Building an Ecosystem

One of the driving forces behind our site redesign and new brand identity is to further strengthen our already excellent community.  Luke, over at Jambor-ee wrote an insightful blog entry about how ExpressionEngine has become its own cottage industry. 

We find ourselves at the epicenter of an ecosystem that includes designers, developers, business people, teachers, writers, and bloggers, so for us, it’s no longer only about selling software or providing hosting, it’s about building an environment that fosters symbiotic relationships between ourselves, our customers, and other professionals in our community.  Pragmatically it makes sense that if we can be the hub around which an amazing community grows, everyone associated with the community will benefit. 

I played chess a lot growing up.  One of the more basic concepts in chess is that by controlling the middle of the board you can control the game.  It’s a poor strategy to fragment your chess pieces, moving them out on the wings without support from other pieces.  Instead, it’s much more powerful to stage a unified advance toward the middle.

Similarly, it makes sense for us to invest in our community and expand our network into a cohesive, connected, and capable ecosystem, so over the coming months we intend to explore creative ways to do just that.