Re: A More Welcoming Community

From: Vinnie Falco (vinnie.falco_at_[hidden])
Date: 2024-09-24 21:15:45

On Tue, Sep 24, 2024 at 1:59 PM Kristen Shaker via Boost <
boost_at_[hidden]> wrote:

> They're supposed to help orient people who are new to a

service  or a community and encourage them to engage.
>

Intuitively, this feels correct to me, yet I am continuously reminded by
experts why marketing is bad.

A recurring theme exists. There is a natural tension between experts who
don't want their hand held and like things dry and technical (Peter and
Andrey come to mind) and those who appreciate community-building (such as
Arnaud or Christian). And apologies if I am being presumptuous about stated
individual preferences.

Some of the reviews have shared wonderful experiences in various social
spaces which highlight the fact that not everyone thinks the same. Some
folks like it technical, some want to feel like they are part of something
larger. International audiences in particular might prefer a more technical
focus as some social customs might be regional and misunderstood. Knowing
that a space is going to be purely engineering-focused alleviates the
anxiety that someone might feel when interacting in a second or third
language.

When Boost participation was on the upswing, the project attracted people
naturally and the absence of invitational and welcoming aspects of
presentation were not missed. Yet now we are ponding how to increase the
visibility of the project.

My advice is simple. We don't want to send four consecutive automated
emails to every person who signs up for the first time. And we might want
to send one, as we are already doing so. There is nothing wrong with
thinking about how we might improve that initial automated message
to improve user experience. I think the pendulum swung too far in the
direction of ignoring appearances and impressions. There is value in taking
at least small steps the other way.

Thanks