How To Build An Online Brand With A Community

Imagine a campfire on a chilly evening. 

Around it, people gather, sharing stories, laughing, and connecting. The warmth isn’t just from the fire; it’s from the shared experience. Every person adds to the narrative, making it richer and more diverse.

Now, consider the online world as a vast wilderness. Here, brands—yes, including you, the budding content creator or community builder—strive to create their own campfires. 

But it’s not just about telling tales. The true magic happens when brands ignite conversations and then listen, growing in response to the unique stories and feedback from their community.  In short, you listen, adapt, and evolve based on the stories you hear from your community.

In this digital age, every individual, every creator, has the power to be more than just a storyteller. You are the fire starter, curating a space for meaningful connections. Gathering views and likes? That’s just kindling. Building a dedicated campfire circle requires authenticity, continuous engagement, and a heartfelt bond. 

You become a creator for your community and by the community—and this ensures you as a brand remain strong, relevant, and sustainable.

However, it is easier said than done. And you will certainly face challenges and uncertainties while getting started.

We’re going to find out how to build an online brand fortified and amplified by the community. In this post, we’ll cover:

• How community-building is transforming modern branding
• Why human connections are essential for online brands now
• Real examples of brands using community to thrive
• Key strategies and tools to grow your community-powered brand

Let’s explore how communities are becoming brands and how you can, too!

The Changing Landscape of Branding

Traditional branding was a one-way street. Companies crafted messaging to shape perception. Consumers absorbed opinions about brands through ads.

But in today’s social and digital world, modern consumers don’t just receive brand identities – they participate in co-creating them through online communities.

People engage with brands that build purpose-driven communities. Community is one powerful way to foster emotional connections and loyalty.

From being a mere representation of a product via logos and taglines, the ‘brand’ has now metamorphosed into an experience. Brands now are not about transactions but about lasting relationships. 

As digital anthropologist Brian Solis described, we have entered the era of “community commerce,” where brands must foster bonds and tribalism around identity. Think less flashy ads and more meaningful community connections.

Community provides essential emotional touchpoints for brands to thrive. But it’s not the only option – innovative branding can take many forms.

The key is to create meaningful experiences that resonate with target audiences. This requires knowing your customers and speaking to their needs.

It’s all about B.R.A.N.D. – Building Relationships And Networking Daily. The community is one way to provide the emotional touchpoints essential for this B.R.A.N.D to thrive. Which brings us to…

Why Community is Essential for an Online Brand

Here are five key reasons community-building is invaluable for today’s brands seeking digital growth and loyalty:

• Distribution Made Easy: With the vast digital noise, communities are your megaphone, ensuring your voice reaches every corner. They help your brand’s voice cut through the clutter of information, ensuring it reaches its desired destination. It will help you get more eyeballs organically.
• Trust Building: A community is a testament to your brand’s authenticity and reliability. The trust quotient multiplies when potential customers see real people endorsing a brand.
• Loyal Customer Base: Beyond repeat purchases, communities create brand advocates. Communities are not just about numbers; they’re about people who repeatedly vouch for you, advocate for you, and stay loyal even when competitors beckon.
• Organic Marketing: Who’s better at promoting your brand than satisfied customers? They are your organic brand ambassadors, endorsing you without any prompt.
• Continuous Feedback Loop: Imagine having a group of dedicated product testers giving real-time feedback. That’s what communities offer, providing invaluable insights for brand growth and evolution. In communities, every voice counts, offering brands real-time insights and a chance to adapt quickly.

Remember, for an entrepreneur, while building a brand might be challenging and, at times, lonely, a community offers support and amplifies the brand’s voice. 

Let’s see examples of brands that started as a community and became successful.

Successful Brands That Started With Community

Today’s breakout brands have community woven into their DNA from the early stages. The mantra for brands is clear: It’s not about Direct-to-Consumer but Direct-to-Community. Focus on community first, then overlay it with commerce.

