> I've noticed an uptick recently of large brands to start referring to themselves as "The [Brand] Community"
I don't think I've ever seen that. What I have seen is non-sponsored people referring to "the [brand] community" or "the [product] community" as a shorthand way of saying they discuss brand or product with other people with that shared interest on a dedicated Discord server or forum. The Sega community, the Final Fantasy community, etc.
The official forum for SAP users is called the "SAP Community"[0]. I've seen it in other corporate places too, but this was the first occurrence which came to mind.
I don't think I've ever seen that. What I have seen is non-sponsored people referring to "the [brand] community" or "the [product] community" as a shorthand way of saying they discuss brand or product with other people with that shared interest on a dedicated Discord server or forum. The Sega community, the Final Fantasy community, etc.