Community building is very important for EdTech companies. It not only facilitates PLG (post1, post2, post3, post4) but also creates value for teachers as you help them break free of their daily work silos. Community data is an important component of building comprehensive user profiles that include product usage and knowledgebase resource data. These profiles are a good way to identify power users who might be good brand ambassadors. Fortunately, there are a gazillion tools available to enable community building and it is just one aspect of a broader RevOps universe of products (see graphics below).
Community building creates a collaborative environment where customers can communicate a range of feedback and interact with other customers. They can provide product feedback and make feature requests (both public and private). Feature voting helps identify which features customers derive value from and helps prioritize development efforts. One rant of mine is to look for the ability of the tool to vote on behalf of customers. It is aggravating to have a conversation with an EdTech vendor and suggest a feature only to have them ask you to go do it yourself. Feature requests create future touch-point opportunities (email or in-app) for status changes. A user community should also have a well-stocked knowledge base of documentation, blog posts, how-to articles, and recorded webinars. Access data for these resources is a good proxy for product engagement.
