Growing Your Server Through Community Events

Events are a powerful way to help build and maintain a strong community that can take your server to the next level. On top of that, hosting a unique event can set your community apart and attract new members to join.

There are a few different ways to organize a community event on Discord. And because every event is going to be a little different, we’ve put together this guide that will help you figure out what works best for you and your members. 

Planning an Event

Before you think of ideas, think about why a regular community member would attend your event? What are they looking for? Is there an event that will appeal to old hands and new fans alike?

Hosting events that create a bond with regulars while also being inclusive to new members (or members who may not come by as often) can lead to new active regulars. 

Top Tip: Once you’ve figured out your idea, try to find a way to ask open-ended questions during your events that encourage discussion after. This has a greater impact on the long-term growth of your community while also potentially boosting daily activity.‍

Steal These: Ideas for Themed Events

• A community focused on books could host a reading via Stages or discuss themes such as an author or a series. 📚
• A home renovations or fishing server could host a Stage event for beginners on what starter gear to buy, then lead up to advanced tips for more veteran members. 🏡
• Servers focused on gaming or digital content can use screen sharing in a voice channel to create more engagement with a game. 🎮

What do they all have in common? They’ve thought of ways to interest their existing community and reel in new users.

For example, in the Pokemon GO Ottawa server, there's a monthly Townhall Stage event and a variety of content creator streams in VC using screen share. A variety of unique content at different times will maximize the number of people joining in and participating.

Remember people experience content in different ways; cater to your audience on different levels and let members choose for themselves how they want to participate. 

Growing Your Audience

Your community could offer users all across the internet exactly what they’re looking for—they just haven’t found it yet!

Things like in-server and off-server marketing, promotion, and advertising are important steps during your event planning. Creating ways to make sure people know about your event will set everyone up for success.

Great Ways to Promote Your Event

• Use social media to share your server link and a preview of what the event is about.
• Collaborate with similar communities to grow together or with creators on other platforms. This can expand the reach of your community both on and off of Discord!
• Make sure your team isn't spamming members via DM or social media groups, as that reflects poorly on your server. Instead, focus on creating the best events, and great content will be shared organically.

How to Find Potential

The best part about having a community is that you can empower members to host events themselves or share their ideas on events they’d want to attend. You can even reward contributors with a special role or a secret channel to discuss future events.

Looking for more inspiration? Join communities similar to yours and see what they’re doing to help build new unique content, or ask your members about other events they’ve attended and enjoyed recently.

Consistency Is Key

Events work best when members can rely on a schedule. Whether you choose to host your events weekly or monthly, having a set schedule allows members to plan around the event.

The Scheduled Events feature is a great resource to keep members informed in advance and notify them when an event begins. This gives them important information they need to share with friends to join as well.

As with all platforms, don’t get discouraged if you don’t receive the turnout you hoped for—it’s all part of the process! Instead, ask for feedback from attendees to iterate and improve for the next event.

The audience is out there and your next event could be what they’ve been looking for!

With thanks to Kevin (definitivegear) for all their help in writing this article.