Delphine Ménard, Wikimédia France, explains how business can use it properly

1. Wikipedia Behind the Scenes
Insights Into a World of Know-it-alls
Delphine Ménard
Wikimédia France
Demystifying Digital – Hill & Knowlton
London, 11 March 2010

2. Wiki what?
© Andrew Laing - CC-BY-SA 2.0 - Wikimedia Commons
● Wiki
● The software
● Pedia
● Encyclopedia
● Wikipedia
● project of encyclopedia
● never finished, always in motion

3. A vision, a mission
● Imagine a world
in which every
single human
being can freely
share in the sum
© anoldent - CC-BY-SA 2.0 - Flickr
of all knowledge.
That's our
commitment.
● Distribute, freely,
for eternity

4. The pillars of Wikipedia
● Content under a free
licence
● That anyone can
distribute and reuse
● Collaborative
© eflon / Alex - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr
● that anyone can
contribute to,
respectfully
● Neutral Point of view
● Lots of rules, formal &
informal

5. All you've ever wanted to know
about Wikipedia, in one slide
● launched in 2001 as an
experiment
● More than 14 million
© Eric Wüstenhagen - CC-BY-SA 2.0 - Flickr
articles in 250 languages
● 6 millions media files
● 100 000 active editors
(20 million registered)
● 12 million edits per month
●
5th most visited website in
the world
● 40 employees worldwide

6. Where's the business model?
● Freely distributed, freely usable
© Windell Oskay - CC-BY-SA 2.0 - Flickr
● No advertising, really, none, not even yours
● Content is free: licenses allowing reuse, even
commercial reuse
● Hosted by a non-profit, run on donations
● Wikimedia Foundation (US based) and an
international network of 28 chapters

7. Anyone can contribute? But
seriously, who writes Wikipedia?
● You, me, her, him, and thousands of
volunteers, anonymous or not
● The editorial staff? Just volunteers
who (think they) know better
© Mike E. Perez - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr
Wüstenhagen

8. So in the beginning,
anybody could edit
Wikipedia.
And then anybody
could edit Wikipedia.
And as of tomorrow,
© Mike E. Perez - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr
anybody can edit
Wikipedia.
- Jimmy Wales -
On Wikipedia's New Editing Policy -
NPR, August 26, 2009

9. Wikipedia and businesses
(and brands, and PR, and communication)
© uggboy - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr

10. Why might you want to stay away
from Wikipedia?
© break.things - CC-BY-SA 2.0 - Flickr
● Complicated (the rules, the software etc.)
● Mistrust and suspicion (biting the newbies)
● It will not say what I want to say about my
company!
● Curse that neutral point of view!
● Magnifying glass: anything bad will look "badder"

11. Why can't you stay away from
Wikipedia?
© RecycledStarDust's - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr
● Wikipedia comes up often and first in search results
● People use Wikipedia as a directory of businesses
● People trust Wikipedia to say all there is to say
● What do you mean, you don't have an article on
Wikipedia? What kind of company are you?

12. The 5 golden rules of success
in Wikipedia
● Errrr...
● Hmmm...
© Parée - CC-BY 2.0 - Flickr
● Ahem...
● Well...
● Let's discuss this.

13. Thank you
● Donate: http://donate.wikimedia.org.uk/
You should donate ...
...but remember, it won't make your article
better :-)
Wikimédia France: http://wikimedia.fr
Wikimedia UK: http://wikimedia.org.uk
Delphine Ménard: delphine.menard@wikimedia.fr