In 2026, B2B communities are no longer “nice-to-have” discussion forums. They are strategic customer experience infrastructure, powering self-service, peer support, onboarding, product adoption, and advocacy.
Enterprise organisations are increasingly treating community platforms as extensions of CRM, support, and digital engagement ecosystems. Community strategy now intersects with AI-driven knowledge, customer success automation, and measurable support deflection.
The most valuable events in 2026 won’t just talk about engagement theory. They’ll show how community platforms integrate into Salesforce, Microsoft, ServiceNow, CX stacks, and enterprise support models.
Below are the top B2B community and social engagement events to watch in 2026 – and what technology buyers should look for.
Planner Snapshot: Who This Guide Is For
If you are planning your 2026 events calendar, this article is designed for:
- Heads of Customer Experience (CX)
- Community and Advocacy Leaders
- Customer Success Executives
- Digital Transformation Leaders
- CIOs and IT stakeholders overseeing CRM and support ecosystems
- Support Operations teams focused on deflection and automation
The goal is not to attend more events – but to attend the ones where community becomes operational infrastructure.
Suggested articles:
- What Is Dark Social And How Can Brands Measure It?
- Customer Community & Social Engagement Trends to Watch in 2026
- Why Community Engagement Is Redefining Customer Experience
Which Community & Social Engagement Events Should Tech Buyers Prioritise in 2026?
1. Salesforce Dreamforce 2026 – Where Community Meets CRM at Scale
Dreamforce remains one of the most influential events in the enterprise CX ecosystem. For organisations running Salesforce Experience Cloud, Service Cloud, or Customer 360, this is where community strategy becomes embedded directly into CRM workflows.
In 2026, expect stronger positioning of self-service portals, AI-powered knowledge surfacing, and community-driven case deflection.
What Should Buyers Look For at Dreamforce 2026?
- Experience Cloud advancements for customer and partner portals
- AI-generated knowledge and case resolution
- Copilot-style support assistants for service teams
- CRM-driven personalisation inside community environments
- Governance frameworks for large-scale enterprise communities
Which Vendors You Can Expect to See:
Salesforce ecosystem partners, Experience Cloud specialists, CX analytics vendors, and community platforms integrating into CRM environments.
2. CMX Summit 2026 (USA) – The Community-Led Growth Benchmark
CMX Summit is one of the most community-specific events on the calendar – built for leaders running customer communities, partner ecosystems, and community-led growth programmes. In 2026, it’s especially useful because it focuses on the operational side of community: engagement design, measurement, governance, and scaling.
What Should Buyers Look For at CMX Summit 2026?
- Community as a growth lever: retention, expansion, advocacy
- Measurement: proving community ROI beyond “engagement”
- Playbooks for scaling participation without ballooning headcount
- How community intersects with CS, product, and marketing workflows
Which Vendors You Can Expect To See:
A community tech + operations ecosystem (platforms, tooling, automation, analytics) alongside practitioners sharing real implementation frameworks.
3. Qualtrics X4 2026 – Measuring Community Impact
While not exclusively a community event, Qualtrics X4 is increasingly relevant to leaders who must prove community ROI.
In 2026, community strategy will be judged by measurable outcomes: reduced support costs, improved onboarding, higher retention, and customer advocacy metrics.
What Should Buyers Look For?
- Linking community engagement to CX and NPS
- Experience data tied to operational metrics
- Predictive churn modelling
- AI analysis of unstructured feedback from community forums
Why It Matters:
Community leaders must increasingly justify budget through measurable business outcomes – and experience management platforms are shaping that conversation.
→ Learn more about Qualtrics X4
4. Microsoft Ignite 2026 – When Community Lives Inside Collaboration
For organisations invested in Microsoft 365, Teams, and Viva, Ignite is a critical signal of where digital community is heading.
Internal and external communities are increasingly blending. Customer advisory boards, partner groups, and private communities often operate within collaboration environments rather than standalone platforms.
What Should Buyers Watch For?
- Viva integrations supporting customer or partner communities
- Copilot-powered knowledge surfacing
- AI moderation and summarisation of discussions
- Governance and compliance frameworks for external collaboration
Why It Matters in 2026:
Community is no longer isolated software. It’s becoming embedded into the tools customers already use.
→ Learn more about Microsoft Ignite
5. CX Summit / Customer Contact Week (CCW) 2026 – Where Support and Community Converge
Customer Contact Week and global CX Summits increasingly explore self-service, AI support, and customer journey optimisation.
Community platforms play a growing role in contact centre deflection strategies.
What Should Buyers Look For?
- AI-driven self-service strategies
- Case deflection analytics
- Blended human and community support models
- Knowledge base automation
Which Vendors You Can Expect:
CX platform providers, AI support vendors, automation specialists, and community solutions positioning themselves as cost-reduction engines. Event partners include Cresta, Verint, NiCE, and many more.
6. Higher Logic Super Forum 2026 (Washington DC) – Community Strategy in Action
Higher Logic’s flagship event is one of the few conferences focused specifically on community strategy and execution.
In 2026, expect deeper discussions around engagement scoring, gamification, and lifecycle-based customer activation.
What Should Buyers Look For?
- Engagement analytics dashboards
- Customer journey automation
- Community-led onboarding strategies
- Advocacy and ambassador programme design
Why It Matters:
This is where tactical execution meets enterprise community scaling.
→ Learn more about Higher Logic Super Forum
Key Themes That Will Define Community Events in 2026
Across major conferences, three macro-trends will dominate:
Community Is Becoming CX Infrastructure
Communities are no longer “engagement projects.” They are integrated into CRM, support, onboarding, and customer success workflows.
AI Is Reshaping Self-Service
Expect to see:
- AI summarising discussion threads
- Conversational search inside knowledge bases
- Automated moderation
- AI-generated answers sourced from community content
The buyer question: is AI amplifying community expertise – or replacing it?
Community ROI Must Be Quantifiable
- Support deflection rates
- Case resolution acceleration
- Onboarding time reduction
- Retention and expansion influence
If community leaders cannot measure these, budget pressure will increase.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which event is best for enterprise community buyers?
Dreamforce and Khoros Engage are strongest for large enterprise CRM-connected communities. Higher Logic Super Forum is highly practical for community managers and strategists.
Are community-focused events worth attending in 2026?
Yes – particularly for organisations aiming to reduce support costs, improve onboarding, or formalise advocacy programmes.
How should buyers choose which event to attend?
Align the event with your stack:
- Salesforce ecosystem → Dreamforce
- Enterprise digital care → Khoros Engage
- Experience measurement → Qualtrics X4
- Microsoft ecosystem → Ignite
- Tactical community execution → Higher Logic Super Forum
For more guidance on community and social CX engagement strategy, read our ultimate guide.
