Due to real world budget constraints and the lack of consolidation in the white label social networking space, we often have to make technology decisions before finishing our homework on strategy. Prior to this decision, we map out our audiences and create an ideal list of communication tactics to best fit the needs of the audience and the goals of the community. We do this while taking into account the existing communication tools they are already using. The resulting list is typically short and covers the spectrum between closed communication and open collaboration. An example of closed communication tools are email, phone, messaging. An example of open communication tools are blogs and forums,White label social networking vendors tend to take the approach that volume is everything and the more tools they offer, the better they stand out from their competition. While this looks great on paper, there’s a necessary balance that must be struck as to not overwhelm users with too many ways to communicate.If you put 100 people in a room, give them 50 ways to communicate, you’re likely to end up with 50 separate conversation silos each with no more than two people. This wouldn’t meet the objectives of most communities, where you want the broader community engaging in larger conversations. If you were seeking one-on-one communication tools, you’d likely be better served by e-mail, phone conversations or text messaging. Many of which you’re already using today without the community.

Ninety Seconds take away:

When you think about communication channels less is more and sometimes the tried and true dull ones like email and phone work best. Don’t let the shear wealth of features distract you from a simple elegant solution. In many cases you need to turn off most of the bells and whistles to meet your real objectives.