Written by Atanas Zahariev, Independent Associate on Project Implementation with inHive

Network building online has changed the way we communicate, share ideas, and create opportunities. It has enabled us to explore new cultures, discover different points of view, and collaborate with people from different backgrounds. Through social media and other online platforms, individuals can come together to work on projects, exchange ideas, and build relationships.

By fostering cross-cultural understanding, online global network building can promote greater appreciation of cultural differences. Networks can access a diverse range of perspectives, allowing the development of more informed, multi-dimensional, and effective strategies.

What’s more, building networks out online can strengthen the connection of an individual to their culture or community. For example, online diaspora networks offer excellent opportunities for members to understand their cultural backgrounds, traditions, and values; as well as connecting them to other members of their diaspora.

By connecting people and organisations within an online global network, network members can tap into pool of resources and engage with a demographic of customers and partners that would have been otherwise out of reach. For organisations, connecting to an online global audience can help to streamline operations, build market share, expand reach, identify new trends, and gain valuable insights.

If presented thoughtfully, networks can use online platforms to reinforce key components of network building: vision and purpose, structure and leadership, engagement and communications, and activities and mobilisation. 88% of community professionals admit to communities playing a critical role in achieving their company’s mission.

For social impact networks, online platforms can be immensely valuable tools for reducing poverty, inequality, and insecurity by providing access to resources, partners, and opportunities that may previously have been inaccessible. Ultimately, online connectivity can create an enabling environment for networks to broaden and deepen their social impact.

Specialised Online Platforms

Specialised online platforms are providing a more niche, convenient, and accessible space for networks to strengthen their membership and impact. Angelo Luciani, from the Nutanix Community, writes, ‘special interest communities are the future, rather than the generic experience. We want to be surrounded by people with the same interest. It propels your creativity with no distractions’.

Specialised online communities have risen to the forefront of online interaction since the pandemic, with an 81% uptick in online community engagement since the beginning of the pandemic. 76% of internet users are participating in an online community, with 77% of those saying the most important group that they are a part of now operates online.

Contrary to the ‘town square’ concept of social media, where all users are thrown into the same forum, specialised online communities offer a niche space for peers to connect, collaborate, and drive their mission forwards.

Networks are increasingly demanding technology that provides intimacy, rather than reach. Having shifted into the expansiveness of the World Wide Web, networks are benefiting from a more targeted space of specialised communities where they are able to find partners, collaborators, and sector-specific resources – rather than the interminable news feeds of LinkedIn and Twitter.

The shift online can also reduce barriers to entry for some network members. Not only do online communities transcend geographical limitations, but they can seem more approachable for individuals who may have been hesitant to join in-person network events. Plus, clicking a Zoom link is much more convenient than attending an in-person event for most people.

A specialised online community can be a good tool for democratising conversation. Many platforms are equipped with the ability to track participation and reward engagement, network leaders are able to identify marginalised members and ensure unheard voices are raised up. What’s more, less confident members may feel more confident to contribute within the safety of their own homes.

Challenges

There are those that thrive on in-person interaction. Networks operating predominantly online may lose the participation of those who are not stimulated by that way of connecting, and networks may lose out on valuable contributions from those individuals.

Continuing a high-quality level of discussion and engagement can be challenging. With physical remove, there can be difficulty in grabbing the attention of busy professionals and asking for their time and participation.

There is already a consuming amount of technology. The pandemic popularised the term ‘Zoom fatigue’; adding another virtual profile to upkeep can seem like one ask too many for some individuals.

The key, it seems, is to make online networks as engaging as they are accessible. Whilst online spaces have the potential to do a lot for building networks, it is up to network leaders and practitioners to drive this engagement – to reach out and push innovation within online community engagement; and it is up to members and individuals to take initiative and be active… realising that you get out what you put in.

Nexus convenes youth-oriented social justice, social change, and social impact networks. In bringing together diverse stakeholders, creating collaborative spaces, and facilitating information sharing and learning, Nexus plays a critical role in driving systems change by connecting individuals and organisations that share common interest.

By convening multiple stakeholders in one specialised online community, Nexus acts as an enabling environment for collective action for social change for young people. As we established, it is not one network that will create systems change, but a convening of multiple networks that will influence the systems that they seek to change.