Have you heard of Discord? Launched in 2015, this communication platform was originally designed for gamers, with the aim of making it easier for members of gaming teams for titles like Final Fantasy XIV and League of Legends to interact.
In recent years, however, the service’s developers have sought to expand its reach beyond games. Today, Discord is a free, open platform with text, video, and audio communication features, and it also allows file sharing. In other words, it is a service as complete as others more widely used in the corporate world, such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Slack, or even WhatsApp.
But despite this repositioning, many companies and managers still don’t know, or resist learning, the benefits of having Discord both as an internal communication platform and as a social media channel. In this article, we aim to demystify the platform and highlight the benefits it can offer companies.
Contents
- From the gaming world to the corporate universe
- Implementing Discord
- How to boost your Discord strategy with the help of gamification
From the gaming world to the corporate universe
When Discord appeared in May 2015, it quickly became a favorite in the gaming scene. With its intuitive interface and wide customization options, the platform made communication between players easier than ever before.
But it was during the COVID-19 pandemic that companies began to look at Discord more closely. With a large number of people working remotely, the need for more robust communication infrastructure became a necessity for almost every organization, and many found in Discord the solution to their challenges.
Realizing it was starting to attract an audience beyond the one that made it famous, the company soon began a project to position itself as a communication service capable of serving everyone, not just those who play games. One of the first actions in this direction was changing its slogan from “Chat for Gamers” to “Chat for Communities and Friends.”
Since then, Discord’s user base has grown exponentially. According to the company itself, more than 150 million people worldwide use the service every month. Today, its website is one of the thirty most visited pages on the entire web.
Also: according to the American news outlet CNBC, 70% of current Discord users use the platform for both gaming and other purposes. In addition, the app is a favorite of Generation Z, precisely the generation that is starting to enter the job market and gain purchasing power.
Implementing Discord
Among the main benefits of using Discord as a communication platform is the fact that it is a free service and, even so, ad-free in its basic version. Those who want features such as high-definition video, extra customization options, or the ability to send larger files can rely on the Nitro version, which is paid, like other software of its kind.
Discord also has the advantage of not charging when a new user is added to a server/community, which makes things easier when a company is onboarding employees, for example.
Building your community
Discord is a platform focused on real-time interaction among its users. For that very reason, it can be used to build an online community of followers or customers.
A great success story was that of the American fast food company Jack in the Box during the 2021 San Diego Comic-Con. With the world still under the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the traditional pop culture event was forced to hold a 100% online edition.
With an eye on the engagement this could generate, Jack in the Box created a Discord server to promote a virtual afterparty that included giveaways, channels dedicated to topics of interest to the audience, and even a show by the geek-themed band The Aquabats.
The result of the campaign was a major engagement success that generated, in a personalized and authentic way, enormous visibility for the brand during a complicated period.
Within a Discord server, it is possible to create exclusive channels for events, promotions, activities, and discussions, which keeps the audience entertained and with the feeling of being part of a large community of consumers. This idea was absorbed by the gaming industry a long time ago, but it is still in its infancy in other segments. In this context, Discord can serve as a cultural turning point within the organization.
Getting to know your audience
One of the benefits Discord offers to businesses that have verified servers or communities is access to the Server Insights feature.
This feature consists of a series of data and statistics that can be very useful for getting to know more deeply the audience that interacts with the organization. The information includes:
- Growth and Activation: where new members are coming from and how many of them are retained;
- Engagement: what members are doing, how many users are interacting, and which channels are generating the most activity.
- Audience: where the server’s members are from and how long they have been there;
- Announcement Channels: data on the announcement channels created by the company;
- Welcome Screen: analytics on the server’s welcome screen.
Incentives and rewards
Brands that sell online content can use Discord as a way to reward their customers. With the private server feature, it is possible to create an exclusive channel for consumers to interact with each other and stay in constant contact with the company.
Within that channel, it is also possible to build a rewards program for the community through quizzes, questions, and groups. It is like a prize within a prize.
Want a practical example? One of the best-known luxury brands in the world, Gucci, created a concept store around its Discord server, the Gucci Vault. Through X (formerly Twitter), the brand invited its followers to join the server. The first twenty to join received some extra perks, such as access to exclusive NFT channels.
In just the first two days of the campaign, more than 28,000 people joined the server, a success so great that it led Gucci to hire someone specifically to manage the company’s Discord.
Creating personalized user experiences
Discord does not have the range of ads available on other social media platforms, but this is more than made up for by the roles feature.
Discord roles are an innovation when it comes to offering a personalized experience to consumers. They consist of a series of permissions and filters that, like the Ads features of traditional social networks, make it possible to segment and customize audiences.
There are many creative ways to take advantage of this feature. One is to customize the colors and icons of each username to identify users more easily. Another is to filter which types of notifications each consumer will receive, ensuring that users see only what interests them. It is also possible to assign permissions and control what each user can or cannot do within the server.
Promoting an event on Discord
The great force that drives Discord is, without a doubt, its focus on interaction between people and communities. For this reason, it is one of the most suitable platforms for hosting virtual events. There is even a tab in the app exclusively for them.
An event promoted on Discord can be about literally any subject and have different goals. Take the example of the American restaurant chain Chipotle, which innovated by using the platform to hold a job fair.
Struggling to fill its job openings, the company created a Discord server specifically to provide information about careers and recruitment and put potential candidates in touch with the company’s team. In just one week, the campaign led Chipotle to receive more than 24,000 new job applications, an increase of 77%.
But this example is just the tip of the iceberg. Through Discord, it is possible to hold a wide variety of real-time events. Product launches, workshops, contests, announcements of news, behind-the-scenes presentations, and even events made only to entertain and engage the community are just a few examples.
How to boost your Discord strategy with the help of gamification
When we talk about a platform originally designed for gamers, it is impossible to leave aside the gamification aspect.
Gamifying is using mechanics, strategies, and elements commonly found in games for other purposes. And one of those purposes can be growing a community on Discord. This can be done in several ways, and below we look at some practical examples.
Point or reward systems
This tactic consists of offering points to users who participate the most in discussions, share relevant content with the community, or complete proposed tasks. Later, it is possible to give the option of exchanging those points for special roles, access to exclusive channels, or even physical prizes.
Competitions and challenges
This is another good way to gamify a Discord server. Although it may seem complex, this strategy can be applied through initiatives as simple as a quiz game, for example. In addition to engaging users, this type of action creates a sense of competition and self-improvement that helps keep them motivated.
Leaderboards
A leaderboard is used to track and compare the progress of the server’s users. Like a game ranking, the leaderboard shows data on points, completed challenges, or any other metric the administrator chooses. Seeing their name displayed on the leaderboard can be a great motivator for members.
Other options
Besides the strategies we mentioned, it is possible to incorporate gamification into Discord in other ways. Integrating gameplay elements into channels to make them more attractive and interactive is also a possibility. You can, for example, use tools such as GarticBot to create a specific channel to promote games among users.
Using Discord as a business tool, whether to communicate internally or with your customers, is a field full of relatively unexplored possibilities. Even so, the examples and cases we covered in this article show how promising the platform is and how capable it is of delivering concrete results.
The fact is that the use of Discord in the corporate world is a trend that only keeps growing and shows no signs of slowing down. Is your business ready for this game-changer?
References:
What is Discord? The ultimate guide for businesses
4 Fun Ways to Gamify Your Discord Community and Boost Engagement With examples
