What Your Community Organization Members Are Looking For—Innovative Strategies for Community Connection
- team9186
- Jan 16, 2024
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 28, 2024
If you’re dedicated to connecting your community, you’re in good company. Each year, tens of thousands of business owners and community leaders set out with the same goal: to build stronger bonds within their circles.
But, speaking from personal experience, the reality is that most initiatives fail to reach their goals.
You see, before Map My Circle was born, our team worked with a traditional directory software, helping passionate individuals like you create a space to bring their community together.
Our clients included chamber of commerce leaders working to enhance community engagement and individuals dedicated to creating a network for the veteran, LGBTQ+, or Black community. The list goes on and on.
All our clients had been sold a dream—that a directory software was the key to achieving their objectives. Our goal was to help them do it. They were all passionate, hardworking, and committed to their mission, and yet, nearly all of their projects failed to take off.
This front row seat to about a decade’s worth of failures is our inception story; the lessons learned laid the foundation for Map My Circle.
We’re turning those lessons inside out to show you the WHY behind Map My Circle, a software solution that was built to help you bypass the missteps of so many before you and to empower you in your quest to connect your circle.
Lesson #1: Meeting Modern Users’ Expectations
It was a hard pill to swallow, but the truth is, traditional, text-based directories are a thing of the past. They may have worked in the early aughts but today, there is no quicker way to lose users than requiring them to step back in time with a glossary experience.
In our decade of experience, we found that the modern user craves a more dynamic, visually engaging experience. They want to explore their options, not just read about them.
Maps offer this exploratory experience, allowing users to visually navigate and discover their community. By embracing the visual era and providing an interactive, map-based platform that aligns with modern searching habits, you can create an experience that today’s users will actually want to use.
Beyond that, Google Maps, Trip Advisor, and Yelp have all set an incredibly high standard in terms of user experience.
We understand that your success rides on being able to offer something that rivals this experience (an impossibility with traditional directories). So, when we set out to build Map My Circle, we focused on creating an intuitive and dynamic map-based experience that prioritizes mobile friendliness.
Lesson #2: Crafting a Unique Competitive Edge
We had a single question that we could ask our past clients that would quickly determine if they had much of a shot: What can you offer that Google can’t?
The ones that succeeded (even with outdated software) are the ones that could answer that question. If they couldn’t, we’d encourage them to pause until they could figure out a compelling response.
Here’s why: if someone can easily find it on Google, why would they go anywhere else to search? Just think about your own search habits.
With this understanding, we focused on creating a software solution that allows you to lean into your competitive advantage— creating a tailored experience that uniquely serves your circle’s wants and needs.
Map My Circle helps clients leverage smart filters to offer an experience that goes beyond what Google Maps can offer. Whether it's finding veteran-owned businesses, pet-friendly coffee shops, or maybe discovering what a city has to offer through the eyes of a newcomer. This is the key to building an indispensable tool for your community.
Lesson #3: Simplifying Business Participation
Most directory software solutions will convince you that business owners will be eager to pay you money for a listing or a profile on your website.
But here’s what we learned: it’s an uphill battle to get businesses to update their profile even when you give it away for FREE.
We know, it sounds crazy, but just consider all the things they need to keep up to date—their website, their Google My Business, and a long list of social media platforms, and that’s just for starters.
Are businesses looking to increase their visibility, absolutely. But when you tell them to login and create a profile, you can expect crickets.
This insight was pivotal.
We understood that in order for our clients to be successful, they needed a software solution that was as easy and hassle-free for businesses as it was for users.
With Map My Circle we focused on creating a streamlined approach for business owners that requires minimal input or effort on their part. As a result, our clients' success does not rely on others to take action.
Lesson #4: Overcoming the Data Import Obstacle
Another major roadblock we encountered was the data import phase. Time and again, we saw projects stall, sometimes indefinitely, at this initial stage. The challenge of gathering and importing data into the directory was a daunting task. It wasn’t just about technical capability; it was about the time and resources required to execute it effectively.
Recognizing this, we developed Map My Circle to simplify this critical step.
We streamlined the data import process, making it more user-friendly and less time-consuming and we knew our team needed to provide support in the process to avoid projects from failing to ever get off the ground.
Lesson #5: Expanding Your Reach with Easy Embeds
When it comes to making your directory a success, discoverability is key. We saw clients work hard to build out experiences on their directory website, only to get little to no traffic. What was the point?
We knew for a software solution to work, our clients needed to be able to put their tool where their audience already was. This is where the power of embedding comes in.
We designed Map My Circle so you don’t have to worry about building an entirely new website for your community. Instead, we made it as simple as adding a Youtube video to your website. You get an embed link and you can add your map just about anywhere—to your homepage to catch visitors’ eyes immediately or you can share it with partners to add to their websites to broaden your reach.
The ability to embed your map anywhere changes the game. If the goal is community engagement and connecting, you need to be able to be where your community is.
Lesson #6: Removing the Steep Tech Learning Curve
Here’s probably the biggest pitfall we saw time and time again: software solutions that sell you a license but don’t mention that you’ll need to spend years learning how to actually use it. The complex setups and the burden of the technical know-how was a major barrier to success.
Our clients relied on us because we knew this directory software inside and out; despite our efforts to teach our clients, it was an uphill battle. We’d had 10+ years to learn everything we knew, it’s a long game and you don’t have time for that.
That’s why, when we set out to create Map My Circle, we focused on building a simple, intuitive solution. You won’t find a massive amount of how-to documentation, because there isn’t much to know—it’s straightforward and simple.
On top of that we don’t simply sell a license, we support our clients through the entire set up process, from collecting and importing data to creating a marketing strategy. This hands-on approach ensures our clients can fully leverage the power of their map without being bogged down by technical complexities.
How We Turned Failures Into Your Fast Track
After seeing so many clients watch the projects they were so passionate about fail to take off, our mission became building a solution that truly set them up for success.
As just about any entrepreneur will tell you—failure lays the groundwork for success. But, lucky for you, we learned the hard way so you don’t have to. Map My Circle is a culmination of a decade’s worth of ‘what not to dos,’ it’s like having a seasoned coach in your corner ready to help you sidestep the common blunders.
Sure, you can’t avoid the inevitable stumbles along the way to achieving your objective and making a real impact. However, you can certainly save time, money, and a whole lot of headaches by learning from the mistakes of others and tapping into a software solution that was built from a decade of lessons learned.
