By Tasha Van Vlack, founder of The Nonprofit Hive — a free platform that builds one-to-one connections between nonprofit professionals for peer learning and support.
Many nonprofits pour time, energy, and resources into launching a membership platform—Circle, Slack, Mighty Networks, or a custom-built forum—expecting it to foster an active, engaged community.
At first, there’s excitement. Staff enthusiastically invite members to join, resources are uploaded, and a few announcements go out. But then… silence. This experience is common; in fact, Higher Logic’s 2020 Community Industry Report found that many online communities struggle to maintain consistent engagement after the initial launch.”
So what goes wrong?
Many organizations assume that a membership platform equals community, but that’s not the case. Technology alone doesn’t create connection—it only provides the infrastructure. A beautifully designed online space means nothing if people don’t feel a reason to show up, participate, and return.
True community engagement isn’t about the platform’s features, automation, or even content volume—it’s about human connection. It’s about designing a space that invites participation, fosters relationships, and makes members feel like they belong.
This guide will help you assess whether your platform is actually fostering a thriving community or if it’s just managing an audience—and, more importantly, how to fix it.
The Tools Aren’t the Problem—It’s How You Use Them
Most membership platforms offer a robust set of features:
- Discussion forums to facilitate conversation
- Content libraries to house resources
- Event management tools to schedule gatherings
- Messaging features for direct communication
- Gamification elements like badges, points, and leaderboards
On paper, these features seem like the perfect recipe for engagement. If your organization provides members with a well-designed, feature-rich platform, participation should naturally follow… right?
Unfortunately, that’s not how community works.
Why Features Alone Don’t Create Engagement
Community building experts, such as FeverBee, consistently emphasize that successful communities are built on more than just features. Their research shows that communities evolve from focusing solely on needs to incorporating identity, which leads to more engaging environments that members want to visit daily.
During a recent presentation, I asked nonprofit professionals about their experiences with community platforms. A recurring theme emerged: most spaces feel like digital ghost towns—filled with resources and announcements but lacking conversation and connection.
One attendee shared:
“We built out an incredible knowledge hub on our platform—tons of great resources, discussion forums, and even a member leaderboard. But after the initial launch excitement, engagement flatlined. No one was talking, and eventually, even we stopped posting.”
This is one of the biggest misconceptions about online community building:
- Having a platform does not mean you have a community.
- Having great content does not mean people will engage with it.
- Gamification does not drive connection unless members feel invested in participating.
The Real Issue: Misaligned Strategy
If your community isn’t thriving, the problem isn’t the platform—it’s how you’re using it.
- A discussion forum is only valuable if people feel comfortable contributing. Are members seeing their voices reflected, or is it just staff posting updates?
- A content library is only effective if people feel like they need it. Are members actively searching for resources, or is it a dumping ground for PDFs?
- Events only drive engagement if they foster real connection. Are attendees meeting each other, or are they passive webinar viewers?
- Gamification only works when it rewards meaningful engagement. Are badges recognizing contributions that add value to the community, or are they just vanity metrics?
Example: At The Nonprofit Hive, we found that members who had a one-on-one conversation within their first 30 days were significantly more likely to stay engaged long-term. This insight led us to implement a strong welcome series that let them KNOW exactly what they could expect from diving into our 1-1 conversations.
The Nonprofit Hive is a free platform for changemakers to create and cultivate their social impact community.
Beyond the Login: Building an Active, Engaged Community
Logging in does not equal engagement.
Too many nonprofits celebrate membership sign-ups or login numbers as a sign of success, but the reality is stark: if your members log in, skim content, and leave without interacting, you don’t have a community—you have an audience.
And an audience is passive. They consume what you post, maybe click “like” on an update, but they aren’t co-creating, connecting, or contributing.
During a recent nonprofit community-building session, an attendee admitted:
“We have over 1,500 members in our online space, but engagement is almost nonexistent. It’s like people walk into a room, look around, and immediately leave. The only comments we get are from our own staff!”
Sound familiar?
A thriving community requires more than a login page. It requires purposeful interaction—conversations, shared knowledge, and relationships that extend beyond the content you post.
How to Spot the Problem
If your members aren’t participating, ask yourself:
- Are members talking to each other, or just consuming?
If conversations only happen between members and staff, you’re missing real peer-to-peer engagement. - Is discussion happening organically, or only when the admin posts?
If your forum only sees activity when you start a discussion, your members may not feel comfortable contributing. - Are members contributing content, or just reacting to yours?
If engagement is limited to likes, occasional comments, and no original posts, your community is too reliant on admin-driven participation.
Example: The Nonprofit Hive initially saw high sign up rates but low engagement. After analyzing the activity, we realized members needed to be able to review how others were engaging and what kind of connections they could anticipate The fix? We began to collect stories post chat from early adopters and began sharing those stories to social media and on our website. It helped new sign-ups see our vision for community.
The Tech Fix: How to Use Automation to Facilitate Real Interaction
If members aren’t engaging on their own, the solution isn’t more content—it’s more connection points.
Here’s how to use automation to spark meaningful interactions:
- Scheduled Nudges – Automated, personalized email reminders prompting members to engage in active discussions. Instead of generic “Join the conversation”, use specific calls-to-action: “Hi [Name], we noticed a discussion happening about [topic]. We thought you’d have great insight—want to weigh in?”
- Intelligent Member Pairing – We built our own tech to facilitate 1:1 connections – and it is the core around which our community is built. Community Hives allows our members to participate in curated 1:1 conversations.
- Live Polling & Micro-Engagements – Not everyone wants to write a long comment. Lower the barrier to participation with quick engagement opportunities:
- Live polls: “What’s your biggest challenge in [topic] right now?”
- Quick-fire Q&As: “Drop one word that describes your nonprofit’s biggest tech struggle.”
