You might not be aware of Discord. Or you may know about it, and you’re wondering what it has to do with marketers. After all, isn’t it for gamers? That was once the case, but not anymore.
Discord has evolved considerably since its formal 2015 launch. Once simply a tool for hardcore gamers, it is now a popular foundation for a diverse spectrum of organizations, including influencers and hobbyists. This network is perfect for people looking for alternatives to the more obvious platforms like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
For marketers that desire an alternative approach to communicating with their audience, Discord could be precisely what they’ve been searching for.
What is discord?
Discord is a VoIP system that combines a combination of video, voice, and text communication capabilities. It’s often likened to Slack, and its chat system functions similarly.
Discord was the idea of Stan Vishnevskiy and Jason Citron. Initially, they only wanted a method to talk to others in the gaming world. Discord counts over 100 million active monthly users, and its growth shows no signs of diminishing.
The adaptable platform also has a strong focus on community. It’s the capacity to construct communities that has helped drive Discord’s growing popularity.
As the founders themselves explain, Discord is used by many groups, including study groups, creative clubs, and hikers. Anyone looking for a community to share their passion with or establish or grow an audience can set up a Discord account and get started.
How does Discord work?
Like other internet software, Discord starts with a download. Just choose your device. I’m using my Windows laptop in my example, but it’s compatible with Android, iOS, Linux, and macOS.
Once you’ve downloaded Discord, open the setup file to launch it. Discord will then go through any updates, and you might have to wait a number of minutes for the interface to launch. Once it launches, you’ll get an overview of Discord’s latest features and upgrades. These include:
- Screenshare on mobile. Screenshare allows you to communicate, view videos, and, of course, play games. You can also join voice calls.
- Improved inline replies. This means you can hit a message and reply to someone straight on your text channel. This facilitates discussion flows, and it’s of obvious use to firms that wish to reply to client concerns.
- “Krisp” noise cancellation. You know those unpleasant chewing sounds you occasionally hear in the background when you’re conversing with someone? Well, that’s gone with the current update. You’ll find this feature in the voice channel.
- Rule screening. Let community members view your server’s rules before signing up as a member.
Finally, Discord has gone mouse-free, making it great for individuals who want to multitask.
Discord Features
If you’ve downloaded Discord on your laptop, it will instantly launch when you boot up and see the Discord UI. From there, you can easily check if:
- You have friends online.
- You have pending friend requests.
- You have direct messages.
You’ll find an inbox and the ability to send group DMs there, too.
Exploring the options
On the left-hand side, there’s a series of buttons that you’re going to want to know better.
For voice conversation, select the “W” button.
Explore communities by clicking the green-and-white button on the left. This will give you an idea of the communities there and whether your company would be a suitable fit. There are five primary categories:
- music
- Education
- Science and technology
- entertainment
- gaming
Creating Servers
If you know anything about Discord, you’ll know it’s all about servers. How do you set one up?
- To start or join a server, search for the green button with a plus sign. It’s on the left-hand side of the page. Just click to launch it.
- If you get an invite, you can join from there. Once you launch it, you have the choice to build a server for gaming, buddies, or a study group.
- For a different objective than those three, choose the “Club and Community” or the “Me and my friends” option. This will take you to the next page.
- Next, you can start customizing the design by adding an image and setting your server’s name.
- Click “Create” to finish.
It’ll take a few seconds to set it up. You’ll then get a welcome message. Now, you’ll be ready to start inviting people and personalizing your server.
To modify your server:
- Choose the “Personalize your server” option. This link will lead you to the “seller overview.”
- Here, you can further adjust your settings.
Starting a Discord Channel
Channels are comparable to what you’d find in a typical forum and provide an area to chat about a specific subject. You can choose between a voice or a text channel. To start a channel:
- Go to the channel panel.
- Under “Voice channels,” find the “Create channel” or “Create category” option.
- Give it a name.
- Click “Create.”
Roles
Say you wish to offer someone permission to become an admin member. You’ll have to add a role.
To add roles:
- Find the arrow next to your server name (your server name should be near the top on the interface’s left-hand side).
- Scroll down to “Server settings.”
- Choose “Roles” and then click the + sign next to it.
- Add the details.
You’ll find longer instructions on the official Discord website.
Integrate
This option enables you to add bots and apps, setup webhooks, and follow channels. Just click the icon to get started.
4 Ways to Use Discord as a Business
Now that you know your way around the basic features, here’s more about how you may use Discord as a business.
You may think the categories are limited at first sight, yet numerous brands use Discord successfully. Here are several examples:
- Adobe’s Discord community allows members to get reviews, ask questions, and locate commissions.
- Newegg has a Discord community where you can locate the newest specials, get answers to queries, and more.
