Latest / Community Marketing with Fexingo: Discord, Slack Groups, and Brand Communities / How a Pool Supply Company Built a Community That Drives 70 Percent Repeat Purchases
Transcript
- Lucas: If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used at work or even just thought about differently, that's the whole point of this show. And it's also why we keep it ad-free — no sponsor breaks, no promoted segments. If you want to support that, the link is buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, that direct connection from what we discuss to something real — that's what makes the show worth doing. And worth keeping clean. Lucas: Exactly. And on that note — today's episode is about a company you might not expect to have a thriving online community. It's not a tech startup or a DTC brand. It's a pool supply company. Luna: Leslies PoolMart? I've seen their stores, but I never thought of them as a community play. Lucas: Right. And that's what makes the story interesting. Leslies has been around since 1963, mostly brick and mortar retail. But about five years ago, they launched a customer community — a simple forum and Q&A platform integrated into their website. And the results are striking: active community members have a 70 percent repeat purchase rate, compared to about 30 percent for the average customer. Luna: 70 percent? That's massive. How did they get there? Lucas: It comes down to three things: they solved a real pain point, they gamified the experience, and they tied it directly to their product ecosystem. The pain point is water chemistry. Pool owners regularly need to test their water — pH, chlorine, alkalinity — and it's confusing. So Leslies built a 'Water Analysis' tool where you enter your test results and it tells you exactly what chemicals to add and in what quantity. Luna: So it's basically a decision engine. And the community lives around that? Lucas: Exactly. The forum is organized by pool type and region, so you're talking to people with the same climate and equipment. Members share their test results, ask for troubleshooting tips, and recommend specific Leslies products. The community managers — they're actually former store employees with deep product knowledge — they moderate and contribute expert advice. But the real magic is the gamification. Luna: Tell me about that. What did they gamify? Lucas: They created a 'Pool Health Score' — a numeric rating based on how consistently your water tests fall in the ideal range. Your score is displayed on your profile, and you earn badges for things like 'Maintained Perfect Chemistry for 30 Days' or 'Helped 10 Neighbors with Their Water Issues.' There's also a seasonal challenge: every summer, they run a 'Best Pool on the Block' contest where members post photos and the community votes. Winners get store credit. Luna: Okay, so the engagement loop is: you test your water, you get a score, you climb a leaderboard, you win badges. But how does that translate to purchases? Lucas: That's the clever part. The Water Analysis tool doesn't just tell you what to do — it directly links to product pages. So if your pH is low, it says 'Add pH Increaser — shop here.' And because the community validates those recommendations — other members say 'yeah, this product worked for me' — the click-through rate on those links is over 40 percent. But it's not just about the direct link. The community also drives organic word of mouth. Someone posts 'my pool is cloudy, what do I do?' and five people chime in with specific Leslies products they've used. Luna: That's the classic community flywheel. But I'm wondering — does this work only because pool ownership is a niche hobbyist thing? Could a general retailer replicate this? Lucas: It's a fair question. The niche aspect definitely helps — pool owners are passionate and have a recurring need. But the principles apply broadly. First, identify a recurring, high-friction task your customers face. Second, build a tool that simplifies that task and makes it social. Third, connect the community to your product catalog in a helpful way, not a pushy way. Leslies actually avoided putting banner ads in the forum — they only surface products contextually through the analysis tool or member recommendations. Luna: So it's more about being useful than selling. How did they measure ROI beyond repeat purchases? Lucas: They tracked a few things. One: community members submit 30 percent fewer customer service calls — they solve each other's problems. That saved Leslies an estimated $500,000 annually in support costs. Two: the average order value for community members is 15 percent higher than non-members, because they're buying more specialized products. Three: the community reduced churn significantly — pool owners who engage in the forum are 50 percent less likely to switch to a competitor. Luna: That's the retention story. But I imagine building a community like this requires serious investment upfront. What's the team behind it? Lucas: Surprisingly lean. The community is managed by a team of five: two full-time community managers who were former store managers, one data analyst who tracks engagement and sales correlation, one content creator who writes seasonal guides and challenge prompts, and one part-time developer who maintains the platform. Total cost, roughly $350,000 a year in salaries and tools. Compare that to the ad spend they would need to drive the same repeat purchase volume — they estimate it's about a 3-to-1 ROI. Luna: And that's not even counting the organic reach. Do they promote the community at all? Lucas: They do, but it's subtle. Every in-store purchase receipt includes a QR code that says 'Join 50,000 pool owners getting expert tips.' The store associates also mention it during checkout — they say 'If you have questions, our online community is great.' And during the summer, they run a 'Community Member of the Month' feature in their email newsletter. That's it — no paid ads for the community itself. Luna: So the community is a retention engine, not an acquisition channel. That's a different framing from a lot of community plays we've covered. Lucas: Exactly. And that's actually the lesson I think is most transferable. A lot of brands want community to drive new customer acquisition, but Leslies shows that community's real power is in deepening the relationship with existing customers. The repeat purchase rate is the headline, but the reduction in support costs and the increase in average order value are just as significant. And they did it by being genuinely helpful, not by trying to extract value from the community. Luna: One thing I'm curious about — how do they handle negative posts? Someone complaining about a product or service? Lucas: They have a clear policy. Negative posts are allowed as long as they're constructive. The community managers respond publicly within 24 hours, offering to resolve the issue. In fact, Leslies found that public resolution of a complaint actually increases trust among other members — they see the brand as responsive. Only about 2 percent of posts get flagged for removal, usually spam or personal attacks. Luna: That transparency is key. Are there any downsides to this model? Lucas: The biggest challenge is maintaining engagement year-round. Pool season is summer, so activity drops significantly in winter. Leslies tried a 'Winterizing Challenge' that got modest traction, but they're still figuring out how to keep the community active during the off-season. Another risk is that the community could become too dependent on the brand's experts — if those two community managers left, the knowledge base would take a hit. Luna: So they're vulnerable to key-person risk. Have they tried to build more user-generated expertise? Lucas: Yes, they've started a 'Pool Pro' program where they identify top contributors and give them special badges and early access to new products. About 30 members have qualified so far, and they now generate about 40 percent of the answers in the forum. That's a good hedge. They're also experimenting with a knowledge base wiki that aggregates the best answers, so even if a pro leaves, the information persists. Luna: So the system is becoming more resilient. What's the next step for Leslies' community? Lucas: They're planning to launch a mobile app that integrates the Water Analysis tool with a barcode scanner — so you can scan a product in-store and see community reviews and alternative suggestions. They're also testing a referral program where community members get a discount for bringing in a new pool owner. If that works, the community could start driving acquisition as well as retention. Luna: That would be the holy grail. But even without acquisition, the retention numbers are impressive. And it's a reminder that community doesn't have to be flashy — it just has to solve a real problem. Lucas: Right. Leslies isn't a cool tech brand. It's a pool supply company. But they understood that their customers had a recurring pain point and they built a space where people could solve it together. The repeat purchase rate is just the measurable outcome of that trust.