In any large organization, especially one navigating the complexities of a major acquisition, the risk of losing human connection with customers is very real. Communication can become fragmented, requests can feel disconnected, and the customer journey can start to look like a series of transactional touchpoints rather than a meaningful relationship. We saw this challenge not as a roadblock, but as a profound opportunity. When Broadcom acquired VMware, we stood in a period of significant uncertainty, both for our teams and for our customers. It was the perfect moment to reimagine what customer engagement could be. Our goal was ambitious: to move beyond simple loyalty and build a true, multi-channel program for all Broadcom Software customers that could guide them on a journey from transactional buyers to passionate, loyal evangelists for our brand.
A New Vision for Customer Connection
Our small but mighty team of five, spread across three continents, knew we had to think differently. Previously, outreach efforts were often siloed within various product divisions. Each team ran its own campaigns, leading to inconsistent messaging, duplicated requests, and a disjointed experience for the very people we were trying to engage. We envisioned a single, cohesive ecosystem where advocacy, community, and loyalty were woven together. A place where we could build rich customer profiles to understand not just the technology they buy, but their motivations, their professional goals, and their preferences. This integrated approach would allow us to deliver personalized, relevant content and identify the right customers for the right advocacy activities, ensuring a seamless experience across every touchpoint, both online and off.
This program makes me feel like I am part of an interconnected ecosystem of professionals, recognized and celebrated for our contributions. Broadcom Rewards member
The heart of this new vision became the Broadcom Rewards program. It’s more than just a platform; it’s a community hub designed to nurture our customers. We wanted to provide them with the tools, platforms, and recognition they needed to become visible experts in their own organizations and industries. Through daily gamified challenges, we educate customers about our products and solutions in a way that is fun and engaging. Members can complete educational modules, participate in product surveys and/or research opportunities, and earn points along the way. As one member told us, the program makes it easy to stay connected and motivated with the latest tech innovations. It’s about creating a value exchange that goes far beyond a simple purchase.
Bridging the Digital and Physical Worlds
A truly integrated program can’t exist solely online. We knew we had to connect the vibrant digital engagement happening in Broadcom Rewards with our in-person events, like the global VMware Explore conference and regional VMware User Group (VMUG) meetups. We started generating trackable links for each event. When an attendee joins the Rewards program through one of these links, we can automatically onboard them with a tailored welcome journey that acknowledges their presence at the event. It’s a small touch of personalization that delights customers and seamlessly bridges their onsite experience with our ongoing digital program. This strategy also helps us identify our most passionate advocates. Many of our members are invited to speak at event sessions, sharing their success stories with thousands of their peers. We’re able to track their participation and award them bonus points, recognizing their incredible commitment and contribution to the community.
We unified our customer engagement, enabling us to activate the right customers at the right time with requests that truly mattered.
This flywheel of engagement has been transformative. We now have a thriving pool of customer advocates who are championing our products. This has had a massive impact on our ability to support key business objectives. For example, when our product divisions need customer reviews for platforms like G2 or Gartner Peer Insights, Broadcom Rewards is the leading generator of new reviews. They collaborate with us to activate members who are already engaged and knowledgeable. The results speak for themselves. One product marketing specialist for our VMware Cloud Foundation division was thrilled after a campaign generated over 90 new reviews. Product divisions consistently see that the vast majority of ratings come from activities run through the Rewards program. This collaboration has replaced siloed efforts with strategic, unified campaigns that produce stronger content and, most importantly, foster a consistent and positive customer experience.
Measuring What Matters
We are incredibly proud of the measurable impact we’ve delivered. In a period of high pressure and uncertainty following the acquisition, we set an ambitious goal to recruit an additional 1,500 members to our Rewards program within six months. By strengthening our cross-functional collaboration and keeping customer value at the center of our strategy, we exceeded our target. Our recruitment efforts spanned online and offline tactics. A ‘Refer a Colleague’ campaign brought in over 300 new members, while a social media campaign spotlighting member testimonials drove another 50 sign-ups. At regional and global events, we recruited an additional 585 new members with onsite activation activities led by our team. Our program is not just growing; it’s highly active, with an 85 percent online activity completion rate, well above our 75 percent target. This signals sustained interest and genuine engagement. More than 360 members have already qualified for our Champions’ tier, the highest status in our program, recognizing their invaluable contributions. This success has expanded our internal partnership footprint from three product divisions to over seven, reflecting a growing alignment between advocacy and broader business goals.
Our goal is to create a space where every member feels valued, heard, and empowered to grow along with us.
Looking ahead, our focus is on deepening this engagement through even more personalization. We’re excited to introduce additional membership tiers, allowing members to unlock increasingly valuable rewards as they grow with us. We’re also investing heavily in improving our data hygiene and segmentation, which will allow for smarter, more precise targeting. And of course, we are exploring the transformative power of AI to help us analyze member behavior, optimize our content, and even power automated recommendations within the platform. Our journey started with a simple idea: to build better relationships. Today, that idea has evolved into a thriving ecosystem that elevates our customers, amplifies their successes, and builds unshakable brand trust through the authentic voice of the community.
