No matter what you use your network for, communication is always the key to achieving both short-term and long-term goals. If your community has grown to the point where keeping in touch with all its members becomes a challenge, you will be happy to know that Ning networks can now integrate with MailChimp, one of the world’s leading expert in email marketing automation solutions.
If you’ve ever watched Project Runway, The Devil Wears Prada, or have been to a Barneys sample sale, you know that for many people around the world, fashion is king. Couple this passion with the dream of getting your 15 minutes of fame, and you’ve got yourself a competition that’s sure to cause a flurry of activity and drive engagement on your Ning Network.
If you’ve been reading along, you know we’re pretty excited about the ways we’ve integrated with Twitter and Facebook. Both services provide tremendous audiences for sharing and syndicating content from your Ning Network, but we also know they aren’t the only game in town, at least when it comes to social sharing.
Growing a Ning Network by populating it with lots of members is often considered to be the Holy Grail for many Network Creators. As a result, we see Ning Networks that are so excited to grow — and grow quickly — that their invitation lists more closely resemble the population of a small country. But, as the saying goes, it’s about quality not quantity. The key to building a vibrant Ning Network is to attract people that will love to be part of it and regularly contribute. Think before you hit send; are these invitees likely to be active, engaged members? That’s why it’s important to invite the right connections and friends that share your passion. To reach them, we’re highlighting four simple ways to best share with and invite the people that can make your Ning Network stellar.
Contests are a core way to drive participation on your Ning Network and keep members coming back. For example, the folks at My Kicks on Fire ran a contest to win a free pair of Nike Air Yeezy sneakers. To enter, members were asked to help get the word out via Twitter. Friends or Enemies launched a t-shirt design competition, where the winner had their design printed and sold in the FOE merch store. To participate, members uploaded their proposed t-shirt design to the group in the comments section.
Earlier this week, we wrote about how you can use Ning Apps to add a store to your Ning Network. Ning Apps are also incredibly useful for driving donations and fundraising efforts. Hawks for Homeless is a Ning Networks that’s using a Ning App to help drive donations to the The Midnight Mission in Los Angeles:
Other Ning Networks like TuDiabetes and The Hoot Owl have launched similar fundraising efforts. Adding your own fundraising Ning App takes a few quick steps.
