UI Design for Social Commerce
Jan Groenefeld
Sebastian C. Scholz - Dieter Wallach
Internet World 2008, Munich

Outline
Commerce Success
User Participation
User Motivation
Social Reputation
Design for Reputation
Case Study earthfaves
®
I love this place™

User
The modern user ...
• seeks flow (core motivation)
• is a specialized generalist
• lives and works in community
(e.g. open source movement)

Community
Social reputation acting as a currency manifested in ....
• specific awards (e.g. “Expert”)
• status and privileges
• aggregated points (e.g. number of contacts)
• depth of integration/ length of participation
• goal to become a supernode

Reputation Design: Goal
“ A person participating in a social structure
expects to develop a reputation and hopes
for insight into the reputations of others (...).
”
Balancing these (...) determines (...) the
success or failure of a social system.
Yahoo! Design Library
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/parent.php?patterns=reputation

Competitive Spectrum
High
Neutral Competition
Crucial Assessment of ...
• Individual goals and potentials for conflict
• Possibilities of interaction and their consequences
• Support of competition and direct comparison
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/parent.php?patterns=reputation

Reputation Design: Patterns (1/2)
Identifying Label Named Levels Top X
Moderate
Neutral
Competition
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/parent.php?patterns=reputation

Reputation Design: Patterns (2/2)
Collectible
Numbered Levels Achievements Points Leaderboard
High Very High
Competition Competition
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/parent.php?patterns=reputation

Competitive Spectrum
Sharing
Sharing goals, Intrinsic Sharing same
Helping, opposing goals,
Goals working motivation goals, triggering
giving advice deny others`
together without conflict competition
goals
Identify Identify Show users` Show users` Show users‘
Use senior members trustworthy interests via the accomplishment victories,
Reputation to of good partners with history of their to motivate establish
standing track-record participation others bragging rights
Numbered
Potential
Indentifying Named Levels, Points,
Design Top X
Patterns Labels Levels Collective Leaderboard
Achievements
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/parent.php?patterns=reputation

Case Study
earthfaves
®
I love this place ™
„Social - Geobookmarking“
Trusted recommendations for great locations from friends
Integration of „Social - Commerce“
Acquisition of customers by recommendations of services

Earthfaves.com

Earthfaves: Profile
Goals* Tools
Attract power users with Control of personal
high level of integration development
Establish idea of “trusted Transparent and efficient
places” in community evaluation
Balance reputation towards Sensitive selection of tools
a “cordial” community for measurement of quality
* besides making money

Earthfaves: Design for Reputation
Selected design patterns for a balanced
community:
Collectible
Terminology Points Achievements
Classic UX
Named Levels Top X

Earthfaves: Terminology
Communication of
concepts by
self-descriptiveness
and differentiation
(classic UX)
• differentiating values
• highlighting of trust levels
• discoverability of the unknown
• integration of community

Earthfaves: Point Values
Control of relevance
to the community
• leveled by network
• feedback and acceptance
• avoidance of “Brownie Points”
• rewarding of good user behavior

Earthfaves: Competitiveness
core parameter Usage of Points
supportive

Earthfaves: Named Levels
Discovery and
identification of high-
quality contributors
• reflection of personal progress
• contextual wording
• combined with point values
• max. 5-6 levels (Start with 3 Levels)

Earthfaves: Collect. Achievements (1/3)
Encouragement of
users through
traditional awards
• additional incentives
• support of personal progress
• extensible with growth of community
• attention with financial incentives

Earthfaves: Collect. Achievements (2/3)
Encouragment of users
through expertise awards
• value depends on other users´ interests
• high activity in one category
• transparent usertype (e.g. professional users)

Earthfaves: Collect. Achievements (3/3)
Encouragment of users
through popularity awards
• feedback and acceptance as quality feature
• resulting in credit points for owner

Earthfaves: Top X
Challenge for users
to enter the top tier
• facilitating of cross-linking
• spotlight on individual members
• once again: personal progess

Earthfaves: Cross-Linking
Binding of users by
extensive links to others
• support of various search & browse patterns
• extension of own personal network
• perspective on own micro cosmos
• loads of personal recommendations from
people you can trust

Summary
Create successful commerce by
creating a sensitive and flexible social
reputation model and design around it.

Further Info
Please check http://ergosign.de for slides and links.

Further Info
earthfaves
®
I love this place ™
And feel free to join http://earthfaves.com now!

Selected Sources
http://earthfaves.com/
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatternss/
parent.php?patterns=reputation
http://rushkoff.com/
http://www.amazon.de/Die-neue-
Renaissance-Douglas-Rushkoff/dp/
3570500675
http://www.usability.de/publikationen/studien/
social-shopping-und-user-experience.html

UI Design for Social Commerce
Jan Groenefeld
Sebastian C. Scholz - Dieter Wallach
Internet World 2008, Munich