In 2021 it's not uncommon to hear that you should build a community before building a product, but not many people could have told you this advice in the 1990s. Rob Howard, who built the early community for ASP.NET while working at Microsoft, is one of those people. After seeing the incredible power of an engaged community, Rob went on to start Telligent in 2004, an industry-leading community software company that he ran and scaled until its acquisition by Verint in 2015.

On this episode of the Startup Exits Podcast, we chat with Rob about:

• Community building in the 90s

• Software for communities: 2004 vs 2021

• Distinction between using social media vs building a community

• Having both perspectives: being an acquirer and the acquired

• The future of community building

• What's next for social media?

Startup Exits is brought to you by StartupSoft. Subscribe for more episodes.