What is Community-Led Software?

Community-led growth enables SaaS companies to tap into industry experts, influencers, and happy customers to create a movement around an idea, category, or solution.

It’s about turning users into advocates—using their voices to grow adoption, retention, and expansion. Platforms like G2, Reviewflowz, and Bettermode help build communities that support your product by connecting users, encouraging participation, and spreading word-of-mouth.

Community-led growth drives engagement beyond just transactions—it’s about creating a movement around an idea or a product, where your customers are your biggest advocates.

Community-Led Software

Community-led growth enables SaaS companies to tap into industry experts, influencers, and happy customers to create a movement around an idea, category, or solution. It’s about turning users into advocates—using their voices to grow adoption, retention, and expansion. Platforms like G2, Reviewflowz, and Bettermode help build communities that support your product by connecting users, encouraging participation, and spreading word-of-mouth. Community-led growth drives engagement beyond just transactions—it’s about creating a movement around an idea or a product, where your customers are your biggest advocates.

Software Review Platforms

G2 Marketing Solutions G2 Marketing Solutions
Where you go for software. Provide software reviews and comparisons.
TrustRadius for Vendors TrustRadius for Vendors
Software reviews you can trust. Offer verified tech product reviews and insights.
PeerSpot for Vendors PeerSpot for Vendors
Buying Intelligence for Enterprise Technology: Reviews, Discussions and Advice from Real Users. Facilitate peer-to-peer software and service reviews.
Gartner Peer Insights Gartner Peer Insights
Guide rechnology and business decisions with peer-driven insights. Generate reviews that factor into Gartner® Magic Quadrants™.
Gartner Digital Markets Gartner Digital Markets
Connecting software vendors with in-market buyers, through research, reviews and lead generation. Gartner Digital Markets is a collection of review sites that offers 4 core products: lead generation, review collective, intent data, and competitor comparisons.

Customer Content Generation Platforms

UserEvidence UserEvidence
Helping B2B marketers better leverage the voice of their customers by collecting feedback, reviewing responses, and sharing the best voice of the customer content.
TechValidate by SurveyMonkey TechValidate by SurveyMonkey
4.7
The world’s leading survey software. On a mission to help people turn their curiosity into action. A SurveyMonkey product to helps you create marketing content from content feedback.
G2 Content Marketing Subscription G2 Content Marketing Subscription
Where you go for software. G2 offers five core products for vendors: profiles, buyer intent, reviews, content marketing, and market Intelligence.
TrustRadius Content TrustRadius Content
Software reviews you can trust. TrustRadius has 3 core product offerings for B2B brands: Content Licensing, Buyer Decisioning Platform, and Downstream Intent Data.
PeerSpot Content Creation PeerSpot Content Creation
Buying Intelligence for Enterprise Technology: Reviews, Discussions and Advice from Real Users. PeerSpot for vendors has two core offerings: Content Creation and Demand Generation, ideal for enterprises targeting buyers in IT.

Customer Testimonial Video Solutions

Testimonial Hero Testimonial Hero
4.9
We help B2B revenue teams close deals 40% faster with done-for-you strategic video testimonials and written content that close trust gaps between you and your audiences. for your entire funnel. Create video testimonials remotely or on-site with TestimonialHero handling the filming & editing for you.
Testimonial.to Testimonial.to
We provide the easiest way to collect and display testimonials. Collect, curate & share authentic customer stories in the form of testimonials. Ideal for startups, agencies, and course creators.
Laudable Laudable
5.0
Find customer proof and advocates hiding in your call recordings and use them to grow (YC S21). Scale customer testimonial videos by making 8 or more interviews per year in an annual SaaS subscription.
VideoAsk by Typeform VideoAsk by Typeform
4.7
New from Typeform: VideoAsk helps businesses have meaningful interactions by embracing the proximity of video. Create interactive video surveys and polls from any device. Easily capture customer feedback and collect valuable data.
ShoutOut ShoutOut
ShoutOut is an automated video creation and distribution platform. Send out a link to capture authentic video content, text and photos from your advocates.
Vouch Vouch
Cut through the noise with video. Capture video testimonials using a browser-based recorder, edit, and integrate them into your workflows in Slack, Drive and other places.

