1. Increasing Member Participation Anthony Christopher Digital Places

2. www.digiplaces.com Overview n Categorizing community members –Vast majority of members are only potential members (lurkers) n Motivators/Caretakers create majority of content that engages those lurkers n Care & feeding of Caretakers/Motivators is critical to growth of community

3. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Categorizing Members n Passives - seek effortless entertainment or information n Actives - participate enthusiastically in activities and topics created by others n Motivators - plan and create activities n Caretakers - intermediaries between members and staff Source: Randy Farmer, Electric Communities

4. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Estimates by Category n n Passives: 85+% n n Actives: 12% n n Motivators: 1-3% n n Caretakers: 0.1-1%

5. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Identifying Caretaker/Motivators n Social People –Hosts, talkers, mature reliable people n Nurturers by nature

6. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com How to Find Them n Publish job descriptions n Take recommendations from current staff n Select people that everyone agrees on

7. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Recruitment n Personal Attention n Back Channel

8. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Training Hosts & Caretakers n Terms of Service (Contractual Norms) n Acceptable/Unacceptable Behaviors (Tacit Norms) n Enforcement Mechanisms

9. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Effective Training Programs n Study materials n Simulate problem situations n On-the-job mentoring n Reporting & accountability

10. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Motivating Caretakers/Motivators n Status n Access privileges to exclusive areas n Rewards, Recognition, and Feedback

11. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Member Participation by Category Passives Actives Motivators Caretakers Passives Actives Motivators Caretakers Membership Usage

12. Digital Places www.digiplaces.com Increasing Passives Participation n Most people, least time n Motivators create activities for engaging passives n Give Motivators the power to create more