FLARE COmmunity

The Flare Community case study illustrates the successful development and implementation of an online community to drive product activation, enhance customer satisfaction, and build brand trust for Flare, an innovative safety technology company. By strategically aligning community objectives with business goals, prioritizing member onboarding, and implementing a data-driven approach, the Flare Community achieved significant growth, increased product usage, and improved customer sentiment.

Flare, a pioneering safety technology company (acquired by Smart Holdings in March 2023) recognized the untapped potential of community-building in elevating the customer experience, driving user retention, and boosting business profitability. As the Head of Community and Customer Experience and employee #4 at Flare, I leveraged my diverse background in community building, project management, and customer-facing roles to spearhead the development and implementation of the Flare Community.

The primary challenges in building the Flare Community included aligning the community with business objectives, setting clear expectations for members, developing an engaging strategy while prioritizing safety, and measuring success while preserving authenticity. These challenges required a strategic and data-driven approach to ensure the community's success.

Community Concept & Company Alignment
How can the Flare Community move the needle for the business?

Setting Expectations with Community Member Onboarding
How can onboarding be utilized to set community expectations, enhance customer experience, and build brand trust?

Strategic Engagement Strategy & Moderation Guidelines
How can we inspire sustained engagement that supports business goals while prioritizing safety for community members?

Measurement and Evaluation
How can we appropriately ask for, gather, and measure customer feedback while preserving community vulnerability and authenticity?

To address these challenges, I focused on aligning community objectives with company goals through data analysis, customer insights, and market research. A 45-day BETA test was conducted to identify member personas, refine incentives, and gather feedback for iterative improvements. Prioritizing member onboarding and outlining an intentional engagement strategy with moderation guidelines were key aspects of the approach. Automation was utilized for seamless measurement and evaluation processes.

The implementation process encompassed four main areas:

• Community Concept & Company Alignment: Conducting user interviews, gathering survey feedback, identifying member personas, and defining the community's unique value proposition.

• Setting Expectations with Community Member Onboarding: Building an automated onboarding process to introduce members to community ethos, guidelines, and features.

• Strategic Engagement Strategy & Moderation Guidelines: Discerning effective engagement channels, outlining a strategic calendar, and crafting moderation guidelines to ensure sustained participation and safety.

• Measurement & Evaluation: Establishing metrics, leveraging automated feedback mechanisms, and integrating insights into community operations and product development.

The Flare Community was designed with several overarching goals in mind, aiming to drive impactful outcomes for both members and the business. Success for the community was defined by achieving the following objectives:

• Increase product activation by leveraging super users to encourage customer engagement.

• Improve Net Promoter Score (NPS) through the Community Product Survey.

• Enhance customer retention rates by fostering consistent engagement with the Flare product.

• Provide product support by empowering community members to assist each other.

• Gather insights for product innovation and development through feedback and testing.

• Gain deeper understanding of customer demographics, preferences, and behaviors.

The Flare Community successfully aligned its goals with the broader objectives of driving product activation, enhancing customer satisfaction, and fostering brand loyalty.

The community achieved impressive quantitative impacts, including:

• 450% growth in community membership over 3 months

• Community NPS score of 60

• Lifted Product NPS by an average of 3% WoW by integrating community member surveys

• A 40% increase in Product NPS YoY (Year-over-Year)

• A 20% increase in product activation YoY

• A 25% average increase in email open rates YoY

• Additionally, we hosted over 20 virtual community events with an average attendance rate of 67%, fostering meaningful connections and discussions among members.

• Positive qualitative feedback from community members further underscored the value of the community in enhancing the Flare experience.

The Flare Community case study demonstrates the power of strategic community-building in driving business success. By aligning community objectives with company goals, prioritizing member engagement, and leveraging data-driven insights, Flare achieved significant growth, increased product usage, and improved customer satisfaction. The success of the Flare Community highlights the immense potential for online communities to revolutionize the customer experience and drive long-term business growth.