How to Decide Whether Your Online Community Should Be Open or Closed
Online communities have become a space where people connect with others who share common interests, whether they live in the same town or on opposite sides of the world. By definition, the word community means a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals (Oxford).
Communities are great for building relationships and trust between you and a group of people, whether for your business or personal life.
Originating back to the 1970’s, online communities have grown exponentially. In a research study in 2001, more than 90 million Americans said that they have participated in online groups (Horrigan, 2001). Fast forward to 2021, more than 1.8 billion people take part in Facebook Groups every month (Hutchinson, 2021).
Whether you are creating your own online community or just joining one that already exists, it’s important to know the difference between an open community and a closed community. Deciding between the two is not as hard as you think — you just have to know what your goal is. Are you trying to expand your community to as many people as possible? Do you want a small, intimate setting for people with shared interests?
Let’s talk about the difference between the two.
An open community is a community that anyone can join. These types of communities are public, which means that anyone can see who the members of the group are, as well as all of the content that is posted in that group. An open community would typically be trying to expand their reach and the size of their audience, and welcome anyone to join in on the conversations. These communities are less regulated and monitored, and can be more difficult to enforce certain rules and guidelines.
An example of an open community is Reddit. Reddit is a public forum where people can share their thoughts, opinions, etc. on a specific topic or discussion. Anyone is able to create an account on this platform. All of the comments are made public and are viewable by anyone who comes across a Reddit thread, and therefore anyone can take part in the conversation.
A closed community is a community that is more private. These types of communities usually have a registration feature where your access to the group has to be approved by a moderator/administrator. A closed group can also be a private or hidden group, which means it is hidden from any online search and requires an invitation from a member of that group in order to find and join it. A closed community has stricter rules and guidelines for their members to follow. Their content is typically better regulated and monitored. The conversations on these groups tend to be more intimate and deep.
An example of a closed community is a Facebook Group. To get more specific, let’s say you stumble across a Facebook Group for mothers who’s child is going away to college for the first time. This community requires acceptance before you can view any of the content. This group would most likely be closed because it could serve as a support group for these mother’s who are all experiencing the same life event. It could be a place where these parents can share stories, advice, and help each other through a difficult time, that they might not be comfortable sharing publicly with their friends on Facebook.
To put it simply, closed communities have a “what happens in this group, stays in this group” mentality.
Personally, I find that I open up more in closed communities. I feel more comfortable sharing my thoughts and feelings in a space where I know not just anyone could see what I am sharing. The people in the closed communites that I am a part of all share common interests with me, and are less likely to show any type of judgement towards me.
The choice of which type of community you want to create or join is up to you. Do your own research. Join some groups, both open and closed. See which one suits you best, and go from there.
References:
Anderson, M. (2018, June 17). Should the door to your community be open or closed? Community by Association. https://communitybyassociation.com/2018/06/02/should-the-door-to-your-community-be-open-or-closed/.
Elder, D. (2021, June 25). What is an Online Community? (And How You Can Grow One). Tribe Blog. https://tribe.so/blog/what-is-online-community/.
Horrigan, J. B. (2020, May 30). Online Communities. Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2001/10/31/online-communities/.
Hutchinson, A. (2021, February 24). New report looks at the rising influence of online communities. Social Media Today. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/new-report-looks-at-the-rising-influence-of-online-communities/595677/.
Preetish. (2021, February 19). 40+ Online Community Stats You Must Know in 2021. Tribe Blog. https://tribe.so/blog/30-online-community-stats-you-must-know-in-2019/.
Tekniforce. (2021). Public or Private Facebook Group: Which one to choose? YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p6xdvpQMmM.
