Published on Monday, May 13, 2020
It can be lonely to build an online business, or establish an online presence. Each journey is unique and there are many unknowns. This can lead to confusion.
Do not do this alone. Joining an online community with a common purpose will give you support, feedback, and guidance. You can improve your skills and fill in any knowledge gaps. It will also help you stay accountable and work effectively towards your goals.
SPI Media knows a lot about virtual communities – we founded two! We’ve learned how to create healthy communities through the experiences of hundreds of our members, and from the success stories (like this) we’ve heard.
In this article, Pat Flynn, our founder, shared his experiences and social reasons for joining a business community online. We’ll explain why joining a community of entrepreneurs is a great move, and how our communities can help you along your journey.
Support at Every Stage of Your Business Journey
It’s not just YouTubers who have millions of views. And it’s not just entrepreneurs with a scratched-out idea on a napkin. There’s a community for every stage of business development.
Many communities are geared towards new entrepreneurs – groups of people who have great ideas and want to make progress in their field.
Some are for those who already have a strong presence and a steady stream of revenue.
Others are designed around a specific niche, such as fitness instructors who teach primarily via the Internet or people with brick-and mortar stores.
Online entrepreneurial communities offer unparalleled support, no matter where you are on your journey. People from around the world can post questions and receive responses. Because these posts are visible to everyone, they all benefit from the answers. Video conferencing allows you to explore questions in real time during community events.
Photo credit: Nathan Dunlao
Virtual Communities Reduce Loneliness
Online communities, whether they are business-related or not, are constantly being created. Online communities have never been so popular or important as they are now. The U.S. published a report in 2023. The Surgeon General reported that loneliness was a problem for half of all adults prior to the pandemic. He linked loneliness with heart disease, stroke and dementia.
Combining these risks with the isolation of business and online creation, it is clear that this affects those who are in charge of running their own businesses and websites.
A community of online entrepreneurs can help you overcome this problem: peer connections, feedback from mastermind groups and networking events in real time.
Learning Entrepreneurship: Together
There are many lessons to be learned when entrepreneurs gather in a virtual environment. The nature of an environment with peers is what makes these lessons organic. It is a unique opportunity to exchange findings, experiences and successes as well as failures.
Some communities take it a step farther, such as our All-Access Pass Community. This community was designed with the early-stage entrepreneur in mind, and as a learning community for our members.
The All-Access Pass gives members access to all of our courses, including YouTube Mastery, launching a Podcast, building a Community, Affiliate Marketing, and much more.
The community was designed to support cohort-based learning, rather than simply offering courses. We do this by using accelerators. This allows students to take a course in a group, with support and guidance from the team. We have also developed pathways that act as suggested navigational tracts for multiple courses. These are built around specific goals, such as how to create, grow, and profit from a podcast.
These features, along with community programming such as fireside chats and ask-me anything (AMA) sessions hosted by Pat Flynn, our founder, networking events, live teaching opportunities, and other community activities, create an experience in which learning is the focus. This active and robust community component enhances and supports growth and progress.
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Expert Advice at Your Fingertips
Most online business communities are built by those who have a stake in it. If they’re reputable and well-built, these communities will attract people who are experts in their field as members. These communities often offer members the chance to network with experts and get their questions answered. This enhances the overall experience.
SPI Pro is a community of established entrepreneurs who are looking to scale up their business. Many of these professionals are experts in the niches or businesses they specialize in.
Our robust Experts in Resident Program takes access to experts a step forward. This program is a network consisting of renowned professionals that interact directly with community members and offer opportunities for deeper learning and next level business advice. These experts help us build a lot of our community programs, such as workshops, roundtables, and other activities.
Photo credit: Microsoft Edge
Connecting and Networking
Members of our community have formed lifelong relationships, started podcasts with each other, worked together on marketing plans, cross-promotional campaigns, and even helped one another achieve new heights in their business. We would never claim credit for our success, but we are here because of the vibrant community that allows people to connect and learn.
The ability to form masterminds is another huge benefit of online business communities such as ours. They meet to share feedback, set each other up for success, and decide on the next steps, all while running their own businesses. Mastermind groups can be structured in many different ways. Some masterminds rotate who is on the “hot seat” each week, for example. But they all share a common goal: to support growth. We offer SPI Pro members the opportunity to join existing mastermind groups. However, we also encourage people to form new ones.
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What all communities have in common
Of course, the right people!
The best online communities for entrepreneurs are not free-for-all. It’s like adding ingredients to a complex recipe. You can’t do it ad-hoc.
We have built an application system into our communities. It’s important for our SPI Pro Community in particular that we bring together entrepreneurs at the right stage of their businesses growth. We can also ensure that those who apply are serious about working together and aware of community guidelines by including an application stage.
There are many business communities. We believe that ours is the best business community out there, because of our community-centered learning and access to experts. Learn more by visiting our Community page.
Get connected, no matter what community you join! Entrepreneurship is both a challenging and rewarding endeavor. Find your people and don’t make things harder than they need to be.
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