How and why Brands need to create their own Roblox Communities?
Community and news
Last week, we started exploring the topic of community. This week, we're diving deeper into it, using recent news to understand the best practices for building a strong community on the platform.
Roblox made a relatively small announcement that it acquired Bloxlink last week, the biggest Discord Bot for Roblox. (I’ll dive into the details of what this means later.)
We also learned that KreekCraft, Roblox's top YouTuber, reached 10 million subscribers this last week, a significant milestone for both a gaming YouTuber and the Roblox platform.
KreekCraft was also involved in other exciting Roblox news. He was one of the captains of The Games by Roblox, an initiative encouraging people to experience an Olympic-style event created for their audience on the platform.
All this got me thinking about the concept of community. With Roblox investing in Discord, Roblox YouTube content creators gaining millions of followers and building massive communities, and these creators being invited by Roblox to participate in their experiences, it's clear that Roblox is deeply focused on fostering community engagement.
What does community mean for Roblox? What's the purpose of community within Roblox? And how do you build one? How does this all relate to brands?
Why to build a Roblox Community?
Community is perhaps the main reason why Roblox exists. Roblox isn't just a platform where people can play millions of games; it's a 3D environment where players are excited to socialize together.
The idea of socializing led users to develop personalities and aesthetics on the platform to look more appealing and be more accepted by the community. Customizing avatars allowed users to express themselves, making it easier to connect with others who shared similar looks, personalities, and interests.
Initially, games attracted people, but audiences stayed for the social interactions. Community is what drove people to use the platform to meet, talk, get to know each other, and showcase their personalities through a 3D immersive experience.
Since then, Roblox and developers have created and leveraged various tools to bring these communities together, allowing targeted messaging, capturing their attention and data, and continually encouraging them to explore new games or experiences.
Community is what enables builders, brands, and creators to draw attention to their experiences. If you want to succeed on Roblox, focusing on building a strong community is essential.
How to build a Roblox Community?
Roblox Groups and Discord Servers
Roblox Groups and Discord Servers are fantastic tools for developers, builders, marketers and brands to connect directly with their communities. Roblox Groups operate within the platform, while Discord servers are hosted on Discord and utilize various bots and technologies to link the social media platform and the gaming platform together.
Video game, limited time experiences, virtual merch
Video games, short-term experiences, and virtual merchandise are what spark fandom among Roblox users. Brands and developers need to create engaging experiences that make users want to spend their time and become part of the community that created those experiences.
The way these experiences are built is crucial. Developers should prioritize strategies that ensure their games have replayability (players returning to the game) and long playtimes (players spending significant time on the platform). According to Roblox developer Sensei_Developer, every Roblox game needs a simple yet satisfying "core gameplay loop." Sensei_Developer stated, "I came to the conclusion that ‘graphics ~= good game’, and that what happened in the core gameplay loop was the most vital.”
So, video game developers need to identify that core gameplay loop to increase playtime, encourage replayability, and hopefully achieve monetization. This will help their game get noticed by the algorithm and appear in Roblox's Home and Discover tabs.
Developers and marketers should also pay attention to the details in the game description. Using keywords that represent your game can improve its searchability, and adding an invite button makes it easy for players to invite their friends. A clear and simple description of what the game is about is crucial for encourage players to try your experience.
Creators
Building a community without Roblox Creators is tough these days. There are already thousands of creators with diverse audiences who can help attract attention to your experiences. Most branded or high-end video games, like The Games by Roblox or Walmart Discovered by Walmart, have invited UGC creators and social media influencers to participate by leading in-game events, creating merchandise to sell within the experience, or producing content while playing the game.
Partnering with these creators is essential. They can introduce their audiences to your Roblox experiences and communities, encouraging them to join and engage with your community as well.
Social Media
Social media is a key strategy for attracting more players to your experience. The main platforms where Roblox audiences engage with content are TikTok, YouTube, and Twitter. (We’re not including Discord here since it operates a bit differently and was mentioned earlier.)
A brand's or video game's social media strategy isn't just about creating their own channels and content. It’s also about identifying the right creators to partner with and figuring out the best type of content to attract gaming communities to your experiences. Even Roblox’s social media accounts provide excellent exposure for branded experiences by showcasing game trailers and announcements.
To see how important social media and chat applications are for Roblox, consider that the company developed its own version of Discord, called Guilded. However, despite this effort, Discord has remained the main communication channel for Roblox players, and Guilded has struggled to gain a significant market share.
Roblox also created Freshcut, a social media platform for players to connect. However, after gaining 2.5 million users, Roblox decided to shut down the app due to challenges in reaching profitability.
These efforts highlight Roblox’s dedication to building community. They continually innovate to create and maintain spaces for players to connect and stay engaged while recognizing the importance of other platforms in attracting new audiences.
Roblox Ads
Once your video game experience is live, whether it’s a limited-time event or a long-term game, ads can be a great way to attract players and grow your community. Ads can help your game show up on the Home and Discover tabs of the platform or even create portals in similar games that teleport players directly into your experience.
Building a strong community is the most important factor on Roblox, and brands need to keep this in mind when joining the platform.
A well-planned strategy that includes these steps can make all the difference between attracting millions of players to your game or having it go unnoticed. Having the right strategy is essential for achieving great results and drawing more investment to the platform.
