Resources and insights

Bettermode blog

Articles on community building, customer engagement, customer success and more

All posts

Illustration of a bar chart trending up, for the post: Community metrics: what to track, and how to report themCommunity

Community metrics: what to track, and how to report them

Community metrics fall into three groups: engagement and content (are people participating?), community health (is it growing and keeping members?), and business impact (is it moving support costs, retention, or pipeline?). Community managers who keep their budgets track a few from each group and report them monthly on one page that ties activity to outcomes.

Illustration of a community feed on a phone, for the post: Best community apps in 2026: what they are and 7 options comparedCommunity

Best community apps in 2026: what they are and 7 options compared

A community app is a dedicated online space, on the web and on mobile, where community members can connect, ask questions, share ideas, attend live events, and build relationships, under a brand and a set of rules the community's owner controls. It's what you graduate to from a Facebook group, a Slack workspace, or a subreddit, where the platform owns the ground and the algorithm decides who sees what.

Illustration of a community with spaces in the sidebar, for the post: Hybrid Community: Benefits and Use CasesCommunity

Hybrid Community: Benefits and Use Cases

Communities today aren't just physical spaces anymore. Hybrid communities are changing the way we connect, combining both public and private elements in a single platform.

Illustration of two options side by side, one checked, for the post: Vanilla Forums vs Discourse in 2026: pricing, hosting, and the third optionCommunity

Vanilla Forums vs Discourse in 2026: pricing, hosting, and the third option

Vanilla Forums and Discourse were the classic community forum face-off for a decade, and the honest 2026 version of this comparison starts with how much both sides have changed. Vanilla now lives inside Higher Logic as Higher Logic Vanilla, with quote-based pricing and a parent company whose flagship is a different product. Discourse remains the open source standard, but its hosted entry plan was discontinued in mid-2026, so managed Discourse now starts at $100 a month. I checked both vendors' current materials in August 2026; here's the comparison as it stands, and when the right answer is neither.

Illustration of a help center search with results, for the post: Customer Service Knowledge Base for B2B SaaS: Building Effective Self-Service SupportCommunity

Customer Service Knowledge Base for B2B SaaS: Building Effective Self-Service Support

Struggling to keep up with answering customer questions via emails and calls? The good news is that most customers actually prefer finding solutions themselves.

Illustration of a member leaderboard, for the post: Mastering Gamification in Communities: Strategies for EngagementCommunity

Mastering Gamification in Communities: Strategies for Engagement

The integration of game-like elements in non-gaming settings has helped brands achieve unparalleled interaction within their communities. When done well, gamification can be the key to boosting community engagement and turning casual members into active participants.

Illustration of a bar chart trending up, for the post: 40+ Online Community Statistics for B2B SaaS in 2026Community

40+ Online Community Statistics for B2B SaaS in 2026

In today's connected world, companies have realized the value of building online communities. Businesses use communities to keep members connected under their brand, offering platforms to learn, share, and collaborate.

Illustration of two options side by side, one checked, for the post: Customer Engagement Software: What to Look for in a ToolCommunity

Customer Engagement Software: What to Look for in a Tool

When looking for customer engagement software, you'll quickly realize there are many different solutions with this label. With multiple types and dozens of options, picking the right one can be overwhelming and requires careful research.

Illustration of a question with an accepted answer, for the post: Community Lifecycle for B2B SaaS: Strategies for Every Growth StageCommunity

Community Lifecycle for B2B SaaS: Strategies for Every Growth Stage

Communities evolve through predictable stages, each requiring different strategies and focus areas. Understanding where your community is in its lifecycle helps you allocate resources effectively and avoid common pitfalls.

Illustration of a help center search with results, for the post: Omnichannel Support: Creating Seamless Customer ExperiencesCommunity

Omnichannel Support: Creating Seamless Customer Experiences

Customer expectations are on the rise. Today's customers want instant communication via their preferred channels while expecting seamless service. They expect companies to anticipate their needs and efficiently answer questions whether asked via email, phone, social media, chat, or community.

A speaker addressing an engaged audience. Photo by Dámaris Azócar on UnsplashCommunity

What is customer advocacy, and how to build it

I have spent most of my career on the demand gen side of the house, and the cheapest pipeline I ever found did not come from ads. It came from customers who liked us enough to tell other people, on the record, without being asked twice. For a stretch I worked at what was the largest customer marketing and advocacy platform around at the time, where the entire business was turning happy customers into a force that markets and sells for you. So I have run this motion, watched it work, and watched it fail. The failures almost always trace back to the same thing: treating advocacy as a campaign you run instead of a relationship you keep.

Illustration of an FAQ with one answer open, for the post: Feature Request Management: Transforming User Feedback into Product InnovationProduct

Feature Request Management: Transforming User Feedback into Product Innovation

Feature requests are a powerful driver of product development, providing businesses with valuable input to identify areas for improvement and potential new ideas.

Put community activity in your CRM

Bettermode syncs members and what they do in your community to the CRM, so sales and success can see who is engaged before the next call.