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SALESFORCE, 2024
Fostering Community Among Diverse User Groups
Leveraging strategic features to unite new members and seasoned power users in the Salesforce Ecosystem.
My Role
Research
Conceptualisation
Design
Timeline
4 months
Team
Aneesha Chinni,
Ankita Doppalapudi
Jaivrat Saroha
Juhi Khare
Mingru Qi
Prangan Kashyap
Shreya Kohli
Saeoul Park
Tools
Figma
Photoshop
Illustrator
150K+
businesses uses
salesforce products
1300+
active trailblazer
groups worldwide
90+
countries represented on
trailblazer communities
About Salesforce Trailblazer Community
The Salesforce Trailblazer Community is a global network of Salesforce users. It's a place where they can connect, learn from each other, & find opportunities for growth.
Members share knowledge, get help from peers, and join special groups based on their interests or location. It's designed for anyone using Salesforce, whether they're beginners or experts, to help each other succeed and innovate with Salesforce tools.
The Opportunity
Currently, there is a disconnect in the community between new members and seasoned “power users”. This division stems from differing needs, motivations, and interests regarding the development of the community aspect of the platform.
To foster a cohesive sense of community among diverse user groups within online communities, a strategic approach is essential. This project aims to address this issue by incorporating features into the existing community to bridge the gap.
The Goal
Our goal is to bridge the divide among the members of the Trailhead community, by boosting inclusivity and nurturing a vibrant online ecosystem where every member feels valued and connected.
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Power Users
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Been in the community for a while.
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A lot of knowledge about Salesforce software and advanced features.
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High degree of engagement in Trailblazer community.
New Users
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Just joined the community.
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Lack of knowledge about Salesforce software and features.
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Low level of participation in Trailblazer community.
Gap
PROBLEM STATEMENT
HOW MIGHT WE bridge the gap between new members & seasoned users in the Salesforce Trailblazer online communities, enhancing inclusivity and participation?
The Solution
02 / FEED (Q&A)
The feed includes various interactions such as trending posts, leaderboards and posting wizard to boost community engagement. These features help users actively engage in community discussions, get answers to their queries and recognize users’ contributions in the community.
Jump to Detailed explanation
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01 / DASHBOARD (HOME)
The dashboard focuses on making the community more accessible and provides information in a more organized manner. It also shows users the community stories and events and provides access to various groups to join. It also allows new users to connect with power users by joining casual chats, enhancing engagement within the community.
How did we get here?...Let's look at the process
Hold up!
RESEARCH
Understanding the motivations of the users
Understanding the target audience
EMPATHIZE
Coming up with new
ideas
IDEATE
Design is brought to life
PROTOTYPE
01/ LITERATURE REVIEW
To gain a comprehensive understanding of the factors that influence community engagement and cohesion, we examined several online communities and reviewed numerous papers on community building. Through this research, we identified four key points
RESEARCH
Understanding the motivations of the users
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Intrinsic motivation, real-life connections motivate users to engage in online communities.
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Users stay longer in an online community when they feel a sense of purpose and learning.
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Comfortable platform design, like social media, influences user engagement in an online community.
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Community characteristics shapes behavior of new users.
02/ DIGITAL ETHNOGRAPHY
To discover the intrinsic motivations behind community contributions, we found reviews specific to the Trailblazer Community in discussion forums like Reddit.
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Pros:
Many community members enjoy the process of helping others, which often results in a satisfying and rewarding experience. The community is viewed as a great resource for learning and professional growth with the availability of certifications and skill-building opportunities.
Cons:
Some users expressed frustration with the community's user interface and found it less intuitive than desired. They had difficulty finding information quickly. A user mentioned having multiple support cases, indicating potential challenges with getting help or resolving issues related to the platform. Some users mentioned how the pandemic had impacted and brought about some changes to the community as well.
“I’m unsure if my queries would be answered once posted on the feed, which discourages me from engaging any further.”
03/ USER INTERVIEWS WITH SEASONED & NEW USERS
We interviewed 4 seasoned Trailblazers who have been using Trailblazer for years and are actively involved in the community. To understand the factors that motivate or deter power users from actively engaging in the community.
Insights compilation after interviews
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We also interviewed 4 new users to understand the challenges new users face interacting with the community
"I'm skeptical about the quality of answers I receive because I'm unsure of their credibility.”
“I feel overwhelmed while navigating the Trailblazer community, as the current information architecture is scattered, making the features difficult to find.”
"I feel under-confident about posting my questions on the Trailblazer feed because I'm concerned about being judged by the larger community for the quality of my questions."
"I'm skeptical about the quality of answers I receive because I'm unsure of their credibility.”
“I’m unsure if my queries would be answered once posted on the feed, which discourages me from engaging any further.”
04/ COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
We conducted a competitive analysis to determine the Trailblazer Community's position in comparison to other platforms. We evaluated it against major community platforms like LinkedIn, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Reddit, Stack Overflow, and Quora, as well as direct competitors like HubSpot.
Direct Competitor: Hubspot
UI Design
Gamification
HubSpot makes use of a single bar that serves both the goal of searching and that of asking questions.
The Trailblazer Community is primarily focused on its Learning Management System (LMS) platform. Badges are given for completing trails (courses), but there is no separate recognition for community involvement and efforts.
Quora has a "request answers" feature that allows users to seek responses from experts on specific topics, giving users confidence that their questions will be answered by knowledgeable individuals.
