Community is one of the most heavily used buzzwords in social media. The traditional dictionary lists multiple definitions… and colloquially it can mean very different things to different people. Groups that some people call an “amazing community” strike me as more of a clique or even a cult. Here’s my own personal taxonomy of terms for social groups:

Characteristics of a Community

A community is a relatively open group, with members who (try to) support each other.

A community is a group of people with a common location or interests, often with a shared sense of ownership. They might live in the same geographical area, hang out in the same (online) neighborhoods, or share a common profession or interest. A community is usually a relatively open group that exists to support or help all the members. If there’s no infrastructure or expression of collaboration / philanthropy – like a monthly meeting or an online forum – it’s not a bona fide “community.” At least not in my book.

The WordPress community is a group of bloggers and programmers who collaborate to create code, tools, documentation and technical support for everyone else to use. The SEO and social media communities are comprised of people in the same professions… who publish blogs and plan events to connect and share their knowledge. Flickr is an online community of people who love photography & images. They share their pictures freely, encourage others to do the same, and they welcome new photographers… the more, the better.

• Membership criteria: Inclusive. Open to most with shared common interests.
• Barriers to Entry: Minimal. Only those members who prove to crazy / dangerous / offensive are shunned.
• Internal Politics: Tries to keep a semblance of order, keep things alive and constructive.
• Agenda: To make the world better for all the people in a certain online space.

Characteristics of a Clique

A clique is a smaller group people who have similar interests or personalities, who spend time together but who do not readily allow others to join them.

Two cliques face off in “West Side Story.”

A private company or an agency is a clique. They carefully screen all new members and only allow those with the most profitable or desirable characteristic to join them. They frequently deny
membership on very subjective matters like physical appearance, personality or politics (“who you know”). A closed private beta is a clique. So is an invite-only afterparty at a conference, or a “cool table” where the high-status people sit. Same with a circle of diggers who vote on each others stories, or tweeps who only RT their friends’ stuff.

• Membership criteria: Exclusive. Subjective. Open only to those who “click” with the existing members, or who can offer up something they want.
• Barriers to Entry: Many unspoken criteria serve to block undesired members from joining.
• Internal Politics: Oligarachy of the alpha (fe)males / most powerful members.
• Agenda: To enrich or satisfy the founders. To maintain an elite, high-quality, ego-gratifying environment.

Characteristics of a Scene

Unacquainted surfers competing for waves are more of “scene,” than a community.

A scene is a group of people who actively share a common interest or activity. A scene is usually less organized (and sometimes more competitive) than a community, and it’s larger than a clique. There’s a 419 e-mail fraud scene in Nigeria. There’s an large electronic music scene in Tokyo (and virtually none in Saudi Arabia). There’s a “technology scene” here in Boulder, CO – consisting of several overlapping open communities (public meetups, events), closed cliques & private organizations.

• Membership criteria: Inclusive. Anyone who participates is “part of the scene.”
• Barriers to Entry: Few.
• Internal Politics: Sometimes competitive. Most skilled / accomplished / well-connected people are most respected.
• Agenda: For each member to thrive in their own way.

Characteristics of a Cult

A religious cult is a system of religious veneration and devotion to a particular person or object. I define an online “cult” as a group of people who have one infallible leader, cause or over-riding belief. They tend to use social media soley to promote their one particular cause or agenda.

Ron Paul voters formed a social media cult / mafia in the 2008 presidential election.

MLMers on Twitter are a kind of a cult, who all share the aggravating fantasy that they can get rich if they spam their cookie-cutter message out to enough people. Liberal anti-Semites are a cult; they share a common, intense hatred for Israel and use social media almost exclusively to criticize the country and promote negative propaganda about it. The Ron Paul supporters, who registered for Digg and Reddit en masse to vote up pro-Ron Paul stories in the 2008 election, are an online “cult” with a human leader / savior.

• Membership criteria: Complete ideological devotion and/or financial commitment required.
• Barriers to Entry: Firmly closed to skeptics, heretics, non-believers.
• Internal Politics:Authoritarian mandates handed down by the guru, leader or “inner circle.”
• Agenda: To aggressively promote one particular ideology, business or political interest.

What Is Your Definition of Community?

Is a community really different than a scene or a clique – or is that just splitting hairs? I’m interested in your opinions (especially if you disagree with anything I wrote) and insights – so please freely let ‘em rip.

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