Introduction
While many people tend to understand at least the basic premise of popular platforms like Facebook and Instagram, some newer services may be misunderstood. Among the most interesting of these apps is the Discord platform, a social media site based around natural conversations and community building.
What is Discord?
Discord is a social media platform that enables its users to engage in conversations over text chat, voice chat or video chat channels. Rather than existing as a single centralised platform like many other social media sites, the service is divided up across multiple distinct servers. Different users are able to create servers focused on common interests, with options to invite like minded people to join new communities.
Discord servers can either be public or private spaces with users able to choose between these options during the creation of a new server. Public servers can be joined freely by anyone active on the Discord platform, while private servers are only accessible via a private link. Invite links can be sent by any existing server members with permission to create invite links, with authorization issued via the server's settings.
Who uses Discord?
Discord was initially designed as a space for the gaming community to congregate online, but in recent years, the platform has expanded to include content from all walks of life. From servers focused on specific topics like TV shows or sports teams, to more abstract communities like general chat groups and study spaces, Discord offers its users a great deal of freedom in creating spaces to suit most needs.
How to set up a Discord account
Like any social media platform, joining Discord is intentionally easy, though Discord may be even easier to join than many other services. Thanks to its roots in the gaming community, Discord is available as an app on both the Xbox and Playstation online stores, as well being accessible via most desktop browsers and smartphone app stores, ensuring members across all platforms are able to communicate freely.
To set up an account, users can either visit Discord's website or download the Discord app onto their platform of choice. After adding some personal details including an appropriate username, password and email address, a new account can be created. Members can also choose to verify their personal phone numbers on their accounts to enable multi-factor authentication for additional account security.
As soon as a new Discord account is created, users will be asked to join communities relevant to their interests. Typing keywords associated with different hobbies and pursuits into the service's search bar will return a list of communities members may wish to join. Servers with a hashtag next to their names are text channels, while those with a speaker icon next to the server name are voice channels. Members can use these signifiers to join communities that interact in a manner best suited to their requirements.
Discord Nitro
While the basic version of Discord is free to use, enabling anybody to create an account and join servers to talk and share direct messages with their friends, some members may wish to explore the platform's premium service. Discord Nitro adds more features to the standard Discord platform, though does cost a little money in the form of a monthly or yearly subscription. Users can choose between Discord Nitro Basic priced at around $3 per month, or the full version of Discord Nitro priced at around $10 per month.
Some popular benefits of Discord Nitro include:
Custom emotes and animated emojis
Custom application icons
50MB (Basic) or 500MB (Nitro) file sharing
HD streaming up to 4K 60FPS (Nitro)
Exclusive Nitro profile badge
Custom video backgrounds
Extended 4000 character message limit (Nitro)
How to set up a Discord server
While it's perfectly acceptable to browse Discord as a community member, most people feel the real benefit of the platform is the ability for any account holder to create their own server with relative ease.
A Discord server can be created during any new user's initial account creation process by selecting the "create my own" prompt that pops up during authorization. Alternatively, members may navigate to the left sidebar of their Discord dashboard and click the "+" symbol to open up the "create a server" prompt.
From here, Discord users can either select "create my own" to begin building a server with unique user settings, or choose from a number of templates that other users have deployed successfully in existing Discord servers. Later prompts will enable users to configure new servers as public or private spaces, with options to set rules like prohibiting explicit content or allowing server members to create invite links.
Tips for creating a successful Discord server
Choose a searchable name - Public servers should have a unique name relevant to the purpose of the server to ensure other users can find the community with ease, make sure to include keywords associated with the server's main focus, and ensure the server name isn't too long or complicated.
Create organized channels - Create multiple voice chat and text channels dedicated to different aspects of the community to ensure member conversations and community building activities are well-organized, popular examples include things like "general chat", "content creation" and "FAQs".
Set clear rules and guidelines - To build an engaging Discord server, it's important to make sure members follow general rules and guidelines regarding the types of conversations that can take place, rules can be added in the "server settings" tab found under "moderation" in the left side bar.
Moderate server activity - Moderators help server administrators ensure no inappropriate content is shared by other members, admins can choose to appoint trusted community members to act as moderators or utilize automated Discord bots to perform the bulk of the server's moderation tasks.
Can Discord be used for business?
Brands can build their own community or work with an existing one. Wildfire builds partnerships with independent community owners, who choose each campaign and publish it in their own voice. Giveaways, quizzes, events and early access give members something to participate in.
Is Discord right for your brand?
Start with what your audience cares about and what you can add to the community. You do not need to build or manage your own server to explore a partnership.