Who are the people in your world who feel like they're the only one?
Almost every industry has them. They're the people with unusual jobs, specialized responsibilities, or challenges that few others truly understand. They may be surrounded by coworkers, but they're often "all alone in the building."
Those people are often the foundation of incredibly strong communities.
Who's "All Alone in the Building"?
Last week, I had the privilege of attending the 38th annual Morning Show Boot Camp in Cleveland, a gathering of radio morning show hosts from around the country. Unlike many industry conferences, a surprising number of attendees pay to attend out of their own pocket instead of relying on their employers to cover the cost.
Why? Because it's one of the few places where they can spend time with people who truly understand what they do.
Morning show hosts occupy a unique role inside a radio station. Their jobs require a different creative process, a different workflow, and usually carry the biggest ratings expectations. Even if there are other on-air personalities in the building, there often isn't anyone who fully understands the pressures they face.
While there are other morning shows across town, those hosts are competitorsā€”not colleagues. Without a place like Morning Show Boot Camp, many of these professionals have few opportunities to connect with peers who genuinely understand what their work is like.
What People Are Really Paying For
For nearly four decades, Don Anthony has created that place.
The presentations are valuable, but they aren't the real product. If Don wanted to make money selling content, he could simply record the sessions and sell the videos online. But that's not what people are buying.
They're buying access to each other.
They're buying the conversations over coffee, the introductions in the hallway, the late-night discussions in the hotel lobby, and the friendships that continue long after everyone goes home. The content creates value, but the relationships are the reason people return.
That's Community Revenue in action.
Don didn't build an audience. He built a space where the right people could find each other. He's able to monetize that space because people aren't just paying for information. They're paying to spend time with people who understand them.
Notice something else: fewer than 400 people attended this year's conference. And that was enough. Communities aren't built by reaching the most people. They're built by bringing together the right people.
The First Question to Ask
If you're thinking about building a community, don't start by asking which platform to use or how you'll monetize it. Start with a much simpler question:
Who needs each other?
Answer that question, and you'll be well on your way to discovering your community's Shared Mission.
That's exactly what we do in The Why? Workshop. Together, we'll identify the Shared Mission that gives people a reason to gatherā€”and the foundation for a community people will want to return to again and again.
I hope you'll join me for the next session.
Find Your Community's Shared Mission
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