Why Your Lurking Community Members Matter More Than You Think with Paul Gowder

"A community-first mindset means showing up for your people—even when they're just quietly watching." That’s how Paul Gowder, founder of PowWows.com, defines decades-long success in the online space. What started as a college hobby has blossomed into a vibrant, multimillion-follower platform celebrating Native American culture and proving that niche communities can not only survive but thrive in today’s noisy digital world.

Paul’s journey is a masterclass in staying true to your values, listening to your audience, and building engagement through heart, strategy, and the occasional well-placed email sequence.

We Also Talked About:

• How Paul turned a college web project into a thriving, sustainable business
• The surprising power of "lurkers" in online communities
• Why email is still king (and how Paul uses Kit (was ConvertKit) to dominate it)
• The moment social media nearly killed his forums—and how he pivoted
• Using Group Leads to bridge Facebook groups and email sequences
• What a “community-first mindset” really looks like in action
• Hiring from your own community to build a rock-solid team
• How a mastermind and a coach helped him 10x his email marketing results
• Why the medium (Facebook, email, TikTok) is less important than the mindset

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Find a PowWow near you: https://www.powwows.com/powwowsnearme
• Paul’s personal site: https://www.paulgowder.com
• Behind-the-scenes look at his email toolkit: https://www.paulgowder.com/emailtools
• ConvertKit (now branded as Kit) – Paul’s go-to email platform (affiliate link)
• Tool to sync Facebook group signups with email sequences -https://groupleads.net/
• Mediavine – Advertising partner for monetizing traffic - https://www.mediavine.com/

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