Online Review Management Software

Reviewflowz Reviewflowz
4.8
Never miss a review again. Streamline online review management with all your reviews, straight to your favourite slack channel.
Podium Podium
4.4
Everything local businesses need to win. Simplify online reviews and messaging for local businesses.
Birdeye Birdeye
4.8
Birdeye helps businesses grow through happy customers. Manage and improve online reputation through reviews.
Reputation Reputation
4.5
Reputation is software that manages consumer feedback from acquisition to loyalty. Optimize and manage the online reputation of your consumer business.
ReviewTrackers ReviewTrackers
4.7
Use customer feedback to act today and predict tomorrow. Analyze and manage customer reviews effectively.
Reviews.io Reviews.io
4.8
A better review solution. Collect and showcase customer reviews.
NiceJob NiceJob
4.8
We help great businesses get the reputation they deserve, become top rated, and win more sales. Get more reviews, referrals, and sales through word of mouth.

User Generated Content Software

UserEvidence UserEvidence
Helping B2B marketers better leverage the voice of their customers by collecting feedback, reviewing responses, and sharing the best voice of the customer content.
Bazaarvoice Bazaarvoice
4.3
Building smarter shopper experiences across the entire customer journey. Drive brand growth with user-generated content.
Yotpo Yotpo
4.8
An eCommerce marketing platform offering solutions for Reviews, SMS, Loyalty & Referrals, Subscriptions, and Visual UGC. Enhance eCommerce with customer content.
PowerReviews PowerReviews
4.3
The Ratings & Reviews specialist doing more with UGC to grow your business. Improve product experience with user feedback.
LoudCrowd LoudCrowd
4.5

We help brands achieve customer-led growth through social rewards programs. Drive customer advocacy through gamification

Online Survey Software

Jotform Jotform
4.7
Go from busywork to less work with our powerful forms and suite of productivity tools. Create customizable online forms.
Typeform Typeform
4.6
We help brands treat people like people—with no-code forms, quizzes, surveys, and asynchronous video solutions. Design interactive forms and surveys.
SurveyMonkey SurveyMonkey
4.5
The world’s leading survey software. On a mission to help people turn their curiosity into action. Offer online survey tools.
Delighted by Qualtrics Delighted by Qualtrics
4.7
It's never been easier to gather actionable feedback in order to track customer trends and proactively reduce churn. Collect and analyze customer feedback.
SurveySparrow SurveySparrow
4.4
An end-to-end Conversational Experience Management Platform that helps get 40% better response rate. Create conversational surveys.
Google Forms Google Forms
4.7
Easily create and share online forms and surveys, and analyze responses in real-time. Make simple forms for free.

Customer Advocacy & Community Platforms

SlapFive SlapFive
4.8
SlapFive is the first Customer Marketing software that makes it simple to engage and mobilize customers to drive growth. Customer Marketing Software Platform. Customer Advocacy, Customer References, Customer Engagement, and Customer Insights.
Orca Customer Marketing Orca Customer Marketing
5.0
Who's Your Champion? Customer advocacy platform with a focus on references. 100% native Salesforce® application helps make attribution easier.
Influitive Influitive
4.4
Powering the world's most engaging customer communities. Advocacy, community, and engagement platform for Mid-Market and Enterprise B2B companies.
Base Base
4.5
Building the Customer-led Growth category in B2B, developer of the Holistic Customer Marketing Automation Platform. Customer Marketing & Advocacy platform for Mid-Market and Enterprise SaaS companies.

Online Community Platforms

Higher Logic Higher Logic
4.4
Some people connect businesses to people. Others connect people to people. We do both. Community software for B2B and B2C companies to improve customer experience and engagement.
Salesforce Experience Cloud Salesforce Experience Cloud
We bring companies and customers together on the world's # 1 CRM. Salesforce Experience Cloud is powered by advanced online community software that allows businesses of all sizes to connect to their partners, customers, employees, and business processes like never before.
Gainsight Customer Communities Gainsight Customer Communities
4.2
The durable growth platform for customer success, product, and community teams. Gain a holistic view of your customers to increase product adoption, prevent churn, and grow customer communities.
Bettermode Bettermode
4.7
An all-in-one community engagement platform designed to help businesses build better customer relationships. Collect candid feedback and opinions of your business. Build trust and credibility among your audience base.

