The Health Hustle: The 3 Types of Communities... And the Pros & Cons of Each

“Marketing Tips for Health & Fitness Brands”

Estimated read time: 1 minute & 42 seconds.

Don’t build a following.

Build a community.

There are 3 types of communities.

Here are the pros and cons of each.

LFG

👇

1. Digital

Digital communities are great for reach.

But terrible for connection.

I recently joined a Creator MBA community.

It’s for creators who want to build a business around their content.

Here’s what I like about it.

• It’s convenient as hell.
• It gives me access to people across the planet.
• I can network while sitting on the toilet.

Here’s what I don’t like about it.

• It lacks depth of connection.
• It’s easy to forget about people.
• I can network while sitting on the toilet.

It has nothing to do with the community itself.

That’s just the nature of the internet.

In short.

Digital communities are best used for meeting new people.

But not for truly making a connection.

2. Large Group

Large group communities are great for connection.

But they are terrible for depth.

I host a monthly Meetup.

We routinely get 50-100 people to show up.

Here’s what I like about it.

• I connect with amazing people.
• We get to have a shared experience.
• It broadens my network group.

Here’s what I don’t like about it.

• It’s hard to go deep with people.
• It can feel a bit overwhelming.
• Sometimes, you talk to people you don’t care to talk to.

In short.

Large group communities are best used for making connections.

But not going deep.

3. Small Group

Small group communities are great for depth.

But they are terrible for reach.

I’ve been hosting private dinners for health entrepreneurs in Austin, Texas.

2 hours long with 10 people max.

Here’s what I like about it.

• The depth of the conversation.
• The intimacy of the connections.
• The emotional support that comes with it.

Here’s what I don’t like about it.

• You can’t invite everyone.
• There’s only so much time.
• It takes a lot of work to organize it.

In short.

Small group communities are best used for depth.

But it limits how many people you can reach.

Take home point…
- Use digital communities to meet people.
- Use large group communities to connect with people.
- Use small group communities to go deep with people.

✌️

What’s your favorite kind of community?

Corey Hiben
Host of The Health Hustle Podcast