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Platform fit > Platform features
Spoiler: it's not another welcome email. It's a workflow that actually works.
Candice Grobler
November 14, 2025
We're moving Candid Community off Circle! 😅
Not because Circle is broken, but because we finally asked the right question:
What if the problem isn't our clients' commitment — it's asking them to work where we want them, not where they already work?
(Read today’s essay, now at the bottom of the newsletter, for more!)
FROM THE HIVEMIND
What your fellow community builders are sharing this week:
🤝 My last IRL talk of 2025 (femmes only!) — I'm doing "Networking Out of Necessity" at Code & Networking 101 on 25th November. If you're tired of cringe networking events and want to learn how to build relationships without feeling like a walking business card, come through. Grab your spot here.
📢 Help a fellow builder shape their thing — Lee Bergman is launching a coaching program for young creatives and needs your input. 5-minute survey, real impact on someone's product development. You know the drill. Share your thoughts.
📇 Stop fumbling for business cards — I've started using Uniqode's digital business card at conferences. One scan, contact saved, both ways. Plus automated follow ups afterwards, don’t believe me? Try it here
🙃 Networking for people who'd rather not — Video recording and writeup from my FEDSA talk is live. Less "work the room," more "collaborate with humans." If you can’t make my IRL talk this month, here’s your chance to watch watch it here.
🤩 The best newsletter I know — Remember when I mentioned The Open Letter as our North Star newsletter? If you're not subscribed yet, fix that. Daily dose of SA tech, business, and side hustle intel with a lekker laugh thrown in!.
TO SOOTHE YOUR SYSTEMS
Meet Your Members Where They Are
You're already drowning in tools.
WhatsApp groups pinging at 7 AM. Slack workspaces with 47 unread channels. LinkedIn notifications you swipe away. Email threads you'll "get to later." Zoom links scattered across three calendars.
And now someone wants you to join yet another “owned” community platform. Another tab to remember. Another login to manage. Another place to check. Another notification you'll mute within a week.
What if it's not about commitment, but about about cognitive over-load?
Here's what happens: You join with good intentions. You complete the onboarding. You introduce yourself in the welcome thread.
Then life happens.
You've got client work, invoices to send, a product launch, three meetings, and oh right — you need to eat at some point.
The community platform? It's still open in tab 47. You'll check it "tomorrow."
Tomorrow becomes next week. Next week becomes "I should really pop in there." And before you know it, you're that person who joined six months ago and never came back.
It's not you. It's the platform fit.
We learned this the hard way. We built an elaborate Circle community — onboarding flows, automated systems, engagement strategies. It looked perfect on paper.
But members kept saying the same thing: "I love the community, but I forget to check Circle."
That's when it hit me:
If your members have to REMEMBER to engage, you've already lost.
So we're making a change.
Candid Community is moving to where you already are!
For Free Community Members:
Join our LinkedIn public group for discussions, tips, and community-led resources
RSVP to join Candid Connect calls every Friday at 14:30 UTC — free, open to everyone, real-time problem-solving
For Paid Members (Community Hivemind):
Private WhatsApp Community — accountability with other founders building community-led businesses together.
Wednesday Mastermind calls — 2 time zones, co-tackling business issues with peer support (no solo figuring-it-out).
Systems-building activities throughout the year — goal setting, content creation clinics, expert masterclasses.
Peer accountability — not automated check-ins, actual humans who notice when you go quiet
Your community should integrate into your members' existing workflow, not add to their to-do list.
Founders are busy building businesses. They don't need another platform to manage. They need connection, accountability, and strategic support — in the tools they already open 10 times a day.
Less friction = more engagement.
Less platform management = more actual connection.
What this means for you:
If you've been thinking about building a community, ask yourself:
Am I choosing this platform because it's best for my members' workflow — or because it's best for my admin convenience?
Platform features don't matter if people don't show up.
Meet your members where they already are.
Want to share your business, product or opportunities here?
Share your big news with us in the comments or in our LinkedIn Community and we may just reach out to spotlight you! 😉
Join us today at 2h30pm (UTC) for Candid Connect: FREE RSVP HERE!
We bring our questions to the group, share our knowledge and brainstorm solutions to the week’s problems! Venting is always welcome too 😉
FROM OUR FRIENDS AT THE MARKETING MILLENIALS
What your fellow community builders are sharing this week:
The best marketing ideas come from marketers who live it. That’s what The Marketing Millennials delivers: real insights, fresh takes, and no fluff. Written by Daniel Murray, a marketer who knows what works, this newsletter cuts through the noise so you can stop guessing and start winning. Subscribe and level up your marketing game.
THANK YOU FOR READING!
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How are you feeling about today's newsletter? |
Meet your Community Copilot:
 Candice Grobler | I’m a neurospicy solo founder openly figuring out how to build a business while firmly rooting myself in community values. For more from me: |
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