13 inspiring brand community examples that redefine loyalty

Today, there are countless impressive brand community examples out there, highlighting just how valuable a strategic approach to community building can be. More than just a way to engage your target audience, brand communities can help you attract new customers and increase sales.

With the right strategy, you can gather insights that help you develop better products and services, differentiate your company from the competition, and even reduce marketing costs, by turning customers into brand advocates.

Over the years, I’ve seen the benefits a strong brand community can bring to not just world-leading organizations, but also startups and smaller brands too.

Today, I’m going to showcase some of the best brand community examples I’ve seen over the years, offering insights into why these communities are so successful, and how you can replicate their strategies when building your own brand community.

What is a brand community? The simple definition

Before I explore some of the best examples of brand community, it’s worth defining what a brand community is. Brand communities are groups of people who connect consistently with your brand across multiple channels, demonstrate loyalty, and empower your organization to grow.

They’re essentially a tribe of connected individuals with a shared interest in your products and services. While many companies have brand communities, made up of existing customers and potential brand advocates, only a handful of organizations take full advantage of their communities.

To unlock the full value of offline and online brand communities, you need to identify the group of customers most loyal to your brand, as well as their pain points and goals.

You also need to constantly engage your customer base, encouraging community members to share ideas and feedback, communicate with your company, and interact with each other. Building a thriving community can involve numerous strategies.

You might regularly share exclusive content with members of your brand community, design and manage social media groups and online forums, and host community-driven events.

A great example of a thriving brand community comes from Red Bull, a company that regularly invites community members to special events, runs customer-focused marketing campaigns, and relies heavily on word-of-mouth marketing.

Red Bull even creates sub-communities for specific audience segments, like its gaming community (focused on the E-sports sector), and its athletic community.

Brand community examples: 13 companies to learn from

One of the reasons building an effective brand community can be difficult, is there’s no one way to approach the process. Some companies design comprehensive online community experiences, with dedicated websites for loyal customers.

Other organizations design membership programs for people in their community, like the Harley Owners Group (HOG).

Let’s dive into some of the best brand community examples out there today, and explore the methods you can replicate in your own community-building strategy.

1. Salesforce

Salesforce manages one of my favorite examples of brand communities in the B2B world. For years, the company has delighted and engaged professionals in the customer service, IT, and sales landscape, with its “trailblazer” community experience.

Open to everyone, the trailblazer community offers a full social-media style experience, where members can join specific groups relevant to their interests, ask experts questions, access news updates, and even leverage training and webinar experiences.

The trailblazer community is homes to thousands of dedicated “group” environments, intended to support Salesforce’s wide range of users. Users can even download a Salesforce Trailblazer app, so they can stay connected with their peers on the move.

Salesforce’s comprehensive approach to managing its community, hosting special events, and delivering value through educational content ensures it benefits from high levels of community engagement. Plus, the community’s approach further underscores the company’s commitment to users.

Approximately 80% of trailblazers say that engaging with the community helps them to reduce costs, increase efficiency, and get more value out of their Salesforce technology.

2. Lego

Not so long ago, Lego was a company most people associated with toys and children. However, over the years, the company recognized an opportunity to increase its market appeal, by connecting with a growing number of adult “creators”.

To help unify this tribe of young-at-heart builders, Lego designed an online community environment, where people can meet fellow enthusiasts, take part in contests, read exclusive articles, and even vote on kit ideas. Lego even produces content exclusive to its community website.

Lego enthusiasts can join specific groups to find content relevant to them, such as the “Lego Ideas” group.  They also gain access to exclusive discounts, competitions, and rewards, which helps to boost brand loyalty and ensure Lego can consistently increase sales.

Part of what makes Lego’s online community one of the best examples of brand communities today, is that it gives customers a sense of “ownership” over the Lego brand.

Since they can submit ideas for kits and new products, Lego customers feel they have an important say in the growth and evolution of the business. At the same time, Lego benefits from a constant stream of new ideas for their products. It’s a win-win situation.

3. City University

In my opinion, educational groups (schools and universities) have a lot to gain from building effective brand communities. Not only can they boost their revenue, by earning donations from alumni, and sourcing feedback for new courses and programs, but they can improve their reputation too.

One example of an educational group with an excellent approach to community building, is the City University of London. This school promotes community engagement online, with a “student hub” where learners can discover insights about courses, and share thoughts.

The institution also has an Instagram profile, with a dedicated hashtag, so it can source user-generated content and feedback from its faculty, students, and other members of the public.

City University even leverages community input when creating its marketing campaigns. The organization worked with the team at Fabrik Brands to create its “Book of Secrets” packed with ideas, tips and tricks from existing students and educators.

This promotional asset was so impactful, that even previous members of the student body wrote to the university, asking for their own copy. City University offers an excellent insight into how your community can help boost brand equity, and improve your marketing efforts.

4. Airbnb

Airbnb has one of the best-known brand community examples in the world today. The company knows that its ability to thrive in the travel sector relies on its ability to build strong relationships with a huge selection of hosts and property owners all over the world.

