How Matt Sonnenberg Leads His Community (without Actually Leading It)
Oct 19, 2021
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Matt Sonnenberg, experienced in the Skylanders community, shares insights on becoming influential without leading. Topics include participating under an alias, entering a niche community, and the value of providing to a community. They also discuss building a Skylanders website, staying accessible, dreams and memories, book recommendations, and active community engagement.
Creating a valuable resource within a community can lead to long-term engagement and success.
Recognizing changes in the market and adapting strategies is crucial for sustained growth and resilience.
Deep dives
Discovering the Power of Community: Matt Sonnenberg's Journey
Matt Sonnenberg shares his experience of building and maintaining a successful community centered around Skylanders. He discusses how he created a valuable resource with his Skylanders character list website, attracting both kids and parents who were interested in the game. Despite the decline in the Skylanders franchise, Matt was surprised to see the community still thriving when he returned after a four-year break. He highlights the importance of providing value to a community and the role it plays in sustaining long-term success. Matt also discusses his future plans, including the possibility of creating a physical product and exploring new avenues to engage with the community.
The Power of a Valuable Resource in a Community
Matt Sonnenberg's Skylanders character list website became a go-to resource for fans of the game. His comprehensive checklist of characters filled a gap in the community and attracted both kids and parents. Through strategic use of SEO techniques, the website gained significant traffic, generating affiliate revenue and establishing Matt as a trusted source of information. Even during a hiatus from the community, the website continued to provide value and generate income. Matt's story serves as an example of the importance of creating a valuable resource within a community, which can lead to long-term engagement and success.
Navigating Challenges and Adapting to Changes
Matt Sonnenberg faced several challenges during his journey with the Skylanders community. As new competitors entered the market, the Skylanders franchise struggled to maintain its position, leading to a decline in sales and a need to scale back production. Despite this, Matt found a renewed interest in collecting among the community and was able to adapt his business model to meet their needs. He shares the importance of recognizing changes in the market, adjusting strategies, and finding new opportunities for growth. Matt's resilience and ability to pivot in the face of challenges highlight the importance of staying agile and open to new possibilities.
Being Community-Adjacent and Providing Value
Matt Sonnenberg's role in the Skylanders community showcases the value of being community-adjacent. While he didn't take on the role of a community leader, Matt provided a valuable resource and became a trusted source of information and support within the community. He highlights the benefits of creating a niche resource that generates value for a specific community, allowing him to step back and re-engage at a later point. This approach provides flexibility while still contributing and providing value to the community. Matt's journey reaffirms that community involvement can take many forms and doesn't always necessitate a leadership role.
#010 Great leadership is only one component of what makes a community truly thrive: a community needs influence and energy from more than its actual leadership or membership base to stay healthy.
Matt Sonnenberg is on the show today to speak to his experience becoming well-regarded in the niche community of the Skylanders games, some of the first collectibles in the "toys to life" gaming genre. We get into all kinds of interesting questions like this today: like the pros and cons of participating in a community under an alias and how to successfully enter or re-enter a niche community. Not everyone has to lead a community to be massively influential in it, and Matt's story is full of great takeaways on doing exactly that.