Looking for a recipe for success? 

We have just what you’re looking for: a cookbook.

The Online Community Cookbook, to be more specific. The Newspaper Association of America’s Digital Edge has just released the first of three parts of The Online Community Cookbook, by Rich Gordon of Northwestern University’s Medill School and the Media Management Center. 

The Online Community Cookbook ties together developments in online communities, newspaper-based blogs, social networks and niche sites; it also provides a step-by-step guide to building and sustaining online communities in your local market while expanding the newspaper brand.

The first part of the Cookbook, as well as the preface and conclusion, are already available at www.naa.org/digitaledge/cookbook.  

• Part I focuses on how and why newspaper Web sites can grow from audience interaction. It gives details and lessons-learned from forward-thinking online editors and newspaper publishers who have already discovered the myriad benefits of online community.
  
• Part II, coming March 3, includes a step-by-step guide to building and sustaining a healthy online community through your newspaper’s Web site, from choosing the right technology to community management tips and motivating participation. 
  
• Part III, coming March 10, details how newspapers can help advertisers overcome their nervousness about buying ads near user-generated content.

An excerpt from the preface:

Social network sites may be important for newspapers as well, but they are not the only approach available – and the research for this report suggests they probably are not the best approach to building community in most newspaper markets. That’s because there is little evidence to date that the traffic generated by MySpace and Facebook – largely fueled by usage by young people – can be replicated on sites reaching a broader demographic profile.

It does appear, however, that certain features of social network sites – especially the idea of profiles and “friends” lists – can be effective in building usage as well as in reducing the need to moderate and police online discussions. For newspapers that have enabled article comments but struggled to keep the quality of conversation high, these social network features may be valuable additions.

It’s also clear that older forms of community – such as blogs and discussion forums – also have important roles to play.

The content of this report is drawn from interviews with more than a dozen newspaper leaders experienced with online community initiatives. The report also benefits from the experience and research of Northwestern University’s Media Management Center

Go to www.naa.org/digitaledge/cookbook for more.