors get what they hoped for, and more.
Old-fashioned factors that distinguished one business from another have all-too-often lost their power. It is no longer quite good enough to say ‘I’m special because I’m your local butcher’ if you can buy a Scottish...
Monday 16 May 2011
For a social enterprise, charity or a not-for-profit organisation the answer ought to be obvious – yet it remains a matter of constant discussion. One would have expected that these bodies would see a need for social media tools, such as blogs and discussion forums, to improve their communications and the sharing of knowledge and experience. They should see social media networks such as Facebook or Twitter as places where they can nurture and develop relationships with prospective and existing...
Thursday 31 March 2011
How to deliver on your USP - Part 5 of 5
Lawrence Clarke, Head of Consultancy at SiftGroups, highlights the importance of an appropriate communications strategy.
Monday 28 February 2011
How to deliver on your USP - Part 4 of 5
Lawrence Clarke, Head of Consultancy at SiftGroups, asks if you are ready to connect with your community.
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The importance of story telling
The importance of rituals
Wednesday 23 February 2011
How to deliver on your USP - Part 3 of 5
Lawrence Clarke, Head of Consultancy at SiftGroups, asks who is most important to you.
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How to reduce costs and increase activity?
Tuesday 22 February 2011
How to deliver on your USP - Part 2 of 5
Lawrence Clarke, Head of Consultancy at SiftGroups, asks if your community is the right one for you.
Related article
What is an online community?