Members of hubs are united by their
admiration of an individual (think
Deepak Chopra or Hannah Montana).
The hub is a strong albeit unstable form
of community that often breaks apart
once the central figure is no longer present.
But hubs can help communities acquire
new members who hold similar
values. Harley-Davidson, for instance,
built a bridge to a younger audience
through its association with professional
skateboarder and Harley enthusiast
Heath Kirchart. Hubs can also be
used to create or strengthen a brand
pool, a strategy Nike has used since its
inception by associating with stars such as Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.
To build stable communities, hub connections
must be bonded to the community
through webs. With its Nike+
online community, which cultivates
peer-to-peer support and interaction by
encouraging members to challenge and
trash-talk one another, Nike has found a
brand-appropriate way of creating webs
to strengthen its pool and hubs.