Jim Ducharme
GetResponse Email Marketing
Twitter
@hugeheadca
Who has been an inspiration for you as a community manager?
Community members. I get the most inspiration and feedback from the community members I work with each day. The community members I manage and have managed have made me a better CM.
What is the most important part of being a community manager?
Being involved in the community you are managing or the communities you are interacting with. The harsh truth is that being a CM is a role for passionate people who feel connected and dedicated to the communities they interact with. Some people may not want to accept that. They may think every job on earth should be a 9-5 gig and any which aren’t are examples of employers exploiting their staff. However, communities don’t exist in a 9-5 world and you simply have to love what you do enough to really be a part of them.
If you could attend one conference to learn about community management, what would it be and why?
I’ve always believed that the real learning at such events happens in the hallways and not in the auditoriums or break out rooms. That being the case, to me, it’s not important what the event is, but who is attending.
What is your favorite book that has helped you become a better community manager?
Not a book, but a quote from a Canadian singer-songwriter named Stephen Fearing: “When we look in to other’s faces we see the weaknesses so well, but when we stand in front of mirrors we do not see ourselves.”
What do you like best about being a community manager?
Meeting, interacting and learning from people. No day is ever a bad day when you learn something about someone else or even better, yourself. In order to learn about ourselves, we need to learn about others – perspective makes the lesson relevant.
What skill should every community manager have?
Perspective or as TIm McDonald would put it, empathy. If you can’t see things from other’s perspectives, then you won’t be effective as a community manager. A community manager is NOT a spokesperson or PR spin doctor. You aren’t telling people what to think, you are asking them what they think.
Tell us about a success story you’ve had as a community manager.
When GetResponse recruited me, they wanted someone to be the voice of their brand in North America. What I wanted was to prove that one could build brand recognition through honest relationship building. When I started with GetResponse I warned them that this would not be a fast thing — it would take some time to show results and they supported me and continue to do so and those results have come. I absolutely love being able to offer tangible proof that the world has changed and those companies who really get it and care about their customers, will succeed (yes, I’m on a mission). Outwardly, I’m the voice and ambassador for the brand. Inwardly, I’m a customer advocate. Everyday I have the honour to fight the good fight with good people behind me for good people. In a small, but very tangible way, I get to direct my efforts everyday at making this world just a little bit better, and you simply can’t beat that. While that commitment might make me a romantic, it does not make me Don Quixotex tilting at windmills. This, is good business today.
What advice would you give someone wanting to become a community manager?
Listen more than you talk.
Tell us about a job that helped prepare you to become a community manager and why.
Radio. I spent about 15 years working as a radio personality. It taught me the value or accessibility and interaction – radio was social when social wasn’t cool. It taught me that the ability to clearly communicate an idea so that it inspires or enlightens or just makes someone’s day a little better is profound. Something I aspire to do daily since that ability is a foundation of what I do as a CM.
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