Everyone seems to be jumping on the social media bandwagon, but few are doing it well or thoughtfully. As Design to Thrive argues, it's simply not true that "if you build it, they will come." As Tharon Howard writes, the "field of dreams" approach to designing social media "may have worked for Kevin Costner and baseball fields in Hollywood's version of an Iowa cornfield, but it doesn't ensure success when you're developing the architecture for an online community." Design to Thrive offers an effective blend of academic theory and applied, practical advice, based on the author's deep experience building and testing online communities. The theory is important and not at all dry. You have to understand why some online communities thrive while most wither on the vine. The practice is the fun part, and Howard draws examples, many illustrated with color screen shots, from a wide range of online communities, from academic associations to World of Warcraft guilds.
The heart of the book is the RIBS framework, a discussion of the four key elements necessary for the success of online communities: remuneration, influence, belonging, and significance. Each of these concepts is developed in a separate chapter, and the result is a solid framework that can be used to design, build, and test online communities of many different flavors.
I work in publishing, and have already been cribbing ideas from Design to Thrive to use in conversations with our new media and marketing teams. I find myself frequently citing Howard's vital distinction between social networks and online communities, two very different things that most folks I know tend to confuse. Whatever your role, if you work in media, publishing, or web development, you will find useful strategies and ideas in this book. If you're serious about doing social media right, this book can provide you with a framework, practical strategies, and a language for talking with your peers.
Author(s): Tharon Howard
Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann
Year: 2010
Language: English
Pages: 238
Morgan Kaufmann - Design to Thrive (2010) (ATTiCA)......Page 1
Copyright
......Page 5
Foreword......Page 6
Fortunate to be Stuck in Cars......Page 8
Buzz—Why Should You Be Interested?......Page 12
What Experience has Taught Me......Page 13
Networks across disciplinary boundaries......Page 15
Gaming communities......Page 16
Technological Testosterone Poisoning......Page 17
Influence......Page 18
What are RIBS Good for?......Page 19
Works Cited......Page 20
What are We Talking About?......Page 21
Confusing social network with community......Page 22
Social networks put individuals at center of relationships......Page 23
The strength of connections is different......Page 26
Sharing......Page 27
Cooperation......Page 28
Collective Action......Page 29
What is an Online Community (Compared to Lists, Discussion Groups, or Forums)?......Page 32
Online groups aren’t automatically communities......Page 33
Community versus “adhocracy”......Page 35
Conclusion......Page 36
Works Cited......Page 37
Why Build Social Networks
and Communities?......Page 38
Enhance and sustain intellectual capital......Page 39
Increase creativity and cross-fertilization......Page 40
Improve decision-making processes by creating “epistemic communities”......Page 41
Preserve institutional knowledge......Page 42
Provide a quality interaction with your organization......Page 43
Improve retention and grow loyalty......Page 45
Reduce training and support costs......Page 46
Show where needs exist for new products and services......Page 47
Flatten organizational hierarchies......Page 48
Works Cited......Page 50
Crafting Meaningful Social Experiences......Page 51
Introduction......Page 52
Remuneration as User experience
......Page 53
Remuneration does not Equal Functionality or the Business Model......Page 55
Be Responsible for the User Experience......Page 57
Scratching the Sociability Itch......Page 59
Putting “Business Before Pleasure”......Page 61
What is Remuneration?......Page 62
Techniques......Page 65
Make the Text Editor Fun; Add Emoticons......Page 66
Use a Subscription Application Form......Page 69
Mentors Teach......Page 70
Seed the Discussion......Page 71
Use Stars on Messages to Show Membership Contribution Levels......Page 73
Rank the Value of Members’ Messages......Page 74
Remove the Fear Factor by Providing Examples of How to Participate......Page 76
