1---2name: community-builder3description: Expert community-led growth and community management guidance. Use when building developer communities, Discord/Slack communities, online communities, managing community platforms, designing member onboarding, creating engagement programs, running ambassador programs, measuring community health, setting up moderation systems, or implementing DevRel strategies. Use for community-led growth, member activation, user-generated content programs, and community governance.4---5
6# Community Builder
7
8Expert guidance for building, growing, and nurturing thriving online communities — from platform selection to engagement programs to community-led growth strategies.
9
10## Philosophy
11
12Great communities are built on three pillars:
13
141. **Shared purpose** — Members need a reason bigger than the product
152. **Genuine connection** — People stay for people, not features
163. **Member empowerment** — The best communities run themselves
17
18## How This Skill Works
19
20When invoked, apply the guidelines in `rules/` organized by:
21
22- `strategy-*` — Community-led growth, positioning, and strategic planning
23- `platform-*` — Discord, Slack, Circle, and platform selection
24- `onboarding-*` — Member welcome flows and activation
25- `engagement-*` — Programs, rituals, and recurring activities
26- `content-*` — User-generated content and content programs
27- `programs-*` — Ambassador, champion, and super-user programs
28- `metrics-*` — Community health and analytics
29- `moderation-*` — Governance, moderation, and conflict resolution
30- `devrel-*` — Developer relations and technical community building
31
32## Core Frameworks
33
34### The Community Flywheel
35
36```
37┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
38│ │
39│ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ │
40│ │ ATTRACT │───▶│ ACTIVATE │───▶│ ENGAGE │ │
41│ │ (Reach) │ │ (Value) │ │ (Habit) │ │
42│ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ │
43│ ▲ │ │
44│ │ ┌──────────┐ │ │
45│ │ │ ADVOCATE │ │ │
46│ └──────────│ (Amplify)│◀─────────┘ │
47│ └──────────┘ │
48│ │
49└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
50```
51
52### Community Maturity Model
53
54| Stage | Characteristics | Focus |
55|-------|-----------------|-------|
56| **Nascent** | Founder-led, <100 members | 1:1 conversations, manual everything |
57| **Growing** | Early champions emerge, 100-1,000 | Systems, rituals, first programs |
58| **Scaling** | Self-sustaining activity, 1,000-10,000 | Governance, moderation, delegation |
59| **Mature** | Community-led initiatives, 10,000+ | Platform, sub-communities, ecosystem |
60
61### Member Journey Stages
62
63| Stage | Goal | Key Metric |
64|-------|------|------------|
65| **Lurker** | First interaction | Post/reply count |
66| **Newcomer** | Find value, connect | Retention D7 |
67| **Regular** | Form habits, contribute | Weekly active |
68| **Champion** | Lead initiatives | Content created |
69| **Ambassador** | Represent externally | Referrals, reach |
70
71### The 1-9-90 Rule
72
73In most communities:
74- **1%** create content (Creators)
75- **9%** engage with content (Contributors)
76- **90%** consume content (Lurkers)
77
78Goal: Move people up the engagement ladder, not force everyone to create.
79
80### Community vs Audience
81
82| Dimension | Audience | Community |
83|-----------|----------|-----------|
84| **Direction** | One to many | Many to many |
85| **Value** | From creator | From each other |
86| **Ownership** | Creator owns | Members co-own |
87| **Content** | Creator produces | Members produce |
88| **Retention** | Content-dependent | Relationship-dependent |
89| **Scalability** | Linear | Network effects |
90
91## Platform Comparison at a Glance
92
93| Platform | Best For | Key Strength | Key Weakness |
94|----------|----------|--------------|--------------|
95| **Discord** | Gaming, dev, real-time | Rich features, free | Overwhelming UX |
96| **Slack** | Professional, B2B | Familiar, searchable | Expensive at scale |
97| **Circle** | Courses, creators | Clean UX, courses | Less real-time |
98| **Discourse** | Long-form, async | SEO, knowledge base | Old-school feel |
99| **GitHub Discussions** | Open source, devs | Code integration | Limited features |
100| **Reddit** | Public discovery | SEO, scale | Less control |
101
102## Key Metrics Overview
103
104| Category | Metrics |
105|----------|---------|
106| **Growth** | New members, referral rate, churn rate |
107| **Engagement** | DAU/MAU, posts per member, response time |
108| **Health** | Sentiment, helpful answers, retention |
109| **Value** | NPS, support deflection, product influence |
110
111## Community-Led Growth (CLG) Quick Reference
112
113| Motion | Description | Best For |
114|--------|-------------|----------|
115| **Community-Assisted** | Community supports product users | Support deflection |
116| **Community-Qualified** | Leads emerge from community | B2B, enterprise |
117| **Community-Distributed** | Growth through member networks | Viral products |
118| **Community-Created** | Members build on platform | Platforms, APIs |
119
120## Engagement Program Types
121
122| Program | Frequency | Goal |
123|---------|-----------|------|
124| **Office Hours** | Weekly | Direct access, Q&A |
125| **Show & Tell** | Weekly/Monthly | Member showcases |
126| **AMAs** | Monthly | Expert access |
127| **Challenges** | Monthly/Quarterly | Activation, content |
128| **Conferences** | Annual | Milestone, celebration |
129
130## Anti-Patterns
131
132- **Build it and they will come** — Communities require constant nurturing, especially early
133- **Metrics over meaning** — Vanity metrics don't equal healthy community
134- **Over-engineering early** — Start simple, add complexity as needed
135- **Ignoring lurkers** — 90% of your community provides value by consuming
136- **Founder absence** — Early communities need visible leadership
137- **Feature obsession** — People join for people, not features
138- **Forced engagement** — Authentic connection beats gamification
139- **One-size-fits-all** — Different member types need different experiences
140- **Scaling too fast** — Growth without engagement destroys community
141- **Neglecting moderation** — One bad actor can poison the well
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