FAQs

Dynamite Circle FAQs

What are the different DC domains?

  • dynamitecircle.com — The public homepage with information about Dynamite Circle, membership, and events.

  • dc.dynamitecircle.com — The web app where you'll find discussions, channels, the locator, events, and everything else.

  • app.dynamitecircle.com — The mobile app is also accessible from a web browser on any device. Great if you want a better mobile interface without installing another mobile app.

Is there a mobile app?

Yes! The DC mobile app is available on Android, iOS, and as a web client at app.dynamitecircle.com. It gives you access to your inbox, discussions, the locator, events, and push notifications on the go.

Download links for Android and iOS can be found at dynamitecircle.com/app.

What are the profile photo requirements?

Your profile photo must be a clear headshot of your face — other members need to be able to recognize you, especially at in-person events and meetups. The photo should be large enough and well-lit so your face is clearly visible.

What's not allowed:

  • Avatars, cartoons, or illustrations

  • AI-generated faces

  • Logos or brand images

  • Tiny or cropped photos where you can't be identified

  • Group photos where it's unclear which person you are

Light touch-ups (like smoothing skin) are fine — as long as it's clearly you. The point is that when a DCer meets you at an event, they should be able to recognize you from your photo.

How do I get the most out of my profile?

Fill out your profile as completely as possible — the more information you share, the easier it is for other DCers to find common ground and connect with you. Include your business details, interests, locations you frequent, and what you're working on.

It's also a good idea to update your profile every 3-4 months to keep it relevant. Your business, interests, and travel plans change — keeping your profile fresh means better connections and more meaningful conversations.

Discussions & Content Types

What's the difference between a Discussion, Channel, Activity, DM, and Group?

Discussion — A threaded conversation around a specific topic, started with a longer introductory post that sets the context. Discussions live inside forums and can be subscribed to individually. Think of them like forum posts.

Channel — A permanent, long-term chat space (prefixed with #) for ongoing conversation around a broad theme, like #seo or #introductions. Similar to a Slack channel. Channels are organized by category and anyone can post in them at any time.

Activity (aka Quick Question) — A great way to get a quick response from other members. Perfect for short questions, polls, or one-liners that don't need a full discussion. If the conversation takes off and becomes a longer thread, it can be graduated to a Discussion.

DM (Direct Message) — A private one-on-one chat between two members. You're always subscribed to your DMs — there's no option to unsubscribe.

Group — A private group chat with multiple members, similar to a WhatsApp group. Group admins can add people to the group. Like DMs, you're always subscribed as a member of the group.

Locator

What is the Locator?

The Locator helps you discover where other DCers are and plan meetups by sharing travel plans. You can see who's visiting your city, find DCers wherever you're headed, and let others know about your upcoming trips.

The Locator has four tabs:

  • Nearby DCers — Members currently in or traveling to your area

  • My Trips — Your own planned trips, with the ability to add new ones

  • Following — Trips and locations of DCers and cities you follow

  • New Trips — Recently posted trip announcements from the community

How do I let other DCers know I'm traveling somewhere?

Go to the Locator and open the My Trips tab. Click Add New Trip, select the city and dates, and your trip will be visible to the community. DCers in that city or following it will be notified.

Does the Locator track my exact location?

No. The Locator only tracks your location at the city level — it never shares your precise address or GPS coordinates. Other members will see which city you're in, not where exactly.

You can control your location sharing in your profile settings with three options:

  • City level — Other DCers can see which city you're currently in (default)

  • Private — Only your Home Chapter is shown; your current location is not shared

  • Precise — Uses your browser's location (GPS/Wi-Fi) instead of just your IP address for more accurate city detection — useful if you use a VPN, which can make your IP appear in a different city. Still only displays city-level to other members

If you prefer not to share your location at all, set it to Private and only your Home Chapter will be visible.

Chapters

What are Chapters?

Chapters are city-based community hubs. Each chapter represents a city where DC members live or frequently visit. They're the home base for local meetups, events, and connecting with DCers in a specific location.

On a chapter page you can see:

  • Global events happening in that city

  • Local meetups and juntos organized by members

  • Coming soon — DCers planning to visit

  • Currently in city — Members who are there right now

  • Local members — DCers based in that city

What is my Home Chapter?

