Best Living - Community Manager's blog

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The Holiday season is a time to reflect on the past year with those closest to us who can help point out our mistakes and our triumphs.  Hopefully we move into the New Year a little wiser so that we do not make the same mistakes and also a little braver so that we still charge ahead when the future is unknown. 

At the beginning of 2008, I was offered the opportunity to become Best Buy's first Community Manager and help usher the company into the Web 2.0 world.  There was no certainty that this would be a successful endeavor or a permanent position.  Best Buy didn't have a forum or blog.  The company had never Twittered and most people thought that was a risqué term.  When I was presented with the opportunity to jump into the uncertainty, I did so wholeheartedly.  That is, I took the path less trodden by. 

I launched a blog, began Twittering and helped the company move toward having a community forum.  There were many internal partnerships that needed to be built, and policies needed to be updated to be relevant in a Web 2.0 world.  I rolled up my sleeves and dug in.  As I moved, I made sure to build a path for both English language and Spanish language conversations to start taking place online.  Today, both languages must work in tandem for Best Buy to serve its diverse customers. 

Achieving the launch of this community forum was the largest hill to climb.  I recall having a conference with a senior director who looked me in the eye and said it wouldn't happen this year.  Doggedly, I continued.  One of Best Buy directors had been trying to get the company to launch a forum for years.  He was instrumental to this forum existence.  Finally, on September 18, 2008 the community forum launched. 

My team and I manage and moderate this forum.  My team of eleven is, in my opinion, comprised of some of the company's best employees.  They are dedicated to championing customers, tirelessly researching questions and striving to create an online community experience for customers.

This forum is not for Best Buy.  It is for our customers.  We launched it to connect customers with Blueshirts, Geek Squad Agents and each other.  This forum provides a platform for us all to dialogue in an open and honest manner.  While I know not all users of this forum may believe that, I do and so does my team. 

That's why I get up every morning and go to work so that I can help foster meaningful communication in an ever-evolving, tech-filled, complicated, and confusing world.  We all need assistance from time to time with life and technology.  This forum and our other online community engagements are to help all of us adapt to an e-powered world,one that is turned on and tuned in 24/7.  To some, the new e-world is a realm full of techno-stress and frustration.  If you are ever struggling trying to figure out how to make it all work together, that's what we are here for.  To help and assist to the best of our abilities.  So let's keep the dialogue going in 2009.  Devices are only going to get smaller and more feature-packed, which translates into complication.  We're here.  We hear you.  Let the conversation continue.