The document discusses models of popularity and sharing on social networks and websites. It outlines 5 observations about social networks today, including the rise of second generation networks and object-mediated sociality. It then describes 3 models of popularity: watercooler conversations around shared objects, viral sharing of interesting content, and tag-based social sharing. The document concludes with 10 principles for designing websites and systems to encourage sharing, such as making them personally useful and useful, allowing different levels of participation, and adding elements of serendipity, independence, and play.

1. The perils of popularity (or how to create hits) Rashmi Sinha www.slideshare.net

2. 5 observations about today’s web 3 models of popularity 10 principles for design

3. 5 observations

4. 1. Second generation social networks Sharing in large networks, versus own site Human crawlers Urban sociality

5. First generation Social Networks (Friendster, LinkedIn…) How it works People connect to each other Six degrees of separation “ Are you my friend” awkwardness 1) I am linked to -> -> to you --->You are linked to her -> -> to her…

6. Hi I found you while I was searching my network at LinkedIn. Let's connect directly, so we can help each other with referrals. If we connect, both of our networks will grow… X

7. Object mediated social networks “… sociality along lines that include objects in the concept of social relations.” Katrin-Knorr Cetina Coffee Tomatoes

8. Model a: Watercooler conversations (around objects e.g., Flickr, Yahoo answers) 1) I share my pics -> -> with you ---> -->You share your pics -> ---> with him How it works People share objects | watch others Connections through objects Social info streams: emergence of popular, interesting items

9. Model b: Viral sharing (passing on interesting stuff, e.g., YouTube videos) How it works Individual to individual to individual Popularity based navigation track “viral” items 1) I send video I like -> -> to you. You pass on --> --> to her, who sends on to her, who passes on…

10. Model c: Tag-based social sharing (linked by concepts. e.g., del.icio.us) 1) I tag my bookmarks -> you see my tags -->You share your tags -> How it works Saving & tagging your stuff (creating bookmarks). Tags mediate social connections Formation of social/conceptual information streams. Emergence of popular, interesting items politics lebanon Global voices politics technology Global voices web JAVA CNN networks blogs science science science brain

11. Model d: Social news creation (rating news stories, e.g., digg, Newsvine) 1) I find interesting story -> you rate story -->Others rate stories How it works Finding and rating stories Popular stories rise to top 5 4

12. Urban sociality Crowds in MMORPGS Alone together Passive presence of others Playing for the audience, but not interacting (Ducheneaut et al. CHI 2006) Social facilitation passive presence can influence Observed in cockroaches! (Zajonc, 1960)

13. 2. Sharing is relevant to search Conversations around objects: community meets catalog

14. Popularity is popular on sharing sites No multi-level menus! Navigation = Top100 lists, tag clouds

15. Did Paul Ford speak too soon?

16. The sharing imperative

17. is starting to influence search

19. Sharing compared to search shared by creator smaller reach higher quality centralized repositories relatively homogenous social activity inside indicates relevancy, popularity

20. 3. conformity effects in social decisions sequential decisions even 3 is enough

21. How Influence Works The individual Conversion (private acceptance) Independence Counterconformity Information Influence Normative Influence Interpersonal Influence Compliance Social Influence

22. Social influence in web-based systems Cognitive Diversity Independence Decentralization Easy Aggregation

23. 3. rich get richer effects at network level

24. Duncan Watts experiments Two worlds Individual Social Influence – 8 separate worlds Theory of cumulative advantage

25. 4. Era of hits is not over

26. Long tail hypothesis democratized production > more inventory democratized distribution > more consumption lowered search costs > reach niches

27. N Sync vs. lonely girl

29. System designer as studio boss People want a shared reality Mechanisms emerge to create trends

30. Creating trends Everything starts as equal People can connect locally Highlight alternative viewpoints System should be flexible

31. 3 models of sociality Google Digg YouTube

32. Google - Blind sociality less social engagement sequential conformity reduced

33. No way to navigate social network

37. Digg as a laser beam Focused in time on tech topics young male users

38. encourages mobs Quick, engaging, transparent metric Sequential decisions

39. Youtube - promiscuous popularity Many metrics Different strokes for different folks

40. Popularity on SlideShare Keep it on your desktop Download Remember stuff, tell someone you like their stuff Favorite & tag Share with your friends Email Share on your blog Embed Watch it View Interact with others Comment Goal Metric

41. Most viewed shown on front page content it surfaces

42. Most favorited & tagged balance individual and social reflect back tags in social stream main social gesture

44. 10 principles to design for sharing

45. Forget the ipod!

46. Give up control This is messy!

47. 1. Make system personally useful memorable personal snippets (e.g., Del.icio.us & Flickr) Self-expression (e.g., Newsvine) Social status: Digg Don’t count on altruism thrive on people’s selfishness

49. 2. Symbiotic relationship between personal & social Small individual contributions can be collected and mashed-up Simple, guessable URLs for everything Personal snippets > Social stream Pictures > by Events Music > by Playlists

50. 3. Porous boundary between public & private Personal desktop software vs. social websites People will share for the right returns defaults to public, can change to private user has control individual pieces & sets Privacy settings on Flickr

51. 4. levels of participation Everyone does not need to create! Implicit creation (creating by consuming) Remixing—adding value to others’ content Source: Bradley Horowitz’s weblog, Elatable, Feb. 17, 2006, “Creators, Synthesizers, and Consumers”

52. 5. Let people feel presence of others Sense that others are out there what paths are worn real time updating

53. 6. and yet, moments of Independence… Choreography: when alone, when part of group prevent mobs not too easy to mimic others incentives for originality allow for alternative viewpoints

54. 7. Add in serendipity navigation not just about popularity access to some popular stuff (keep this fast moving) make “long tail” accessible popularity as a jump off point to other ways of exploring personalization & recommendations ad-hoc groups?

55. 8. Complete circle of sharing I share You use it ?

56. 9. Add in a dash of experts contest on SlideShare: both judges & popular votes

57. 10. Most of all, allow for play

58. Finally your slides at http://www.slideshare.net/tag/yrb find me at http://www.slideshare.net/rashmi