An influencer community is a group of influencer advocates who speak about a brand in a way that creates great buzz around the brand and the influencer

We believe that the key to quality content and long lasting partnership lays in foundation of trust between the influencer and the brand. To create quality content, the influencer needs to speak from the heart, and the brand needs to provide a platform for the influencer to do so.

When I started Chictopia, our first product, I was 28. I had a successful career as a product manager in the Silicon Valley, and didn’t know anything about client services, or how to build a community.

We built Chictopia with the idea of democratizing fashion, where true street style influencers could showcase their style and get noticed. Within a few years, we garnered the support of icons like Song of Style, Hapatime, FashionbyAlly, and many more. The community took off and grew way faster than I had expected. In the five years when Chictopia reached its peak traffic at 10 million online pageview per month, we had so many learning lessons.

Today, we live in a world that is more divided than ever. Many of us are working hard to make ends meet, enlighten ourselves on social issues, and understanding ways to keep ourselves physically and mentally healthy. In wake of the Covid Pandemic, Black Lives Matter, and the upcoming election,I want to share here learning lessons why community building is important.

1. Communities make you more knowledgeable
   When I first started Chictopia, as a techie, I didn’t know who Alexander Wang or Tom Ford was. As far as fashion knowledge goes, I was a total novice. However, through forums and comments, I gained insights into how fashion influencers think about style, inspiration, and everything in between.


2. It creates space for people to agree and disagree while still trusting that we will stay connected
   In 2008, when Chictopia first started, there was still a lot of debate over whether or not fashion influencers deserve the press they got. Some were even getting brand sponsorships - whaaaat?


3. With trust, it allows for long term relationships to flourish
   Even though Chictopia’s community has ceased to exist, the relationships formed between its members, and between the members and our brand still lasts to this day. I’ve met female founders who talked to me about how Chictopia inspired their first love in fashion. Community members who went on to work in marketing and engaged us as our clients because they believed in our mission.


4. Communities can lift its members out of their lows
   There was a time when fashion influencers were considered “weirdos” of the internet, posting photos of themselves on the web. There were a lot of haters out there who judged them on their bodies, fashion choices, and even race. Having a community allowed members to share its woes together, and discuss tactics and strategies to overcome challenges.


5. Communities need moderators that embody its core values
   Internal conflict does arise in communities. Moderators need to make sure they are being fair in deleting and moderating posts that are out of line.


6. Communities need core values that are inclusive and fair
   In order to resolve conflicts, communities need core values that are clear, so moderators and community advocates can standby.


7. A strong community becomes viral
   Virality happens when you give someone an emotionally engaging story to talk about.


8. People who belong to communities are happier
   There was a lot of buzz around Chictopia when we first launched. Mainly because we served as a platform to surface voices that weren’t being heard.


9. Communities make you look harder at yourself
   We’ve had members love us, and we’ve also had members leave the community. In the end, it made us think hard about what we stood for.


10. Communities make you grow from within
    My fashion sense, as well as my whole team’s fashion sense, grew exponentially during the time we ran the fashion community. Not only that, we were pushed to think about what was important to us, our work, and the way we spend our time. Having a community of people looking closely to you for guidance and support can exaggerate your flaws and get you hate mail. At the same time, it will push you to change and reflect deeper than ever.