Here are some successful brands that started as communities.

1: The Whole Truth Foods

A brand focused on transparent ingredient listing, leveraging communities to bust myths about food and nutrition.

The Whole Truth Food’s journey (hereon referred to as “The Whole Truth”) is nothing short of a brand-building masterclass.

Founder Shashank Mehta’s tryst with weight gain and loss wasn’t just a personal challenge but the inception of The Whole Truth. 

Instead of just hitting the gym or going on crash diets, he started investigating food. What’s in it? Why do some foods claim to be healthy and are not?

This curiosity led to his blog called “Fitshit.” Sure, the name is funny, but this wasn’t just any other blog. It was a place where Shashank peeled back the layers on food labels. He openly showcased how some brands tricked us with misleading claims.

People started following this blog. It became a community, a haven for those deceived by food brands. “Fitshit” wasn’t just a blog; it became a movement.

From this community’s feedback and concerns, an idea arose: Why not create a genuinely transparent food brand? And thus, ‘The Whole Truth’ was born.

Evolution in Name, Not in Values

Here’s a fun fact. The brand initially wasn’t called ‘The Whole Truth.’ It started as “And Nothing Else.” But Shashank felt this name just touched the tip of the iceberg. He wanted to do more than list out transparent ingredients. He wanted to educate people, break myths, and build a brand that screamed truth from every angle. So, a rebranding was in order.

The Whole Truth, Powered By Community

Shashank realized that the key was building an authentic community of consumers who cared as much about honest, healthy products as he did.

So he began engaging niche communities of fitness enthusiasts, environmentally-conscious eaters, and label-scrutinizing foodies. He participated in their forum discussions, solicited feedback on his concepts, and educated them on misleading marketing claims.

This cultivated a small but passionate group of early adopters united by a mission – rebuilding trust and transparency in food. For them, The Whole Truth offered the perfect antidote to an industry plagued by dubious health claims and ingredient trickery.

Shashank rewarded these early brand advocates with discounts and exclusive access, further cementing their loyalty. They became volunteer ambassadors, eagerly promoting the mission and products they felt part of creating.

But Shashank didn’t stop there. He realized intermittent fasting resonated with his community, but lacked an organized presence.

So in 2019, he launched whatIF, an intermittent fasting community. This provided a space for people to learn, discuss experiences, and support each other’s fasting journeys.

Shashank shared educational articles and brought in experts to address members’ concerns. The community grew rapidly, cementing The Whole Truth as a trusted wellness brand focused on education and empowerment.

For Shashank, whatIF underscored that community building should be ongoing, not a one-time effort. Continuous engagement and new initiatives maintain community vitality.

whatIF also demonstrated that communities can have their own lives, becoming hubs for niche interests related to the brand. The Whole Truth nurtured whatIF because they shared a core mission of transparent health education.

This community-building foundation allowed The Whole Truth to expand strategically. Shashank hosted free educational workshops exposing common food marketing myths. He published enlightening content unmasking unhealthy ingredients hidden in popular snacks and beverages.

Followers who resonated with this refreshing honesty and transparency naturally got into The Whole Truth community. They headed the call for “food with integrity” and helped spread the brand’s purpose.

Today, The Whole Truth has a tribe of brand devotees who drive awareness and goodwill through recommendations, reviews, and even contributing their food insights.

They propelled The Whole Truth from a scrappy upstart to one of the fastest-growing natural food brands in just two years – with zero paid advertising.

Key Takeaways

For fellow founders, The Whole Truth provides three critical lessons on community-powered branding:

• Listen to Personal Struggles: They often sow the seeds of great ideas. Identify and serve overlooked niche communities aligned with your purpose early on. Let their desires shape your brand.
• Community is Gold: The Whole Truth’s community, WhatIF, wasn’t just about venting; it gathered like-minded folks, eventually leading to a trusted brand.
• Evolution is Okay: It’s fine to change and adapt as long as core values remain intact.
• Engage, Don’t Just Sell: Building trust means having genuine conversations with your customers. The brand continued to foster the ‘Fitshit’ blog. They actively promoted the WhatIF community. They wanted informed customers, not just buyers. Earn trust and credibility through educational, value-adding content and experiences. Don’t just sell – inform and empower.