To make becoming a host more appealing to everyday people, Airbnb manages a thriving online community forum, where people can access everything from advice on decorating their space, to boosting the visibility of their listings.

Within the community environment, hosts can access unique user-generated content, guidance from customer support staff, and educational resources. They can also find local host clubs, where they can build personal connections with other like-minded people.

It’s Airbnb’s approach to building strong brand communities that make the concept of becoming a host feel more appealing and less daunting to today’s property owners.

When people sign up to host with Airbnb, they don’t just get an opportunity to make money, they get end-to-end support from people with similar goals and challenges.

5. Abri

Abri is another excellent company that commits heavily to the concept of community building. When the organization approached the team at Fabrik for help with their branding strategy, they expressed a desire to position themselves as a community-driven organization.

Everything from the company’s name (which means “Shelter”) to its marketing materials draws attention to these community-focused values.

To further portray this community spirit, Abri has invested in its online community building strategy, creating a news page where people can stay up-to-date on recent developments, and learn about upcoming events and resources offered by the Abri brand.

Users can create their own account on the Abri website, where they can get help and advice from experts, make payments and more. Plus, Abri has an excellent social media presence, using platforms like YouTube to share free educational resources and webinars with community members.

This approach helps to position Abri as an organization committed to giving something back to their customers, paving the way for a strong bond with future clients.

6. Apple

Another of the better-known brand community examples on this list, Apple’s community is a driving force behind the company’s continued success.

While Apple’s products might not be the cheapest, or even the most innovative in some cases, their sales continue to skyrocket because of their approach to community building, and customer experience.

Since one core component of Apple’s mission is to provide users with access to simple, straightforward technology, its approach to community development focuses largely on helping people troubleshoot and resolve common problems.

The Apple support community website is packed full of technical guides, articles, FAQs, and more. Plus, it gives users an opportunity to connect with other Apple customers around the world, so they can ask them for tips, advice, or insights.

To encourage continued engagement in its community landscape, Apple also “gamifies” the experience, allowing people to earn rewards, points, and new privileges in exchange for their time supporting other community members.

All of this helps to ensure Apple’s community stays active, while also giving the company insights into common customer problems, requests, and ideas.

7. Macmillan

Communities aren’t just an excellent way for enterprises and for-profit organizations to earn brand loyalty and facilitate growth. They can also be an excellent way for non-profit groups to increase brand awareness, boost donations, and unlock new opportunities.

Our client, Macmillan has one of the most supportive and valuable online community experiences I’ve seen. The group runs its own online platform, where team members can access support, and guidance 24/7 from other people facing similar challenges with cancer.

The community website includes access to exclusive news articles and blogs, dedicated forums, and information on upcoming events and fundraising opportunities.

All of this demonstrates the organization’s commitment to supporting, empowering, and motivating people affected by cancer. The charity also runs exceptional community-driven fund raising campaigns.

The “Brave the Shave” campaign complete with its own social media hashtag and promotional videos, helped the group to raise more than £4.5 million in funding for cancer research in its first year.

8. Adobe

Many graphic designers will spend time interacting with the Adobe Community. Like most of the brand community examples I’ve mentioned so far, Adobe takes a multi-faceted approach to community development.

They have a dedicated community website, with more than 36 million members, where you can browse through forums, articles, and topics related to the Adobe products you use.

Customers can take advantage of the same community environment to reach out to subject matter experts for support, learn about upcoming live summits, and more.

Adobe also runs webinars, training sessions, and workshops for people learning how to use the design software for the first time. Adobe even takes advantage of the Behance platform, to offer community members access to a range of live streams and hybrid events.

This live-streaming experience ensures Adobe can take advantage of the growing desire among creators for personalized on-demand content. It also means the company can source user-generated content from its online brand community, to boost its marketing strategy.

9. Nike

Nike is a company that constantly impresses me (and other strategists) with its comprehensive approach to brand development. Even in a market as competitive as the athletic apparel space, Nike thrives because of its community-focused initiatives.

Nike demonstrates its commitment to environmental, social, and governance initiatives, with campaigns designed to raise funds and unlock opportunities for underserved communities.

It runs community-driven social media campaigns too, and creates marketing content using real life stories and insights from customers.

The company also created its own app and website (Nike Run Club), where members can access exclusive discounts and promotions, birthday benefits, and custom-built workouts.

This app not only helps customers get the most value out of Nike products, but it helps to increase sales, by promoting new products, like the Apple Nike watch. Plus, it ensures every Nike customer feels special and appreciated.

The community experience uses early access to new products, exclusive events, and user-generated content to turn customers into dedicated advocates and lifelong customers.

10. Starbucks

Like Nike, Starbucks has been synonymous with great brand community experiences for some time now. The coffee company is an expert at making its customers the “hero” of its brand story, particularly when it comes to social media marketing campaigns.

Every year, the company runs competitions like the #RedCup campaign, to boost engagement and source insights from community members. Plus, it shares access to exclusive content, covering secret drink recipes and limited-time deals coming to local stores:

Outside of social media, Starbucks excels at ensuring customer retention, and brand loyalty, with its phenomenal loyalty program, where users can earn points, they can exchange for free drinks and discounts with every purchase.

