How to optimise activities on your community platform to maximise the potential for engagement
As a platform admin, whether you're reviewing a community support service, a local event, or a volunteering opportunity, a well-crafted activity can make all the difference.
Here are some of Made Open’s essential tips and tricks to ensure your listing grabs attention, gets found in searches and generates the best response possible.
1. Write a compelling title
Your title is the first thing people see. Make it clear, engaging, and keyword-rich. Instead of a vague title like "Community Gathering," go for something more descriptive with a call to action like "Free yoga class – Join us this Saturday!". This not only attracts more clicks but also helps with search engine optimisation (SEO) so that the activity will rank higher on external searches via Google.
2. Use good quality images
Photos significantly impact engagement. Activities with clear, attractive images tend to perform much better than those without. Keep these best practices in mind:
- Choose a relevant image such as venue, an activity, or people taking part in community engagement.
- Avoid posters with lots of text – this text can’t be read by many people with accessibility issues and is invisible to search engines.
- Avoid cluttered backgrounds or crowded montages.
- Highlight key features of the event or service.
- Choose an image that ‘sells’ the activity – you want people to be intrigued or reassured by the image that they are clicking on the right thing.
- Landscape images are preferred. The ideal size is 600px x 400px.
- Only use images that are in jpg, jpeg, png or gif format.
- Only use royalty free images. Here are some sources for free images: Pexels and Same.energy
3. Write a detailed and honest description
A well-written description helps potential attendees or volunteers make informed decisions.
Include:
- Key details – What is the event or service about?
- Who it’s for – Is it open to everyone, or is it aimed at specific groups?
- Location and time – Provide exact details for accessibility.
- Activities and benefits – What can people expect from attending or participating?
- How to get involved – Clearly outline steps for signing up or joining.
As a rule of thumb, activities with less than 3 sentences will not perform well in online searches.
4. Use relevant keywords
Think about what terms people might search for and naturally incorporate them into your title and description. For example, if you're hosting a community cleanup, include variations like "volunteer cleanup," "neighbourhood tidy," and "eco-friendly initiative" so your listing appears in more searches.
5. Keep your information organised and readable
Make your listing easy to scan by using bullet points, short paragraphs and bold text for key details. People skim listings quickly, so making important details stand out increases the chance of engagement.
Note – avoid the use of all capitals. This comes across as aggressive shouting to many people and screen readers often read each letter out individually, mistakenly thinking that the capitals are acronyms.
6. Choose the right search tags
Tagging your listing with the correct search tags ensures it reaches the right audience. Use the platform’s tags effectively to boost visibility.
For example, do not tag a listing promoting a village hall with the tag ‘mental health’, choose ‘venue available to hire’ instead.
7. Provide clear participation details
Clearly outline how people can participate. If registration is required, include a direct link. If it's a drop-in event, let people know they can just show up. Providing clarity reduces confusion and increases attendance.
8. Include a Call to Action (CTA)
Encourage community members to take action by adding a CTA like:
- "Sign up today to volunteer!"
- "Join us this Saturday – all are welcome!"
- "RSVP now to save your spot!"
By following these best practices, you'll create an attractive and search-optimised listing that maximises engagement and participation.