Every DCer has one Home Chapter — the city you consider your home base. You set it when you join, and it can be any city in the world. Your Home Chapter determines:

  • Which chapter you appear in as a local member

  • Which nearby DCers and trips show up in your Locator

  • What city updates you receive in the weekly locator email (new members, trips, events)

You can change your Home Chapter at any time by editing your profile. If you're a Chapter Lead, contact the DC team to make a change.

What is a Chapter Lead?

A Chapter Lead is a volunteer DCer who helps bring the local community together. They're your go-to person in a city — they can connect you with local members, help you get the most out of the chapter, and usually organize the monthly Junto. You can find the Chapter Leads for each city in the Chapters section under the Chapter Leads tab.

What can I do with Chapters?

  • Follow chapters — Star cities you're interested in to get updates about trips, events, and activity there

  • Create a local meetup — Organize a junto, co-work, coffee, dinner, or any other gathering for DCers in that city

  • Add a trip — Let local members know you're planning to visit

  • Browse all chapters — Explore DC cities worldwide and see member counts

Events

What kinds of events does DC have?

DC has two main categories of events:

Global Events — Official DC conferences and programs such as DCBKK, DCMEX, DC BLACK, DC Accelerator, DCX, and DC Adventure.

Local Meetups — Community-organized gatherings in specific cities, including juntos, co-works, meetups, breakfasts, brunches, lunches, dinners, and coffee meetups.

How do I find events?

The Events section has several tabs to help you find what you're looking for:

  • All Events — Complete event listing

  • Global Events — Official DC conferences and programs

  • Local Meetups — Community-organized local gatherings

  • Near Me — Events within your area based on your location

  • DC Calendar — Calendar view of all events

  • My Tickets — Your purchased tickets and RSVPs

What is a Junto?

A Junto is the DC's signature local meetup — a casual, in-person gathering of DCers in a city. Juntos are hosted all around the world on the 3rd Thursday of every month (some cities choose a different day, e.g. Tokyo meets on Wednesdays). They're a great way to meet other members face-to-face, whether you're a local or just passing through.

Any DCer can host a Junto — just create a local meetup on your chapter page and invite the community. Check the Events page to see upcoming Juntos near you.

How do tickets work?

Depending on the event, you can:

  • RSVP — Confirm your attendance for free events

  • Buy a ticket — Purchase directly through the platform for paid events

If an event is sold out, you can join the waitlist to be notified when spots open up.

Can I see the event times in my timezone?

Event times are displayed as set by the event organizer, typically in the local timezone of the event location. There is currently no automatic conversion to your personal timezone.

Notifications

The app is noisy. How do I reduce the pings and messages?

There are several ways to reduce notification noise:

  1. Mute individual conversations — Open any discussion, channel, or activity and tap the mute option in the menu. This silences notifications while keeping the conversation accessible. On the mobile app you can choose to mute for 1 day, 1 week, or forever. On the web, muting is always forever (until you unmute).

  2. Unsubscribe from discussions — If you no longer want updates from a specific conversation, unsubscribe from it via the menu. You won't see new messages in your inbox.

  3. Fine-tune notification categories — Go to Settings > Notifications to toggle push and email notifications independently for each category: Discussions, Activities, DMs, Channels, Events, Mentions, Announcements, and more.

Can I turn off reaction notifications?

Yes. In Settings > Notifications, the Reactions section gives you two options:

  • All reactions — Get notified for every reaction in conversations you follow

  • Only reactions to my messages — Get notified only when someone reacts to something you wrote

You can disable both if you don't want reaction notifications at all. Reaction notifications are push-only (no email option).

Can I get notifications via email instead of app pings?

Yes. In Settings > Notifications, each notification category (Discussions, Activities, Channels, Events, Mentions, etc.) has separate toggles for push notifications and email notifications. You can disable push and enable email for the categories you prefer to receive by email.

How do I get a weekly email digest of what happened?

DC sends Weekly Locator Email Updates every Friday. The email is personalized based on your home city, the cities you follow, and the DCers you follow. It's directly connected to the Locator and trips — the more you use the Locator, the more relevant your weekly email becomes.

