Promote the community and establish partnerships

2025-05-14

Building a thriving Power Platform community requires more than just technical expertise—it involves creating a strong brand, designing a recognizable community identity to attract members, and collaborating with complementary teams to drive innovation and success.

Design your community brand

Creating a strong and recognizable brand for your Power Platform community helps convey the community's identity, values, and purpose, making it easier to attract and engage members.

Here are four key steps to designing your community brand:

Give your community a name: The first step in designing your community brand is to choose a name that reflects its purpose and values. A memorable and meaningful name helps establish the community's identity and makes it easier for potential members to understand what the community is about. For example, "Power Innovator Hub" clearly conveys a focus on innovation and collaboration within the Power Platform ecosystem.
Design an easy-to-recognize community logo: A distinctive and recognizable logo can visually represent the community's identity and be easily identifiable across various platforms and materials. Consider incorporating elements related to Power Platform, such as icons or symbols, to create a strong visual connection. Ensure the logo is versatile and works well in different sizes and formats.
Select a community color scheme: Choose a consistent color scheme that creates a cohesive and professional look for your community brand. Refer to your business brand guidelines to select colors that align with your organization's overall branding. Use these colors consistently across all community-related content.
Consider your brand "voice": Your community's brand voice is the tone and style of communication used in all interactions and content. It should reflect the community's values and personality. For example, your brand voice could be inspiring, encouraging, collaborative, fun, or welcoming. Consistency in your brand voice helps build trust and familiarity with your audience.

Promote your community

Promoting your Power Platform community effectively helps attract new members, fosters engagement, and establishes valuable partnerships. Use the following communication channels and promotional methods to grow your community and ensure its success.

Dedicated intranet page or sub-site: Create a dedicated intranet page or sub-site for your community. This centralized hub can provide essential information, resources, and updates, helping members to stay informed and engaged. Learn more about setting up tools to support your community.
Featured posts and news: Use featured posts and news articles to highlight community activities, achievements, and upcoming events. Sharing success stories and member contributions inspires others to join and participate actively.
Leadership endorsement at existing IT forums: Secure endorsements from leadership. Leaders speaking positively about the community and its benefits lends credibility and encourages members to get involved.
Email newsletters: Send regular email newsletters to keep members informed about the latest news, events, and opportunities within the community. Newsletters can also feature member spotlights, success stories, and valuable resources.
Viva Engage: Use Viva Engage to foster connections and collaboration within the community. This platform can help facilitate discussions, share updates, and provide a space for members to interact and support each other.
Other communities and joint events: Collaborate with other communities and organize joint events. Partnering with related groups can expand your reach, attract new members, and create opportunities for cross-community learning and networking.
Posters and digital signage: Use posters and digital signage to promote your community within your organization.
Company all-hands: Take advantage of company all-hands meetings to promote your community. Presenting at these gatherings can help raise awareness and highlight the community's value to a broader audience.
Information booth: Set up an information booth at company events or in common areas. This booth can provide materials, answer questions, and engage potential members in person.
Word-of-mouth: Encourage existing members to spread the word about the community. Personal recommendations and word-of-mouth are powerful tools for attracting new members and build a strong, engaged community.
Member recommendations: Use member recommendations to promote the community. Encourage members to share their positive experiences and invite colleagues to join. Testimonials and endorsements from current members can be highly persuasive.

Create partnerships

Establishing strategic partnerships is a powerful way to enhance your Power Platform community. Collaborating with other teams and communities in your organization gives you an opportunity to share resources, expand your reach, and create more impactful initiatives.

Identify complementary partners

The first step to creating partnerships is identifying teams and communities that complement your Power Platform community. These partners can help you achieve mutual goals through cross-promotion, joint events, and shared resources.

Potential partners might include:

Microsoft 365 community: Collaborate with the Microsoft 365 community to integrate Power Platform solutions with other Microsoft tools, enhancing productivity and collaboration.
Cyber security team: Partner with the cyber security team to ensure that your Power Platform solutions adhere to security best practices and protocols.
Data management team: Work with the data management team to apply data insights and ensure that your Power Platform applications are data-driven and compliant with organizational standards.
Business improvement team: Collaborate with the business improvement team to identify and implement process improvements using Power Platform tools.

Explore opportunities for collaboration

Once you identify potential partners, explore various opportunities for collaboration that can benefit both your community and your partners. Here are some ideas:

Run internal training events: Organize joint training sessions to educate members of both communities on the capabilities and benefits of Power Platform. These events can help build skills and foster a culture of continuous learning.
Hold solution envisioning workshops: Conduct workshops to brainstorm and develop innovative solutions to common challenges. These sessions can bring together diverse perspectives and expertise, leading to more creative and effective outcomes.
Align efforts with strategic goals: Ensure that your collaborative initiatives align with the strategic goals of your organization. This alignment can help secure support from leadership and demonstrate the value of your partnerships.
Organize joint knowledge sharing and learning initiatives: Create opportunities to share knowledge and learning across communities. Examples include joint webinars, hackathons, and best practice exchanges that benefit all participants.