It’s no secret that Discord has become a hot topic over the past year. What was once a platform targeted at gamers is now something much larger with over 150 million active monthly users and 300 million registered accounts currently. So, can you use Discord for business? The answer is simple: Of course, you can.
At the very least, Discord can be used as an alternative to platforms like Zoom or Slack which make hosting meetings and interacting with one another easier. But while you can use Discord for business when it comes to interacting within your company, brands like Hot Topic and Chipotle are slowly beginning to use Discord for marketing-related purposes.
Who Should Be Using Discord for Marketing?
Before you take the jump into trying Discord for marketing your business, consider the following questions:
Is your focus on relationship marketing?
We’ve already given you 8 reasons why relationship marketing is better than transactional marketing and Discord is the perfect platform to do just that.
Discord does not currently have any form of advertisements on its platform. This means if you’re looking to use Discord for marketing, relationship marketing should be your aim. Brands leveraging Discord for marketing have mostly been creating their own servers and inviting their fans to join.
From there, these brands can directly engage with their customers if they have any questions. Additionally, and more uniquely, customers are also able to engage with one another on the server. Discord is an effective way to create a community where users can connect with one another via mutual interests (in this case, your brand). This in turn strengthens brand loyalty which helps your business in the long term.
Are you using it to launch a campaign?
Because of the way Discord works, brands might struggle to launch a successful campaign. Discord, despite being a platform where people can interact, is not a traditional social networking tool. Despite having a high volume of users, these users makeup and are spread out over thousands of smaller servers. Therefore, if your campaign’s goal is to reach a large diverse audience or increase visibility, you should turn your attention to platforms like Instagram or TikTok.
If you’re planning smaller more targeted campaigns, on the other hand, you can use Discord for business marketing. The benefit of this is that it can make the experience feel more personalized for your customer.
Are you using it to find new audiences?
Discord’s nature means that it will be more helpful in customer retention as opposed to finding new audiences. Its structure of having smaller decentralized servers means it’s much easier to build and find niche communities but harder to widen your reach outside of it.
Brands using Discord will typically have their own server where they can invite people to join. This means that typically the members in their servers have already used or are at least interested in their products.
Alternatively, advertising your products on other people’s servers can often be against their guidelines. Therefore, if you’re a new business trying to market yourselves on Discord, you should avoid this. Instead, use Discord as an alternative to websites like Reddit and Quora when it comes to doing your market research.
Should you use Discord for marketing your business?
Now that you’ve considered these three questions, you should now be able to decide for yourself whether it’s worth using Discord for marketing. Ultimately, it’s is a new and growing platform with a lot of potential for success if you’re using it in the right way.
