--- title: "Daily Buzz: Your Online Community Isn’t Special" id: "43867" type: "post" slug: "daily-buzz-your-online-community-isnt-special" published_at: "2018-08-22T22:36:06+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T22:39:30+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/08/22/daily-buzz-your-online-community-isnt-special/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/08/22/daily-buzz-your-online-community-isnt-special.md" excerpt: "Online community engagement is important for members, but the value it brings to your association is more significant. Also: how to implement new ideas from the ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition." taxonomy_category: - "Learning" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "E-learning" - "Employee Training" - "Professional Development" - "Technology" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Executive Team" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Daily Buzz: Your Online Community Isn’t Special An online community can be the foundation of an organization—but maybe not in the way you think. Sure, your member community might live heavily online, but the reality is that those engagements aren’t that special, [community manager Marjorie Anderson explains in a post on Community by Association (opens in a new tab)](https://communitybyassociation.com/2018/08/19/sorry-to-tell-you-youre-not-that-special/) . What *is* special about online communities is what your association can get out of them. That is, an online community is often the cornerstone to developing other important elements of an organization, such as ROI, member acquisition and retention, event registration, and so on. So, while the conversations themselves might not be the highest priority on your association to-do list, the actions they can enable are—and the strategy around your online member community should reflect that accordingly. ### Developing a Learning Curve > Good bye [#ASAE18 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/ASAE18?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > – another great conference by the [@ASAEcenter (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/ASAEcenter?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > team- thank you! Now to get some of these ideas and connections up and running back home…. [pic.twitter.com/bOxyniNDk6 (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/bOxyniNDk6) > > — Stephanie Doute, CAE (@sdoute) [August 22, 2018 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/sdoute/status/1032291819260993536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **With another ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition in the books,** it’s time to sit back and digest everything that transpired over the past few days—but only for a moment. The next step is jumping back into work and figuring out how to integrate the new strategies and ideas you learned into your association. Every organization is different, but here’s one approach: Write down a list of things you learned, and prioritize their importance. Decide what can be done today, what can be done next week, and what will take more research, planning, and involvement to be rolled out long term. From there, make next steps and deadlines for each item so you can keep yourself—and your team—accountable. ### Other Links of Note **Considering starting a podcast?** The Membership Guys explain why it’s one of the [best marketing tools to promote membership (opens in a new tab)](https://www.themembershipguys.com/podcast-membership/) in the latest episode of—you guessed it—their podcast. **Artificial intelligence is up and coming,** and if your organization is slow to adapt, it will be to its detriment, [from Entrepreneur (opens in a new tab)](https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/318171) . **Not all staff meetings are created equally.** *PCMA Convene* outlines [six tips for high-performing staff meetings (opens in a new tab)](http://www.pcmaconvene.org/plenary/6-tips-productive-meetings/) . (iLexx/iStock/Getty Images Plus) [Jeff Hsin](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) Tags: [#E-learning](https://associationsnow.com/tag/e-learning/) [#Employee Training](https://associationsnow.com/tag/employee-training/) [#Professional Development](https://associationsnow.com/tag/professional-development/) [#Technology](https://associationsnow.com/tag/technology/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoWelcome to ASAE AcademyMarch 19, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/03/19/welcome-to-asae-academy/) - [ArticleHow to Plan, Execute, and Evaluate Informal Learning Programs for AssociationsJuly 14, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/07/14/how-to-plan-execute-and-evaluate-informal-learning-programs-for-associations/) - [ArticleHow Do Associations Actually Teach AI Skills?January 23, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/01/23/how-do-associations-actually-teach-ai-skills/) - [ArticleAI in Professional Development: Future-Proofing TrainingJuly 21, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/07/21/ai-in-professional-development-future-proofing-training/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2018%2F08%2F22%2Fdaily-buzz-your-online-community-isnt-special%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !