Re: [Coworking] Re: To Build out or not to build out?

[Jennifer Kready]

>
> Thank you everyone!
>

Jensen: I didn't make it down for your grand opening  Thank you for your 
thoughts on the 'value add ins' that may price me out of opening the doors.

David - check.. don't bolt anything to the walls :) 

Josh - great to hear your opinion. I lost sight of flexibility being the 
key. Semper Gumby. Your f'in expensive motto is one I'm trying to mitigate 
for sure.  Until I have capital and credibility under my belt, I don't want 
to invest too much $ into a building I may not stay in.

And as always - Alex.  I have a tenant rep who combs the back halls of MLS 
that I can't see and I do my own searches otherwise.  I have not fully 
considered Craigslist and will spend some time combing that offering. 
Perhaps I need to put my Mazda6 in drive more often, as I'm looking at MLS, 
to see what's out there. I should use my 100+ cowork member community for 
their eyes (and ears) more than not.  Good reminder!

As always, it's great to ask questions because I know I'm not the only one 
with them.  Until next week's question... 

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[Coworking] Slack for Coworking

[Elizabeth Trice]

We're just about to set up slack. I'd like to know how many channels/ what 
types people have found optimal.
Our current plan is:
1. General conversation
2. Official announcements
3. A private group for ambassadors (front desk volunteers) and managers with a  
central email that members can send issues to that would show up on the 
managers group. 

We're also wondering if this will replace our private facebook group, which has 
fairly good usage (often 25 views/post)

We have 80 members, but only about half of those ate actively engaged. 

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Re: [Coworking] Slack for Coworking

[Alex Hillman]

The free version has worked great for us for over a year and a half.

Our team manually adds/removes people as part of our onboarding/cancellation
workflows

so
it doesn't get forgotten. You don't need a paid version to get API access,
but it's worth nothing that the invite API is "unofficial" so it could be
removed at anytime.

-Alex


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On Fri, Sep 18, 2015 at 8:03 AM, Jacob Sayles 
wrote:

> I have a question about how this gets implemented.  Are people using the
> free version and adding everyone manually, or using a paid version and
> integrating the API with some automation tools?
>
> On Fri, Sep 18, 2015 at 7:54 AM, Alex Hillman <
> dangerouslyawes...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I'd stay away from trying to use Slack as an announcement tool. It's more
>> ephemeral and messages fly by and get buried pretty quickly.
>>
>> Email is still the best place for official announcements, we often
>> mention a slack channel related to the announcement in the email for people
>> who want to talk about it (#general by default, otherwise one of the
>> specialized channels).
>>
>> I'd also recommend a casual channel or two, based around some known
>> shared interests of your members. Once people see those kinds of channels
>> they start to come up with more ideas of their own. Some great starter
>> channels that lots of people can get involved in are #music (our channel
>> ends up being a lot of YouTube music videos and soundcloud tracks),
>> #podcasts (again, episode recommendations and episode discussions),
>> #bookworms...and that's just a couple of them. Don't over plan it, the
>> whole idea is to create places where people can talk about their non-work
>> interests, and find out who shares them because that's where TRUST is built
>> among community members. And if you over plan it, people don't get a chance
>> to feel a sense of ownership over creating and moderating the rooms, which
>> leads to the rooms dying quickly.
>>
>> Just a couple of casual seeds though and things can really start to take
>> off!
>>
>> Oh, and don't forget to update the slack settings for "default rooms when
>> new members join" to include a couple of these special interest rooms.
>> People can leave them if they end up not being interested but think of it a
>> bit like a tour through a virtual space. Show them it's there, and then let
>> them decide if they want to stay!
>>
>> Good luck,
>>
>> -Alex
>>
>>
>> On Friday, September 18, 2015, Elizabeth Trice 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> We're just about to set up slack. I'd like to know how many channels/
>>> what types people have found optimal.
>>> Our current plan is:
>>> 1. General conversation
>>> 2. Official announcements
>>> 3. A private group for ambassadors (front desk volunteers) and managers
>>> with a  central email that members can send issues to that would show up on
>>> the managers group.
>>>
>>> We're also wondering if this will replace our private facebook group,
>>> which has fairly good usage (often 25 views/post)
>>>
>>> We have 80 members, but only about half of those ate actively engaged.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com
>>> ---
>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>> Groups "Coworking" group.
>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
>>> an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com.
>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> --
>> *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.*
>> Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com
>> Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast
>>
>> --
>> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com
>> ---
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>>
>
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Re: [Coworking] Slack for Coworking

[Alex Hillman]

I'd stay away from trying to use Slack as an announcement tool. It's more
ephemeral and messages fly by and get buried pretty quickly.

Email is still the best place for official announcements, we often mention
a slack channel related to the announcement in the email for people who
want to talk about it (#general by default, otherwise one of the
specialized channels).

I'd also recommend a casual channel or two, based around some known shared
interests of your members. Once people see those kinds of channels they
start to come up with more ideas of their own. Some great starter channels
that lots of people can get involved in are #music (our channel ends up
being a lot of YouTube music videos and soundcloud tracks), #podcasts
(again, episode recommendations and episode discussions), #bookworms...and
that's just a couple of them. Don't over plan it, the whole idea is to
create places where people can talk about their non-work interests,
and find out who shares them because that's where TRUST is built among
community members. And if you over plan it, people don't get a chance to
feel a sense of ownership over creating and moderating the rooms, which
leads to the rooms dying quickly.

Just a couple of casual seeds though and things can really start to take
off!

Oh, and don't forget to update the slack settings for "default rooms when
new members join" to include a couple of these special interest rooms.
People can leave them if they end up not being interested but think of it a
bit like a tour through a virtual space. Show them it's there, and then let
them decide if they want to stay!

Good luck,

-Alex

On Friday, September 18, 2015, Elizabeth Trice  wrote:

> We're just about to set up slack. I'd like to know how many channels/ what
> types people have found optimal.
> Our current plan is:
> 1. General conversation
> 2. Official announcements
> 3. A private group for ambassadors (front desk volunteers) and managers
> with a  central email that members can send issues to that would show up on
> the managers group.
>
> We're also wondering if this will replace our private facebook group,
> which has fairly good usage (often 25 views/post)
>
> We have 80 members, but only about half of those ate actively engaged.
>
> --
> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com
> ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Coworking" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com .
> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
>


-- 

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*The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.*
Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com
Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast

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Re: [Coworking] Slack for Coworking

[Jacob Sayles]

I have a question about how this gets implemented.  Are people using the
free version and adding everyone manually, or using a paid version and
integrating the API with some automation tools?

On Fri, Sep 18, 2015 at 7:54 AM, Alex Hillman 
wrote:

> I'd stay away from trying to use Slack as an announcement tool. It's more
> ephemeral and messages fly by and get buried pretty quickly.
>
> Email is still the best place for official announcements, we often mention
> a slack channel related to the announcement in the email for people who
> want to talk about it (#general by default, otherwise one of the
> specialized channels).
>
> I'd also recommend a casual channel or two, based around some known shared
> interests of your members. Once people see those kinds of channels they
> start to come up with more ideas of their own. Some great starter channels
> that lots of people can get involved in are #music (our channel ends up
> being a lot of YouTube music videos and soundcloud tracks), #podcasts
> (again, episode recommendations and episode discussions), #bookworms...and
> that's just a couple of them. Don't over plan it, the whole idea is to
> create places where people can talk about their non-work interests,
> and find out who shares them because that's where TRUST is built among
> community members. And if you over plan it, people don't get a chance to
> feel a sense of ownership over creating and moderating the rooms, which
> leads to the rooms dying quickly.
>
> Just a couple of casual seeds though and things can really start to take
> off!
>
> Oh, and don't forget to update the slack settings for "default rooms when
> new members join" to include a couple of these special interest rooms.
> People can leave them if they end up not being interested but think of it a
> bit like a tour through a virtual space. Show them it's there, and then let
> them decide if they want to stay!
>
> Good luck,
>
> -Alex
>
>
> On Friday, September 18, 2015, Elizabeth Trice  wrote:
>
>> We're just about to set up slack. I'd like to know how many channels/
>> what types people have found optimal.
>> Our current plan is:
>> 1. General conversation
>> 2. Official announcements
>> 3. A private group for ambassadors (front desk volunteers) and managers
>> with a  central email that members can send issues to that would show up on
>> the managers group.
>>
>> We're also wondering if this will replace our private facebook group,
>> which has fairly good usage (often 25 views/post)
>>
>> We have 80 members, but only about half of those ate actively engaged.
>>
>> --
>> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com
>> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "Coworking" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com.
>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
>>
>
>
> --
>
> --
> *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.*
> Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com
> Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast
>
> --
> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com
> ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
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> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
>

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Re: [Coworking] Re: To Build out or not to build out?

[Alex Hillman]

Slightly divergent question, but since part of the problem seems to be the
spaces you're findingwhat sources are you using to find potential
locations?

I'm currently going through the space search process again and I quickly
had to remind the folks that are helping me that we're not going to find
the kind of space we're looking for on MLS listings and other commercial
lease/sale directories. They're all full of cookie cutter vanilla space.

Craigslist is a massively underrated source for finding awesome oddball
spots that need minimal overhaul, but there's also ZERO replacement for
knocking on doors.

I look back on the last spot we found and realizing that our current space
wasn't on the market, anywhere. We found it because one of our members was
having a meeting in the building, thought "this is interesting and I know
that Indy Hall is looking for a new home" and then asking for landlord
contact info from the other tenant.

-Alex


--
*The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.*
Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com
Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast

On Wed, Sep 16, 2015 at 3:11 PM,  wrote:

> I'd agree with Jensen and keep your space as flexible and general-purpose
> as possible. You never know what your members will want, because
> truthfully, *they *don't know what they want until they need it.
>
> As for whether or not to build out, that was a question I faced early on -
> mainly because of the limited, suitable real estate options in my area and
> because there's no such thing as a turnkey coworking space. I found a few
> vacant office spaces with open areas that *could *have worked, but I knew
> I'd be compromising my vision from day one by retrofitting a space that
> wasn't purpose-built for coworking. Ultimately, I focused on vacant spaces
> (or spaces I could demo) so that I could design it from the ground up. THE
> CATCH: it's f*cking expensive! Work with an architect to estimate your
> costs, and factor it into your business plan to make sure it makes sense
> for you. If you can get tenant improvement allowance from your landlord
> (and you should from any decent landlord that isn't underwater on their
> property), then all the better!
>
> JOSH
>
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