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The Psychology of Community Management Harnessing the Social Sciences for Successful Online Communities or How to Win Friends and Influence People on the Internet

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First things first 2

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Which of these is more crucial for a successful Thanksgiving? 3

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What do you consider success? 4

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What constitutes success in a community of practice? High, yet sustainable, activity levels Quality of engagement, not just quantity A sense of community and camaraderie Technology that doesnt impede the above goals 5

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Members are people, too. 6

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Motivation Opportunity Ability MOA (no, not the extinct flightless bird from New Zealand) 7 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Megalapteryx.png

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People are motivated with prizes, right? NOPE. Studies show that extrinsic rewards reduce intrinsic motivationthis is known as the overjustification effect. (Mark R. Lepper, David Greene and Richard Nisbet, Undermining Childrens Intrinsic Interest with Extrinsic Reward; A Test of Overjustification Hypothesis, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 28, 1973, 12937.) Motivation 8

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But you dont have to take my word for itthe numbers bear this out. After each promo period (marked by an arrow), you see a dip in engagement; that is, it doesnt stick. Motivation 9

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So, how do you actually motivate your members 10

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What intrinsically motivates people in a community? Self-efficacy: the desire to make an impact Status-seeking: the desire to be appreciated by others Belonging: the desire to be part of a group Information gathering: the desire to secure resources through learning Motivation 11 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Maslow%27s_Hierarchy_of_Needs.svg Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

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Motivation: Self-efficacy Appeal to self-efficacy with prompts to share expertise and prowess. Older and more established users tend to go for this appeal. 12

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Motivation: Self-efficacy 13

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Motivation: Status-seeking Appeal to status- seeking with prompts to show off. Be careful not to go too far with this one! It can get ugly. 14

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Motivation: Status-seeking 15

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Motivation: Status-seeking 16 Digital ribbons for top users Member scoreboard Call-outs in posts to active and helpful members Member of the week slide

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Motivation: Belonging Appeal to belonging with easy-to-answer prompts that invite self-disclosure and reduce social fear. These are great to get your newbies in! 17

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Motivation: Belonging 18 Our Introduce yourself here thread is pinned to the top of the front page, and a link is included in every new members welcome message. http://theloop.ppa.com/Communities/ViewDiscussions/ViewThread/ ?GroupId=577&MID=12305 http://theloop.ppa.com/Communities/ViewDiscussions/ViewThread/ ?GroupId=577&MID=12305 Some of our power users even come into the thread to welcome newbies themselvesmaking that very first new connection!

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Knowledge self-efficacy, as a manifestation of intrinsic motivation, is more strongly related to knowledge contribution quality, whereas the other intrinsic motivation, enjoy helping, is more strongly associated with knowledge contribution quantity. Lou, J., Fang, Y., Lim, K. H. and Peng, J. Z. (2013), Contributing high quantity and quality knowledge to online Q&A communities. J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci., 64: 356371. doi: 10.1002/asi.22750 19

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Motivation Opportunity Ability MOA (no, not the extinct flightless bird from New Zealand) 20 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Megalapteryx.png

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Make your community a habit for your members. If they visit frequently enough, eventually something will pique their interest, and they will participate (or at least keep coming back). Opportunity 21 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wistar_rat.jpg

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How do you trigger members to participate? Make sure theyre subscribed to your communities and receive emails. Change up visible prompts frequently (Use pinning, etc.). Make sure that questions are answered speedily. Opportunity 22 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wistar_rat.jpg

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Opportunity: use eGroup subscriptions 23 The Daily Digest creates a habit by inviting members to check in once a day. If possible, auto-subscribe all members to the Daily Digest. However, not all members like engaging in this way, so dont stop there!

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Opportunity: Triggers 24

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Opportunity: Use your slidedeck as a trigger 25

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How do you build an activity habit? 26 Social proof: the phenomenon in which human beings mirror the behavior of others in an attempt to behave correctly in a given situation. What happens when a member looks at the list of latest discussions and sees a list of questions and other postings with zero responses?

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27 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tumbleweed_in_Chelan_WA.jpg

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How do you build an activity habit? 28 The single best thing you can do for your community is ensure that all posts get a response within 24 hours.

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How do you trigger lurkers to become active users? 29

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Motivation Opportunity Ability MOA (no, not the extinct flightless bird from New Zealand) 30 CC Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Megalapteryx.png

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Ensure that everyone who wants to contribute, can contribute. Members can travel through your community, learn and grow with others, and develop new skills and social bonds. Ability 31 newbie poster power user ambassador

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How is your help documentation? Are answers easy to find? Is your community management team accessible and warm? Do people who come to your community know what to do and where to go? Are there conversations appropriate for every type of member? Ability 32 newbie poster power user ambassador

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Ability: What are the rules? 33 Quick Start guide Frequently Asked Questions Code of Conduct Help Library Tech Support Community

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*You* are part of your brand 34 Let the community managers voice shine through to your members. Speak casually, tell jokes, and share parts of yourself. Create a separate, sterile account for formal announcements. You are a human being, not a marketing engine. Dont sound like an ad for your organization! Write in the first person. Build relationships with your members on an individual basis. Try a relationship building daily exercise during a slow month.

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Ability: Warm vs. cold 35

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Handling moderation issues 36 Only moderate when absolutely necessary; conflict can be productive! Debates create activity. Instead, produce positive, pro-social content that people will mirror (social proof: be the change you want to see in your community). Self- disclosure conversations are good for this. Maintain extensive, easy to navigate help documentation (quick start guide, FAQ, and Code of Conduct). Be a friend and ally!

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Great questions to stimulate conversations 37 What was your first _____? What is the craziest/worst/funniest thing that ever happened to you while doing ______? Whats your favorite ________? What advice would you give to a new ______________? What are your top tips for ____________? What do you think of the new _______________? THIS or THAT?

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Sohow do you succeed? MOA: Give members the opportunity to participate consistently, make sure they have the ability to share high-quality information and perspectives, and offer motivation based on the needs humans have as social organismswhile making sure that your technology doesnt get in the way. 38

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Resources 39 Scientists: books, blogs, and TED talks by psychologists, behavioral economists, sociologists, and more. Community management blogs: Feverbee.com, theCommunityManager.com Check out great online communities and see how they manage their member base: my favorite is Metafilter.com. And the old classic, How to Win Friends and Influence People

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Questions? 40

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Lindsay Starke lstarke@ppa.com Or just blip me on the HUG!