Community Engagement Software

Circle Circle
4.9
The all-in-one community platform for creators and brands. Build and scale online communities.
Bettermode Bettermode
4.7
An all-in-one community engagement platform designed to help businesses build better customer relationships. Collect candid feedback and opinions of your business. Build trust and credibility among your audience base.
Hivebrite Hivebrite
4.4
We power communities, help them thrive, and maximize their impact. Launch, manage, and grow fully branded private communities.
Higher Logic Higher Logic
4.4
Some people connect businesses to people. Others connect people to people. We do both. Community software for B2B and B2C companies to improve customer experience and engagement.
Mighty Networks Mighty Networks
4.6
Build a community, courses, content, and commerce on Mighty. Online platform for creators to build communities.

Customer Reference Management Software

Point of Reference Point of Reference
4.6
Technology (ReferenceEdge®), Expertise, and Support Services to harness the power of your customer advocates. Streamline reference management with a flexible platform.
Upland RO Innovation Upland RO Innovation
4.1
Customer reference management software to find and engage with their most influential advocates. Connect with customers to amplify brand awareness and win more deals.

Customer Success Software

Gainsight Gainsight
4.4
The durable growth platform for customer success, product, and community teams. Enhance customer success by automating workflows, prioritizing tasks, and predicting risks.
ChurnZero ChurnZero
4.6
We're the Customer Success platform and partner for growing SaaS and subscription businesses. Minimize churn with real-time customer health tracking and targeted engagement strategies.
Custify Custify
4.8
Customer Success Software for SaaS - Reduce Churn, Retain Customers and Grow Revenue. Optimize customer lifecycle with customizable automation, easy integration, and actionable insights.
Vitally Vitally
It’s time for a new era of Customer Success productivity. Combine your customer data with project management and work platforms.

Customer Insights Platforms

Alida Alida
Total Experience Management with Community at its core. Anticipate customers' ever-evolving needs to make better decisions, build long-term relationships, and grow faster.
Qualtrics Qualtrics
4.2
Qualtrics Experience Management (XM) helps brands continually assess the quality of their four core experiences—customers, employees, products, and brands. Know what people need, when they need it, and deliver it every time.
SurveyMonkey Enterprise SurveyMonkey Enterprise
4.3
Put your curiosity to work quickly and confidently with a global leader in surveys and forms. Online survey and questionnaire tool.

Customer Advocacy Consultancies

Captivate Collective Captivate Collective
Bold customer engagement strategies, from acquisition to advocacy. Develop advocacy programs with customer-focused strategies.
Advocacy Maven Advocacy Maven
Full-service B2B advocacy marketing agency. Implement customer advocacy with expert guidance.
Referential Referential
Inciting Advocacy. Improve reference management with comprehensive services.
Porter Consulting Porter Consulting
Providing business-to-business marketing and technology services to companies around the world. Accelerate sales growth using tailored consulting.

Customer Marketing Communities

CMA Weekly CMA Weekly
Customer-facing marketers & advocacy professionals don't have to work alone. Join 1,000+ in Slack & a weekly Q&A Zoom. Provide weekly customer marketing insights and resources.
Customer Marketing Alliance Customer Marketing Alliance
We’re the one-stop-shop for customer marketers. Connect customer marketing professionals for collaboration.

Customer Marketing & Advocacy Courses

Golden Nugget Review Mining System Golden Nugget Review Mining System
Online reviews from real buyers—your own or a competitor’s—are a goldmine of insight. This course helps you find and action them.
Measuring the ROI of Advocacy Measuring the ROI of Advocacy
Measuring the ROI of Advocacy. Teaches Customer Marketing & Advocacy professionals how to measure the impact of their work.
CAP Certification CAP Certification
Customer Advocacy in Practice (CAP) Workshop & Certification series. Get actionable ideas, real-world examples and expert insights in CMA.
ICCAP Certification ICCAP Certification
Committed to promoting excellence and accountability in the customer advocacy industry. Offers professional certifications in customer advocacy.

