The CLG Journal Podcast

Murtaza Bambot, CEO of Heartbeat, shares what he took away from the CLG conference, and what he actually did about it. From booking a podcast studio to finally capture customer stories, to why AI is putting the power of software development in the hands of non-technical community builders, this conversation covers the real challenges of building a paid community platform from the ground up. You will also learn about why community builders almost always underprice their work, and what it takes to finally charge what you're worth. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Rochelle Sonnenberg shares how genuine relationships, consistency over scale, and emotional authenticity are the real foundations of lasting community. She also shared community building lessons from working at Microsoft and her new women-in-tech community called Her Tech Community. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Veteran community leader Dani Weinstein joins David Nebinski fresh off the CLG conference in New York to talk about the conference and the state of B2B community building profession. They discuss why in-person events are having a moment, how to make the business case for community to executives, and what it really takes to drive community-led growth in the corporate world. Enjoy!  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

In this episode of the CLG Journal podcast, David talks with Joshua Zerkel, the author of a brand new book, The Community Code. Josh is also the Head of Marketing & Community at Gradual. You will learn more about his book, some ideas about where community teams should sit, how to setup community teams for success and much more! Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

David Nebinski chats with Hillary Kleppel, Community Manager at Otus, about her journey from high school math teacher to community-led growth advocate, and her growing passion for peer-to-peer events that bring educators together. Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Max Nimaroff is a subscription retention expert and currently works at Oats Overnight. He makes the case that your community isn't a marketing tactic, it's your best retention tool. He breaks down how Oats Overnight co-creates with customers, why retention is an output not a lever, and what he learned building his own Discord community from scratch and more. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Learn from Zach Hawtof and David Nebinski about behind the scenes of producing the Community-Led Growth conference on Friday March 13th. Thank you to the 70+ community builders who were there and all of our partners helping make it happen! It's an exciting time for community builders! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

In this podcast episode, you will learn from Alexis Woody, who is the Community & Growth Associate at Rella. You will learn about her role, people-first marketing, community as a strategic business function and more! She is coming to the CLG conference as well. Hope to see you there! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

This is the last pre-conference CLG check-in podcast and video! We discuss how we are feeling about the conference, the strength of the co-organizer relationship, and thoughts on conferences and community building broadly! Enjoy and see you this Friday! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

In this episode, we talk with Ruthie Berber, the Director of Community & Brand at Grow Therapy. She has been working in community there since the summer of 2024. In this episode, you will learn about what her role looks like, what CLG their looks like, and why she is coming to CLG conference! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Here we go with another CLG check-in where you will learn about what happened last week and what we are thinking about now! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

In this episode of the CLG Journal podcast, we talk with Michelle Burrell and Renee Silver with The Malin about their brand new Chelsea location where CLG is going to be held! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

This conversation is with Beth Saunders, the Senior Community Manager at Amplitude. You will learn about how Beth got into the Community Building profession, what she is focused on at work now, and why she is attending our CLG conference in March! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Listen to the latest weekly check-in update from Zach and David about the prior week, what's on their minds, and what's ahead for the week ahead in building the CLG conference! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

What does community-led growth look like? A group of founders, marketers, and community builders unpack community-led growth from every angle: why human connection beats performance marketing, how communities create multiple business entry points, and why earning organic growth is slow but worth it.This episode originally aired on David's Portfolio Career podcast. This episode was recorded before we knew about The CLG Journal Podcast. We wanted to share it with you too! Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

In this week's CLG Check-In video and podcast episode, Zach and David reflect on the prior week and what's currently on their minds. You will learn about sponsorship sales, community building, and how attendees could get the most value out of the conference! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Welcome to the first podcast episode of the CLG Journal with Jess Casale, the Head of Community at Resident Company Club.Learn about this new coworking place in NYC and her community building experiences! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

Instead of watching the Super Bowl, we wanted to give something better for you! On Sunday February 8th, Zach and David reflected on the week as part of our weekly video update. Below are some takeaways from the video:Conference Progress & Success Metrics* They’ve sold 43 tickets (exceeded their goal of 42) with only 17 tickets remaining and over a month before the event* Strong momentum with 18-19 new registrations in the past week* On track to potentially sell out at early bird pricingMajor Milestone: First Sponsor* In the last week, we got our first sponsor commit to partnering with us, which we described as getting “the whole ball rolling”* This gives us credibility to approach other potential sponsorsPre-Conference Community Building* Attendees are proactively requesting ways to connect before the conference* Thinking to likely do both Slack and WhatsApp channels for pre-conference connectionAdditional Benefits Beyond The Conference Already* The conference has created natural opportunities to reconnect with prospects without being sales-focused* The “I was meaning to reach out” phenomenon. Outreach about the conference is rekindling business conversations* Zach has three podcasts scheduled to mostly talk about the conference and community building because of CLGWe also talked about conference marketing and why the strong ticket sales may be occurring!Feb 18th EventHere is the link to “conference pep rally” on Wednesday February 18th if you want to connect with other community builders!Thank you for your support and talk soon,Zach and David This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com

On Sunday February 1st, Zach and David reflected on last week’s CLG public launch, and what they are focused on this week. Here are a few takeaways from the video:* momentum and validation: pleasantly surprised by the strong early response, including from out-of-town attendees who are making travel plans to attend* who is coming: seeing some trends and patterns on who has registered so far* operational focus: balancing multiple priorities: ticket sales, sponsorships (including a humorous “pants sponsor” idea), event logistics, and refining the actual programming and discussion formats.* personal, one-on-one invite approach: They emphasize the value of “personalized brute force” outreach rather than scaling too quickly, spending hours on individual invitations.Until next time,Zach and David This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clgjournal.substack.com