Your home city updates:

  • New members who recently joined your city's chapter

  • New trips planned — DCers who just added a trip to your city

  • Coming soon — DCers arriving in your city in the next 30 days

  • New events — Meetups or juntos recently created in your city

  • Upcoming events — Events happening in your city in the next few months

Cities you follow: For each city you've starred in the Locator, you'll see the same trip and event updates — so you can keep tabs on places you visit often or plan to visit.

Your upcoming trips: For each trip you have planned, the email shows:

  • Other DCers visiting at the same time — Overlapping trips to the same city

  • Local chapter members — DCers based in that city (including chapter leads)

This makes it easy to reach out and plan meetups before you arrive.

DCers you follow:

  • New trips posted by DCers you follow

  • Upcoming trips — When followed DCers are traveling soon (within 2 weeks)

  • New ticket purchases — When followed DCers buy tickets to events

  • Upcoming event attendance — Events that followed DCers are attending

You can toggle trip updates, event updates, and ticket updates independently in Settings > Notifications under the "Weekly Locator Email Updates" section, or disable the locator email entirely.

Subscriptions

How do I subscribe to discussions I'm interested in?

Open the discussion and use the options menu (three dots) to select Subscribe to updates. You'll receive notifications whenever there's new activity.

How do I unsubscribe from a discussion?

Open the discussion and use the options menu to select Unsubscribe from updates. It will be removed from your inbox and you won't receive further notifications for it.

How do I subscribe to a channel?

Open the channel and use the options menu to subscribe. Once subscribed, you'll see new messages appear in your inbox and receive notifications based on your notification settings.

What's the difference between Unsubscribe, Mute, and Archive?

UnsubscribeMuteArchiveEffectRemoves from inbox and stops all notificationsStops notifications onlyHides from inbox but a new message brings it backDurationPermanent (until you re-subscribe)Your choice — 1 day, 1 week, or forever (on mobile); forever (on web)Until the next new messageVisibilityHidden from inboxStill visible (moved to bottom of list)Hidden until new activityBest forConversations you're done withConversations you want to check later, but don't need pings for nowKeeping your inbox clean without missing future messages

How do I subscribe to all new discussions in a specific forum?

Currently there's no one-click option to subscribe to every new discussion in a forum. The best approach is to subscribe to the channel associated with that topic — channels surface all new posts and conversations in that area.

Inbox

What does archiving a conversation do?

Archiving hides a conversation from your inbox to keep things tidy. It doesn't delete anything — if someone posts a new message in that conversation, it will automatically reappear in your inbox. Think of it as a "clean up" action for conversations that are done for now but might come back.

To archive, open the options menu on a conversation in your Inbox and select Archive.

How do I pin a conversation in my inbox?

Pinning keeps a conversation at the top of your Inbox so you can always find it quickly. This is useful for conversations you reference often or want to keep an eye on.

To pin, open the options menu on a conversation in your Inbox and select Pin chat. Pinned conversations will stay at the top until you unpin them.

Search

How do I search?

Use the search bar at the top of the app. You can search across:

  • Profiles — Find other DCers by name

  • Discussions, Channels, DMs, Groups — Find conversations

  • Messages — Search message content

  • Events — Find upcoming or past events

  • Chapters — Find cities and chapters

Start typing and results will appear as you type.

Reporting & Moderation

How do I report content or a community incident?

If you see content that needs attention or want to report a community incident:

Report content directly in the app:

  1. Open the message or discussion in question

  2. Click the options menu on the specific message

  3. Select Report content

  4. Describe what happened (up to 1,000 characters) and optionally attach a screenshot

  5. Submit — your report is shared only with the DC team

Report a community incident: You can also reach out to the DC team directly. All reports are kept confidential and your identity is not shared. Even anonymous reports help the team gather data and take action to improve the community.

For the full reporting process and community guidelines, see the DC Community Guidelines.

How do I report a bug?

There are a few ways to let us know about bugs:

On the web app (dc.dynamitecircle.com):

  1. Click your profile picture in the top-right corner

  2. Select Report Issue from the dropdown menu

  3. Describe what happened, what you expected, and what actually happened

  4. Optionally attach a screenshot to help us understand the issue

  5. Hit Send — our team will investigate

You can also find the Report issue button in the right sidebar.

