D2L

D2L helps transform the way the world learns, from K-12 students to university learners to working professionals. Coco Wang, Customer Advocacy Manager at D2L, oversees the company's champions program, a community of super users who share best practices, inspire peers, and advance quality education across every sector D2L serves.

A Diverse Customer Base, One Unifying Thread

D2L's customer base spans educators, trainers, government associations, nonprofits, and professional training organizations. Getting a program to work across that range required identifying what those groups actually have in common rather than designing for each persona separately.

"We really looked at what unifies them," Wang explains. "And a lot of our champions just want to learn. We're in the business of education. We all have the same passions, we all have the same mission."

That insight shaped how the program was built. Rather than segment champions by vertical, D2L anchored the program around a shared drive to learn and share. One visible outcome has been a breakdown of the siloed behavior that might otherwise develop in a community this diverse.

"We're seeing less of those silos," Wang says. "They're more interested in learning from each other. So that's the one thing we honed in on: learning and sharing best practices, building that community of practice within our program."

Gamification and Choice: Meeting Champions Where They Are

The second thing Wang's team identified was that D2L's champions are competitive. Leaderboard placement matters to them.

"They are super competitive. They're very into gamification and they will rank on that leaderboard."

To channel that without creating barriers for champions with less time or different priorities, D2L built the program around a "choose your own venture" model. Participants select the activities that fit their schedule and engagement style, earning recognition at their own pace while still contributing to the broader community. The flexibility has made consistent engagement possible across a customer base that varies widely in sector, size, and available time.

Recognizing Impact: The D2L Excellence Awards

D2L also runs a formal recognition program, the D2L Excellence Awards, to surface champions making real impact in the communities they serve. The selection process is deliberately rigorous. A panel of D2L staff and a customer steering committee works through a month-long judging process, evaluating nominations on how customers are using D2L's products and services to deliver on their mission.

"It's a real pleasure to be a part of that selection process and hear firsthand about the impact they're making," Wang says. "And most of them are our champions."

Looking Ahead: Connecting Advocacy to the Full Customer Lifecycle

Wang's priorities for the next phase of the program go beyond advocacy in its traditional scope. She wants to connect the champions program to the broader customer lifecycle, pulling together teams working on voice of customer, intent data, and customer insights so the customer story can be told more completely.

"I really want to hone in on that unified user experience so they can be rewarded while engaging with us. And thinking broader outside of customer advocacy, seeing how we can influence the full customer lifecycle journey, and bring those siloed teams together to better tell that customer story and customer-led growth strategy."

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