I’ve been blogging since 2008. I do some things well and others…not so much. One of the weaknesses I discovered recently is that I’ve over-focused on developing content rather than building a community. I also realized my content has been rather scattered as opposed to being laser focused.
I recently had the opportunity to reading Bryan Allain’s new book, Community Wins: 21 Thoughts on Building a Thriving Online Tribe. I found a lot of encouragement to take steps to improve where I have weaknesses, while I
didn’t feel overwhelmed by all the things that I’m not doing that I should be doing. Bryan takes these 21 ideas that are at the core of building a community through your blog and builds the books outline from this. (I use the word “blog” in this piece, but the application point could just as easily be a website or another page). He weaves those ideas through personal experience (success and failure), along with a good deal of humor. Bryan drives his readers to very easy and doable action steps. Community Wins read less as one long narrative and more of a personal action guide to take steps towards making big changes with your blog.
I read the book in two sittings via the PDF reader on my computer. However, I can see myself printing out the book in the near future and taking it in bite-size chunks as I try to use his action steps to create a plan of action.
Bryan knows what he’s talking about – his e-book on blogging has done incredibly well, reaching the top of Amazon’s list on the subject. He has networked his way into becoming a leading voice on the subject. I am excited to add this to a very short list of books I recommend to other bloggers who are getting started. I can see myself growing a lot as a blogger through engaging this book in a
second and third reading. However, as Bryan says it’s not enough to just read the book…building a community requires action and that’s where I think the strongest difference can be made. If you’re looking for something to take your blog to the next level, I strongly recommend Bryan Allain’s book, Community Wins: 21 Thoughts on Building a Thriving Online Tribe, as that resource. I’ll be applying its wisdom right along with
you.
Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for reviewing it on my blog. I was not obligated to provide a positive review.
Thanks Scott!