What AI is doing for marketing, and what's next — Native Strategy

Growth through existing communities

A new tactical lever for customer acquisition and a framework to use it strategically

Growth increasingly comes from embedding in existing communities where culture, trust, and influence converge.

Winning brands are learning to design acquisition strategies not only for individuals, but through the groups that shape their choices.

As attention fragments and audiences rely on trusted circles to filter messages, communities are emerging as a structural lever in the marketing mix not just spaces for engagement, but channels that can drive measurable customer acquisition.

This document introduces Community Marketing: a tactical, structured approach to capture growth by entering and activating existing communities, complementing, not replacing, traditional levers like mass media and one-to-one marketing.

Inside, you’ll find:

a strategic framing of community marketing’s role in acquisition today;
two actionable frameworks to guide decisions:
- the Community Investment Map, to prioritise which communities to target by growth and audience fit;
- the Community Entry Strategy Matrix, to define how to enter based on accessibility and influence;
real-world case studies showing how community-led acquisition delivers both trust and scale.

By integrating community marketing into their acquisition mix, leaders can unlock a new, credible path to growth one built on relevance, legitimacy, and collective trust.

- How communities are reshaping acquisition dynamics in 2025
- The difference between Community Strategy (build) and Community Marketing (enter)
- Two proprietary frameworks to prioritise and activate existing communities
- Real-world case studies from brands that achieved growth through community entry
Communities concentrate attention in places where people exchange recommendations, validate choices, and build collective meaning. Within these trusted spaces, purchase decisions are increasingly shaped by peer influence rather than brand messaging.
Treating communities as structured acquisition channels allows brands to access authentic trust and contextual relevance that traditional tactics can’t replicate.

By embedding in the right existing communities, organisations can gain efficient, credible growth — building legitimacy in the very ecosystems where customer choices are made.
- CMOs and Growth Leaders designing future-proof acquisition strategies
- Brand and Community Managers seeking new levers beyond media and CRM
- Strategy and Innovation teams exploring the intersection of culture, trust, and growth