Community is Changing. Here's What that Means for Your Social Impact Brand.

It was 2009, and The Great Recession was in full swing. In the U.S., the GDP was down by 4%. Virtually every sector of the economy was hit. Hard. If you weren’t directly affected by layoffs  you probably knew someone who was. The future was uncertain. And there weren’t many signs of improvement in sight. 

It’s also the year I officially founded Cosmic. 

But you know what I remember most about this time? It wasn’t the tough economy. Or the fear, uncertainty, and doubt that was so prevalent around me. It was community. Because I was working out of a small coworking space in Santa Cruz, California called Nextspace. 

Nextspace was full of small businesses, solopreneurs, and professionals. Nextspacers were launching startups, meeting people, and generally just trying to figure out how to invent the next chapter of their professional lives amongst all the chaos. I actually met 2 of our longtime team members at Nextspace, Matt and Lisa, who are still working with us to this day. 

At the time, I didn’t think deeply about the community at Nextspace — or community building in general. I was just excited to be part of a space where I could work alongside other entrepreneurs and build my professional network and opportunities.

Fast forward to today. 

You’ve likely heard depressing statistics and narratives about how our communities are in decline. That participation in civic engagement is reaching all-time lows. That our culture is in the midst of a loneliness epidemic to the point that the U.S. Surgeon General has declared it a public health crisis. 

The data and statistics, as always, are messy. And there’s valid opinions and arguments supporting different trends here. But whether or not community-engagement is in decline, our relationships with community are going through a rapid transformation. 

As a social impact brand, you need community support to power your work. You can’t drive your mission and reach your true impact potential alone. But, building authentic, vibrant communities seems harder than ever before. 

So let’s talk about community building. And specifically, how to build an authentic community around your mission — and why that’s becoming an increasingly important part of a successful social impact strategy.

Why the Change in Community Matters to Your Social Impact Brand

Here’s a concerning fact: Lacking social connection can increase your risk for premature death as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. 

Throughout history, our survival has depended on humans relying on the support of each other. And even in our modern era, we’re still biologically wired for human connection and social engagement. 

A Cultural Shift in Community

Traditionally, much of our social connection came through being part of local community groups, neighborhood associations, and other local organizations. But our culture, and our relationships with our communities, has shifted over time. And this isn’t a recent trend. By many different measures, social connection and participation has been in a steady decline since a peak in the 1970’s.

In 2018, only 16% of Americans reported that they felt very attached to their local community. In the last 20 years, our time spent engaging with friends in person has dropped by nearly 2/3rds on average. More Americans are living alone than ever before, and this has steadily increased decade-by-decade. In 2021 almost half of Americans reported having three or fewer close friends.

Any large cultural shift like this can’t be explained by any single factor. But we have to imagine at least part of the shift, especially recently, is the digital transformation of our modern era. Before the internet, smartphones, and social media were so prevalent, communities were mostly organized by geography. Community centers, local sports leagues, book clubs, churches and religious communities, and civic and social justice groups met and organized locally. 

Of course, there have always been examples of communities that have organized nationally or even internationally. But these communities were still typically broken down into local chapters or regions — and many national and international communities are still structured this way. 

Modern Communities

Today, many of us are joining online communities in addition to our local ones. And many brands are placing big bets on trying to leverage the power of community to drive engagement, loyalty, and support. It’s hard to find a brand or influencer today that isn’t offering some type of membership-based community. 

But a lot of these digital-first communities end up becoming “zombie” communities, where Slack or Discord groups house hundreds or even thousands of members without any meaningful engagement or relationship-building. 

So we’ve essentially replaced traditional forms of community and social engagement with new digital forms of community that aren’t meeting our psychological or physiological needs.

So are online communities or hybrid communities pointless, then? No, of course not. There’s plenty of examples of digital-first communities that have provided tremendous value and even deep relationships.

Creating Social Infrastructure

Today, people are yearning for social connection and a deeper purpose in their lives. And social impact organizations like yours are in a unique position to provide people with a space of service and the sense of belonging and purpose that they’re looking for.

One of the causes of decline in community engagement is a decline of what’s called “Social Infrastructure.” 

Per Infrastructure Australia — an independent evidence-based organization that advises governments, industry and the community on the investments and reforms needed to deliver better infrastructure for all Australians — “Social infrastructure is comprised of the facilities, spaces, services and networks that support the quality of life and wellbeing of our communities. It helps us to be happy, safe and healthy, to learn, and to enjoy life.”

You have the ability to be part of creating this social infrastructure through building and nurturing community around your mission. And there’s a rich history of social movements and organizations that have done just that.

Intentional Community Building

Social impact brands often refer to their supporters as “our community of supporters.” But do your supporters actually feel like they are part of a community? Or are they just supporting a cause that they care about?

To truly activate and build your brand and reach your mission, community building and community engagement should be a critical part of your strategy and culture. But building any strong community — offline, online, or both — requires strategic thinking and has to be approached with care and intention.

Build a community hub. Your website is more than a brochure. You can use it as social infrastructure that you create, in part, for community building. Think about your site from a community-first mindset. Think about it as a gathering place and activation space. Think of your community as an ally and partner in propelling your mission.

Lastly, be certain that you are communicating with your audience, rather than pushing content at your community. You and they are equal participants and partners in addressing the issues you exist to address. They believe in your mission. They’re more likely to support your organization when they feel connected to it on a personal level. Build that connection with them. Ultimately, connection is the force behind community that drives change.