Community of the Week: The Official Elf On The Shelf Ideas Group
**Know of any communities that are focused on the December holidays? (Such as groups for holiday baking, or people who love to decorate their homes, or holiday music fanatics, etc.) Please send them my way! I’m looking for some to highlight as Community of the Week during this month.**
Happy December! This week’s community is based on a classic holiday item: Elf on the Shelf. If you’re not familiar with this tradition, here’s a quick intro…Elf “arrives” on December 1 and sets himself up in different parts of the home to watch over the kiddos. At night, he reports back to Santa to say whether the kids were being naughty or nice, and the next morning, the kids will find Elf in a new spot or shelf. After December 24, he returns to the North Pole.
That’s the kid-friendly version of the story. The better version, IMHO. In reality, it’s a parent or loved one who moves the Elf around to a different area. And this is no small feat. You have to remember to move him, AND you have to keep track of where he’s already been. This could get challenging for parents as it’s one more thing on their to-do list. Then again, there are also parents who love to go above and beyond with this! They also like to learn from what other parents are doing. That’s why The Official Elf On The Shelf Ideas Group is here to help!
What I love:
The engagement and enthusiasm. With an average of 140 posts per day, the members of this group are supporting parents by sharing: Creative ideas for Elf spots in the home; Reminders for moving the Elf'; Unique ways to incorporate the Elf into other holiday initiatives; And more!
The guidelines…on-point and on-theme. How many times have you read community guidelines and laughed out loud? This was a first for me!
The level of creativity. I am thoroughly entertained browsing through this group’s feed and seeing the efforts of some parents. I would share a picture here, but it’s a private group and I want to be respectful of that.
My Wish List:
As with all Facebook Groups, I wish there were better features in place for gamification tactics. <sigh>
Going back through the posts, it’s evident that there’s not much engagement happening outside of the holiday season (which is typical), but I wish the group’s creators would think of unique content or campaigns to do during the “slow season.”
What do YOU think of this group? And what are some of your best Elf hiding spots?!
Let’s talk about THE FUTURE…
…of Community! My friends at Vanilla by Higher Logic have just released their Community Predictions 2022 ebook. Download your free copy today!