Why Every Entrepreneur Needs a Community of Raving Fans (and 3 Steps to Build Yours from Scratch)

What if the real reason you feel stuck in business isn't your offer, your ads or your strategy — but the fact that you don't yet have a community of raving fans?

I know this firsthand. I built a multi-million-dollar company that has been recognized twice on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in America. And if I am honest, one of the biggest reasons we scaled wasn't just our offers. It was the loyal community we built along the way.

Because here's the truth: a raving fan community does not just give you customers. It gives you defenders, promoters and ambassadors. It transforms buyers into believers. It is the difference between someone buying once and someone shouting your name, lining up at your events and bringing their friends with them.

This is why Beyoncé can sell out stadiums back-to-back. This is why Sarah Jakes Roberts fills arenas every year with Woman Evolve. And it is why our company continues to grow — because we have intentionally built a movement of experts we call 'Cashletes.'

The good news? You do not need millions of followers or billions of dollars to build this. You only need to understand what I call The Community Amplifier Method™.

This method is built on three roles every great community must have:

1. Transparent Leaders. People follow leaders they can trust. That trust comes from honesty, not perfection.
2. Brand Evangelists. Super-fans who spread your message and recruit others into your movement.
3. Brand Bodyguards. Loyal defenders who stand up for you when critics or challenges appear.

Related: Why Emotional Branding Is Out and Functional Loyalty Is In.

Pillar 1: Transparent leadership

When I left my $300K law firm job in 2018, I thought success would come instantly. The reality was very different. In the first few months of business, I made less than $800 total. I remember questioning and regretting my decision.

Yet those hard months became my most powerful story. People do not connect with the perfect version of you. They connect with the real you. The you that struggled, doubted and almost gave up but didn't.

Sarah Jakes Roberts embodies this. She does not just share her wins. She shares the fact that she was a teen mom, that she felt unqualified and that she wrestled with insecurity. Her openness makes her community feel seen. Even Beyoncé has pulled back the curtain — through documentaries and candid moments, she lets the BeyHive see her real life, and her transparency deepens loyalty.

Here are some tips to implement transparent leadership:

• Share your origin story, including the early struggles.
• Choose 2–3 "professional personal" areas of your life you are comfortable showing.
• Tell stories of moments when you almost quit. People connect with honesty, not perfection.

Transparency creates trust. Trust creates community.

Pillar 2: Brand evangelist

Once you lead with authenticity, you will attract more than customers. You will attract evangelists — people who buy into your mission so deeply they cannot help but share it.

I will never forget the first time I attended a truly transformative event. The experience shifted me so deeply that by the following year, I invited over a dozen clients to join me. I even purchased extra tickets just to give away. No one asked me to. No one paid me to. I did it simply because the experience was that powerful.

That is the power of evangelists. They are your free marketing army. They recruit with passion, and their word carries weight because it is trusted.

Here are some tips to implement brand evangelists:

• Deliver value so good people feel compelled to share it.
• Give your community a name or identity they can proudly carry.
• Publicly recognize and reward your loudest supporters.

Serve people so well that they cannot help but talk about you.

The final pillar of The Community Amplifier Method™ is bodyguards. These are the fans who protect your brand when challenges or critics appear.

The BeyHive is legendary for this. The moment anyone criticizes Beyoncé, her fans swarm. Their loyalty is unmatched.

I have experienced this in my own business. After one of my events, critics tried to drag me online. Before I could respond, members of my community stepped in. They corrected the misinformation and defended me without me asking. They did it because they believed in me and in the brand.

Here are some tips to implement brand bodyguards:

• Define community values and invite members to live them out.
• Deliver so consistently that members feel invested in protecting what you built.
• Thank and acknowledge those who defend your brand. Gratitude reinforces loyalty.

You cannot force devotion. You earn it.

Related: 4 Steps to Building a Community of Raving Fans

How to build your own raving fans community

1. Share Your Story and Plant the Flag. Introduce who you are, why you are building this community and why it matters. Transparency attracts your first believers.
2. Create a Space and Spark Conversations. Use a group platform where members connect with each other, not just with you. Your role is to spark the culture until it grows on its own.
3. Bring People Together. Host live experiences, online or in person. Shared experiences create shared memories, and shared memories create loyalty.

Here is the bottom line.

You do not need millions of followers to build a raving fan base. All it takes is a small group of people who believe deeply in your story, your mission and your brand. From there, momentum multiplies.

Every movement begins with just a handful of people who lean in, listen and believe. What starts small can grow into a community that spreads your message further than you could alone.

You can do this!

The sooner you start applying The Community Amplifier Method™, the sooner your business stops being a struggle and starts becoming a movement.