The Whole Truth proves that brands focusing on community cultivation reap game-changing benefits in awareness, engagement, and customer loyalty.

Well, this was about a community-driven branded revolution in the food space. But did you know that a researcher took it further to help us live really long? We’re talking about living up to 100 years or more. Let’s dive into the story of how a community-powered lifestyle movement became a change-making brand.

2: Nike’s Running Community 

This brand thrived by creating communities where people discussed, measured, and adopted active lifestyle habits.

Nike’s Community-Driven Brand Success

The swoosh logo is now synonymous with sports excellence across the globe. But behind Nike’s ascendance lies an understanding that brands thrive when they build communities, not just sell products.

In the early days, Nike founder Phil Knight spent hours conversing with runners to understand their pain points. He learned their biggest frustration was the poor quality running shoes that fell apart quickly.

Seeing an opportunity, Knight decided to build a shoe company focused on performing athletes, not just casual wearers. He partnered with former coach Bill Bowerman, who began tinkering with innovative shoe designs for serious runners.

But Knight knew that creating a great product wasn’t enough. Nike had to give runners an identity. So, he built a community around the shared love of sport.

Nike made a ritual of engaging with niche groups, from track athletes to basketball players. They became brand devotees by joining this tribe united by passion and a drive to improve. Nike forged personal bonds through conversations at local tracks and gyms.

The brand also leveraged elite athlete sponsors like Michael Jordan to capture imaginations worldwide. But instead of just using the athletes as celebrity spokespeople, Nike highlighted their grueling training regimens. This allowed recreational athletes to relate to the human struggle behind the superstar.

As Nike grew, the brand doubled down on community-building in the digital age. The Nike+ Run Club app gave runners training plans, challenges, and a space to share progress. Sneakerheads bonded over exclusive shoe drops and UGC on Nike’s SNKRS app.

Niche Community Focus

Rather than targeting all athletes, Nike focuses on building bonds within specific niches like runners, basketball players, and soccer enthusiasts. This allows tailored experiences and deeper connections.

For example, Nike Running educates and engages runners through its Nike+ Run Club app. Features like adaptive training plans, guided workouts, challenges, and local group meetups cater specifically to runners’ needs.

Brand Communities as Lifestyle Hubs

Nike positions its brand communities as lifestyle hubs, not just commerce platforms. People join for the shared identity and bonds over their passion for sport – not just products.

The Nike SNKRS community thrives thanks to this positioning. Limited-edition drops and UGC like #kickchecks drive hype and give sneakerheads an identity beyond buying shoes.

Co-Creation for Customer Insights

To stay atop rapidly evolving customer needs, Nike actively co-creates with its community members. Initiatives like Nike By You, which allows custom shoe designs, provide invaluable consumer insights.

Feedback from design workshops and contests also influence Nike’s product development and innovation. The community essentially guides the brand’s evolution.

UGC and Influencer Partnerships

User-generated content and influencer partnerships give Nike’s messaging authenticity. Nike reposts customer photos on its social accounts and website to inspire new buyers with real people’s stories.

Influencers, from athletes to enthusiasts, organically endorse Nike’s gear. Their advocacy seems more genuine than big celebrity sponsorships.

Owned Community Spaces

While active on social media, Nike also provides owned spaces for customers to connect more meaningfully. Nike+ Run Club and Training Club apps foster member interactions and progress tracking beyond the noise of social feeds.

By owning its community platforms, Nike gets more data and can better integrate e-commerce features like exclusive drops.

