Entrepreneurs will frequently talk about building a community around their brands. In some cases - especially startups in the web 2.0 space - this is both literal and metaphorical.

The idea is simple enough, involving consumers with your brand – and with other customers like them – leads to all sorts of positive things.

In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find a major website or brand without some kind of blog, forum, or social network designed to encourage ‘membership’ and participation in that brand’s community. Internet tools have helped customer communities to become more obvious, bigger, bolder and better than ever before.

For the most part, communities can’t be willed into being. You can however create a place that’s conducive to community and make it that much more likely by playing host.

Here are a few quick ideas to help create a community around your business, online or offline:

1. If you haven’t started yet, see if there is an existing community you can serve or tap in to.
2. Have a story. If people are going to talk about your brand it better be interesting.
3. Encourage conversation. Give them a place to talk and the tools to do it.
4. Play host. Make them comfortable and do some introductions to get the conversation started.
5. Be supportive of your community but don’t try to run it. Facilitate.
6. Treat them special. Not great grammar, but where’s the payoff, the reward, for being part of this community?

However you decide to market your business, building community aspects into the plan can pay huge dividends – just don’t expect to be the person in charge. You can’t force a community – but you can foster it.