- Streamlabs, which supplies streaming tools and software, also has a Discord account. Its Discord servers feature tutorials, casual discussion, and plenty more.
Discord has amazing potential to support your business and expand its community.
Encourage Engagement
Engagement is key to establishing your business. Letting your consumers or would-be customers get to know you develops trust and fosters loyalty over time. However, that’s not where the benefits of the customer experience end. Enabling engagement also includes:
- Enhances the customer and brand experience.
- Allows you to obtain customer feedback and insights that let you shape and improve your brand or service.
How does Discord enable engagement? Through numerous channels, and that’s arguably one of the best things about it.
As I’ve already indicated, you can directly talk to customers through video, chat, or text. Or you can start reaching out to would-be consumers through your servers and specific channels.
Monitor Activity
A relatively recent addition is Discord server insights. By reviewing your insights (or data), you can better understand
- Where your server members are coming from
- member retention numbers
- engagement with channels and other members
- your audience geography
You may aggregate your data daily, weekly, and monthly, and you can also export it to a CSV file for further study.
Promote Your Brand with Communities.
If you plan to develop a communal area where you can attract larger groups of people, you’ll want to start a community.
To do this:
- Scroll down the left-hand side of your server page until you find “Enable community.” This will launch the page. You can also access “server insights” and other tools and apply them to server discovery from this page. However, we want to concentrate on developing a community.
- Underneath the “Are you building a community?” title, you’ll notice a blue “get started” button.
From here, there are three steps:
- Safety checks (email verification)
- Setting up the essentials
- Adding the finishing touches
Answer customer FAQs.
You can answer client FAQs by putting up a server and listing them there. Just follow the directions in the article. Another way you can do this is with a bot.
You can use third-party application bots. However, it’ll involve allowing them access to your Discord account, so if you’re not okay with this, continue to the next step.
There are a few FAQ bots available, ready for you to deploy. I’ve listed a few popular ones below.
However, they aren’t recommendations, and as usual, you should exercise caution when employing third-party scripts or assigning rights to your account.
- Top GG
- The Discord Botlist
- GitHub (Andreas Gassmann)
If you have some coding skills, you could potentially design a bot. You can do this with Python. To utilize this method:
- Sign in. Go to the application page and activate the “New application” button.
- Name your application and select “create.”
- Go to the “Bot” tab. You’ll find it under settings, and select “Add bot.”
Easy enough so far, right? However, this is where things get a little more complicated: You’re going to have to do some coding. Here’s an amazing tutorial that will walk you through the stages.
4 Tips for Discord Marketing
Through Discord, you have an excited target audience in front of you and many ways to communicate with them. What’s not to like? Now, all you need to know is how to market to them efficiently.
This next section will outline several best practices to help you.
1. Know Your Audience
Discord users are generally younger people and teens. This audience will have quite different demands and needs from previous age groups, so assess whether your brand is a good fit.
Also, remember that Discord is for a casual audience. It is not a professional network, like LinkedIn.
2. Consider teaming with Discord’s Partner Program.
How do you better sell to your audience on Discord? By joining its partner program. The partner program is for its “active and engaged” groups, and it’s open to new and established members.
Perhaps the program’s most significant benefit is increased personalization. This means you can further customize your server to match your identity. Another benefit is that it makes your services easier to find on the discovery page.
Not everyone will qualify for the program, and there’s quite an involved application process.
3. Encourage user-generated content
Encourage your customers to perform your promotion for you by setting up their channels and servers to discuss your brand and special deals.
Consumers are generally more responsive to personal suggestions than to the “big sell.”
4. Offer exclusive discounts.
Who doesn’t enjoy a discount? Provide unique discounts, exclusive deals, and competitions through Discord. Invite people to market your brand further.
These Are The Best Tips For Discord Marketing in 2024
Discord FAQs
What is discord?
Discord is an app you may use for texting and calling. It was originally intended for gamers to communicate while playing platform games like Fortnite together, but it has expanded over time to become less niche.
Is it safe to use Discord?
Though Discord has faced problems with its platform being exploited for hate speech, you can alter your privacy settings and only accept friend requests from individuals you know.
What devices can you utilize Discord on?
You can use Discord on pretty much any device these days: Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, or Linux.
How can I join a Discord server?
You can join a Discord server through the Join menu, the app, or a web browser.
Discord Marketing: Conclusion
While Discord doesn’t have the high visibility of some social media sites, it’s nevertheless a helpful marketing tool for anyone wishing to establish a community.
It blends personalization, promotion, and different communication techniques, allowing you to reach out to customers more successfully.
Discord may not be ideal for every brand, but several organizations utilize it successfully, including Adobe and Newegg.
With some inspiration and innovation, you may build unique customer offerings, provide new ways to engage with your clients, and take your customer service to the next level.
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