Ok, here I am online, what do I do now? If you are wondering that you aren't alone. What does it mean to tend our communities?
What do we do after we fire up our computers and open our browsers? We read the joke of the day right? No! No! No!
You are ready to tend, right? But what does tending mean? Well, with a message board it means you need to do more
than just read the board.
Those of you who have been reading my rants and ramblings long enough KNOW that I think community needs to be tended
every day. It is important. It will help you grow your community. You, YOUR presence is important.
When you open your board, look at it.
Are there new members? Welcome them. Don't forget to send a welcome letter to their iVillage email or other email address
if they provide one in their profile or post. Those act like breadcrumbs to draw your new members back to the board.
Is there anything that screams problem? Read it. Respond to it appropriately.
Use Send to a Friend to fwd it to your mod if it is a board conflict of any sort. Even if the problem is just brewing…the
earlier the better to let someone know. We might say watch and wait, but at least you won't have to catch us up on several
weeks worth of board history.
Does a member need help? Offer links, your personal experience, encourage other members to reply.
Participate in threads started by your members.
Start new threads that provide places for people to join in the conversation on the board. Whether they are new members
or regulars, some people need obvious "conversation breaks" for them to feel comfortable taking a turn adding their thoughts,
feelings and experience.
Bring new information regarding iVillage tools and content to your board and work them into your conversation. Don't
forget, talk about topics related to your board. If you have run out, time to read some books, news articles or surf the web
to get some ideas.
