Key takeaways
- The score has four parts: participation, requests, follow-through and response time.
- Every target is our own starting point with the reasoning written down. They are not industry benchmarks.
- Track the same numbers every month. The trend tells you more than any single score.
How to use the community health score calculator
- 1Count your members, and how many posted, replied or reacted in the last 30 days.
- 2Count requests for help or introductions in the last month, and introductions made.
- 3Set the typical time a request waits for its first useful reply.
- 4Read the score, the four parts and the advice. Open the formula to see your numbers worked through.
How is the community health score calculated?
Each part earns points up to a maximum, scaled by how close your number is to its target. The four parts add up to 100.
| Part | Points | Full points at | Why that target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation | 35 | 30% of members active in 30 days | Many members read without posting. If about a third take part in a month, the group is clearly in use. |
| Requests | 20 | 5 requests a month per 100 members | Requests show members trust the group with real needs. At that rate someone asks every week or so. |
| Follow-through | 30 | 1 introduction for every 2 requests | Not every request needs an introduction. Half of them leading to one shows the group follows through. |
| Response time | 15 | A first reply within 24 hours, falling to 0 at one week | A reply within a day keeps the person engaged. After a week most people have solved it elsewhere. |
Are these benchmarks?
No. We don't have reliable published data on what is normal for member-help communities on WhatsApp, so the targets are rough rules of thumb, chosen with the reasoning above. The bands (0 to 39 needs attention, 40 to 69 steady, 70 and above healthy) are ours too.
A small founder circle and a large alumni network will look different, and both can be healthy. Use the score to compare your community with itself over time, and change your own targets as you learn what is normal for your group.
How to count the inputs
- Members: everyone in the group, or across your groups if you count them together. Count each person once.
- Active members: anyone who posted, replied or reacted in the last 30 days. A rough count is fine if you use the same method every month.
- Requests: messages asking for help, advice, a supplier or an introduction, in the group or privately.
- Introductions: people you or members connected because of a request.
- Response time: how long a typical request waits for its first useful reply, not just an emoji.
What to do with the score
Work on the weakest part first. Low participation usually needs better welcomes and a simple weekly prompt. Few requests usually means members don't feel safe asking in front of everyone, so give them a private way to ask. Low follow-through means requests are read but not acted on.
That last part is the one Milvao is built for: members ask privately, Milvao finds a member who can help and asks them first, and the dashboard shows requests and introductions, so you can count them without a spreadsheet. See the operator dashboard.