On the mobile app (app.dynamitecircle.com):

  1. Open the app menu

  2. Look for the Report Issue option

  3. Fill in the details and submit

Via email: You can also send bug reports directly to bugs at dynamitecircle dot com.

Promotion & Services

Can I advertise or post my service somewhere for other DCers?

The DC has a Zero Promotion Policy. There is no marketplace, and self-promotion is not allowed in any DC space — including the forum, WhatsApp groups, events, and juntos.

That said, if a member specifically asks for a recommendation and your business can help, it's OK to briefly mention it. Keep it simple: "Hey, this is something I can help with — feel free to reach out." Don't include links, offers, deals, or pitches.

What's not allowed:

  • Plugging or promoting your business (or someone else's)

  • Sharing links to your blog, YouTube, socials, or company site

  • Making offers or deals related to your services

  • Job advertisements

For the full details, see the DC Community Guidelines.

What are the rules for contacting other DCers?

DC is a community built on trust and mutual respect — not a lead list. You're welcome to reach out to other members via DM to connect, ask questions, or plan meetups. That's what the community is for.

What's not OK:

  • Cold pitching — Don't DM members to sell your product, service, or course

  • Mass messaging — Don't send the same message to multiple people

  • Unsolicited offers — Don't offer discounts, partnerships, or "collaborations" to people who didn't ask

  • Follow-up spam — If someone doesn't reply, respect that. Don't keep messaging them

The same Zero Promotion Policy that applies to discussions, channels, and events also applies to DMs and groups. Using the DC platform to generate leads or recruit clients is a violation of the DC Community Guidelines and can result in a warning or removal from the community.

The right way to connect: Be genuine. Introduce yourself, mention what you have in common, or reference a conversation you both participated in. If someone asks for help in a discussion and it's something you can assist with, it's fine to reach out — just don't turn it into a sales pitch.

AI, Bots & Scraping

Can I use AI or bots on the DC platform?

The DC is a community of humans talking to humans. That's the foundation of everything here — real people sharing real experiences, advice, and connections. Anything that undermines that is not allowed.

What's not allowed:

  • Scraping — You may not scrape, crawl, or programmatically extract content from DC discussions, channels, DMs, groups, profiles, or any other part of the platform

  • Bots — You may not use bots or automated tools to post, reply, react, or interact on your behalf. No one should be impersonating you through automation

  • Automated replies — Auto-responders, scheduled messages, or any form of automated messaging within the DC platform are not permitted

Can I use AI to write my replies?

The DC is about humans talking to humans. Members are here to connect with you — your experience, your perspective, your voice. Having AI write your replies defeats the purpose of being in a community like this.

That said, using AI as a lightweight tool is fine in some cases:

  • OK — Fixing grammar or spelling, especially if English isn't your first language

  • OK — Helping format or structure a longer post

  • OK — Summarizing your own research or notes into a cleaner write-up

What's not OK is having AI generate your opinions, advice, or responses wholesale. If someone asks for your experience and you paste in a ChatGPT answer, that's not a genuine contribution — it's noise.

If AI played a significant role in a specific reply (beyond minor grammar fixes), disclose it. A simple note like "Written with the help of AI" is enough. When in doubt, disclose.

Membership & Billing

How do I get invoices for my membership?

You can access your invoices through the Stripe Billing Portal:

  1. Click your profile picture in the top-right corner

  2. Select Billing Portal from the dropdown menu

  3. You'll be redirected to the Stripe portal where you can view and download all your invoices, update your payment method, and manage your subscription

I'm on an older payment method (PayPal, Chargify, etc.). Can I get invoices?

If you're still on an older payment method like PayPal or Chargify, the Billing Portal won't be available to you. We'd be happy to migrate you to Stripe so you can access invoices and manage your subscription yourself. Just reach out to team at dynamitecircle dot com and we'll get you set up.

I have another question about my subscription or billing.

For any other questions about your DC membership, subscription, or billing, please contact team at dynamitecircle dot com.