When a new member joins, we create a welcome post in the community with all of their names, individually welcoming them.
Lauren, Community Admin
Key Tips
- Greet new members in a welcome post, so they feel like a part of the community from day one.
- Encourage your moderation team to comment on the post and strengthen the initial welcome message.
- Comments from existing members help encourage new members to participate.
Encourage existing community members to welcome people who have just joined the community.
Create a welcoming environment in your community and make it a part of your community's culture. Admins we spoke with agree that a welcome post makes new members feel appreciated and accepted.
If you only have a few members join each week, you can greet them individually. For large communities, where many people join per day, create a weekly welcome post, which automatically tags new members (up to 100 members in each post). If tagging people individually doesn't feel right for your community (some people don't like to be singled out), you can invite members to introduce themselves in the comments of a general welcome post.
Experienced admins encourage their fellow admins and moderators of the community to introduce themselves on the welcome post and say hello. This lets new members get to know who the different admins are and feel acknowledged.
Welcome messages also apply to your chats. They are another opportunity to give your members context on the conversation you’re starting and spark engagement. Your welcome message can spell out the chat’s purpose, rules, and any behavior expectations. Find more ways to start chats here.
Have a welcoming committee and encourage members to welcome each other. Some members may start to do this on their own after seeing admins welcome new members. Admins recommend privately thanking these welcoming members to tell them how much you appreciate their positivity.
