Ability to search through members database in the front end

Hi Chelsea!

This usecase (CSMs getting insights in their customer actions) is one of the primary reasons we’ve developed the Salesforce and Gainsight integrations! They can then get the information straight from Salesforce or Gainsight dashboards, without having to open the community:

• How to Export Community Member & Activity Data to Salesforce Salesforce

• Need to handle multiple currencies

Hope this helps, if you need any help setting these up, reach out to your CSM or Support!

I agree with a majority of the replies in this thread! Users should be able to search for other users whether its because they want to privately message each other or they want to search through a specific user’s discussions/replies for potential best practices or related use cases.

For example, if I’m a user and I know BobZ is great at custom coding or any other topic, I’d love to be able to search their name and look through their posts/replies to see any coding options that I’d like to add to my projects. This is especially helpful when I don’t know exactly what I am searching for but have a general idea. 🙂

This feature would be AMAZING for our community! Our community is private, and we have a lot of benchmarking use cases where if community members could see some iteration of a list of “Enterprise clients” they could reach out directly with questions rather than posting to the only the community. I think our users would find that they receive more relevant answers by being able to select the community member/s they are talking with.

We just launched our community this week and already this is a request that is being asked within the couple of days.  Any feedback on timeline if this will be part of your roadmap anytime soon since it’s been a request for 4 years now? It’s a top 10 feature request.

We’ve also recently launched our Community and having the ability to search through a member directory is a top ask from our CSMs for both their own reference and for their customers to look for users from other companies. Given how often this has been asked I really hope that this is prioritized in the not too far future!

Hey @Sebastian!

Can you please provide an update on this? Thank you!

- Gabriel

@GabrielDocuSign A full member directory not on the near-term roadmap, but we are considering an MVP for this to cater to the most basic needs of having a member directory. What would those be for you?

@Sebastian the need is just to have a way for users to search for each other via the existing search functionality. Posts from users with usernames relevant to your search terms should be included in the search results. That way if you know a username of another user you can search for it as well.

Crystal clear, thanks @GabrielDocuSign 

My use case echo's that of @GabrielDocuSign To have the ability to find members via the search.

I’m surprised this is still Open and not Under Development/Implemented, as it addresses a basic yet important need for fostering targeted collaboration and driving value from the product. Being able to view and search the member database to selectively follow members based on their name, expertise or contribution is essential for efficiency. Currently, discovering relevant users by chance is not effective, and as noted above, only members who have posted can be followed. 

This feature would not only enhance member-to-member collaboration across industries, but allows internal teams to readily find and follow each other, gaining better insight into associated community content. It would improve knowledge sharing and help teams stay informed about discussions, ideas, and best practices- leading to a more dynamic and productive community experience. 

Below are some additional use cases for reference: 

• Internal team collaboration - a user can search for and readily follow fellow team members from their org to enhance awareness of relevant community content. This would help foster better alignment on discussions, shared initiatives, and industry-specific challenges, while also promoting knowledge sharing and collaboration on ideas, questions, or best practices. 
• Connecting with regional or local users - a user looking to connect with others in their geographical region or any given geographical region could use the member directory or search function to filter members by location. This would be useful for in-person meetups, networking events, or region-specific discussions. 
• Networking - a user interested in expanding their professional network could search for members with specific skills or experience. This would enable them to follow and connect with experts, growing their network for future insights and collaboration. This could also potentially facilitate mentorship or advisory connections. 
• Identify industry-specific peers - a user can search the member directory to find others in the same industry, allowing them to ask questions or seek advice from members with similar challenges or expertise.