Stop Chasing Engagement: Design for Usefulness

The Utility Paradox in Community Management

In the quest for high engagement, community managers often overlook the fundamental purpose of their space. During a presentation at London Community Week 2025, the speaker challenged the industry's obsession with activity levels, particularly in support-driven environments. High engagement in a support community is frequently a lagging indicator of product friction rather than a sign of a thriving culture.

"If you have a support community and people are posting their issues, that engagement metric is just gonna tell you you have more problems, not that the community is working and it's healthy and beautiful," the speaker noted.

Redefining Success Across Community Types

To move beyond vanity metrics, leaders must align their measurement strategy with the specific type of community they are building. Using the same KPIs for an advocacy group as one would for a support forum leads to misrepresentation of value. Success metrics should be tailored to the community's primary function:

• Support Communities: Success may look like a decrease in repeated questions or a "less is more" approach where users find answers quickly.