14. Where to Begin When Starting a Community, with Marjorie Anderson

Brianna Leever
May 20
3 min read

Updated: May 27

In this episode, we’re hearing from Community Newbie. Our letter today deals with how overwhelming it can be to enter the world of community-building without really knowing where to begin.

To better help Community Newbie, I invited Marjorie Anderson as my guest expert. She is the Director of Community for Exos and the Principal Strategist at Community by Association L.L.C. Marjorie is a bright light in the community spaces, has been professionally building community for 11+ years, and has helped many people get started with community.

So, tune in for some incredible plant analogies that will make you look at both problems and community in a whole new way, the tools you need to lay a strong foundation for your new community, and tips on what you can do to have the best community for both you and your members.

Click to learn more about Heartbeat, Bri's favorite all-in-one community platform!

In this episode:

(00:00) The communitea: Community Newbie’s letter

(00:00) Stop feeling stuck with Marjorie’s beautiful oak tree analogy

(00:00) Who should be looking to build community, and who shouldn’t

(00:00) Beware of sabotaging your own community

(00:00) Let’s make one thing clear: Community DOES really work

(00:00) 3 foundational questions and a boundary to get you started with building community

(00:00) The importance of interviewing 10 of your ideal members and what to ask them

(00:00) Build the unique community you and your members want and have a manager

(00:00) Listen to your community members with equal parts authority and empathy

Watch on YouTube:

Resources Mentioned:

📺 Check out the video I made about habit formation and community engagement with Marjorie’s analogy.

🎧 Catch up with Dear Bri’s Episode 9 with Jae Washington.

📙 Check out The Art of Community by Charles H. Vogl.

📞 Get Bri’s Discovery Guide to interview your 10 ideal community members with confidence.

📗 Learn more about The Mom Test.

❤️ Sign up for Heartbeat. Bri’s recommended all-in-one community platform.

💛 Join Ember. The place for go-getter community creators building community-powered businesses.

Noteworthy quotes

“ No two communities are alike. [...] So, how you set up your community should be specific to all of the who's, why's, and how's, all of the other things and the boundaries that you've put in place around what that experience looks like, and that is how you should build it.” - Marjorie Anderson

“ A lot of people jump right to the how, they jump right to the sexy technology. I think, underneath it all, this is a form of self-sabotage where we give ourselves a new unnecessary learning curve. And all of that is just you hiding from the thing that's most important, which is understanding: can I gather people in a way that is meaningful? And if it's a paid community, are they actually willing to pay for it?” - Bri Leever

🔥 Ready to hear the stories we almost kept to ourselves? Here's this week's EXTENDED Conversation with Marjorie!

(00:03) Can you tell me about a moment in your community that made you unexpectedly emotional?

(01:09) When was a time you broke one of your own community rules?

(02:45) Describe a time when someone surprised you by showing up more for your community than you expected.

(05:55) What’s a piece of advice you gave to a community member that you secretly needed to hear yourself?

(10:27) If you could go back in time and send your younger self a one-word message, what would it be?

Click on the image to get to our extended fun times

Marjorie Anderson

Marjorie is the Director of Community for Exos and the Principal Strategist at Community by Association L.L.C. She has been professionally building community for 11+ years and recently launched Connecting Across the Diaspora, a podcast dedicated to the traditions of connection from Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities.

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Bri Leever

Bri got her start building a community and growing it to a multi-million dollar revenue stream for a social enterprise in Portland, OR. Now, she supports folks used to running their business on content, coaching, and consulting to create their community offer. She's a Community Strategist by day and a Campervan host by night on the Big Island of Hawaii and you'll usually find her on, in, or under the water.

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