community-growth

name	community-growth
description	Community building and user acquisition strategies for RunSmart. Covers running community engagement, Strava integration, referral programs, content-led growth, influencer partnerships, and grassroots marketing in running communities. Use when planning user acquisition, community features, or organic growth strategies.
metadata	{"short-description":"Grow RunSmart through running communities, referrals, and organic channels."}

When Claude should use this skill

• Planning user acquisition channels
• Building community features (challenges, leaderboards, groups)
• Designing referral or sharing mechanics
• Creating partnerships with running communities
• Content marketing for organic discovery
• User asks "how do we get users" or "growth strategy"

Running Community Landscape

Digital Communities (High Priority)

Platform	Audience Size	Strategy
Strava	120M+ users	Club, challenges, API integration
Reddit r/running	3M+ subscribers	Value-first content, no spam
Reddit r/C25K	500K+	Beginner-focused tips, app mention in context
Parkrun	9M+ globally	Local community partnerships
Instagram #running	100M+ posts	Visual content, runner stories
Twitter/X running	Active community	Thread-based education content
YouTube running	Growing fast	Tutorial/review content

In-Person Communities

• Local running clubs
• Parkrun events
• Marathon/race expos
• Running specialty stores
• University running groups

Growth Channels

Channel 1: Strava Integration

• Create official RunSmart Strava Club
• Sync run data via Strava API
• Weekly challenges visible on Strava
• Auto-post RunSmart achievements to Strava

Channel 2: Content-Led Growth (SEO)

Pillar content strategy:

1. "Complete Guide to Training Plans" → links to plan-generator
2. "How AI is Changing Running Coaching" → thought leadership
3. "Recovery Science for Runners" → links to recovery features
4. "From Couch to 5K: Week-by-Week Guide" → onboarding funnel
5. "Marathon Training: 16-Week Plan" → advanced funnel

Channel 3: Referral Program

Mechanic: "Invite a running buddy"
- Sharer gets: Premium feature unlock (1 month)
- Invitee gets: Personalized welcome + buddy connection
- Viral coefficient target: 0.3 (each user invites 0.3 new users)

Channel 4: Social Proof & UGC

• Post-run share cards (beautiful, branded)
• Achievement badges shareable to social
• "Trained with RunSmart" Strava description
• Runner transformation stories

Channel 5: Partnerships

• Running influencers: Micro-influencers (5K-50K followers)
• Coaches: Free premium tier for certified coaches
• Events: Sponsor local 5K/10K events
• Brands: Co-marketing with running shoe/gear brands

Community Features Roadmap

Phase 1: Social Sharing (MVP)

• Share run summary card (image)
• Share training plan highlights
• Basic invite link with tracking

Phase 2: In-App Community

• Running challenges (weekly distance, streak)
• Leaderboards (opt-in, supportive tone)
• Training buddy matching
• Group challenges for teams/clubs

Phase 3: Platform

• Coach marketplace
• Community-created plans
• Race event integration
• Local running group discovery

User Acquisition Funnel

Awareness (content, social, word-of-mouth)
  → Landing page visit
    → PWA install / signup
      → Onboarding complete
        → First plan generated
          → First run recorded
            → Week 2 retention (activated user)
              → Referral / share (growth loop)

Retention Through Community

• Daily: Today's workout from AI coach
• Weekly: Progress summary, community challenge update
• Monthly: Achievement review, plan milestone
• Social: Running buddy accountability, group challenges

Metrics

Metric	Target	Timeline
Strava Club members	500	3 months
Referral rate	15% of users send invite	6 months
Viral coefficient	0.3	6 months
Organic traffic	5K visits/month	6 months
Community NPS	50+	3 months

Agent Team Pattern: Growth Sprint

Create an agent team for growth sprint:
- Content teammate: write 3 SEO pillar articles
- Social teammate: create 2-week social content calendar
- Product teammate: implement share card and referral link
- Analytics teammate: set up funnel tracking for all channels

Integration Points

• Sharing: V0/components/ShareCard.tsx
• Referral: V0/lib/referral.ts
• Analytics: V0/lib/analytics.ts
• Strava: V0/lib/strava-api.ts (future)
• Content: V0/app/(public)/blog/ (future)