David Spinks

“A tactical primer for any business embarking on the critical work of actively building community."—Seth Godin, Author, This is Marketing "This book perfectly marries the psychology of communities, with the hard-earned secrets of someone who's done the real work over many years. David Spinks is the master of this craft."—Nir Eyal, bestselling author of Hooked and Indistractable The rise of the internet has brought with it an inexorable, almost shockingly persistent drive toward community. From the first social networks to the GameStop trading revolution, engaged communities have shown the ability to transform industries. Businesses need to harness that power. As business community expert David Spinks shows in The Business of How to Make Community your Competitive Advantage , the successful brands of tomorrow will be those that create authentic connection, giving customers a sense of real belonging and unlocking unprecedented scale as a result. In his career of over 10 years in the business of building community, Spinks has learned what a winning community strategy looks like. From the fundamental concepts—including how community drives measurable business value and what the appropriate metrics are—to high-level community design and practical engagement techniques, The Business of Belonging is an epic journey into the world of community building. This book is for decision makers who want to better understand the value and opportunity of community, and for community professionals who want to level up their strategy. Featuring a foreword by Startup Grind and Bevy cofounder Derek Andersen, it will give you a step-by-step model for strategically planning, creating, facilitating, and measuring communities that drive business growth. Attracting and retaining community members who are also loyal customers, brand evangelists, and leaders—that’s the goal for today’s connected businesses, and this book is the map to getting there.

Your business problems are community problems. Solve them and scale with help from the leader in the field.The world's most successful businesses leaders understand that creating a shared social identity around their products and services is the most efficient path to scaling revenue, differentiating products, promoting customer success and retention, and seizing category ownership. The Business of How to Make Community Your Competitive Advantage is the definitive playbook for doing just that. CMX founder David Spinks offers step-by-step advice for creating community strategy, aligning it with your business objectives, and launching and managing a community of end users that will be your best marketer, salesperson, customer service provider, and evangelist.The Business of Belonging tackles topics the SPACES and the six key drivers of community Support, Product, Acquisition, Contribution, Engagement, and Success; how to measure the ROI of community initiatives and outcomes; the anatomy, lifecycle, and member journey of a business community; and designing, facilitating, and moderating shared spaces for your community members. For leaders driving the bottom line and community professionals alike, The Business of Belonging is the definitive resource for making community a priority.