Foundation Should your community have a mission statement? Why or why not?

[Cedric]

Creating a community - whether it's a forum, social group, or organization - often revolves around shared goals, interests, or values. But have you ever thought about crafting a mission statement for your community? A mission statement can define what your community stands for, its purpose, and what it seeks to achieve. Some believe it helps set a clear direction, while others might see it as unnecessary for more casual or smaller groups.

Questions to consider:

• Does a mission statement help bring focus to your community’s goals?
• Can it attract like-minded people who align with your community's values?
• On the flip side, does a mission statement risk sounding too corporate or rigid for online spaces that thrive on organic interactions?
• How important is a clear sense of purpose for long-term sustainability?

Let’s discuss the pros and cons! Whether you've created one for your community or are thinking about it, we’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences.

 

[Cory]

I think some form of mission statement is always good to have so people know the focus of your board. Sometimes I lurk on message boards and see no mission statement, welcome statement, or anything. You have to dive into the community to see what it's all about. That's offputting to me when there is no such statement. Of course, in many communities, you can know what they're about just by the name/domain, but I think a mission statement sets a tone for the community to help users be aware of their ambitions.

 

[InMyOpinion]

This is an amazing question and I think that every community should have a mission statement. It's a great idea for everyone involved to know what exactly they want to accomplish or what to aim for. If you don't have a mission statement you don't really have anything to gauge whether you're staying true to your community/forum/etc.

Also with a mission statement everyone is clear on what the purpose of the community is. Is the purpose of the community to empower, to spread knowledge, or is it to talk about your favourite hockey players? If you don't know what the purpose of having your community is, it's going to be extremely difficult to build an ideal community and how would you measure success?

Can it attract like-minded people who align with your community's values? Yes of course! If people know what your mission statement is they will know whether or not they want to support that statement, business or community. A mission statement is also important so you know who your ideal clients/customers/users are.

On the flip side, does a mission statement risk sounding too corporate or rigid for online spaces that thrive on organic interactions? I don't think so, if you were to be strict and only allow your users to speak or post about something that relates to your mission statement, then yes, I can see that having an impact. But by just stating what the mission or community goal is, it's not going to have a huge impact.

How important is a clear sense of purpose for long-term sustainability? I think it's extremely important because how will you ever be able to measure success if you don't know what you're aiming for or what you're looking to accomplish. With a clear mission statement you'll know how to gauge if what you're currently doing is working or isn't and what you need to change or improve to get you closer to your mission statement.

I believe having a mission statement is almost crucial in order to have a successful forum & community because you'll know whether or not you're staying true to what your over all goal for the community is.

I loved this question! Thank you so much Cedric for asking it.

 

[Nomad]

I think having a mission statement is very important. Your community should have a goal, without it you will never go anywhere. You need to know exactly where you want to steer your community, you need to have a vision where you want to take your community. It does not matter whether your community is a hobby project or business venture, you need to have a mission, otherwise, your community will die untimely death