In an earlier post, I talked about adoption techniques for your online community.

Now I’m here to tell you that sometimes, adoption is just not going to work with every potential user—and that it’s okay.

Take Yammer, which is the perfect use-case platform and very conveniently holds my anecdotal experience.

Need something from it? It’s there! Don’t need it for the time being? It’s still there.

You can walk away from it until you need it again.

You can even run away from it.

Now, making your way quietly to the exit may be difficult if your boss wants you to use this platform, but that’s beyond the scope of this particular post.

Why It’s Okay If Some Users Won’t Adopt

Fast tip: Go for the low-hanging fruit (i.e. eager adopters).

Why? When you’re building an online community, you want people to be in there because they want to be in there. They’re ready to set up their profiles and start engaging.

At the very least, they have some level of curiosity and eagerness about this mysterious thing.

 

Where It Really Gets Tough

We’ve all known those someones who have already made up their mind not to like something before they give it a fair chance.

We probably also all have stories about how even the most stalwart naysayer came around in the end.

But you can waste a lot of your time giving stalwart naysayers reason after reason why this new-fangled contraption is a benefit and enhancement, not just “one more thing to check.”

And that’s the point right there: Sometimes giving reasons has to stop, and leaving someone be to find their own reasons for themselves has to begin.

The more difficult part comes in letting yourself let them go.

Really: Give Yourself a Break

As a community manager, you want everyone to see all the cool sparklies. Can you really let someone walk (or run) away from what you’re sure would be an awesome experience, if they just gave it a chance?

Yes, you can. Because sometimes, you just have to, for your own peace of mind as much as for their own comfort.

Concentrate on building your space and nurturing the users you have already and the ones yet to come.

And remember: It’s okay!

Agree, disagree? Let me know!