We all live
in multiple on-line communities, but what do these communities look like? Where
are we located in each of our communities, and what role do we play?
The diagram
below shows an actual on-line community [OLC]. Every node in the network
represents a person. A link between two nodes reveals a relationship or
connection between two people in the community -- the social network. Most
on-line communities consist of three social rings -- a densely connected core
in the center, loosely connected fragments in the second ring, and an outer
ring of disconnected nodes, commonly known as lurkers. Communities have various
levels of belonging -- each represented by one of these rings. You may belong
in the core of one community, while being a peripheral lurker in another.
In the
above diagram, we see three distinct types of membership in our community --
designated by blue, green and red nodes. The proportion of nodes in each ring
in this population is fairly typical of most on-line communities -- the
isolates [lurkers] outnumber the highly-connected by a large ratio. The outer
orbit in the network above contains the blue nodes. They have been attracted to
the OLC, but have not connected yet. The blue nodes contain both brand new members,
who have not connected yet, and passive members who have seen no reason to
connect. The passive group is the most likely to leave the OLC, or remain as
absorbers-only of the content in the community.
The green
nodes have a few connections -- usually with prior acquaintances. They are not
connected to the larger community -- only to a small, local group. They do not
feel a sense of true membership in the larger whole, though they may identify
with it. The small clusters of friendships amongst the greens can be maintained
by other media and do not need this particular OLC to survive. They are also
likely to leave or become passive and will likely do so in unison with the rest
of their small circle of friends.
The inner
core of the community is composed of red nodes [zoomed-in view below]. They are
very involved in the community, and have formed a connected cluster of multiple
overlapping ego networks. The leaders of the OLC are embedded in this core
cluster. The core members will stay and build the community. Unfortunately they
are in the minority. The core node consists of usually less than 10% of most
on-line groups -- sometimes they are as few as 1% of the total OLC. Although
small, they are a powerful force of attraction. It is the core that is committed
and loyal to the OLC and will work on making it a success.
Online
communities and social networks are often conceived and developed by businesses
and organizations that focus on: "How can we use the online community to
benefit us?" Focusing only on how to utilize the community, leads many
organization to failure in building these communities! They fail at community
development by not creating a strategy that makes sure their target audience is
gaining a positive experience and practical benefits from participating in the
community. It is amazing how many organizations try to build on-line social
networks while ignoring the needs of the very people they are trying to attract
and influence! It is then no surprise when large chunks of their target group
leave when the "next big thing" comes around:
SixDegrees-->Friendster-->Orkut-->MySpace-->Facebook-->Next? To
build a vibrant and growing OLC, you need to support natural human behavior,
not work against it. You need to think sociology, not just technology.
The field
of social network analysis [SNA] gives us tools to both know the net and knit
the net. SNA maps and measures the paths of information, ideas and influence in
the community. SNA reveals the emergent patterns of interaction in
organizations and communities and allows us to track their changes over
time.Growing a community is not just adding new members. It requires adding
both people and relationships -- nodes and links. Node counts are important in
social networks, but it's the relationships -- and the patterns they create --
that are key! A community thrives by its connections, not by its collections!
It's the relationships, and the prospect of future relationships, that keep
members active and excited.
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