As a community manager scaling engagement is one of the toughest parts of our job. But the secret to a thriving community is already inside it - those brimming bundles of energy, eager to contribute and impress - the volunteers! Also, fact, people are a little more forgiving of volunteers' actions as they seem them as one of their own.
Here are 8 actionable ways you can deploy volunteer members to drive real, measurable engagement.
1. The Designated Sparkplug
In every community, some channels or groups are quieter than others. Instead of letting them wither, assign a volunteer to be their official "Sparkplug." And importantly - rather than vague generalizations, be very specific with set numbers.
- The Goal: Breathe life into a low-activity area.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- Post Quota: "Your mission for the #project-management channel this month is to start 2 new threads and write 5 thoughtful comments per week."
- Prompting: "On Mondays, post a 'Weekly Challenge' related to the group's topic. On Fridays, post a 'Weekend Wins' thread asking what members accomplished."
- Tagging: "When you ask a question, try to
@mentionat least one other member who you think might have a great answer."
2. The Welcome Wagon Brigade
A new member's first 48 hours are critical. A personal welcome can be the difference between a lurker and a lifelong contributor. Volunteers are perfect for this role because they remember what it was like to be new.
- The Goal: Make every new member feel seen and guide them to their first action.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- Daily Check-in: "Please check the new member list once a day."
- Personalized Welcome: "Post a public welcome message on their introduction post (if they make one) or send a warm, non-spammy DM. Use this template: 'Hey [Name]! Welcome to the community. I'm [Volunteer Name], one of the community volunteers. I saw you're interested in [Topic from their profile]. You should definitely check out the [#channel-name] group! What's one thing you're hoping to learn here?'"
- First Connection: "Introduce one new member to an existing member with a shared interest each week."
3. The Master Connectors
The magic of community happens when members connect with each other, not just with you. Volunteers can act as social facilitators, weaving conversations together.
- The Goal: Increase member-to-member interactions by strategically using the
@mention. - What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- The Knowledge Link: "When you see a question you can't answer,
@mentiona member who you know is an expert on that topic. Phrase it as a compliment: 'Great question! Paging our resident expert @JaneDoe, she might have some insight on this.'" - Bridge the Gap: "If someone shares a resource,
@mentionanother member who recently asked a related question: '@JohnSmith, thought you might find this article useful based on your question last week!'"
- The Knowledge Link: "When you see a question you can't answer,
4. The Event Amplifiers
Events, both online and offline, require a ton of energy to promote and run smoothly. Volunteers can be your hype team and your on-the-ground support.
- The Goal: Boost event attendance and improve the live experience.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- Pre-Event Hype: "In the week leading up to our webinar, please post twice in the main channel reminding people to register and asking what they're most excited to learn."
- Live Chat Moderator: "During the event, your role is to welcome attendees in the chat, ask engaging questions related to the content, and collect audience questions for the Q&A."
- Breakout Room Facilitator: "For our next virtual networking event, would you be willing to facilitate one of the breakout rooms? Your only job is to get the conversation started with one icebreaker."
5. Your Content Scout Team
You can't be everywhere at once. Volunteers can be your eyes and ears, sourcing great content from within the community and from the wider web.
- The Goal: Generate a steady stream of relevant content and user-generated highlights.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- UGC Spotting: "If you see an exceptionally helpful or insightful post from another member, flag it for me. We'll feature it in our weekly newsletter (with their permission)."
- Article Curation: "Please find and share one interesting article, video, or podcast episode related to our industry in the [#random] channel each week."
- Create a Private "Content Ideas" Channel: "Use our private #volunteer-ideas channel to drop links and discussion prompts you think the community would love."
6. The Internal Beta Testers
Planning to launch a new feature, a new course, or change the community guidelines? Your volunteers are the perfect, pre-vetted focus group. They care enough to give you honest, constructive feedback.
- The Goal: De-risk new launches and gather valuable feedback before going live.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- Feature Testing: "We're launching a new 'Projects' feature. Can you please spend 30 minutes this week trying to create a project, add a team member, and complete a task? Report any bugs or confusing steps in this feedback form."
- Guideline Review: "We've drafted new community guidelines. Before we release them, could you please read them and let us know if any rules are unclear or seem unfair?"
7. The Knowledge Base Librarians
Over time, your community becomes a repository of valuable knowledge. Unfortunately, it often gets buried. Volunteers can help organize and resurface this wisdom. They should develop expertise and immediately jump in to respond to questions rather than let them languish and everyone loses interest.
- The Goal: Turn conversational chaos into an organized, searchable knowledge base or FAQ.
- What to Ask Your Volunteer To Do:
- Solution Miners: "Once a week, please scan the [#help] channel for questions that have received a clear, correct answer. Copy the question and the best answer into this shared Google Doc."
- FAQ Builders: "Your task this month is to identify the 5 most frequently asked questions in the community and write up a definitive answer for each, which we will turn into a pinned post."
8. Volunteers Recuiting Volunteers
A great way to get engagement going is to use your volunteers to bring in more volunteers, thereby increasing overall engagement in your community. Your volunteers can actually help market your program by talking about the experience, how it helped them etc.
- The Goal: Create a volunteer program that people are excited to join.
- Things To Do:
- Offer Exclusive Perks: Do they get a discount on membership fees or products? Do they get free tickets to your paid events? Do they get exclusive swag (t-shirts, stickers)?
- Grant Status and Recognition: Create a special badge or flair next to their username. Shout them out publicly in a monthly "Volunteer Spotlight" post.
- Provide Insider Access: Give them access to a private volunteer-only channel where they can chat directly with you and other company leaders. Give them a sneak peek at upcoming features before anyone else.
- Ask your volunteers to make 2 videos a week speaking about their experiences as a volunteer.
By being specific and goal-oriented, you transform "helping out" into a structured, impactful role. You empower your most dedicated members, scale your efforts, and build a community that truly buzzes with engagement.