Posting Wizard
HubSpot gives users badges for making contributions to the community. This makes them much more likely to connect and take part in the community.
Salesforce, users find it difficult to determine whether certain elements, such as the "Ask a Question" bar and the "Search Bar," serve the same purpose or whether they are designed to perform distinct functions.
vs
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In the Trailblazer Community, there is no such feature, so users often have to wait a long time for responses. Additionally, the authenticity of answers can be questionable due to high levels of spam.
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What are the current challenges facing the Trailblazers Community?
Lack of Participation Among User Groups: There is a noticeable lack of active participation from various user groups within the community, which affects the diversity and richness of discussions and exchanges.
Redundant Posts: The community sees a high volume of redundant posts, which clutters the platform and can lead to information overload, making it difficult for users to find valuable and relevant content.
Siloed Features within the Community: Features within the community are often siloed, hindering smooth navigation and interaction among users. This separation can prevent users from fully leveraging the community’s resources.
Broken Information Architecture: The community’s information architecture is not optimally structured, which complicates the process of finding information and navigating the site effectively.
Imbalance in User Representation: There is a disproportionate highlighting of power users, with new users often under-represented. This imbalance can discourage newer members from participating actively and contributing to the community.
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User Stories
From the identified pain points, we developed multiple user stories tailored to the needs of both new users and power users. To determine which user stories to focus on within the project's scope and timeframe, we conducted a voting process among our eight group members. This helped us identify the most high-impact user stories to prioritize moving forward.
To narrow down our concepts, we first voted on the impact of the user stories within the community ecosystem. We then filtered it down to the top 4 user stories (see Jobs To Be Done (User Stories)) that were deemed to have the highest impact.
Post this, we sorted the concepts that fall under the top 4 user stories, and the ones which would create the highest impact in the Trailblazer ecosystem, based on our sponsor feedback.
Solution Brainstorming
Our main goal is to foster a vibrant community with high participation. To achieve this, we identified the core values needed within the community and created a strategic framework to guide our approach.
We used the Situated Learning Framework from Lave & Wenger (1991) to design immersive user stories that reflect real-life community interactions, helping us better understand social learning processes. By placing new and potential power users within these narratives, we gained insights to inform concepts that support seamless integration and engagement.
Turning pain points into user stories
DESIGN VALUE 4: SIMPLICITY & CLARITY
USER STORY 4
"I want to easily navigate in the community when I am looking for my desired content, so I don’t feel lost. "
PAIN POINT 4
“I feel overwhelmed while navigating the Trailblazer community, as the current information architecture is scattered, making the features difficult to find.”
The aim is to streamline the navigation process within the community, making it intuitive and user-friendly so that users can effortlessly find the content they are looking for. Improving the clarity and simplicity of how the information is presented can result in less confusion and boost engagement in the community.
Turning pain points into user stories
We transformed pain points into user stories and extracted a core design value, which we then used to develop design concepts.
Final Designs
CONCEPT 1: DASHBOARD(HOME)
Our first concept (Dashboard) encapsulates 3 micro concepts: Coffee Chat, Sharing Moments, and Trail Groups, all of which fit into the need to build a sense of community by bridging the gap between the new users and power users.
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Timed Trail Groups
Helps in creating a less intimidating environment, building trust, and making new members feel safe to share and engage.
Sharing Moments
This design showcases “Trailblazer Stories” and other Salesforce offline events right on the home page/dashboard. This allows users to connect with the Salesforce culture, cultivating a sense of belonging on a personal level.
Coffee Chats
New users can choose to connect with power users voluntarily (based on shared interests, similar domains, etc.), allowing them to build relations and networks with people in the community.
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CONCEPT 2: FEED(Q&A)
Our second concept (Feed) encapsulates four micro-concepts: AI Posting Wizard, Trending Community Posts, Your Feed, and Leaderboard, all of which are meant to help form key actions to improve engagement within the community and provide a medium to interact in the community forum.
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AI Posting Wizard Call-To-Action within the Feed Screen.
Trending Posts
Using AI, the system will be able to target posts that cater to the interests of the user and also help them discover content that they might not have previously known about.
AI Posting Wizard
Helps them navigate the publishing process in the quickest way possible and simultaneously use AI to recommend similar questions that may have already been answered. The idea is that by showcasing previously answered questions, new users will be directed to quicker resolutions, and power users will see an uptick in engagement within their posts.
When a question is asked that is not similar to previously asked questions, the user will also have the capacity to assign the question to three expert users who are most likely to be able to help them in that field.
Your Feed
A key feature of this section is the 'I have the same question' button within a post, which pushes the post to the top in case a lot of users are having the same problem. This allows moderators and seasoned users to quickly notice and intervene to help accordingly.
Leaderboard
This leaderboard showcases users who are actively engaged within the community, such as answering questions, upvoting posts, reporting spam, and most importantly, scheduling 1:1 calls through coffee chats. The more the user engages, the more points they earn, which translates into badges that are showcased within the community and also on their profiles.
Reflections
Working on the project not only expanded my understanding of community dynamics, but it also provided a unique opportunity to learn directly from Salesforce's UX leaders. This mentorship helped bridge the gap between theoretical understanding and real-world application. This exposure to industry best practices, combined with the opportunity to contribute to meaningful UX decisions, has significantly improved my abilities and confidence in dealing with complicated design challenges.
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