Looking for information on setting up or managing groups? Check out the CommUnity | Create and Manage Groups article.
Groups within the community provide a dedicated space for smaller groups within your organization to connect, learn, share, and collaborate, allowing members to engage with other like-minded people in the community.
Groups Directory
The Groups Directory page allows you to view available groups for you to join. From the directory page, you can view the groups you belong to in the My Groups section, or find groups to join using the Group Categories and Browse Groups sections.
Group Categories
Your organization can organize groups by custom categories that fit your organization, making it easier for you to discover and participate in relevant groups.
Hover over the category to see the description of the category.
Once you find a group category that sounds interesting to you, click the category tile to view all groups within that category.
The category page will open with all groups within that category.
You can use the Browse Groups section on this page to search and view groups within the selected category.
Browse Groups
Looking for a specific group? You can browse all groups using the Browse Groups section on the Groups Directory page. Use the search bar to enter your search criteria, which will search on the group name and description.
You can also choose to sort the list of groups to easily find the group you are looking for. The sort defaults to sort alphabetically by Name, but you can choose to sort by Date Created, Member Count, Category, or Access.
From this section, you can also:
- View the number of group members in the upper right corner
- Click the hyperlinked group name to view the details page for that group
- Click the hyperlinked Added by user name to view the profile of the group creator
- Click the hyperlinked Category to view all groups in that category
- Click the hyperlinked Created date to search for all groups created on that date
You can instantly join any groups that are marked as Public access. You can request to join groups that are marked as Private, and a group administrator will need to approve your request before you are added as a group member. If you see a group marked as Hidden, you are already a member of that group! Hidden groups will only display to group members, and new members must be invited to join the group.
My Groups
The My Groups section displays the groups you belong to. You can quickly navigate to your groups by clicking the hyperlinked group name within the section. The My Groups section defaults to sort from largest to smallest Member Count, but you can change the sort or use the search bar at the top of the section to find your desired group quickly and easily!
Note: The My Groups section is also available on the dashboard. For more information on the dashboard, check out the CommUnity | Dashboard article.
Join a Group
Joining a group is easy! Once you have found a group you want to join using the Groups Directory page, open the Group Details by clicking the hyperlinked group name. On the Group Details page, click the Join button to join the group!
Depending on the group setup, you may need to be approved by a group administrator before being added to the group. You can instantly join any groups that are marked as Public access. You can request to join groups that are marked as Private, and a group administrator will need to approve your request before you are added as a group member.
Once you have joined the group, you will receive an in-community message welcoming you to the group!
Interact with Groups
Once you have joined a group, there are many ways you can interact with that group, including:
- Invite users to a group
- Post to the group newsfeed
- View group members
- Add or browse files
- View and RSVP to group events
- Message group members
- Search across the group
Note: The interactions available to you will depend on the group setup by group administrators. Certain interactions and options described here may not be available on all groups. Looking for information on group setup? Group admins can check out the CommUnity | Create and Manage Groups article for more information.
Group Detail Page
From the contextual menu, users can:
- Bookmark the group
Bookmarking the group will make it display in the My Bookmarks section on the Dashboard. - Mark the group as Objectionable
When this option is selected, the group is flagged and displays under Reported Content in the Admin Panel for community administrators to review. - Leave the group
Depending on the group setup, group members can invite other users using the Invite button.
Home
The Group Home page is the landing page for details about the Group.
The About section on the Group Home page displays the Group Category, Description, Access, Location, and Members count.
When a post or comment includes a hashtag, the hashtag displays in the Trending Tags section across the community. For more information, check out the CommUnity | Dashboard article.
The Group Newsfeed provides one central place to discuss and share information pertaining to the group, including files, conversations, announcements and more.
Posts made to the Group Newsfeed will also display in the sitewide Newsfeed.
Members
Members can easily find and connect with other members of the group on the Members tab, improving the networking value of your community.
The Group Owner and any Group Admins display in the Group Admins section on the left of the page. The Group Members section displays all group members, along with their number of Friends, Group status, and the date they joined the group. You can click a member's tile in the Group Members section to open their individual profile.
Files
Group members can use the Files tab to add new files or browse files uploaded by other members. The files can be filtered by File Category. The My Files section display files that the logged-in user has uploaded.
Files uploaded here will display in both the Group and sitewide Newsfeed. You can select any file in the list to view additional details about the file, including the Description, File Name, the number of downloads and the number of comments on the file.
After uploading a file, you can edit your file details from the contextual menu, including the Title, Description, Audience, and any File Categories that have been set up in the Admin Panel. The Publicly Viewable checkbox determines if the file will also display in the sitewide File Gallery.
Events
Share details about upcoming virtual and in-person events making sure no one misses an opportunity to galvanize around the group’s purpose.
Keep your group members connected and engaged with group events they care about, such as volunteer opportunities, committee meetings, and education/training opportunities.
Hover over the event tile to quickly react or RSVP to the event.
Alternatively, you can click on the event tile to view additional event details. From the group event details page, you can react, RSVP, add the event to your calendar, and comment on the event, as well as view the Event Invitees and event views.
Event and group admins can perform additional actions.
Message
Message group members directly to make sure they never miss important information, events, or announcements from your group. This tab is only available if it has been enabled in the Group Admin setup.
From the Messages tab, group members can message other members of the group. The recipients list is restricted to group members only. After selecting a group member as a recipient, a green check mark will display next to their name. The message will have the group name and sender at the top when it is received.
Search
Not sure where to find that one group discussion or important meeting minutes file? No worries. Our powerful search allows you to search across all aspects of group content.