This reward program encourages customers to keep using the Starbucks app, and increases average customer lifetime value, while also keeping the brand top of mind with loyal customers. The app can even send push notifications to customers when they’re close to a Starbucks location.

On top of that, Starbucks strengthens personal connections with its audience, by using their feedback to inspire their product development strategies, and social initiatives.

For instance, when the group discovered a growing demand for sustainability among consumers, they updated their social responsibility initiatives with new methods to recycle used coffee beans.

11. Walt Disney

Ask people anywhere to name one of the most famous brand community examples, and they’ll probably mention the Walt Disney Company. Over the years, this company has gone above and beyond to create a community experience like no other.

The organization has dedicated teams committed to building Disney-themed residential locations for people who love the Disney lifestyle, as well as countless online forums and websites dedicated to nurturing community spirit.

On top of that, Disney’s focus on building magical relationships with its audience has inspired the creation of many customer-built communities, with their own events.

If you’re a Disney lover, you may already be familiar with the “Dapper Day” events that take place in Disney locations all over the world:

Disney customers can also invest in membership experiences, like the Disney Vacation club, giving them exclusive access to discounts and deals at Disney resorts. There are even Disney branded annual events, like D23, hosted every year in California, to bring Disney lovers together.

Disney offers an excellent insight into how building a brand community can strengthen customer loyalty and pave the way for new avenues of income for an organization.

12. Lululemon Athletica

Like many of the companies mentioned on this list, Lululemon Athletic is an example of a brand that has achieved phenomenal growth as a result of community building. The company isn’t just known for its high-quality products, but its global events, and ambassador programs too.

Lululemon runs a website, packed with different community “hubs” for people interested in everything from training and running, to meditation and yoga.

It empowers customers to meet like-minded individuals, find local workshops or health and fitness classes, and even access world-renowned festivals and events.

Like some other leading companies in the brand community landscape, Lululemon also offers access to memberships for its “Sweat Collective” community. Members not only get access to the latest news and exclusive content, but 25% off Lululemon gear too.

Plus, Lululemon constantly engages its community with social media competitions and branded hashtags, designed to help it gather user-generated content. The hashtag #TheSweatLife already has millions of posts connected to it, and engagement levels grow every day.

13. Harley Davidson

Before Harley Davidson invested in a community building strategy, the automotive company risked impending bankruptcy. It was struggling to retain and attract customers at a time when other motorcycle brands were offering cheaper products, with similar features. 

The development of the “HOG” (Harley Owner’s Group) community turned all of this around. The HOG group isn’t just an online community experience. It offers members access to a host of unique benefits, from exclusive content, to rallies and local events.

More importantly, it gives like-minded people a place where they can forge new friendships, share their love of the Harley brand, and share feedback with the Harley team.

This community experience extends to social media, where members have developed their own group forums across channels like Instagram, Facebook, and beyond.

Today, Harley’s Owners Club is one of the most successful motoring communities on the web. It works to develop and reinforce the identity of fans, helping them to find a sense of belonging by interacting with people who share their passions.

The community events also give Harley plenty of insights to help them develop great product improvements, and marketing campaigns that drive additional sales.

What do the best brand communities have in common?

As you can see from the incredible brand community examples mentioned above, every organization takes its own unique approach to community development.

However, every organization I’ve mentioned has achieved excellent results, because they’ve been committed to developing personal connections with their target audience.

If you’re planning on building your own brand community, here are some tips to keep in mind:

Make engagement a priority

Find ways to consistently engage your community members, whether that means running online and offline events, creating a mobile app, hosting social media contests, or designing a comprehensive loyalty program.

Customers should feel excited, and proud to be a part of your tribe.

Reward community members

Some of the best brand community examples above worked because they rewarded active participants.

Showing your community members you value their input, with access to exclusive content, experiences, discounts and events, means they’re more likely to turn into advocates for your brand.

Listen to your community

Your brand community can be an excellent source of valuable data. It can help you to understand what customers like and dislike about your products and services and pave the way for strategic product development.

Listening to your community and acting on their feedback can give your company a crucial competitive edge.

Ensure easy access

Make it easy for people to find ways to participate in your community. This could mean using several channels to connect with customers, from a dedicated mobile app to a community website, or social media channels.

Make sure you’re constantly promoting your community in your blog posts, emails, and content too.

Showcase your brand values

Remember, a community experience isn’t just a way to promote your brand’s products or services. It gives you the opportunity to build stronger connections with customers, by drawing attention to shared values.

Make it clear why customers should be proud to join your community.

Learning from leading examples of brand communities

The brand community examples above highlight just how valuable the right community experience can be when it comes to building a standout brand. A thriving community can help you boost profits, by increasing customer lifetime value and retention rates.

It can offer insights into valuable opportunities to differentiate your brand from the competition, and reduce advertising costs with word-of-mouth marketing. Plus, it helps to transform your brand from just another company in your customer’s life, to a core part of their lifestyle and identity.

If you’re ready to build a brand community that customers want to join, contact the Fabrik team today, for help designing an exceptional branded community.

Fabrik: A branding agency for our times.