NATURAL HABITATS

Content producers face pressure to capture community through native commenting systems, proprietary interfaces, and social strategies. But better than any owned audience is a community that feels ownership itself.

Consider the case of podcasts. While there have been attempts to enclose listeners within this or that platform — such as those by Apple and Earwolf — the shows that manage to develop loyal followings do so on the basis of their content alone. Rather than listen and comment in artificially constrained settings, audiences engage according to their own schedule, preferences, and behavior. And the community is stronger for it.

Sometimes it’s best to focus on producing quality content for your audience to enjoy, respond to, and share as they will, rather than on constructed environments of participation. If you can, leave the community to the people.