Create a Safe Environment by Sending out “Tickle” Messages......Page 78
Create a Regular Event......Page 79
Don’t Automatically Archive......Page 81
Discourage Attempts to Send Conversations to Other Blogs, Web Sites, or Discussion Groups......Page 83
Ban Redistribution Servers
and Cross-Postings......Page 84
Conclusion
......Page 85
Works Cited......Page 86
Differences in Members’ Social
Experience Needs......Page 88
The Importance of Influence......Page 89
The Consequence of Disallowing Influence......Page 90
Play......Page 91
The social technographics ladder......Page 92
Critics......Page 93
The influence needs of Collectors......Page 94
Spectators......Page 95
The influence needs of Inactives......Page 96
The membership life cycle model......Page 97
Visitors......Page 98
The influence needs of Novices......Page 101
Leadership......Page 102
The influence needs of Elders......Page 103
The five trajectories of learners......Page 104
Techniques......Page 109
Set up an Advisory Council......Page 110
Feeding and caring for your council......Page 111
Respond to Every Concern Without “Administrivia”......Page 113
Show the Number of Times that a Message has been Viewed......Page 114
Have a “Report-A-Problem”
on Every Page of the Site......Page 116
Include in Your Application Why
they Want to Join......Page 117
Have Exit Surveys......Page 118
Run Periodic Surveys......Page 119
Allow Avatars......Page 120
Require Profiles......Page 122
Put Novices With Novices......Page 124
Demand Respect......Page 125
Publish and Enforce Safety Policies......Page 128
Works Cited......Page 134
Designing the Experience of Belonging......Page 135
Initiation Rituals......Page 136
Stories of Origin......Page 137
Upside to levels......Page 141
Downside to levels......Page 142
Using levels......Page 143
Using mythologies......Page 144
Corporate branding......Page 146
Schemas......Page 147
Routines......Page 149
Create and Distribute a Story of Origin......Page 150
Create an Initiation Ritual......Page 151
Encourage Your Leaders and Elders to Share Mythologies......Page 152
Use negative myths......Page 153
Encourage Members to Share Myths and Stories About Themselves......Page 154
Create Leveling up Ceremonies......Page 158
Use podcasts......Page 159
Establish Routines and Protocols......Page 160
“Fight Club” protocol......Page 161
Establish Symbols, Colors, and Visual Identities......Page 163
Using visual symbols to guide social interaction......Page 165
Use an Application for Membership as an Initiation Ritual......Page 168
Works Cited......Page 171
Building Gravitas, Brand, and Recognition......Page 172
The Paradox of Exclusivity......Page 173
Acquiring “Social Capital” and Significance......Page 175
Using Nodes and Connectors to Start
the Conversation......Page 178
Invitation-only community of practice......Page 181
Open access social network......Page 185
Presentations at Regional Conferences......Page 189
National Convention Booth......Page 190
E-mail Blasts......Page 191
Provide a Story That Shares a Vision......Page 192
Participate in Influential Communities to Create Trails Back to Yours......Page 193
Build Your Social Network or Community in a Custom Space......Page 194
Make Connections With Other Leaders in Social Media......Page 195
Celebrate Celebrities......Page 196
Mobilize Your Existing Members......Page 198
Works Cited......Page 201
How Lessons from Communication Technologies of the Past can Inform
our Future......Page 203
Using RIBS to understand the dynamics of a community......Page 204
The explanatory power and scope of RIBS......Page 208
Technology Changes Rapidly; People Don’t......Page 209
Reducing the cost of media production......Page 211
The cost of literacy......Page 212
Free speech vs agents of the state......Page 213
Intellectual property and content ownership in social media......Page 216
Ownership and control of virtual identities......Page 217
Summary of future copyright issues......Page 218
The Dilemma of Control VS Creativity......Page 219
The impact of social capital on disciplinary institutions......Page 220
Disciplinary turf wars......Page 221
Investing in Future Literacies......Page 223
Decision-Making Contexts will Dominate
the Marketplace......Page 225
Works Cited......Page 227
B......Page 229
D......Page 230
G......Page 231
I......Page 232
N......Page 233
P......Page 234
S......Page 235
T......Page 236
W......Page 237
Z......Page 238
