#Cmconnect: How important is creativity to a community manager?
By: Jephtah Abu
Tags: Community, Community Management, Sketch, Creativity

For my third article on the #cmconnect series, I had a chat with Medet Can Gündüz, the Community Manager for Sketch, as he spoke about the importance of being creative as a community manager, his role at Sketch, and a little insight on how he gets his “creative juice” flowing when he hits a mental block.

Enjoy!

(1) Howdy Medet, Thank you for taking your time to do this. Before we start, could you give a summary of what you do at Sketch?

Hey Jeph, absolutely! Thank you for the invitation and for setting this up.

At Sketch, I look after all things community-related. Partnerships, sponsorships, establishing relationships with new communities, looking after our lovely Sketch Advocates, Sketch Ambassadors and constantly nurturing them. This gives me a lot of opportunities to work closely with other teams and be on the lookout for our community champions.

I think it’s important to note that Sketch separates social media management and community management. I oversee our entire community, apart from actually running our socials.

(2) So why sketch? Was this your dream job?

Ha! Is this a trap question? Jokes aside, to be honest, I was involved with Sketch in my previous job already. I was a Sketch Ambassador and I put together many community events for designers in Istanbul.

Part of my career goals was to be able to manage a community on a global scale and being in a company that understands working remotely and favours quality over quantity. So when the opportunity showed itself, I took a shot and here we are!

(3) How important is creativity as a characteristic for a CM (community manager)?

I believe it’s very much essential. Firstly, we are in an ever-changing, ever-growing industry. This means we wake up to a new approach pretty much every day. As a result, the methods you use can quickly become outdated. Community Managers need to stay on top of things and be constantly aware.

Secondly, you need to keep coming up with fresh ideas and initiatives to maintain engagement. In addition, you need to be able to handle conflicts and know how to be positive all the time. And that sometimes requires creativity, surely!

(4) How do you get your “creative juice” pumping when you hit a mental block?

Ooh, tough one. For me, creating that isolated space for myself is important. This doesn’t mean I need to be away from others. It means I put my headphones on, get the good tunes going and really zone out to focus on what I am dealing with. Doing a breakdown of things and approaching them from the very bottom all the to the top step by step helps make things digestible.

I feel lucky I work in a very closely-knit team and have the opportunity to raise a flag when something is not right or I need an extra pair of hands. We are not superheroes and it’s okay to make mistakes or ask for help. This then gives you a chance to look at challenges from different perspectives.

(5) Creativity or Adaptability, which is more important to a CM(community manager)?

Adaptability, hands down! You can be super creative but not every idea fits into any situation. Sometimes a simple solution might work better than reinventing the wheel and end up saving you time and effort.

As a community manager who works for a globally known company, I am constantly in touch with so many people from different backgrounds. And it’s up to me to fine-tune everything and create a sincere environment. This requires being able to adapt and adjust. Along those lines, empathy plays a big role, too and that’s a form of adaptation on an emotional level if you ask me.

(6) How do you decide which is the best type of content to put out when you have numerous ideas?

An overview of potential impact could do wonders in this case. Not every idea is perfect so they are bound to have pros and cons.

Just put yourself in the shoes of your community members and think about which would be more beneficial to you. Is it nice to have, is it something that requires going through a lot of information, or is it something simple and sweet to brighten up someone’s day!

Another note is that being part of your community may not be the main gig for the members so it’s also important to factor in how much effort is on the table and if that’s achievable by members.

(7) What advice would you give to someone who thinks he/she is not “creative” enough to be a CM(Community Manager)

Don’t put extra weight on your shoulders. We all go through more than enough on a given day and any additional stress could easily snowball. Look for inspirations, similar applications, read articles and empower yourself!

You are where you are because you got the skills. Underestimating is always the easier choice but at times where you feel you are not creative, go over your accomplishments for some self-motivation. It’s okay to fall into these pitfalls and we all do. The goal is to come back stronger.

(8) What is one trick you use when coming up with ideas for community engagement?

Ahh, good one! I think this changes from person to person. For me, being a great observer serves as the key. Not just limited to your community, but across the industry. Seek out new ideas, explore other communities, ask for feedback from your own members, attend webinars, conferences and keep your eyes open.

On the other hand, I think that the sustainability of the ideas you put forward is equally important. If you are introducing a new scheme, make sure that you have the resources to support it. Have backups and buffer zones. Announcing a series of events and then having to stop after the second one is not a good image. Instead, you can soft confirm at least 3–4 events and work on the others from the get-go.

Thank you for this Medet!

Thank you, Jeph for all the insightful questions. I hope these answers will have some key takeaways to existing and future community managers. Been a pleasure!