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Creating Community Groups

Anjye Clark
Updated
The Goal: Set up and configure Community Groups in the GrowthZone Community platform so members can collaborate, network, and share knowledge in organized, interest-based spaces.

Before You Begin:

  • You must have Site Admin access to create and manage Community Groups.
  • GrowthZone AMS integration note: If your Community is integrated with GrowthZone, create your lists/committees in GrowthZone and sync them to Community first. Once synced, begin at Step 6 of the Add Groups instructions below. See Enabling "Community Interaction" for a list of members for more information. Note: Groups created directly in Community do not sync back to GrowthZone.
  • Have your group name, description, privacy settings, and any banner/list images ready before you begin.

 

Step-by-Step Instructions: Add a New Group

  1. Click the gear icon in the header bar.
  2. In the left-hand navigation panel, click Community under the Content section. The preview screen will display your current groups.
    group1.png
  3. Click New Group.

  4. On the Create a new group popup, configure the following fields:

    • Title: Provide a descriptive name for your group (up to 90 characters).
    • Slug: This is a unique, URL-friendly identifier for the group (limited to 50 characters; no spaces, special characters, or capital letters).

    group2.png

  5. Click Create.

Step-by-Step Instructions: Configure the Group Info Tab

After creating the group, you will be taken to the Group Edit Page. Complete the following fields on the Group Info tab:

  1. In the Preview Text field, enter a brief description of the group (78 characters maximum).
  2. In the Body field, add the main content or description for the group. This field supports text, lists, images, videos, and links.
  3. Set a Release Date to specify when the group should become visible to members.

  4. (Optional) Set an End Date if the group should stop being active after a certain date and time.
     

    A note about Privacy Settings for Synced Groups

    All groups synced from Growthzone AMS is defaulted to Private. The privacy level can be changed within Community, but the Allow (Request) to Join/Leave Group toggles are set to off and deactivated — they cannot be enabled on synced groups.

    To learn about Privacy Settings for Community-created Groups, see Community-Created Group Types and Privacy Settings

  5. Choose Privacy options. 

    1. Public: Anyone on the platform can view all Group tabs - ie. view members, announcements, meetings, read discussions and posts, download resources. Only group members can interact with discussions and posts (follow, like, comment, reply), attend group only meetings, and upload resources.

    2. Private: Anyone on the platform can view a private group's About page but will not have access to other group tabs.

    3. Secret: Only existing members of a secret group will be able to see the group in their My Groups Section of the Sidebar. The group will not be displayed on Grids or Rotators.

  6. Admins: Group Administrators are designated within the Growthzone AMS unless the group is created on the community platform. There must be at least one Group Administrator per group.

  7. Upload a List Image (recommended size: 800 × 450 px) for display in rotators, grids, or list modules.
  8. Upload a Banner Image (recommended size: 1440 × 461 px) for prominent display at the top of the group's page.
    group3.png
  9. Click Save to apply your changes.

Step-by-Step Instructions: Edit an Existing Group

As a Site Admin:

  1. Click the gear icon in the header bar.
  2. Click Community in the left-hand navigation bar.
    group4.png
  3. Click the desired group from the list.
  4. Make the needed changes.
  5. Click Save.

As a Site Admin or Group Admin (via the Community front end):

  1. Navigate to the Community Group page where your Groups grid is displayed.
    group5.png
  2. Click the desired group.
  3. Click the group edit icon on the group page.
    groups6.png
  4. Make the needed changes.
  5. Click Save.

Common Pitfalls

  • Slug errors: The Slug field does not allow spaces, capital letters, or special characters. If editing a slug, use underscores instead of spaces (e.g., young_professionals) to avoid errors on save.
  • GrowthZone sync is one-way: Groups created directly in Community will not sync back to GrowthZone AMS. If you need a group to exist in both systems, create it in GrowthZone first and sync it to Community.
  • Wrong privacy level: Secret groups are invisible to non-group members. Plan your privacy setting before inviting members.

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