Hey Jan,
I agree with @Wendy_S that there is no right or wrong but it is more a question of brand/community fit the experience you want to create and the effort for the administration team.
To answer quickly, I personally see even three options based on what customers use (from most common to least common):
(N.B. I am sure there are more Pro's and Con's to each option but i have listed the most important ones in my view)
Option 1: One specific Superuser rank for the Members of the Superuser Program
Pro's: Simple Administration
Con's: No progress for the superuser / no indication how long a user is already a Superuser
Potential Workarounds: Badges for each Year / Amend the rank with a Number that indicates the Year every year
Option 2: Keep the normal Rank structure for the Superusers but highlight their ranks / profiles to show that they are superusers (Badge / Rank icon / color)
Pro's: Gamification concept still applies to superusers
Con's: Might lead to some confusion for the admin due to the duplication of rank structures / Superusers might not be visible enough to the rest of the users
Potential Workarounds: Use Signatures to show Superuser Membership
Option 3: Create a new ranking structure for Superusers
Pro's: Superusers are part of a Gamification strategy
Con's: Administrative effort (similar to Option 2), Potential Confusion for normal users if there are two rank themes
What you want to consider before making the decision are mainly the two following views:
User view: How do your users tick? Would they care more if they 'lost' their superuser rank and 'dropped' back to a normal rank? Then Option 2 is probably better.
Do they want to stick out and would therefore not be happy with 'just' receiving a rank icon & Badge? Then i'd go for Option 1 or 3.
Admin View
Does the team have the ability to administer a duplicate rank structure in Option 2 and 3 or not?
How many Superusers do you have? Only 1 or is it 20?
How often do you need to add/remove superusers from your program.
Cheers,
Patrick
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