Key Takeaways

Nike succeeds by making community a core business strategy, not an add-on. Key lessons for brands:

• Build specific niches rather than a broad community without focus.
• Position as a lifestyle hub that fulfills identity needs beyond transactions.
• Solicit continuous feedback and ideas from customers through co-creation.
• Encourage UGC and organic influencer advocacy for authenticity.
• Develop owned platforms tailored to your community’s needs.

Nike recognizes its brand strength comes from the people – its community. By putting members first, Nike dominates the marketplace.

Nike demonstrates how putting the community at the center from day one results in enthusiastic brand ambassadors who drive real impact.

And to demonstrate the true power of community in building an online brand, we have a case study for you on Nas.io. It will help you understand why we emphasize community and how it helped us grow.

Read on!

3. Nas Company

Nuseir Yassin, renowned by his alias Nas Daily, began as a content creator who passionately told stories through his videos. 

When creator Nuseir Yassin set out to build his video production company Nas Daily in 2016, he knew cultivating community would be key.

Rather than viewing fans as just ephemeral viewers, Nuseir focused on forging authentic connections with his rapidly growing audience.

He made a point to respond thoughtfully to every comment, nurturing one-on-one relationships behind the scenes. Live meetups in cities worldwide allowed digital followers to meet Nas Daily team members face-to-face.

These community-building efforts bred immense loyalty even as Nas Daily’s content reached millions. Fans felt part of the story unfolding daily on camera.

As Nas Daily grew, Nuseir doubled down on the community. He launched a private Facebook group connecting his most engaged supporters. Here, members exchanged travel tips, collaborated on projects, and shared struggles and milestones.

Nuseir himself participated actively, guiding discussions and spotlighting standout members. This cultivated a globally connected community of ambassadors who became part of Nas Daily’s identity.

When Nas Daily unveiled its new media and education venture, Nas Academy, in 2018, its most ardent community members stepped up as early adopters. Their organic word-of-mouth advocacy, reviews, and referrals gave Nas Academy crucial momentum in its infancy.

Over 500,000 Nasio community members collaborate, learn, and thrive worldwide today. They embody the company’s values of knowledge sharing and mutually uplifting one another.

With millions hanging on to every upload, he soon faced a reality many creators endure: vast reach but meager returns. 

For example, with 606 million views in March alone, his ad revenue from major social media platforms was just $33,000. His candid commentary on the stark disparity between views and earnings sparked a broader conversation: Content creators’ contribution to platforms was monumental, but their compensation? Not quite so.

Nas’s Pivot: Building Beyond Social Media

As social media platforms’ revenue models became a point of contention, Nas glimpsed an opportunity. The real power wasn’t just in creating content but in building communities. Alex Dwek, Nas COO, observed that private groups and chat apps were becoming the new arena for brands to establish close ties with consumers.

Nas recognized that this shift was more than just a trend. With community building identified as pivotal for modern brands, Nas.io aimed to bridge the gap between creators, brands, and their communities.

Nas.io’s Success: Technology Meets Community

With a robust suite of tools that include AI, data analytics, and monetization mechanisms, Nas.io isn’t just another platform. It’s a nexus where creators and communities coalesce, ensuring engagement, retention, and meaningful connections. The platform now serves 500,000 members across 100,000 communities, proving that their model isn’t just viable; it’s transformative.

Key Takeaways: Lessons from Nas’s Journey

• Build and Nurture Community: Nas started cultivating community from day one, not as an afterthought—Hyperfocus on nurturing genuine bonds.
• Observe & Adapt: Nas observed the chasm between content creation and compensation, pivoting towards community-building for a sustainable model.
• Focus on Real Needs: By addressing genuine pain points for creators and brands, Nas.io carved out a previously overlooked niche.
• Empower Members: Nas empowered members to lead initiatives and collaborate. Community-generated value breeds deep loyalty. Turn early supporters into volunteer ambassadors who drive organic growth.
• Prioritize Privacy: In an age of data breaches, Nas.io’s emphasis on privacy, even with potent tools like Ruby.ai, underscores the brand’s commitment to its users.
• Stay Authentic: Nas.io’s core values, from “Always share secrets” to “Do no harm,” encapsulate their ethos. They’re not just building tools but nurturing communities.

