Title

AWS re:Invent 2023 - Discord communities: Empowering growth through engagement (IDE206)

Summary

Rodrigo Tamerlini, co-founder and CEO of Gamersafer, discusses leveraging Discord communities for product growth.
Gamersafer is a cybersecurity solution for multiplayer games, esports, and online communities, protecting 15 million players in 67 countries.
The company initially failed to engage Minecraft server owners despite their interest, with only 2 out of 35 servers using their MVP.
Key learnings from the failure included understanding the audience, listening to feedback, and distinguishing between nice-to-have and must-have features.
Gamersafer adopted a phased approach for product launches, ensuring community engagement and commitment.
Success stories include the official Minecraft server listing and the JS Defender bot for Discord security.
The importance of building a community around a value proposition, not just a product, was emphasized.
Security on Discord requires attention at the user, admin, and bot levels, with JS Defender recommended for server protection.

Community Engagement vs. Product Usage: Engagement in discussions does not necessarily translate to product usage. It's crucial to align community interests with actual product deployment and usage.
Audience Understanding: A common interest (e.g., player safety) is not enough to ensure product adoption. Understanding the specific needs and profiles of community members is essential.
Phased Product Rollouts: A phased approach to product testing and rollout, starting with a small, committed group and gradually expanding, can lead to more successful adoption and feedback integration.
Community as a Value Proposition: Building a community around shared values and broader topics, rather than just the product, fosters a more engaged and sustainable group.
Security on Discord: Discord server security is a multi-layered issue that requires careful consideration of user behavior, admin account security, and bot integrity. Tools like JS Defender are crucial for maintaining a safe community environment.