SaaS success is predicated on long-term user retention, and a vibrant community can help ensure users receive long-term value. Users who’ve gotten to the point of retention are some of your company’s best spokespeople. These folks likely have a deeper sense of connection to the product and may even have some novel ideas on how to better apply its f... See more

In a GTC context, a company’s community should drive positive word of mouth (online or in-person) or create popular content that drives awareness.

When aligned, there’s a clear relationship between GTC and GTM, with community members transitioning to leads when the time is right. Until then, they’re gaining value from, and hopefully contributing value to, the community.

Referral is one of the primary currencies of communities. It’s a deeper level of advocacy in which members are so bought into your community and product that they’re willing to put their own reputation on the line and refer it to others. 

Communities can impact product in other ways beyond raising issues or suggesting features, too. Managing an active open source community is a great way to have users directly contribute to product growth. 

Ideally, this value creation drives community growth and, as we’ll see below, value capture for the business will occur as a second-order effect of that growth. 

Everyone’s familiar with the concept of a go-to-market (GTM) plan, but in the world of bottom-up adoption and product-led growth, a go-to-community (GTC) plan is equally as important.

That starts with a go-to-community plan that sets community up as a strategic priority, just like go-to-market. By committing to a team, budget, and tooling that will help make community a first-class competency, you’ll create value for your users. 

Your most prolific users are likely the best source of product feedback. They want your product to work better for them and in turn, they’re willing to help shape its future. This is an opportunity to get high-quality feedback and ideation from the people that know and love your product most.