Tools to Use When Online Communities Are The Only Option

Dear Community,

When I set out to start this newsletter on using technology to build communities, I had no idea how relevant it was going to turn out to be. Fast forward just a few short weeks, and I, like many  Americans, find myself working from home for the foreseeable future. 

As events are cancelled and organizations scramble to increase engagement among stakeholders, I’ve heard most founders and leaders turning to content to supplement the lack of in-person communication. For week 1 of The Community Letter, I’ve put together some of the best resources you can find on scaling content and increasing community engagement, interviewed one of the largest online community managers, and more. 

TOOLS FOR BUILDING COMMUNITIES

All of these are free for at least the first 30 days to get you started. 

bbPress - https://bbpress.org/

Buddypress - https://buddypress.org/

Dream See Do - www.dreamseedo.org 

Atlassian - https://www.hipchat.com/ 

HumHub - https://www.humhub.org/en 

Igloo - https://www.igloosoftware.com/

Higher Logic - https://www.kavi.com 

Mighty Networks - https://mightynetworks.com/ 

Mightybell - https://mightybell.com/

Mobilize by Leaderz - https://mobilize.is/ 

O2 - https://geto2.com/ 

Parlor - https://www.parlor.io/ 

Slack - https://slack.com/ 

Telescope - https://www.telescopeapp.org/ 

Tribe.so - https://tribe.so/ 

What have you used to build communities?

Each week, I'll be diving into the tools and leaders building communities and keeping people connected. What are some of the topics you want me to explore? Anyone I should interview in particular?