For almost two years, I’ve run a book club at Orbit. The core themes have been community building, entrepreneurship, and company culture.
One thing I’ve noticed while exploring what community building means, and how different organizations go about it is that “Community” is one of those umbrella concepts that represent many things and can be quickly diluted.
Someone could argue that, fundamentally, all communities are the same; therefore, community building is universal. But! the flavor of the community matters and largely influences the kind of work required from those embarking on the journey of building community.
When it comes to Orbit users, we’re usually talking about large-size, multi-platform, online communities that fall into one of three categories:
Orbit’s blog has tons of bite-size tips and short-form ideas for community builders that identify with the previous description, but sometimes we’re in the mood for a deep dive and looking for longer forms of content.
These 6 books are just that.
Caveat: some might say these are best for newcomers to the craft. I like to think everyone has something to learn and improve from reflecting on what they do on a daily basis 🤓
These two books changed the way I approach communications for multicultural groups and how I organize events.
Read if: you are running a global community.
It will help you understand: why things get lost in translation between people from different cultural backgrounds.
Golden nuggets
In this article, I talk about how this has played out at Orbit.
Read if: you want to be more strategic with your events and gatherings.
It will help you understand: why over-the-counter event recipes flop or fail to deliver meaningful value.
Golden nuggets
It’s easy to think this just applies to your quintessential annual product conference, but practice the art of gathering intentionally, and you’ll notice it applies to Zoom calls as well as weddings.
These two books are similar in nature: how to build a community sponsored or directed by a brand.
Read if: you’re starting a brand community, or want to revisit why you are building one.
It will help you understand: what kind of value your community can bring to a “brand,” the term authors use to encompass businesses, non-profits, and other types of organizations.
Golden nuggets
This book is probably the one that applies to most Orbit users. What I appreciate about it is the invitation to reflect on what kind of value the brand adds to the community it serves.
The community-led growth flywheel is a consequence of supporting a cause, a lifestyle, or a way to empower folks interacting with your brand. In the Orbit language, you increase the gravitational pull of your community by nurturing the love of its members 💜
Read if: you want to refocus or narrow down your community strategy to support the business.
It will help you understand: where to focus your energy to get measurable business outcomes.
Golden nuggets
We often hear questions like How do I prove the ROI of my community? Or How can I show management Community impacts the business in concrete positive ways?
The days when Community could get by on intuition alone seem to be standing behind us.
Spinks offers a concrete list of focus areas that can serve to identify metrics the business is already tracking. Your job will be to draw the line between community metrics –cough, cough that you can get in your Orbit Reports, cough, cough– and KPIs in other business units.
If you want more tactical advice, Patrick talks in this article about 10 common methods for driving community-led impact in your organization.
These two books present society-level commentary on the role of community in contemporary life.
Read if: you want to study the community archetype and underlying principles.
It will help you understand: the essentials of what makes up a healthy community, and how they operate.
Golden nuggets
Delving into community fundamentals can help you assess whether you’re missing some community elements. For example, can you add more rituals? Symbols? Do you have a clear boundary between who’s in and out?
Read if: you are seeking a deep understanding of how “community” has transformed over the last century, and what the digital era of communities can expect.
It will help you understand: the source of loneliness in post-industrial societies –the US in particular–and the link between community, democracy, and social capital.
Golden nuggets
Even though more high-level than the rest, this book can help us question how changes in society have impacted the role community plays in our lives.
Understanding these macro-trends can give us clues into the challenges people face to connect and revisit our approach to creating meaningful relationships that move beyond the sales funnel into community building, from value capture to value creation.
I’d love to hear if you’ve read any of these or have more book recommendations! Join the conversation on our Discord server! 🧑🚀