Communities are super common in the online business world these days - you’ve probably been in quite a few yourself. I've been part of several communities, both paid and free, with varying degrees of quality. The really excellent ones seem to have found an almost magical balance: they are home to helpful ideas and advice, feature engaged and impressive members, and are facilitated by dedicated, empowering leaders.

But this balance is difficult to achieve as there aren’t many criteria we can use to measure whether our community is going in the right direction. As communities become a bigger part of people’s business models, I wanted to dig deep into this topic with a really qualified guest.

Sophie Bujold is the founder and community strategist behind CliqueWorthy, where she does online community consulting & community experience design for creative businesses. CliqueWorthy partners with business builders, online group hosts and membership site creators to build outstanding community experiences that go beyond the typical frameworks other businesses have been following.

Sophie and I dive into her work as a community builder and the two biggest problems her clients need help with. She talks about her community mapping process, how a community can add revenue to your bottom line, and why it is so important to be crystal clear on the transformation you want your members to experience and why. 

We also discuss how a community can fit into and support your business, whether it’s your main offer or working to support another offer in your business. There’s seriously so much good stuff packed into this episode, so if you’re interested in building or tweaking your own community, don’t miss it!