90/10 Community Value Rule

A strategy for building successful online communities by focusing heavily on value creation while maintaining minimal self-promotion.

Core Strategy for Community Building

• Join groups/communities first as a value provider
• Spend time understanding the community before promoting anything
• Build relationships with moderators and admins first
• Focus on becoming a "regular" that people recognize

The 90/10 Value Rule Implementation

• Post helpful content 90% of the time
• Only promote your product/service 10% of the time
• Wait until moderators/admins like your product before asking to promote
• Make sure product actually solves community pain points

Real Example: Jenny AI Success Story

• Founder joined Facebook groups for college students
• Posted valuable content consistently without promotion
• Built relationships with group moderators
• Only promoted product after getting moderator buy-in
• Asked for feedback rather than direct sales
• Let moderators post about the product themselves
• Resulted in strong organic growth through community trust

Key Success Factors

• Patience in building relationships first
• Focus on solving real community problems
• Authentic engagement over sales tactics
• Let community advocates promote naturally
• Build trust before attempting any promotion

Warning Signs to Avoid

• Don't immediately post promotions after joining
• Avoid aggressive sales tactics
• Don't ignore community guidelines
• Never fake engagement or relationships
• Don't prioritize quick sales over long-term trust

The strategy emphasizes playing the long game - building genuine relationships and trust within communities before attempting to promote or sell anything.