Using Youtube as an example, Wikipedia defines the different type of ‘Online Community Participation’ as…
- Peripheral (Lurker) – Observing the community and viewing content. Does not add to the community content or discussion. The user occasionally goes onto YouTube.com to check out a video that someone has directed them to.
- Inbound (Novice) – Just beginning to engage the community. Starts to provide content. Tentatively interacts in a few discussions. The user comments on other user’s videos. Potentially posts a video of their own.
- Insider (Regular) – Consistently adds to the community discussion and content. Interacts with other users. Regularly posts videos. Either videos they have found or made themselves. Makes a concerted effort to comment and rate other user’s videos.
- Boundary (Leader)– Recognized as a veteran participant. Connects with regulars to make higher concepts ideas. Community grants their opinion greater consideration. The user has become recognized as a contributor to watch. Possibly their videos are podcasts commenting on the state of YouTube and its community. The user would not consider watching another user’s videos without commenting on them. Will often correct a user in behavior the community considers inappropriate. Will reference other user’s videos in their comments as a way to cross link content.
- Outbound (Elder) – Leaves the community for a variety of reasons. Interests have changed. Community has moved in a direction that doesn’t agree with. Lack of time. User got a new job that takes up too much time to maintain a constant presence in the community.
Ok, so this is all fine and well, the question now beckons, how do you as community manager/owner take your community members’ hands and guide them through these stages?
How do you ‘motivate’ (for a lack of a better word) Lurkers to become Leaders? Here are a couple of practical tips from me to you…
- Show members what they are capable of doing on your community - don’t think that all your community members know what they can and cannot do in your community. Don’t assume they know how to contribute. Show them. Promote a tutorial. Send them an email with some suggestions. Anything. Just make sure everybody knows what they are capable of doing.
- Set expectations for community members - Don’t be afraid to send ‘inactive’ community members a message to ask them why they aren’t interacting. Tell them (nicely :)!) what you expect from your community members, what they can get from contributing and how they can interact (see point 1) i.e. give them a call to action.
- Ask questions and keep on asking- Get them to talk and engage more by asking questions. Simple, topical questions encourage your community members to bring their knowledge, ideas and opinions to the table.
- Facilitate - I cannot emphasize this point more. F-A-C-I-L-I-T-A-T-E. This is where you need to assist your community members and make it easier for them to contribute - what, where and how. Let them know you are there for guidance. This requires an active role and a 24/7 availability, but more important, requires an ear to listen. If someone is stuck/has a concern. Be there in a flash.
- Reward - Arguably the greatest motivation for your community member is to be recognised and rewarded. Whether through a simple compliment (read my post on ‘complimenting’ here), an upgrade in member status, a tangible incentive (here’s an excellent case study) or even just a personalised email to acknowledge their contributions - your members will return the favour. Guaranteed.
If you found this article helpfull, feel free to leave a comment below or drop me a mail if you have any questions or need some advice on your community.
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2 Comments
These are all really good tips. The Wikipedia definition is somewhat similar to the 90-9-1 principle but it seems to account for other “types” of users, such as the “novice.” I think that’s important and I’m glad I read it here. I focus on some of those people in my community though they are not always recognizable. One of the easiest ways you can get peopel to engage is by asking questions that they will want to answer, and you covered that in your post. However, there are other things you can do like create polls and other types of interactive content that does not require much work to participate. Rewards are great, but use them sparingly. You do not want people expecting something just for spending time in the community. Reward scarcely but where it matters, and nothing beats public acknowledgment. That’s a “Must” in the community manager’s arsenal as well.
@Angela Connor - brilliant! Thanks for your comments.
Really important point re rewards. You’re correct in saying “reward where it matters” and various type of “asking questions” methods.
Would love to get my hands (or eyes?) on case studies on some of these examples though.