What’s the Downside?
Writing this chapter was easy! We sat down to list the benefits of an online community for a brand or company and the list just grew by itself. So what’s the catch? What’s the downside of starting an online community of your own?
1. Development costs
Like a Web 1.0 site, a community website requires planning, technical infrastructure, and maintenance. The backend technology must also be much more reliable than when dealing with a Web 1.0 site. If user-generated content is lost in a system crash, you’re in deep trouble. If thousands of community members can’t log in because the system does not accept their password, then you’re in trouble again. And it will be frustrating for your users if the system cannot cope with an ...
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