Nas reveals how embedding community as fundamental DNA turbocharges any brand’s success and impact over time.

How Online Brands Used Community to Succeed

Let us briefly understand some clear themes that successful community-powered brands adopt.

• Clear Goals: Define your brand’s objectives and how your community can achieve them.
• Catchy Domains: A memorable and shareable link (like what Nas.io offers) aids in recall and referrals.
• Monetize Sensibly: Charging for community access can ensure dedicated members and fuel brand growth.
• Collaborate with Experts: Hosting experts for live events and Q&A adds value and credibility.
• Empower Moderators: Let trusted community members take the lead. It keeps the community self-sufficient and reduces dependency on brand interventions.

Let’s move on to the challenges you may face.

But hold on! We forgot the most important route that modern community-based brands use to succeed—a community-building platform. Like Nas.io!

Nas.io offers a fresh approach to brands, making community engagement more intuitive and meaningful. Let’s dive into what makes Nas.io unique: 

1. Transparent Communication: With features like unlimited emails, feed posts, and direct WhatsApp DMs, Nas.io ensures brands maintain open channels with their community. Say goodbye to algorithmic unpredictability and hello to direct, meaningful interactions.
2. Content Simplified: Whether you’re sharing a PDF, a slideshow, or drip-feeding educational content, Nas.io supports diverse content formats. It’s not just about lengthy courses; even a simple PDF can be a powerful educational tool.
3. All-in-One Overview: Everything about your community, from events to discussions, is collated in one place on Nas.io. Members get a holistic, one-click overview, ensuring they never miss out on any updates.
4. Magic Reach & Audience Filtering: Nas.io’s ‘Magic Reach’ feature lets brands reach out to members who showed interest but didn’t complete actions, like sign-ups. Plus, with advanced audience filtering, brands can segment their community based on various criteria, ensuring personalized engagement.
5. Community-Based Education: Nas.io champions the idea that cohort-based courses are more impactful than traditional MOOCs. By fostering community-based education, brands can ensure more engaged and meaningful learning experiences.
6. Event Management: Thinking of hosting a challenge or a masterclass? Maybe charge for guest speakers? Nas.io provides tools to conceptualize, organize, and manage events, turning them into powerful community growth catalysts.
7. Unified Brand Presence: With Nas.io, brands get their dedicated website, ensuring all community activities are collated in one place. It’s not just about community management; it’s about brand consolidation.

Now, on to the challenges!

Challenges & How to Overcome Them

While community-building sounds promising, it has its challenges. Overcoming them requires strategies, tools, and continuous learning:

• Scaling: As communities grow, managing interactions becomes challenging. Platforms like Nas.io make scaling smooth, ensuring no member feels left out.
• Ensuring Engagement: A silent community is a stagnant brand. Initiating regular interactions, polls, and events can keep the engagement meter ticking.
• Network and Learn: Join communities of brand builders. Collaborate, share, and grow together. Platforms like Nas.io aren’t just tools but communities in themselves, offering invaluable insights.

Conclusion

Here’s a quick summary of what we’ve learnt in the article – 

1. Community is now essential for modern online branding, not an optional extra.
2. Prioritize reciprocal value between your brand and community members rather than just promotion.
3. Forge emotional connections through live events, feedback channels, member spotlights, and more.
4. Allocate staff and use community management tools to ensure consistent, high-quality engagement.
5. Turn early supporters into community moderators and ambassadors to accelerate reach.

The brands that will win loyalty in the digital era invest now in genuine human communities, not just flashy messaging. 

Are you ready to ignite your brand growth by putting community first? We can’t wait to have you join our community of creators and entrepreneurs building the brands of tomorrow, today.

Let’s connect on Nas.io—start your community today for free!