As a volunteer-run non-profit group, GABA Women in Business depends heavily on the accessible and ubiquitous nature of email and the Web to deliver our message. Over the last three years, our email-based discussion group has tripled in size and become a tool that compliments the rich experience of live discussions on vast and controversial topics. It's an efficient and effective way to reinforce our message and engage our constituents.

Looking back to my article last year about strategies for email-based discussion groups for non-profits, here are three things we've learned at GABA WIB about managing an online community:

1. An online conversation is a perfect supplement/complement to other communications strategies. The majority of the discussion group posts continue to be announcements or re-caps of the quarterly events, on topics such as "negotiating as women", and "social media strategies for women in business". (click on image to view full size)

2. Be realistic about the time and focus participants will bring to your online conversation. After a few leaps in membership, our email list remains steady at around 125 members, and a few of them have started their own new topics.

3. Save your most important conversations and meetings for face-to-face. As we continue to build a relationship with our members through quarterly events and consistent messaging, GABA WIB's email-based discussion group is the perfect forum to inspire online conversation between the luddites and tech-savvy alike.

Do you have any useful tips about how to manage a successful online community? Corporate or non-profit, we'd love to hear them! Please share any successes, challenges, ideas, etc. in the "Comments" section below.

Other blog posts in this Non-Profit Online Marketing series:

• Digital Marketing Best Practices for Non-Profits
• Email-based Discussion Groups for Non-Profits
• Social Media Marketing for Non-Profits
• Email Testing & Measurement for Non-Profits
• Can Online Video Strengthen Non-Profit Marketing Impact?
• Email Segmentation & Target Marketing for Non-Profits
• Social Media Marketing for Non-Profits - Part II
• Social Media Marketing for Non-Profits - Part III

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About the Author

Linda Cleary manages demand generation marketing programs at Lyris, and authors a series about Non-Profit Online Marketing here on LyrisHQ.Lyris.com.

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