Written by When it comes to Social networks Vs Communities, many factors come into play. The way how traditional communities form today has changed completely. With the massive impact of technology on our lives, we have moved away from traditional social networks and communities. Online communities and social networks have slowly replaced conventional methods and offered individuals a place to connect and explore beyond boundaries.
Businesses and brands jump into the advanced opportunities both communities and social networks provide to open more doors of interaction with their audience. If you are planning to start your online community or a social network, this guide will help you learn the difference between social networks Vs communities. Have a closer look at the major point of difference between both to make the right decision. Let’s get started:
Online Communities
Before you learn about social networks Vs communities, you must first understand their meaning. There can be several reasons to build a community, and one of the key reasons includes a shared interest. Individuals join a community is to connect with like-minded people to gain broader insights about a specific product, service, or industry. Here, people from all walks of life connect with and meet to learn about a shared interest. Today, every business desires to create a community to build brand advocates ready to stand on their behalf.
On a serious note, online communities can form for any reason. However, the reason that makes them stay seems to be polarizing. Before starting your online community, you must identify the reasons to make members stay. Typically, there are two main reasons people stick around an online community: the desire to offer to the community and gain something extra from it.
Social Networks
Again we all have social networks composed of friends, relatives, family, and acquaintances in different forms. Social networks also form both online and offline. But online social networks have become a buzzword today due to the massive popularity of social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
In a social network, it allows individuals to be visible to others on the same platform and connect with their peers, friends, relatives, etc. The biggest benefit is you can easily connect with pre-established relationships like friends, relatives, peers, etc.
You can learn better by seeing your friend list on Facebook. Here you keep connecting with your school friends, family members, relatives, etc, and increase visibility by becoming mutual friends.
Now you must be thinking about whether you need to replace these social media giants. Well, you don’t. Every day we encounter new social network platforms developing under different categories such as dating, social relationships, professional, politics, and many more. So, when you learn about social networks Vs communities, you’ll know they can be made for nurturing pre-established connections and gaining something out of it.
Social Networks Vs Communities: Key Differences
- The basic difference between Social networks Vs communities is social networks form due to pre-established relationships and communities form when like-minded people connect and engage for a specific purpose.
- In online communities, people across different walks of life connect either to gain something out of the community or contribute something to it. While in social networks, people with pre-established relationships such as school friends, acquaintances, relatives, or family members connect and engage.
- Businesses or brands can use both social networks and communities to improve their brand value respective to their category. Furthermore, a social network comes out of an online community.
- An online community is built for a specified reason, and social networks emerge from the pre-established relationships to only connect and grow.
Community or Social Network: Which One to Choose?
While choosing your social product, like social networks Vs communities, you must keep many things in mind. However, you need first to identify your business goals to learn what will be a suitable fit for you.
If you want to create a more personalized space for your audience with advanced data security, an online community is a great option. However, when your overall goal is user-engagement, a social network will be suitable. So we can say it completely depends on you and what you want to benefit from your social product.
If your goal is engagement and brand recognition, a social network will be an ideal choice. However, an online community will be a suitable option if you want a platform with extended features and functionalities.
How to Build a Social Network or Community Using BuddyX?
As you learn how Social Networks Vs communities differ, it is time to plan how to build one for your business or organization. If you have decided on the right solution for your business, we will guide you with the best tips for building your social network or community. You can choose from the several platforms to build your social network or community like BuddyPress. The rich and powerful features of the robust platform help you build a fully-functional website with only a little drag and drop.
The next step is choosing a compatible theme like BuddyX that makes your community-building process easier. It is a free solution with many features and functionalities to create a highly responsive and solid community or social network. Furthermore, you can also extend the functionalities using the paid version.
You need a robust platform and compatible theme like BuddyX to launch your website with all the necessary features and functions. Then, customize the way you want to give your platform a touch of your brand or organization. Create a community that represents your brand goals to create your professional network or community.
Winding Up
So that’s it with our Social Network Vs Communities blog. While building a social platform like a community or social network, you will come across many challenges. However, with the right guide, and platform like BuddyX, you can give your social product a special touch. Take advantage of the free theme and extend more features with the paid version for more extensive features and functionalities. Hope you like our distinctive guide and do share your thoughts in the comment section for a better understanding of this blog.
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