- Interactive feedback loops: “We just posted a new resource on [topic]—what’s one thing you’d add?”
Example: Instead of passively posting a new article, automate a follow-up poll asking members: “We just released [X Resource]. Which of these challenges have you faced? (Pick one!)”
Shifting From Audience to Active Community
If your community feels stagnant, the issue isn’t lack of content—it’s lack of structured interaction.
Instead of waiting for members to engage, make it easy:
- Use technology to facilitate real-time conversations.
- Prioritize connections over content consumption.
- Automate small nudges that encourage participation.
A community isn’t measured by logins—it’s measured by relationships.
How to Design for Engagement (Not Just Consumption)
If your community feels like a ghost town, it’s time to ask a crucial question:
Are you broadcasting information, or facilitating connections?
Many nonprofit organizations make the mistake of focusing on content delivery rather than community participation. They push out updates, post resources, and expect engagement to happen organically. But communities don’t thrive through one-way communication—they grow when members actively participate, contribute, and feel a sense of belonging.
The Common Pitfalls of Engagement Design
During a recent discussion on community building, a nonprofit leader admitted:
“We post tons of great content—thought leadership articles, toolkits, event recaps—but no one responds. It feels like we’re talking into a void.”
This happens when a platform is designed for consumption, not interaction. If your members are passively scrolling through posts, rather than co-creating, sharing, or discussing, then your community isn’t functioning as a community—it’s functioning as an information hub.
🚫 A flood of static content with no engagement strategy leads to overwhelmed, disengaged members.
🚫 Only admins driving the conversation creates an audience, not a community.
🚫 Passive membership with no onboarding or interactive touchpoints results in members feeling like outsiders rather than active participants.
The Fix: Design a Community That Invites Participation
If you want engagement, you need to design for it. That means moving away from a top-down content model and creating structured opportunities for member-driven conversation.
1. Micro-Communities & Niche Groups
Large online communities can feel overwhelming. Smaller, interest-based subgroups help members feel a stronger sense of belonging. This approach aligns with the concept of Dunbar’s Number, which suggests that individuals can only maintain stable relationships with a limited number of people (usually around 150).
Implementation Tips: Instead of one giant discussion forum, offer themed spaces:
- A peer-to-peer fundraising group for nonprofit marketers
- An advocacy & policy discussion space for social impact professionals
- A problem-solving forum for nonprofit tech leaders
2. User-Generated Content & Member Spotlights
People engage when they see themselves reflected in the community. Instead of relying on admins to drive discussion, spotlight members’ stories, challenges, and ideas.
Example: A nonprofit membership platform shifted from weekly admin updates to weekly member Q&A takeovers, where members asked and answered each other’s questions. Engagement skyrocketed because the content felt peer-driven rather than organizationally controlled.
Implementation Tips:
- Feature “Member of the Month” stories and invite them to start a discussion.
- Encourage members to share their biggest challenge of the week and crowdsource solutions.
- Ask for member-led insights: “What’s one tool or tip you swear by in your nonprofit work?”
3. Event-Triggered Conversations
Most nonprofit communities hold webinars, workshops, and networking events, but engagement often dies as soon as the event ends. To keep the momentum going, tie conversations directly to your programming.
Example: Instead of a standalone webinar, continue the conversation through curated 1:1’s with participants with prompts.
Implementation Tips:
- Pre-event: Encourage attendees to post a question in advance.
- Post-event: Tag specific attendees and invite them to continue the discussion.
- Follow-up: Use an automated email sequence prompting attendees to join the forum.
4. Automation: The Engagement Safety Net
If you’re relying on members to engage without prompting, you’ll often be disappointed. Use automation to lower the barriers to participation.
Example: Instead of just posting a discussion thread and hoping for responses, use automated tagging to invite relevant members into the conversation.
Try this: “Hey [Name], I know you’ve worked on donor retention strategies—what’s your take on this?”
Implementation Tips:
- Use AI-based tagging to suggest relevant members for discussions.
- Automate reminders for members to contribute to ongoing conversations.
- Create a weekly engagement prompt that’s sent out automatically to all members.
Final Thought: Design for Participation, Not Just Presence
If your members are logging in but not engaging, your platform may be designed for consumption rather than connection. The solution? Be intentional about creating moments of participation.
- Break large communities into smaller, active groups.
- Feature members instead of relying on admin-generated content.
- Tie events into 1:1 conversations that extend beyond the session.
- Use automation to invite, nudge, and remind members to engage.
If you design your community for interaction, engagement won’t feel forced—it will happen naturally.
Community is About Connection, Not Just Content
Your platform’s success isn’t measured by the number of posts—it’s measured by the quality of conversations happening within it.
Are members driving discussions, or just reacting to what admins post?
Is technology enhancing connections, or just housing static content?
Are we making engagement easy, or expecting it to happen naturally?
A thriving nonprofit community isn’t built on more content—it’s built on better conversations, facilitated by smart technology.
But let’s take this a step further: technology should never replace the human element. The strongest communities don’t thrive because of algorithms or automation—they thrive because people feel seen, heard, and connected.
If your engagement strategy starts and ends with posting content, you’re missing the point. Content alone doesn’t build trust—relationships do. And relationships require thoughtful design, intentional connection points, and a community-first approach.
So before you upload your next resource or schedule your next post, ask yourself:
Am I inviting participation, or just pushing out information?
Am I fostering real engagement, or just hoping it happens on its own?
If I were a member, would I feel like I belong here?
Community isn’t what you build—it’s what you nurture.
And the nonprofits that succeed in this space will be the ones that prioritize connection over content, people over platforms, and engagement over empty logins.
Community Hives is a tool helping associations and networks scale meaningful member engagement.
