Why member happiness should be your number one metric

Customer-centricity sounds simple in theory, with the customer-first approach widely treated as the ‘right’ approach businesses should take. Yet, a recent survey revealed only 36% of organisations are truly customer-centric. 

So why isn’t every organisation focusing on customers?

The truth is that customer-centricity is hard. 

Companies have goals they need to meet and will (quite rightly) prioritise them—whether that’s growth, engagement numbers, or revenue targets. However, the pressures to succeed in these areas often overshadow the customer needs. 

Instead, companies and online communities should treat customer-centricity as their guiding principle. By honing in on making happy community members and continuously improving the customer experience, you can directly contribute to your company reaching its goals and internal metrics.

Forrester’s 2024 US Customer Experience (CX) Index found that customer-obsessed organisations have: 

• 41% faster revenue growth 

• 49% faster profit growth 

• 51% better customer retention 

Let’s get into it.

Where companies go wrong with metrics

It’s understandable why companies get lost in the weeds of metrics because of how easy certain metrics are to track.

Let’s take the following three metrics: 

• Page views

• Member registrations 

• Post counts 

These metrics are all highly available on most community analytics platforms. Seeing these numbers increase can be exciting for a community manager and something they want to show their boss to prove the online community is working. 

They look good in reports and offer a quick snapshot of growth. However, these vanity metrics can give a false impression, and ‘growth’ can be shallow. 

While you might see a spike in new members or activity, those numbers will only mean something if the people joining your community are happy, engaged, and stick around. For example, if you increase membership by 20% but those new members don’t find value, they’ll leave as quickly as they joined. 

It’s not about abandoning metrics altogether, but finding the right metrics to track. Customer-centric metrics show deeper engagement, long-term retention, and member satisfaction.

The real measure of success in any online community is whether your members are finding value. If they are, they’ll stay engaged, contribute, and even become advocates for your community. If they’re not, all the page views and sign-ups in the world won’t make a difference.

Start at the beginning

The number one priority of businesses in the next five years is customer experience (also known as CX). It’s easy to say, ‘Make the customer the hero,’ but it’s a mindset shift many companies find difficult to embrace. 

It also goes beyond making a couple of tweaks to your current goals. 

Customer-centricity starts at the very beginning when you establish your community’s purpose.

Understanding what your community stands for is the foundation of building a community with purpose, one that aligns with your core mission and manifesto, and helps your members connect on a deeper level with your brand. 

Instead of asking, “What KPIs do we need to hit this month?” we need to ask, “How do we make our members feel valued? And how do we help them succeed?”. 

When you start from a place of serving your members first, your community will become more than just a platform —it becomes a place where people want to engage and stay long-term.

The importance of member happiness

When we focus on member happiness, we’re not just asking how often they log in or how many posts they make. We’re asking if they feel supported and successful within the community. 

Happy members are more than just active members. They’re advocates. They’re the people who will move up the participation ladder and bring others into the community, share their experiences, and create organic engagement that no marketing campaign can replicate.

When you prioritise happy members in your online community, you’ll find:

Members stay longer

When members feel like your community is a place where they’re valued, they’re more likely to stick around. Retention is a key indication of member satisfaction. After all, a happy member is a loyal member. 

Members share and contribute

Happy members naturally want to share their success stories, and these stories become the best backing your community could get. Success stories allow members to create content and connections that bring value to everyone. Plus, newbies to your online community will trust the word of long-standing members more than anything or anyone else. 

Members become advocates

Members who feel appreciated by the community are far more likely to recommend it to others. This leads to organic growth, where new members join because they’ve heard about the positive experiences of others. 

Business growth

Communities that focus on member happiness see better retention rates. For businesses, this often leads to stronger customer loyalty and increased revenue. Customer-centric brands report 60% higher profits than those who fail to focus on customer experience. 

5 steps to building a happiness-driven community

Shifting to a member-centric approach means rethinking your strategy and making member happiness your guiding principle or ‘North Star’. Here are five ways to do this:

1. Focus on member success

Many organisations view customer-centricity as an ‘add-on’ strategy rather than something weaved into their culture. Think of your community as a space where members should thrive. Provide the resources, tools, and support they need to succeed. 

2. Nudge positive behaviours

Nudge your members to take positive actions (like engaging and connecting with others) in your community. Small incentives, recognition, or gamification can help reinforce the habits that lead to a more active and supportive community.

3. Celebrate member contribution

Acknowledging and celebrating the efforts of your members is critical to building a positive community culture. Whether through public recognition, badges, or simple thank-yous, making members feel appreciated will increase their sense of belonging.

4. Create spaces for meaningful connections

Communities succeed when members feel a genuine connection to one another. Facilitate discussions, create spaces for collaboration, and host events where members can share their stories and learn from one another. When you focus on creating a connected experience, your members naturally want to engage more deeply with each other. 

5. Listen and act on feedback

Never sit on the information your members provide you with. Regularly ask for feedback from your community and take action. Show members that their opinions matter and that their input shapes the community’s future. 

Make member happiness your top priority

It’s easy to talk about member happiness and customer-centricity, but it takes real effort to implement. It means shifting from your organisation’s wants and focusing on the community’s needs. When you put your members first and make their happiness your top priority, everything else will follow. 

We create applications and websites that are member-first. At Steadfast Collective, we prioritise what your members want so that they stay active and engaged in your community space. If you’re ready to start or improve your online community with our help, get in touch!