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Damien Daville
Founder of the Vampire Church
Question:
"As Founder & Webmaster of one of the largest and oldest real vampire
organizations, what have you found to be the most challenging aspects of
the online community and what advice would you give to others starting
their own groups?
?"
Greetings..
I have spent most of my years working in the offline community before I came to the online community about ten years ago. The online community presents different challenges you do not have to deal with in offline work. On the internet, you often do not know who you are talking to; people have made-up names and locations. In my experience on the internet, I have often had to face the question of trusting and working with people whom I have never met that may live hundreds if not thousands of miles from me. I have then learned that working with people requires that one has to take more time online to get to know people.
If anyone is interested in starting their own group, the one thing you must have is patience online. You need to take the time to get to know people already in the community. I have always used my real name in the organizations I have started to convey sincerity to others in the community. I suggest anyone wanting to be in a leadership role in the online community do the same. People have to believe in who you are as well as believe in your message and what you have to offer.
Things do not happen overnight. I have watched people and different groups come and go. One has to stick with what you believe and you have to be serious about your ideas and beliefs and be willing to work years in the online community to achieve your goals. One won’t gain the trust of everyone, but you have to achieve a level where many people believe in what you are trying to do for the community and know that you are sincere about that. People have to know that you are genuinely trying to help others and that ego and titles are not part of who you are. People have to be willing to join your group not because you want them to, but because they see value in what you are doing. If you are perceived as selling information or levels of membership either for monetary gain or for your ego, you won’t be taken seriously in the online community. One does not have to constantly advertise who and what you are. If you have purpose and sincerity, and are willing to put in the time to help the community, people will come to you.
Damien Daville
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