Who are you building for? Sketching three member types

Before you plan events, write guidelines or pick a platform, it helps to know who will actually show up. You don't need a demographic chart. A few believable people you can picture when you make decisions will do.

Sketch three members

Write a short paragraph for each of these:

• The newcomer: just found you, curious but unsure whether they belong. What made them sign up? What would make them leave in the first week?
• The regular: shows up most weeks, replies to others, knows the inside jokes. What keeps them coming back, and what would annoy them?
• The expert: knows more than most members, maybe more than you. Why would they spend their limited time here instead of somewhere else?

Keep each sketch to four or five sentences and give each person a concrete reason for being there, for example "runs a small book club and wants ideas for keeping it going over the summer". Avoid wishful thinking like "loves everything about our platform".

Use them as a filter

Once you have the three sketches, check every new idea against them. A weekly expert Q&A is great for the regular, intimidating for the newcomer, and only worth the expert's time if they get something back. A long rules page reassures the regular and scares off the newcomer. You won't please all three every time, but you'll know who you're choosing.

When I started this network, my three sketches were a nervous first-time community manager, a UNA developer who had been around for years, and a volunteer organiser who had never heard of UNA. They still shape how we write our welcome posts.

This week's task: write your three sketches and pin them somewhere your team can see them. If you already have members, ask two or three of them why they joined and adjust the sketches.