Key features of the best Community-Led Software

The top Community-Led Software platforms connect different aspects of community engagement into a seamless experience. For example, Review Management Tools like Reviewflowz help manage and track customer feedback, ensuring you never miss a chance to respond and engage. Online Community Platforms like Bettermode foster user-to-user engagement, allowing customers to share their experiences and insights with each other. Customer Advocacy Platforms (e.g., SlapFive) take it further by encouraging top users to create content, serve as references, and even participate in product launches.

Benefits of Community-Led Software

The biggest benefit of Community-Led Software is authenticity—it brings genuine customer voices to the forefront. Tools like Reviewflowz ensure all customer reviews are captured, helping build a real, honest picture of the brand. Positive reviews and testimonials boost credibility and build trust with prospects. Additionally, Customer Testimonial Video Solutions (e.g., Testimonial Hero, Laudable) take this further by turning customer experiences into compelling, visual content. Community engagement also helps scale support, where users help each other, reducing the burden on support teams.

Who uses Community-Led Software

Community-led software is popular among B2B SaaS companies, eCommerce brands, and tech enterprises. Companies like those in the Online Review Management Software category—such as Reviewflowz—use these tools to manage their online reputation and engage with customer feedback in real-time. Community Platforms like Higher Logic and Gainsight Customer Communities are used by companies to create dedicated spaces where users can engage, ask questions, and share insights, which in turn builds loyalty. It’s especially common for brands looking to leverage social proof and deepen their customer relationships.

Implementation of Community-Led Software

Implementing Community-Led Software involves more than just installing a tool—it’s about fostering a culture of engagement. Platforms like Point of Reference for customer reference management help maintain relationships with advocates, while tools like Review Management Software (e.g., Reviewflowz) enable consistent tracking and responding to customer feedback. Successful implementation means having a clear community strategy, assigning community managers to nurture participation, and setting up systems that incentivize and reward community activity.

Comparing Community-Led Software

Different tools have different strengths based on your goals. Reviewflowz is ideal for tracking and managing customer reviews, perfect for businesses focused on maintaining a positive reputation and responding to customer feedback. Customer Advocacy Platforms like SlapFive are designed to create strong advocates out of happy customers, helping businesses leverage testimonials and references to boost credibility. Meanwhile, Community Platforms like Bettermode or Circle focus on facilitating discussions, connecting users, and nurturing customer engagement over time.

Pricing: the cost of Community-Led Software

Pricing for Community-Led Software can vary significantly depending on the features you need. Reviewflowz offers affordable solutions for businesses looking to centralize and manage their review process, making it accessible for small to mid-sized businesses. On the other hand, Customer Advocacy Platforms like Influitive and Online Community Platforms like Higher Logic are often priced higher, reflecting their comprehensive feature sets aimed at enterprise clients.

Community-Led Software platforms typically offer tiered pricing models based on community size, features, and support levels. Entry-level plans often start at $50-200 per month for basic features and smaller communities. Mid-tier plans ranging from $500-2000 monthly add advanced features like custom branding, API access, and enhanced analytics. Enterprise plans, which can exceed $5000 monthly, include dedicated support, custom integrations, and unlimited users. Some platforms offer free tiers for open-source projects or small communities.

My experience with Community-Led Software

Through my work at one of the leading Community-Led Software platforms, Influitive, and in my 15 years in B2B marketing, I’ve observed several critical success factors.

The most successful implementations maintain a balance between community autonomy and strategic direction. Active moderation, consistent engagement, and clear communication channels prove essential.

Regular community events, recognition programs, and transparent decision-making processes help maintain momentum.

The most common challenges include managing scale, maintaining engagement during growth phases, and balancing different stakeholder interests.

Author

Joe Kevens B2B SaaS Reviews

I’m the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of B2B SaaS Reviews and the Director of Demand Generation at PartnerStack, the leading platform for partner management and affiliate marketing in B2B SaaS. My experience spans several notable B2B SaaS companies, including Influitive (Advocate Marketing), LevelJump (Sales Enablement, acquired by Salesforce), and Eloqua (Marketing Automation, acquired by Oracle). I hold a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing Management from Toronto Metropolitan University and a Master of International Business from Queen’s University, with academic exchanges at Copenhagen Business School and Bocconi University.

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